In a league where big-market teams have long dominated, the Arizona Diamondbacks’ front office, led by general manager Mike Hazen, has turned recent free agent signings into success.
Senior MLB writer Tyler Kepner of The Athletic released a list where top decision makers from around the league ranked the top 10 front offices in baseball.
Where the Diamondbacks rank among MLB front offices
The Diamondbacks place at the No. 8 on the list. They received 30 total points, including one first-place vote. They fell one spot from last year’s ranking at No. 7, when they received 43 points and also earned one first-place vote.
Here’s how points were awarded:
As we did last year, The Athletic polled 40 of the top decision-makers from across the sport, asking each to rank the top five front offices in baseball, though they could not vote for their own team. We assigned a point value to each position — 10 points for first place, seven points for second place, five points for third, three points for fourth and one point for fifth – and offered anonymity in exchange for unvarnished insights into how their rivals do it.
Hazen, who took over as general manager in 2017, has led the team to five winning seasons and two playoff appearances — including a trip to the World Series in 2023, the second in franchise history.
The Diamondbacks actually had the most fifth-place votes of any team, but the Braves and Phillies had a bit more overall support. In any case, there’s widespread respect for Mike Hazen: We heard he’s “one of the most underrated front-office people in the game,” “extremely sharp, very intelligent, knows the game inside and out, contemporary” – and several folks noted that he hires good people around him.
And “good people” include manager Torey Lovullo, who was hired in 2017 and has built a deep relationship with Hazen. Their bond grew stronger when Hazen’s wife, Nicole passed away from brain cancer in 2022.
While not every acquisition in Hazen’s time in Arizona has been successful, acquisitions such as Lourdes Gurriel Jr. in 2023, Eugenio Suarez in 2024 and this past offseason with Corbin Burnes and Josh Naylor, have shifted the narrative.
Arizona has had some high-profile misses in free agency (Madison Bumgarner, Jordan Montgomery), and got little back in trades for Paul Goldschmidt and Zack Greinke. But they’ve also made shrewd deals for Zac Gallen, Gabriel Moreno, AJ Puk and Eugenio Suarez, among others, and have signed several key pieces to long-term contracts before free agency (Corbin Carroll, Ketel Marte, Justin Martinez, Geraldo Perdomo, Brandon Pfaadt).
Carroll is off to a scorching start this season, in 21 games he’s batting .341 (10th in MLB), seven home runs, 19 RBIs with an OPS of 1.096 (fifth in MLB).
Naylor is right behind him on the team with the second-highest average at .326 with four home runs and 12 RBIs.
More importantly, the Diamondbacks are locking in their young core. Carroll, Ketel Marte, Brandon Pfaadt and several other key pieces are now signed through their prime years, giving the club both stability and flexibility. It’s a sign of confidence in the group Hazen has built.
As the Diamondbacks’ first-place voter explained: “I went (with) Arizona because Hazen doesn’t have the resources that L.A. does and what they’ve done is super impressive. It’s an underrated front office.
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Top 10 MLB front offices list
Here’s how the rest of the top 10 shakes out:
1. Los Angeles Dodgers, 300 points, 23 first-place votes
2. Tampa Bay Rays, 236.5 points, 8.5 first-place votes
3. Milwaukee Brewers, 118 points, one first-place vote
4. Cleveland Guardians, 104.5 points, 2.5 first-place votes
5. New York Yankees, 53 points, one first-place vote
T-6. Atlanta Braves, 42 points, one first-place vote
T-6. Philadelphia Phillies, 42 points, one first-place vote
8. Arizona Diamondbacks, 30 points, one first-place vote
9. Baltimore Orioles, 23 points, zero first-place votes
10. San Diego Padres, 18 points, one first-place vote.
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