Red Sox tab Bloom, 36, as head of baseball operations

In addition, mlb.com reported Friday that Brian O'Halloran was promoted to
general manager from his role as assistant GM. He was one of three assistant
GMs with the Red Sox.

The 36-year-old Bloom will take over after Dave Dombrowski was fired before
the end of this past regular season and less than one year after the Red Sox
won the 2018 World Series.

Bloom, a Philadelphia native and Yale graduate, helped to make the Rays a
cost-effective winner. Tampa Bay made the playoffs as a wild-card team and
advanced to the American League Division Series where the Rays took the
Houston Astros to a deciding Game 5 before falling.

The Rays finished 12 games ahead of the Red Sox in the regular-season
standings despite having the lowest payroll in baseball on Opening Day at just
under $50 million. The Red Sox had the highest payroll at the start of the
season at $187 million.

The Red Sox already have expressed a desire to move payroll under the luxury
tax threshold next season.

Bloom will have his work cut out for him quickly. J.D. Martinez can opt out of
his contract five days after the World Series ends, while 2018 MVP Mookie
Betts will become a free agent after the 2020 season.

--Field Level Media