The Milwaukee Brewers' front office has been reshaped after the organization's president announced that he will step down.
David Stearns will relinquish his role as president of baseball operations but will transition into an advisory role to owner Mark Attanasio. Matt Arnold, who serves as the Brewers' senior vice president and general manager, will take over as the president of baseball operations.
"I’m looking forward to gaining some time that I haven’t really had before," Stearns said at a news conference. "Looking forward to taking a deep breath. I’m looking forward to spending time with my family, looking forward to spending time with friends. And I’m looking forward to pursuing some other interests. I’m also not going anywhere. I’m going to be here in Milwaukee."
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Stearns cited the need for a break when he mentioned his decision to walk away.
He oversaw a significant amount of success after he joined the franchise in 2015. The team appeared in four straight postseasons until this season when they finished just one game behind the Philadelphia Phillies in the NL wild-card race. The Phillies are set to begin playing in the World Series against the Houston Astros on Friday.
MLB teams widely viewed Stearns as an appealing candidate. The New York Mets have been mentioned as a team that was interested in his services in the past, but Stearns noted that he currently does not have much interest in joining another team's front office.
Over the last six seasons the Brewers have racked up 481 wins, which only trails the Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves among National League teams.
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Stearns was also responsible for pulling off a trade to bring Christian Yelich to Milwaukee from Miami. Yelich was named NL MVP in 2018 when the Brewers reached the NL Championship Series.
"David’s impact on the organization has been transformational," Attanasio said in a statement. "He has created a process that has yielded highly competitive teams consistently and raised expectations to a new level both internally and with our fans."
Stearns' time in Milwaukee did not come without some missteps. Stearns sent four-time All-Star pitcher Josh Hader to the San Diego Padres during this past season's trade deadline. The team struggled after Hader's departure while the Padres made it to the NL Championship Series.
Stearns said the disappointing finish didn’t impact his decision to leave and that he'd been contemplating this move "for many months."
"I understand people want to know what comes next, and the truth is, I don’t know," the 37-year-old said. "I’m not going into this with any plan. I think my generation — a segment of my generation and I will certainly put myself in this group — is inflicted with a condition where we feel like every single thing must be planned out. Decision A must lead to Decision B, which must lead to Decision C.
"In this case, I’m making Decision A because I think it’s the right thing to do. I don’t know what decisions B and C will be, but I know that Decision A is the right thing to do for me."
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Arnold will now be tasked with handling the Brewers 18 arbitration-eligible players, including 2021 Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes and pitcher Brandon Woodruff.
Arnold must also make decisions on multiple free agents this offseason, including outfielder Andrew McCutchen, catcher Omar Narváez, utilityman Jace Peterson and relievers Taylor Rogers and Trevor Rosenthal. The Brewers have to decide whether to pick up a $10 million option on second baseman Kolten Wong.
"I think a lot of what Mark and David and I have talked about is the stability that we have here," said Arnold, who joined the Brewers organization in October 2015. "We do have a great foundation in place, so I don’t envision any major changes there."
"I love baseball," Stearns said. "Baseball has been an enormous part of my life, and I anticipate that it will continue to be an enormous part of my life. In what capacity, I think remains to be seen. I think that could be anything from being a fan — a really passionate fan — to one day working again in a senior leadership position. I’m not really going to close any doors, but I know this is the right time to exhale a little bit."
Stearns was named president of baseball operations prior to the start of the 2019 season.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
