Red Sox President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski on Thursday named Assistant GM Mike Hazen GM "after interviewing only two candidates from a list of 30," according to Nick Cafardo of the BOSTON GLOBE. On top of the 39-year-old Hazen, who began his tenure with the team in '06 as Dir of Player Development and was promoted to Assistant GM in January, Dombrowski said that he "also interviewed" Astros Player Development Dir Quinton McCracken. Although Hazen "has been part of the decision-making team that has led to three last-place finishes in four years, he is considered a good talent evaluator." Dombrowski acknowledged that this GM role "will be different" because he "has final say on all matters." Hazen "will run the baseball operations department" and "will report to Dombrowski." Dombrowski "expects Hazen will be involved with trade talks" (BOSTON GLOBE, 9/25).
HIGH MARKS FOR THE MOVE: In Boston, Michael Silverman writes promoting Hazen "was both the smart and the right move." Continuity "is hardly a right when it comes to a franchise possibly headed for its second last-place finish in as many seasons" and "is a luxury in this case." Silverman: "Credit Dombrowski for recognizing what he has on his hands with this franchise." Red Sox Owner Fenway Sports Group is "almost begging for the right person to tell it how to spend dollars it will make available, and it has a core of young players that is almost unrivaled in the game." Having Hazen play a key role in the club’s future "is the mark of a deft leader" (BOSTON HERALD, 9/25). ESPN BOSTON's Gordon Edes wrote just as former Red Sox GM Ben Cherington "paid the price" for the team’s blunders, Hazen "is the beneficiary of all the things the baseball operations staff has done right in recent years -- the drafting, signing and development of a raft of young players who ... have offered great hope for the future." Dombrowski "showed he understood that when he quickly promoted Gus Quattlebaum to be his pro scouting director after Jared Porter left" for the Cubs. The promotion of Hazen, whose strength is in player development, "reinforced that message exponentially" (ESPNBOSTON.com, 9/24). The Boston Globe's Dan Shaughnessy in a column last month wrote to "put your money" on Hazen becoming the next GM (THE DAILY).
