MILWAUKEE (AP) — David Stearns is stepping down as president of baseball operations for the Milwaukee Brewers, but will remain with the organization as an advisor to owner Mark Attanasio, the team announced Thursday.
Matt Arnold, who has served as the Brewers’ senior vice president and general manager since 2020, will assume the primary role of overseeing baseball operations.
Stearns led the Brewers’ baseball operations in perhaps the franchise’s greatest streak of sustained success. He joined the Brewers as general manager in October 2015 and was named president of baseball operations prior to the 2019 season.
“This is not an easy decision for me, and one I have been working on for a long time,” Stearns said in a statement. “Mark Attanasio and I have had candid conversations, and I knew this day would come. So it was a priority for both of us for the transition to take place. That’s certainly the case today.”
A press conference is scheduled for late Thursday morning.
The Brewers’ franchise-record four straight playoff appearances ended the season with an 86-76 record, earning them the final wild card spot in the NL behind the World Series-bound Philadelphia Phillies.
Stearns spearheaded the 2018 acquisition of Christian Yelich, turning the Brewers into legitimate competitors. Jerich won MVP in 2018 as the Brewers reached the NL Championship Series, one game short of their first World Series appearance since 1982. Jerich finished second in MVP voting for the following season.
Stearns came under heavy criticism this season for sending four-time All-Star Josh Hader to the San Diego Padres at the trade deadline. The Brewers had a three-game lead in NL Central at the time of the trade, but faded out of the playoff picture after Hader left. The Padres reached his NLCS.
Other AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
