After the Los Angeles Dodgers were eliminated from the 2014 National League Division Series by the St. Louis Cardinals, they moved to overhaul their front office.
It began with the hiring of Andrew Friedman as president of baseball operations, a newly created position, and continued with the additions of Farhan Zaidi as general manager, and senior Vice President of baseball operations Josh Byrnes, among others.
Friedman’s arrival signaled the end of then-general manager Ned Colletti’s tenure as the head of the Dodgers’ front office.
Colletti was reassigned to a role as a senior advisor, which is a position he still holds, along with on occasion serving as a studio analyst for SportsNet LA.
Although Friedman essentially replaced Colletti and was tasked with getting the Dodgers over the proverbial hump, Friedman values the relationship he has with Colletti, per ESPN’s Doug Padilla:
“It’s a real benefit to me that he is still involved in the organization. We had a good relationship before I got here and it’s continued to grow. He’s enjoying the success of this year every bit as much as every one of us, as he should be.”
Colletti doesn’t harbor any resentment over the changes that came:
“I’m really pleased for everybody; I’m pleased for the players,” Colletti said. “All across the board, everybody here deserves a little bit of credit. It’s not easy to win. Winning is a lot harder than people think it is, and for this organization to win [the National League West] four times, it says a lot.”
The Arizona Diamondbacks reportedly had interest in Colletti for their once-vacant GM position. Arizona recently hired Mike Hazen as general manager and executive vice president.
With the help of former Dodgers scouting director Logan White, Colletti put together competitive rosters that won four division titles — including back-to-back NL West titles in 2013 and 2014 — and reached the postseason five times.
