MLB Rumors: Dan O’Dowd to the Atlanta Braves?

Imagine the scene: longtime Colorado Rockies’ executive Dan O’Dowd is walking out of the office, having informed owner Dick Monfort that he is stepping down from his position to join his old buddy John Hart, now the interim general manager of the Atlanta Braves.

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Monfort, his face red in desperate frustration, chases after O’Dowd.

How could you walk out on me? How could you walk out on us? I fought for you! I fought for US! And now you are just going to walk away?!?

O’Dowd looks back, box in hand, a single tear dribbling down his cheek. He says not a word, puts his head down, and slowly leaves.

I defended you! I blamed Geivo for everything! For you! And now you’re leaving! You know what?!? Fine! You don’t quit, because you’re fired! So there! You’re fired! You are DEAD to me, Dan O’Dowd!

Monfort turns back, wondering to himself how he is going to have time to take over as assistant general manager/player development guy/whatever the hell else O’Dowd actually does, because hiring an outside candidate is, of course, out of the question.

***

It is the parenthetical that caught the eyes of each and every Rockies fan on Monday. Frank Wren was fired as general manager in Atlanta and the aforementioned Hart took over, at least for now. Hart does not necessarily plan to stick in that role, but he will have a major say in how the front office positions are filled.

Believe it or not, that is where O’Dowd’s name comes into play because of his relationship with Hart. Peter Gammons writes the following:

"John Hart, one of Schuerholz’s closest and most respected friends, will play a major role here. Maybe as interim general manager, maybe in the role of a Theo Epstein, but he will help decide Wren’s successor, and could well help develop that successor, especially if that person is assistant GM John Coppolella.Understand Hart’s historic front office baseball tree. Mark Shapiro, Dan O’Dowd (who could end up with the Braves in some capacity), Josh Byrnes, Paul DePodesta, Chris Antonetti, Ben Cherington, Jon Daniels, A.J. Preller and Jerry DiPoto are all John Hart guys. And probably more."

It seems like the other guys on this list might take exception to having O’Dowd’s name listed next to theirs on this “historic front office tree,” but the point is still well taken.

Imagine that. After all of these years of hoping that O’Dowd would be fired, he might leave on his own. If this actually gains any traction, it could be great news for the Rockies fans…or it could be terrible news for Rockies fans.

If it’s not Monfort’s decision to dismiss O’Dowd, are you really that confident that he would even replace him? Can’t you see a scenario where Bill Geivett gets promoted from whatever his job is now to a more traditional general manager role, while Monfort becomes even more involved on the personnel side of things?

Considering the fact that Monfort reportedly vetoed a Jorge De La Rosa trade this summer and was compared to Dallas Cowboys’ owner Jerry Jones by Patrick Saunders recently, I would argue that it’s not just a possibility; I would argue that it is the most likely outcome if O’Dowd leaves under these circumstances.

I bet you thought things couldn’t get any worse in the Colorado front office. You were wrong, because this scenario would definitely be worse, and I believe it would definitely be in play if O’Dowd skipped town for Atlanta.