A's Make Interesting Addition to Front Office with Eye on the Future

A's nab exec that can help them conquer a problem on the horizon

Apr 20, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; A general view of gloves and hats in the Colorado Rockies dugout during the fifth inning against the San Diego Padres at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

The Athletics made an interesting addition to their front office mix this week, bringing in former Colorado Rockies GM Bill Schmidt, according to Jon Heyman of the NY Post. Schmidt had loads of experience working with the Rockies, spending 25 years with the organization, with two decades of that time being spent running their amateur drafts.

He was promoted to interim GM when the Rockies dismissed Jeff Bridich back in 2021, late becoming the full-time GM, and he held that role until they made another move this offseason, bringing in Paul DePodesta, formerly of the A's Moneyball front office.

Former Rockies GM Bill Schmidt is going to work for the A’s. Special assistant. Will be scouting for them, a specialty.

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) January 14, 2026

So he has a wealth of experience, but how has he done in recent years? Well, the results haven't been the best. We'll go over some of the top picks from the Rockies drafts in recent years, and then wrap up with why this is at the very least a very interesting hire.

How has Schmidt fared in the MLB Draft?

Given that the Rockies haven't had a ton of success during his tenure as the team's GM, perhaps we should exercise some caution when it comes to Schmidt. One look at his recent draft classes doesn't necessarily provide a ton of confidence in the processes the Rockies have been deploying.

That said, some of their best picks each year have been later in the draft, so perhaps the A's can improve their overall draft process with Schmidt on board.

Here are the top performing picks (according to bWAR) from the past ten draft classes for Colorado, staring with 2023, which is the first year going backwards that they have had someone debut from the class.

Year	Player (pick)	bWAR in MLB
2023	Seth Halvorsen (202)	0.8 in 52 IP
2022	Ryan Ritter (116)	0.3 in 207 PA
2021	Hunter Goodman (109)	2.3 in 880 PA
2020	Zac Veen (9)	-0.3 in 37 PA
2019	Brenton Doyle (129)	4.9 in 1572 PA
2018	Jake Bird (156)	1.4 in 232 IP
2017	Lucas Gilbreath (206)	1.0 in 88 IP
2016	Bryan Baker (320)	1.8 in 208 IP
2015	Brendan Rogers (3)	5.9 in 1957 PA
2014	Kyle Freeland (8)	19.2 in 1260 IP

We should also note that the top pick in 2023, Chase Dollander, who went ninth overall, made his debut in 2025 and finished with a 6.52 ERA in 21 starts. Bryan Baker (2016) was traded in 2018 and none of that value was accomplished with the Rockies.

Kyle Freeland is the real standout of the past decade, as the Rockies haven't hit on many recent first rounders at all, and the production they've received at the big-league level has been pretty limited. In looking at these draft classes, you can see why the Rockies haven't been a great team for awhile.

Overall in this span of time, the Rockies have has 26 players they drafted put up neutral (0.0) or positive bWAR numbers in their time in the big leagues. They've also had 30 players make it to the big leagues that have produced negative WAR, which isn't great.

Without Freeland, those WAR totals may have come close to evening out at the end of the day, meaning that Colorado had either drafted guys that didn't make it to The Show, or their production was offset by other draftees.

So with all of that negativity, how can this still be an interesting hire for the A's?

Why this could work for the Athletics

It's no secret that Colorado isn't an easy place to play, and that's part of the equation here. With the A's planned move to Las Vegas coming up in 2028, they'll be playing in the second-highest elevation ballpark in baseball, behind Coors Field. Schmidt's decades of experience going after guys to play at elevation could come in handy when evaluating talent.

He also won't be the head honcho in the draft room, but the hope here has to be that the A's front office will be able to learn some new ways to evaluate talent when there's an eye on elevation. That said, 2,001 feet isn't quite as high as 6,800, but it's still well above most ballparks, and only people that have worked for the Rockies have this kind of experience.

The other interesting facet here is that with the A's, maybe his way of doing things will work a little better with a front office that is more equipped to handle advanced metrics. The A's are still well behind the curve overall, but they're ahead of the Rockies analytically.

The other big difference here could be the A's development of the players they draft. Without having to account for how they may fare at altitude, the A's are able to move guys fairly quickly. It will also end up helping that their Triple-A affiliate will be in the same city in a couple of seasons.