The Colorado Rockies are finalizing a deal to hire Paul DePodesta to run their baseball operations department, sources told ESPN. The move brings the longtime executive back to baseball to try to rebuild a franchise that just finished a 119-loss season.
DePodesta, 52, will leave the Cleveland Browns, where he spent roughly a decade as the team's chief strategy officer, to return to MLB. He was a key figure in the analytically driven Oakland A's front office during the Moneyball era, later worked for the Los Angeles Dodgers, and has had roles with the Mets and Padres. He joined the Browns in early 2016; Cleveland has produced two winning seasons and an overall 56-99-1 record during his time there.
Colorado has been searching for a leader after GM Bill Schmidt resigned Oct. 1 following the club's fourth straight last-place finish in the National League West and its third straight 100-plus-loss season. Two finalists for the Rockies' top baseball job — Cleveland assistant GM Matt Forman and Arizona assistant GM Amiel Sawdaye — reportedly declined the position, in part because it is expected to require a multiyear rebuild.
The challenges DePodesta inherits are substantial. The big-le
