Former Colorado Rockies’ general manager and current MLB Network analyst Dan O’Dowd visited the Jack Vita Show last week to reflect on his career working in baseball and break down the latest Major League Baseball news.
O’Dowd was the Rockies’ GM from September 1999 to October 2014. In his time as the club’s GM, the Rockies won the 2007 National League Pennant and went to the World Series, falling to the Boston Red Sox.
Prior to being named the Rockies’ GM, O’Dowd spent 12 years (1987 – 1998) as the assistant general manager of the Cleveland Indians, working under executive John Hart. During that time, the Indians won four American League Central division titles (1995 – 1998), making two World Series appearances, in 1995 and 1997.
Since turning down a contract extension to remain with the Rockies in 2014, O’Dowd has served as an analyst on MLB Network, appearing on popular shows such as MLB Tonight, MLB Central, High Heat, MLB Now and The Rundown.
This joins Jack to reflect on his time working with the Rockies and Indians, sharing stories from his experience working in two MLB front offices. How have MLB front offices changed over the years?
This talks about what it was like working for the Indians at the time that the 1989 film Major League was released. As a real life friend of Oakland Athletics’ executive president Billy Beane’s, he also shares his thoughts on another baseball movie: Moneyball. Just how true it is Moneyball to reality?
This also tackles some of the latest MLB news with Jack. What are Dan’s thoughts on Major League Baseball shrinking the size of September active rosters from 40 to 28 players in recent years? If the Major League Baseball Players Association does represent minor league players moving forward, what might that mean? What could it entail for the future of minor league baseball?
Dan puts several of today’s teams and farm systems under the microscope and shares which teams he would buy stock in moving into 2023. Dan and Jack discuss the Cubs’ rebuild. Should the team be active this winter in free agency, or wait a little longer for more of the organization’s young talent to reach the Major League level?