Talks to Restructure Front Office to Start

Chairman Bob Daly plans to meet with Dan Evans and Dave Wallace today to begin the restructuring of the Dodgers’ front office, baseball management sources said Sunday.

The commissioner’s office has granted the Dodgers permission to forgo a job search and promote Evans to general manager.

Although an announcement might be made as early as this week, the Dodgers probably won’t conduct a news conference to introduce Evans because the move has been long expected.

Daly has many issues to resolve with Evans and Wallace, including determining the new duties of the club’s top baseball-operations officials.

Evans and Wallace, accompanying the club on the trip, have declined to discuss their status. Derrick Hall, senior vice president, declined comment on today’s scheduled meeting.

Evans will replace Wallace as the general manager, and he might be given an additional title to reflect his standing as the highest-ranking baseball executive.

Daly also might reward Wallace with a promotion for his help in holding the club together after former general manager Kevin Malone was forced to resign in April.

Wallace, whose duties include overseeing the farm system, is widely respected as a talent evaluator and pitching instructor.

He will be based at the club’s farm-system hub in Vero Beach, Fla., where he is building a new home, but will continue to occasionally work at Chavez Ravine and travel with the team.

Evans and Wallace will have new titles, and Daly will set the agenda regarding their responsibilities.

Evans, considered one of the game’s best administrators, is expected to oversee player-personnel transactions, including trades. He also will be actively involved in contract negotiations, though Daly, a Hollywood power broker in his previous career, must approve deals.

The role of other baseball-operations officials might be reduced because of the ascent of Evans, who assisted the commissioner’s office in arbitration hearings against players after resigning from the Chicago White Sox in October.

Moreover, the scouting department might undergo an overhaul under Evans. Executives from other clubs say that the Dodger operation is not especially efficient, and the club’s new general manager prides himself on efficiency.

Wallace last month initiated a restructuring of the farm system.

He hopes to bring back at least a few former longtime Dodger employees who were fired in the previous management purge.

It is unclear how many management changes Daly will permit Evans and Wallace to make in their first full season at the club’s controls.

Paul Lo Duca, who played first base in Sunday’s 2-1 victory against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Bank One Ballpark, left in the seventh inning because of a bruised left forearm. Lo Duca, one for three with a double, is listed as day-to-day.... Manager Jim Tracy has used 110 lineup combinations in 156 games.... Setup man Matt Herges and closer Jeff Shaw have pitched in 73 and 74 games, respectively, marking the first time two relievers have made at least 73 appearances in a season in franchise history.... Right fielder Shawn Green has 120 runs batted in, the most by a Dodger since Mike Piazza knocked in 124 in 1997.