How Craig Breslow reportedly impressed Red Sox to be hired as next head of baseball ops
Breslow impressed Red Sox owner John Henry during the process in multiple ways, according to MassLive's Sean McAdam.
To the Boston Red Sox, Craig Breslow was the right man to become their next chief baseball officer.
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It wasn’t always that way though. MassLive’s Sean McAdam reported that despite Breslow being recommended by “some who are respected within the Red Sox organization,” he wasn’t their clear No. 1 choice until later in the hiring process. They viewed him as a man worth speaking to as an external, fresh voice, but his hire was certainly not set in stone at that point.
“As the process got underway, [Breslow] was identified as someone who was, at the very least, worth speaking to, if for no other reason than to get his perspective as a valued baseball mind and someone from outside the organization who could bring an unbiased look at things,” McAdam wrote.
During the interview process, the Red Sox reportedly grew fond of Breslow, enough to make him one of three finalists alongside Minnesota Twins general manager Thad Levine and Cleveland Guardians consultant Neal Huntington. But after talking with principal owner John Henry during the second round of interviews, Breslow rose to the very top of the Red Sox’ list, according to McAdam.
“Breslow first began to separate himself from the pack when, during the second round of interviews, he met with Red Sox principal owner John Henry,” McAdam wrote. “Henry, who has always relied greatly on analytics in his own business dealings and favors them when it comes to his baseball management team, was impressed by Breslow’s aptitude for metrics and how they should best be utilized and interpreted. Henry also was impressed with Breslow’s overall intellectual curiosity.”
The Red Sox wanted to welcome Breslow to their front office, but there were “some reservations” about making him their head of baseball ops because he had only worked as an assistant general manager for the Cubs, according to McAdam. But the Red Sox also realized that the Cubs or another team down the line could offer Breslow a promotion if they didn’t offer him the top job as they “grew comfortable” giving their former pitcher the job to replace Bloom, McAdam reported.
The Red Sox announced the hiring of Breslow on Wednesday after reports emerged earlier in the week that he was the favorite for the job. Breslow will be formally introduced as the Red Sox’ next chief baseball officer during a press conference on Thursday.
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