It appears the Boston Red Sox have made significant progress in their search for Chaim Bloom's replacement.
Minnesota Twins general manager Thad Levine has emerged as a strong candidate for Boston's head of baseball operations role, per WEEI's Rob Bradford. The New York Post's Jon Heyman reports Levine is interviewing for the job.
He wasn't the only name linked to the Red Sox on Monday, however. Bradford reports that former Pittsburgh Pirates GM Neal Huntington is a candidate for the position. Former Red Sox pitcher Craig Breslow, currently in the Chicago Cubs front office after a 12-year MLB career, is also in the mix, per Joel Sherman of The New York Post.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Boston sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
The Athletic's Chad Jennings reported Monday that Toronto Blue Jays vice president of baseball strategy James Click is also in the running for Boston's GM job, while noting that three other candidates are off the table. Los Angeles Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes, Philadelphia Phillies GM Sam Fuld, and Twins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey each reportedly declined interviews for the Red Sox job. Fuld had been rumored to be one of the "leading candidates" to replace Bloom.
MORE RED SOX
Jennings added it's uncertain whether the Red Sox plan to pursue Kim Ng, who stepped down from her role as Miami Marlins GM on Monday. Red Sox assistant GM Eddie Romero is considered the favorite among internal candidates. And as for Levine, it’s “no slam dunk" that the two sides are a match.
With so many names floating around, it can be difficult to keep up with the Red Sox' ongoing search for a Bloom replacement. So to recap, here are the candidates and the names that have been ruled out, per reports.
In the running:
- Thad Levine: GM, Minnesota Twins
- James Click: VP of baseball strategy, Toronto Blue Jays
- Neal Huntington: Former GM, Pittsburgh Pirates
- Craig Breslow: Assistant GM, Chicago Cubs
- Eddie Romero: Assistant GM, Boston Red Sox
- Kim Ng: Former GM, Miami Marlins
Off the table:
- Theo Epstein: Consultant, MLB
- Mike Hazen: VP and GM, Arizona Diamondbacks
- Jon Daniels: Former president, Texas Rangers
- Brandon Gomes: GM, Los Angeles Dodgers
- Sam Fuld: GM, Philadelphia Phillies
- Derek Falvey: President, Minnesota Twins