Elephant Rumblings: Athletics’ Building Of New Front Office Continues

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JUNE 23: Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred (L) and principal owner John Fisher of the Athletics shake hands after participating in a ceremonial groundbreaking for the USD 1.75 billion, 33,000-seat domed stadium for MLB's Athletics on June 23, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevad

Baseball Zone

SEE ALL

SB Nation

My 2026 Royals Hall of Fame ballot

Trendline

Chicago Cubs Decline Ian Happ's Qualifying Offer, Explore Replacement Options

SB Nation

Samil Serrano is a notable riser on Baseball America’s Washington Nationals prospect update

What is the story about?

Happy Friday Junior everyone!

The Athletics have decided on Brewers executive Cam Castro as their next General Manager. Like most modern front offices in the sport these days, the GM title isn’t what it once was. The top job is now President of Baseball Operations, the job that went to Taylor Smith recently. Even with that being said, the GM job is an important one one way or the other, and it looks like the A’s landed on a good pick for their next one.

Castro’s time with the Brewers saw him help draft

and develop tons of talented pitchers. Just looking at a list of former pitchers for the Brew Crew over the past decade and you see tons of quality starting pitching such Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff, Freddy Peralta, and more recently Jacob Misiorowski. And then you have studs in the bullpen seemingly every year, with the team able to say bye to Josh Hader and Devin Williams and simply plug in Trevor Megill, who had a dominant season as Milwaukee’s closer (and could be on the trade market).

Smith himself comes from more of an analytical background but also oversaw good pitching development at his previous stops in Tampa and Boston. It’s likely Smith is going to be the big-picture voice of the front office moving forward while Castro is in charge of the pitching development. That’s a tall task for this organization, one that has struggled to produce consistent pitching at the big league level.

While Castro’s primary focus is likely to be on revamping the farm and the development system, don’t be surprised to see the A’s connected to names he might be familiar with from his days in Milwaukee. If baseball ends up with a salary floor, could we see the A’s make a play for former Brewers ace Freddy Peralta? That’d sure be one way to soak up all that sudden payroll space. Maybe the team is enamored with one of Milwaukee’s young pitchers like Logan Henderson, Robert Gasser or Aaron Ashby, all of whom are young and fit the A’s timeline. Could Castro convince Smith that trading four years of first baseman Nick Kurtz in exchange for four years of an ace in Henderson? If the A’s believe in Tommy White, that’s not the worst trade idea in the world.

The A’s are going to be making moves in their pitching department this offseason. Trades, signings, under-the-radar additions that will end up paying huge dividends during the dog days of August and beyond. One thing A’s fans can know is that Castro has a good track record, and he’ll be directly linked to any and all pitching additions the Athletics begin making over the coming months and years.

Have a great Thursday A’s fans.

A’s Coverage

Athletics Hire Cam Castro As General Manager
Taylor Smith’s Improbable Quest: A Quality SP
A’s trade RHP prospect to Red Sox for outfielder Eaton
Three A’s Officially Elect Free Agency
After standout year, No. 7 prospect Taylor could factor into A’s ’27 plans
Q&A: Smith discusses his new role as youngest head of baseball ops in MLB
Taylor Smith’s Improbable Quest: A Quality SP
Why A’s Bringing Back Sonny Gray Could Make Sense
Optics vs. Infrastructure: Taylor Smith’s First Dilemma
Athletics Hire Taylor Smith As Next President of Baseball Operations
Realistic Shea Langeliers trade offers the Yankees, Cubs and Reds can make
A’s Max Muncy Undergoes Knee Debridement
The five biggest questions facing the A’s this offseason
Inside the A’s State-of-the-Art Las Vegas Ballpark
How technology will shape fan experiences at the A’s Las Vegas ballpark
Pitching prospect Huggins growing his game with the help of this A’s Hall of Famer
’Be a sponge’: No. 19 prospect leads A’s Fall League group with do-it-all mentality
A’s LHP prospect Richardson shows off health and resiliency during Fall League homecoming
Get the best of Athletics Nation on the new SB Nation app