Rockies Closing in on Timeline to Select Finalists for General Manager Job

The Colorado Rockies are clarifying their finalists for the front office role that will replace general manager Bill Schmidt.

A detailed view of a Colorado Rockies hat and glove on the bench against the Atlanta Braves in the ninth inning at Truist Park. / Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The Colorado Rockies are conducting a search for a replacement for general manager Bill Schmidt, who stepped aside from the job earlier this month.

Turns out, the search is gaining momentum. Per the Denver Post (subscription required) the Rockies expect to narrow down their finalists for the position next week. It’s not clear if the role will be a general manager, a president of baseball operations or another title. Many organizations have both a PBO and a GM.

Walker Montfort, who is the team’s executive vice president and a son of the team’s owner and CEO Dick Montfort, is leading the search. He has reportedly interviewed at least three candidates for the job.

The Rockies’ New Leadership Search

Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Those candidates include James Click, who is in the Toronto Blue Jays front office and formerly led the Houston Astros to the 2022 World Series title as general manager; Scott Sharp, the assistant general manager with the Kansas City Royals; and Matt Forman, the assistant general manager of the Cleveland Guardians.

Rockies ownership has stated a desire to go outside the organization for their new leadership. Schmidt spent 26 years with the Rockies, beginning as the leader of the franchise’s scouting department and eventually taking over as general manager.

Sharp and Forman have experience in medium markets, working with smaller budgets and developing talent through the farm system. Click had more money at his disposal when running the Astros, but he worked for an owner in Jim Crane who had a reputation for limiting spending on free agents.

That seems to have ruled out a potential reunion with Thad Levine, a former Rockies staffer who became the general manager with the Minnesota Twins after a long stretch as the assistant general manager with the Texas Rangers.

The Post also reported that Colorado is expected to hire a chief revenue and strategy officer as part of the front office shake-up.

The Rockies are coming off a 119-loss season, the worst in franchise history but not the worst in Major League history. It was the franchise’s third straight season with at least 100 losses, a streak that required change for the organization.

The hire that begins to lead that change could be made in the next couple of weeks, just in time for the annual general managers meetings after the World Series that jump-starts the hot stove season of Major League Baseball.

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