clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Kevin Towers fired as Diamondbacks GM

It's not official, but Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic is reporting Towers has been dismissed as the Diamondbacks General Manager, with a formal announcement due on Friday morning.

By Jim McLennan
Christian Petersen

Towers was appointed General Manager of the Diamondbacks on September 22, 2010, so the move comes just short of him completing four years on the job. Initially, the move was a roaring success, as Arizona went from last to first in the National League West in 2011, barely losing out to the Milwaukee Brewers in the Division Series. But the past three years have seen a sharp reversal in fortune, culminating in this season, where the Diamondbacks currently have the third-worst record in the major leagues. With the team having gone into the season with its highest Opening Day payroll ever, Towers' position was seen by many as increasingly untenable.

Speculation continued to mount after Tony La Russa was appointed to a new position above Towers, that of Chief Baseball Officer, in May this year. La Russa engaged in a period of analysis and observation, and this may be the first move with his fingerprints on it. This is, as yet, unconfirmed, but Piecoro's track record is solid and I doubt he'd have gone to press with a story like this, if there wasn't a great deal of supporting evidence. If true, the dismissal doesn't come as a surprise, except perhaps in the timing, with only 22 games left in the season.

We'll see if I can remove the question-mark from the headline in the morning. But I think it's probably fair to say that a lot of Diamondback fans will be pleased with the news, seeing it as a positive stop toward the team contending, at some point down the road. I'll certainly sleep well tonight.

UPDATE

The team's twitter account has confirmed.

In This Stream

Kevin Towers fired as Diamondbacks GM, Dave Stewart replaces him

View all 14 stories

Next Up In MLB