Nationals finalizing deal to hire Paul Toboni as head of baseball operations

The Washington Nationals are finalizing a deal to hire Paul Toboni, a 35-year-old assistant general manager with the Boston Red Sox, as their new head of baseball operations, according to reports on Wednesday. The move would hand day-to-day control of the Nationals' front office to Toboni beginning this winter, though his official title and the timing of the hire have not been publicly confirmed.

Toboni succeeds Mike Rizzo, who was dismissed in July after 17 years leading the organization as general manager and later president of baseball operations. Rizzo guided the Nationals to sustained contention and the 2019 World Series title, but the club has struggled through a prolonged rebuild and multiple losing seasons since. The team also fired manager Dave Martinez in July, and assistant general manager Mike DeBartolo has been serving as interim general manager.

Toboni is widely regarded for his rapid rise through the Red Sox system. He joined Boston as an intern in 2015 and was promoted multiple times, advancing to director of amateur scouting by age 30 and later to one of the club's assistant general manager posts. Reports say he ran several of Boston's recent drafts that...