Royals Fire President of Baseball Operations Dayton Moore

Kansas City is officially ending one of the most interesting eras in franchise history.

As soon as it was announced that Kansas City Royals Chairman and CEO John Sherman would be speaking to the media at 2:00 p.m. local time on Wednesday afternoon, speculation began to build about what Sherman would be going into detail about. 

Just minutes before Sherman began his press conference, it was reported by Andy McCullough and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic that Dayton Moore is being fired from his role as president of baseball operations. Here's more from The Athletic's report of a shocking event taking place during the Royals' 2022 season:

“I’m really thankful for the opportunity,” Moore told The Athletic. “I’m proud of our culture and what we accomplished in Kansas City. I’m disappointed we weren’t able to see it through. But I have confidence in John Sherman, J.J. Picollo and the entire baseball operations department to finish it off.”

In the opening address of his presser, Sherman added that the move is effective as of Wednesday. Also effective immediately, general manager J.J. Picollo will be in charge of baseball operations. Moore was also present for the formal announcement of his firing, and he immediately expressed his gratitude for everything the Royals, their fans and others have done for him over the years.

Moore: “I want to say thank you. I can’t say enough about the great support of this community, our fans, our sponsors. I’m very proud of what we’ve accomplished here. I’m very proud of our culture. And I’m really excited about the future of the Kansas City Royals.”

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Anne Rogers (@anne_rogers) on Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2022 at 2:07 p.m. CST

Thus far in the season, Kansas City has posted a 59-89 record and has fallen well short of expectations the franchise set before the campaign began. Moore and his peers are responsible for bringing the Royals back-to-back World Series appearances in 2014 and 2015, including the club winning a World Series championship at the end of the 2015 season. His tenure now officially ends after he took over back in 2006. 

Just over a year ago, Moore and Picollo were promoted to their respective roles as president of baseball operations and general manager. The shortcomings of this season — one that Sherman explained as a campaign in which he expected the team to "dance around .500" — undoubtedly threw those plans off course a bit, and Sherman echoed the need for timely changes while addressing the media. In the middle of speaking on the firing of Moore, the Royals' owner also brought up continued progress in regards to a new downtown stadium. 

“The bottom line is it’s time for change.”

Royals CEO John Sherman regarding the dismissal of Dayton Moore. #Royals

— Josh Vernier (@JoshVernier610) September 21, 2022

Moore also told The Athletic how he feels about his future. From their report:

“I certainly expect to stay in baseball,” Moore said. “I want to stay in baseball. I’m a coach by nature. One of the things I got criticized for was staying with players too long. But coaches stay with players. That’s what they do. That’s how they are wired."

John Sherman: “We have to make more data-driven decisions.”

— Sam McDowell (@SamMcDowell11) September 21, 2022

Picollo will be heavily involved in the future of the Royals even more so than he was before, taking over as executive vice president in addition to his general manager duties and his newfound responsibilities due to the departure of Moore. Under Picollo's supervision, Kansas City executed multiple trades this calendar year that netted the club prospects that are now contributing to the organization's minor league system.