The A’s have notified about 30% of their business operations employees that they "will not return next year after their furloughs end Dec. 31," according to Susan Slusser of the S.F. CHRONICLE. The club is "reducing its business staff by about 60 positions, primarily in ticket sales, events and marketing." Sources said that an additional 20-plus employees "already have left voluntarily after finding new positions," while a number of staffers have been "informed that they may resume their jobs in early November." The A’s also "let go a number of business-operations employees early in the year, before the pandemic shut down the season." But the total of jobs lost "does not include the departures in baseball operations." The A’s "will retain more than 145 of the 160 employees on the baseball side," including "most of those working in scouting and player development as well as big-league operations." The club furloughed "half of their roughly 350 full-time staffers in all departments in May during baseball’s shutdown," but "reinstated many of them when training camp opened in July." Staffing levels are now "more in line with the team’s structure before Dave Kaval became team president" in late '16. The A’s are continuing to "provide health care and 401(k) contributions for furloughed employees until the end of the year" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 10/25).
PHILLIES MAKE CUTS: In Philadelphia, Scott Lauber cited sources as saying that the Phillies have "informed five talent evaluators -- four pro scouts and one special assistant -- that their contracts won't be renewed." Among the cuts were former manager Pete Mackanin and Dave Hollins, the "popular third baseman on the Phillies' pennant-winning 1993 team." Sources said that Pro Scouts Howie Freiling, Jesse Levis and Jeff Harris "were also let go." Meanwhile, cuts are "coming in other departments, too," as full-time employees in non-baseball departments "could face layoffs next month after the Phillies offered a buyout package in late September" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 10/23).
