Rockies GM Jeff Bridich Resigns; Greg Feasel Named Club President

Timothy Rapp @@TRappaRTFeatured ColumnistApril 26, 2021

Colorado Rockies general manager Jeff Bridich wears a face mask while observing drills as the baseball team practices in Coors Field, Sunday, July 5, 2020, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

David Zalubowski/Associated Press

The Colorado Rockies announced Monday that executive vice president and general manager Jeff Bridich was resigning, effective immediately, and Greg Feasel was being promoted to club president and CEO.

The team's full statement follows:

Colorado Rockies @Rockies
Rockies General Manager Jeff Bridich steps down and Greg Feasel has been named Club President. https://t.co/nk3HyHYBu8

Bridich released a statement of his own:

Thomas Harding @harding_at_mlb
Departing #Rockies general manager Jeff Bridich has released a statement: https://t.co/yyESJe8d8M

Bridich, 43, was in his seventh season as the Rockies general manager. Under his watch, the Rockies reached the postseason twice and had just two winning seasons, and he came under serious heat this past season after trading away franchise cornerstone Nolan Arenado to the St. Louis Cardinals in a deal that was widely panned around baseball given the Rockies' meager return.

Here's how The Athletic's Jayson Stark described Bridich's reputation around baseball in February:

"We've been searching for just the right word to describe how the rest of baseball looks at the Rockies and their embattled general manager. But how about 'bewildered?' That seems to cover it. Here's one rival exec's all too typical take: 'Nothing personal, but I have no idea how Jeff has kept his job. When you piss off your best player, then you have to push him out the door because he's pissed off and then you also pay the team you're trading him to $50 million to take him, it's hard to think of anywhere else that wouldn't get you fired ... I don't get it."

Troy Renck @TroyRenck
It was this arrogance that made Bridich so reviled. My text messages when he stepped down were something. Never seen an executive inspire such dislike from so many across the board. #Denver7 #Rockies https://t.co/MqImI226Zg

Joel Sherman @Joelsherman1
1/Quick thoughts on Jeff Bridich stepping down as #Rockies GM. It is possible no executive in history fared worse in free agency than Bridich. The money spent to value was atrocious. 2 franchise icons: Tulowitzki/Arenado felt betrayed and left the franchise under bad terms.

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Joel Sherman @Joelsherman1
3/Yet, having offered that, the toughest place to sustain winning is in Colorado and trying to figure out how to play well and stay healthy in high altitude. No team should be spending more on sports science than this one and that is FAR from the case. The Athletic's piece

Joel Sherman @Joelsherman1
5/love with stars because the big contracts for Tulo/Arenado/Charlie Blackmon did not work well for the club. I have written previously that the Rockies should be the $140M Rays. That the philosophy of having a lot of 40-man talent to withstand the extra rigors of altitude

Joel Sherman @Joelsherman1
7/well. This all takes time and -- importantly -- a shift in thinking from the top down. Bridich did poorly. But Colorado's MLB worst record this year goes deeper than him. If only the GM is changing for the Rockies, nothing much will change.

It's likely, however, that Bridich was in his last season with the team and knew it:

Troy Renck @TroyRenck
The wording of press release I believe was accurate. Bridich stepped down. Monfort would not have fired him during the season. But it tells me, in talking to sources, Bridich was lame duck. He knew it. And it's why he should have been fired the moment he picked fight w Arenado. https://t.co/UuHUaQo9gp

Given the limited success the Rockies had under Bridich's watch, the Arenado trade and the team's 8-13 start to this season, it's unlikely many Rockies fans are viewing Monday as a sad day. Bridich had likely worn out his welcome in Colorado.