The defending World Series champions have finally found their new general manager.
After the Houston Astros won their second World Series title this past fall, owner Jim Crane made the surprising decision to not retain then-GM James Click.
Today, they have finally found their replacement.
Dana Brown, who has served as the Vice President of Scouting for the Atlanta Braves over the past four seasons, was hired by the Astros earlier today.
And with their latest hire, the Astros have made some important history, joining the Chicago White Sox as only the second organization to have both a Black general manager and manager at the same time.
Ken Williams was the team’s general manager back in 2003, with Jerry Manuel serving as the team’s manager.
The hiring of GM Dana Brown, with Dusty Baker has manager, marks only the 2nd time in #MLB history that a team has had a Black GM and Black manager at the same time. The only other instance was #WhiteSox GM Ken Williams and manager Jerry Manuel from 2000-2003.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) January 26, 2023
This is some important history.
It’s a huge step forward for society in terms of inclusion and diversity.
Brown also joins Williams as the only other Black executive in all of baseball.
But with Dusty Baker as the manager of the Astros, Brown has helped the organization achieve yet another important milestone, which could pave the way for more Black executives and managers.
He’ll also have a very talented roster to work with in 2023.
The Astros are obviously coming off of their second World Series title and look to be in a good position to potentially win another one.
They had signed Jose Abreu to a three-year deal at the onset of the offseason.
But Jose Altuve, Jeremy Pena, Kyle Tucker, Yordan Alvarez, and Alex Bregman are also still in the mix.
NEXT: New Astros GM Joins Rare Company
