The Nationals have made another move to the front office, this time adding another young piece to pair alongside president of baseball operations Paul Toboni in Washington with reports of Ani Kilambi joining the organization as the new general manager.
“The Washington Nationals are hiring Ani Kilambi as their new general manager, sources tell ESPN. Kilambi, 31, had been an assistant GM with Philadelphia overseeing its R&D department and will join new president of baseball operations Paul Toboni in rebuilding the Nationals,” ESPN’s Jeff Passan wrote on X.
Kilambi joins the organization after previously serving as the assistant general manager of the Philadelphia Phillies for four seasons beginning in 2021.
Advertisement
He graduated from UC-Berkeley with a double major in statistics and operations research and management science before transitioning to baseball, starting in his internship role with the Rays. Kilambi spent six years with the Tampa Bay Rays where he started as a baseball research and development intern before moving to an analyst role, then assistant director of baseball research then director of decision science.
With the Phillies, Kilambi reportedly oversaw sizable advances in the research and development aspect of the organization, doubling the size of the department while enhancing the evaluation process with more data made available.
“It is amusing. I wouldn’t say there’s necessarily one magic formula. I think it’s more a question of quickly and confidently identifying players,” Kilambi previously said about his success. “And then moving just as quickly and just as confidently to acquire them and to develop them and to lean into players’ strengths. I wouldn’t necessarily say that it’s a one-size-fits-all approach, which is why I think the magic formula description falls short. I think it’s really important to be individualized in order to be successful in both player evaluation and development.”
“Obsessed,” former Phillies general manager Sam Fuld said of Kilambi. “He is obsessed with baseball. He is obsessed with helping the Phillies win. It just shows in the way he speaks about the game.”
Advertisement
Kilambi now joins an organization featuring youth in several leadership positions with Toboni already the youngest in his role in any current MLB organization, while Blake Butera became the youngest manager in baseball since Frank Quilici managed the Minnesota Twins in 1972.
“He was receptive to the idea that he didn’t know everything,” said Peter Bendix, the Marlins president of baseball operations and former Rays general manager. “And that’s a very impressive skill to have for somebody who knows a lot.”