Dan Evans (baseball)
Daniel P. Evans (born 27 January 1960) is an American professional baseball executive. Within Major League Baseball, Evans was most recently a top scout for the Toronto Blue Jays. He is currently a member of the Baseball Prospectus Advisory Board, serves on the Board of Directors for the SABR Rocky Mountain Chapter, and President/CEO of Evans Baseball Consulting. Evans was responsible for the Pacific Rim Operations of the Toronto Blue Jays and also scouted Major League, minor league, and international players. His experience is wide-ranging, as he is the only former GM of an MLB club who also led a baseball agency.[1] Evans attended Lane Technical High School on Chicago's North Side and DePaul University.
Dan Evans | |
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.jpg.webp) Evans in 2019 | |
| Born | 27 January 1960 |
| Occupation | Baseball executive |
He started in baseball as an intern with the Chicago White Sox while a junior at DePaul University. He was eventually promoted to Assistant General Manager/Director of Baseball Operations.[2] After almost 20 years, Evans resigned from the White Sox after their 2000 Central Division Championship season. During his tenure, he was responsible for drafting or acquiring future Hall of Famer Frank Thomas (designated hitter), Tom Seaver, Robin Ventura, Paul Konerko, and Bo Jackson, among others.
Evans then became the Executive Vice President and General Manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2001 to 2004, rebuilt the Dodgers' entire baseball organization after it had sunk to a rating of 28th within MLB as he inherited the team, and was the primary architect of the Dodgers' 2004 West Division champions, their first playoff club in eight years. Evans' winning percentage (.546) as General Manager is the second-best in Los Angeles Dodgers history. Among his draftees were All-Star outfielder Matt Kemp and catcher Russell Martin. Within two years, the Dodgers set franchise records for pitching and defense, and the organization elevated its ranking to 2nd overall. While Dodgers' GM, Evans promoted the first Taiwanese player (Chin-Feng Chen) to the Major Leagues, and three of the first four Taiwanese big leaguers have direct ties to Evans.
He has worked in decision-making roles for five MLB organizations (Chicago White Sox, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers, Seattle Mariners, and Toronto Blue Jays). After a few months of working for the Chicago Cubs along with some broadcasting, landed a job as a senior advisor with the Los Angeles Dodgers under Chairman Bob Daly and was eventually promoted to Dodgers' General Manager. Proficient in social media, Evans' Twitter account, @DanEvans108, was honored as a "Top 100 Must-Follow Sports Business Twitter Account of 2014" by Forbes and was named among "Top 50 Baseball Related Twitter Accounts" by Baseball America.
He was Commissioner of the Northern League of Professional Baseball in 2013, which folded before playing games due to the League's ownership issues. Evans authored a column "108 Stitches" for Baseball Prospectus before working for the Blue Jays. In 2013, he also became a "Baseball GM and Scouting" instructor for the online sports-career training school Sports Management Worldwide, founded and run by Dr. Lynn Lashbrook.[1]
Evans was born in Chicago, Illinois. He has two daughters (Sarah and Andrea), and lives in Boulder, Colorado.[1]
References
- "Dan Evans". www.sportsmanagementworldwide.com. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
- Stone, Larry (22 October 2005). "Amid travels, Evans still a Chicago man". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 7 October 2009.
| Sporting positions | ||
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| Preceded by Dave Wallace |
Los Angeles Dodgers General Manager 2001–2004 |
Succeeded by Paul DePodesta |