Former Toronto Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos has reportedly decided that the Arizona Diamondbacks won’t be his next team-building project.
The Diamondbacks’ GM job became vacant when the team fired Dave Stewart following a 69-93 season. Stewart made major win-now moves prior to the campaign by acquiring Shelby Miller from the Braves and signing Zack Greinke to a six-year $206.5 million deal, but neither had the desired effect.
Anthopoulos, who currently holds the position of vice-president of baseball operations for the Los Angeles Dodgers, stated in September that he had no intention of jumping ship. Also, the Diamondbacks might not be the most attractive destination for the 39-year-old.
Perhaps the most obvious reason is that the current roster isn’t particularly talented. First baseman Paul Goldschmidt is a legitimate superstar and A.J. Pollock and Jake Lamb are possible building blocks, but outside of that trio there’s shortstop Jean Segura and little else. On the pitching side, Greinke looks more like a problem contract than the ace of a competitive staff at age 32, and rotation depth is not the team’s strength.
The immediate future also looks relatively bleak. Baseball America ranked the Diamondbacks’ farm system 22nd-best in baseball and the loss of former first overall pick Dansby Swanson in the Miller trade looks like it’s really going to hurt.
If Anthopoulos is in a comfortable situation with the Dodgers, he’s probably best served to stay where he is until a better opportunity arises.
