Chris Antonetti is an American
professional baseball
Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world.
Moder ...
executive, and the
president of baseball operations for the
Cleveland Guardians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. Since , the team has played its home gam ...
of
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
(MLB).
Biography
Antonetti is a graduate of
Amity Regional High School in
Woodbridge, Connecticut
Woodbridge is a New England town, town in New Haven County, Connecticut, New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the South Central Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut, South Central Connecticut Planning Region. The ...
,
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...
,
and the
University of Massachusetts Amherst
The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst) is a public land-grant research university in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Massachusetts system and was founded in 1863 as the ...
. He worked in the front office of the
Montreal Expos
The Montreal Expos () were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in the National League (baseball), National League ...
in 1998. He has worked for the
Cleveland Guardians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. Since , the team has played its home gam ...
franchise since 1999.
Before the 2010 season, Executive VP/GM
Mark Shapiro announced his promotion to team general manager at season's end, with chairman/CEO Paul Dolan naming Antonetti as Shapiro's successor.
[ The promotion was finalized at the end of the 2010 season. Antonetti was in charge of managing all baseball activities for Cleveland since 2010 including the MLB draft and free agency signings.
On October 6, 2015, the Cleveland franchise announced the promotion of Antonetti to president of baseball operations along with the promotion of assistant general manager Mike Chernoff to general manager. Director of baseball operations Derek Falvey filled Chernoff’s spot as assistant GM.
in 2016, Antonetti led the organization to its first ]World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
berth since 1997. The Indians lost the series in seven games to the Chicago Cubs. Later that fall, Antonetti was awarded the Baseball America
''Baseball America'' (BA) is a sports publication company that covers baseball at every level, including Major League Baseball (MLB), with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in Minor League Baseball (MiLB) college, high school, and inte ...
2016 Major League Executive of the Year Award. Building on the 2016 success, the 2017 Indians won an American League best 102 games - including an American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...
record 22 wins in a row. Although Cleveland lost in the 2017 American League Division Series to the New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
, Antonetti was award the Sporting News Executive of the Year Award following the season.
On March 2, 2021, a report from ''The Athletic'' indicated that Antonetti, alongside Cleveland manager Terry Francona
Terrence Jon Francona (born April 22, 1959), nicknamed "Tito", is an American professional baseball manager and former player who is the manager of the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously managed the Cleveland Indians/G ...
, had known of the behavior of former coach Mickey Callaway (previously a coach of the team from 2013 to 2017), who was accused of sexual harassment by five women. According to the report, an attorney representing the team offered to have Francona speak to irate husband who had been repeatedly calling the club office to complain about Callaway's interactions with his wife. Although Francona was reportedly aware of Callaway's conduct with the woman, it was not clear that he knew about the attorney's suggestion. Callaway would receive a one-year ban from MLB while Francona and the organization merited criticism from his son Nick, who stated that his father lied to him about the proceedings.
In 2022, following the Guardians playing to a record of 92–70, finishing first in the American League Central
The American League Central is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. This division was formed in the realignment of 1994 by moving three teams from the American League West and two teams from the American League East. Its teams are al ...
division, and advancing to the ALDS, Antonetti won both the Sporting News Executive of the Year Award and the MLB Executive of the Year Award.
References
External links
Baseball America Executive Database: Chris Antonetti
{{DEFAULTSORT:Antonetti, Chris
Living people
1970s births
Year of birth missing (living people)
Cleveland Indians executives
American expatriate baseball people in Canada
McDonough School of Business alumni
Isenberg School of Management alumni
Major League Baseball general managers
Cleveland Guardians executives
Major League Baseball Executive of the Year Award winners
Major League Baseball presidents of baseball operations