The New York Yankees' 2025 MLB season came to an end last month with a brutal loss to the eventual AL champion Toronto Blue Jays in the ALDS. The loss extended the Yankees' streak of not winning the World Series to 16 years, and also raised questions about what the future might hold in terms of both the roster and the front office.
On Tuesday, New York made a move to shake things up in their front office by firing international scouting director Donny Rowland, as reported by Brendan Kuty of The Athletic. Rowland had been with the Yankees organization for 23 years prior to his dismissal, but the team reportedly felt it was time to move on after some high-profile misses on the free agent market internationally.
MLB insider Francys Romero had previously reported that Rowland's contract with the team would not be renewed.
Romero noted that “During more than a decade as director, he was involved in signings such as Luis Severino, Jorge Mateo, Deivi García, Agustín Ramírez, Jasson Domínguez, and many others” on X, formerly Twitter.
Rowland was with the Yankees from 1995-1999 and again from 2007 to the present and was the team's longest-tenured scout, per Romero.
It remains to be seen who New York will select to fill the vacancy.
Overall, the Yankees are getting ready for what could be a highly consequential offseason for the direction of the franchise moving forward. While Aaron Judge finally began to shake off some of his postseason demons last year, the Yankees still were largely uncompetitive in their series loss vs the Blue Jays, calling into question whether major changes could be on the horizon over the coming months.
In any case, the Yankees are set to begin their spring training slate in February, before kicking off the regular season the following month.
