House That Hank Built
Fansided

Atlanta Braves move quickly and name Dana Brown VP Scouting

By Fred Owens

LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 04: General manager Alex Anthopoulos and manager Brian Snitker #43 of the Atlanta Braves talk during batting practice prior to Game One of the National League Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on October 4, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 04: General manager Alex Anthopoulos and manager Brian Snitker #43 of the Atlanta Braves talk during batting practice prior to Game One of the National League Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on October 4, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /
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Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves named Dana Brown VP of Scouting today. Brown will guide the team’s preparation for the June draft. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

Who is Dana Brown?

Brown attended Seaton Hall and played ball alongside Mo Vaughn, Craig Biggio, and John Valentin. The Phillies selected him in the 35th round of the 1989 draft, and he spent three years in their farm system before the Phillies decided Brown should switch positions – to hitting coach- and at 25 Brown became one of the youngest coaches in baseball.

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Brown recounted the event to In Hank Davis for his book Small Town Heroes.

"I was really stunned when they retired me. I was just twenty-five. I wasn’t having a bad season.. . .I was trying to figure out what to do. . . (when) I got another call from the Phillies. They offered me a job coaching."

In 1994 Brown became a scout for the Pittsburgh Pirates, a position he held until he joined the Expos as director of scouting in 2001. He spent eight seasons with the Expos and later with Nationals and uncovered some significant talent along the way.

". . . Brown drafted Ian Desmond . . . third baseman Ryan Zimmerman . . .  Craig Stammen . . . Ross Detwiler . . .Jordan Zimmerman (second) . . Danny Espinosa. . . Steven Strasburg and Drew Storen. . ."

Following the 2009 season, the Blue Jays hired a new GM, Alex Anthopoulos, and his first hire was Brown. He gave Brown the task of recreating their scouting department, and a lot more.

"“Further to that, he’ll be involved in trades, he’ll be involved in evaluating our minor-league players, he’ll be involved in evaluating our staff,” Anthopoulos said. “That’s something we don’t do enough as an organization.”"

During his time in that position, Toronto drafted Noah Syndergaard, Aaron Sanchez, Sam Dyson, and Marcus Stroman among others.  In December of 2012, Brown moved up the position of special assistant to Anthopoulos.

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