MILWAUKEE -- Dean Taylor says he has plans to create the same winning dynasty in Milwaukee that was started nine years ago in Atlanta when he became the assistant to Braves GM John Schuerholz.

Taylor was hired as Brewers GM in Tuesday, succeeding Sal Bando, who was reassigned last month following the firing of manager Phil Garner.

Reshaping the Brewers into a winning team is something that drew Taylor to the job.

"It's going to take a year to get this organization moving to wherever we want it to be," said Taylor, who signed a four-year contract.

Taylor's first duties include hiring a manager, which he hopes to do during the playoffs. He said major league experience isn't the only factor in his choice.

"We're looking for someone who has the ability to motivate and create a winning atmosphere," Taylor said.

Baseball commissioner Bud Selig, whose family controls the Brewers through a trust, instructed owners earlier this year to consider minorities for high-ranking team positions and required teams to give him a list of candidates.

Former NL Manager of the Year Don Baylor, now the hitting coach for Atlanta after being fired by the Colorado Rockies last season, is among the names mentioned as a candidate for the Brewers' managerial position.

Baylor, who is black, was the hitting coach in Milwaukee from 1990-91 and was considered for the managerial job with the Brewers when Garner was hired.

Taylor said the stability of the Brewers' ownership and the targeted opening of the Brewers' new stadium, Miller Park, in 2001 were among the reasons he was interested in the job.

Currently staggering toward their seventh straight losing season, the Brewers are in fifth place in the NL Central and have not been in the playoffs since 1982. Taylor comes from a team that has won seven straight division titles.

"Dean Taylor is someone who will leave no stone unturned in strengthening this organization," said team president Wendy Selig-Prieb, the commissioner's daughter.

The Brewers need to take a new direction in their player development, Taylor said.

"We have to be creative and resourceful," he said. "Small clubs have a smaller margin of error when it comes to player development. The key is to make proper evaluations."

Taylor's 24-year baseball career includes serving as an assistant to John Schuerholz at Kansas City. Taylor also was manager of baseball operations for the commissioner's office in 1990.

Taylor also stressed developing the team's farm system, bringing up younger players to the professional level and negotiating prudent contracts.

But the most important thing is making players, officials and team employees believe in the Brewers.

"When they come through the door every day to work for the Milwaukee Brewers, they need to walk through the door with the expectation that they will win," he said. "The biggest hurdle is creating that winning mindset."

The Brewers also interviewed Indians assistant general manager Dan O'Dowd, hired Monday as general manager of the Colorado Rockies.

Others interviewed were Toronto Blue Jays assistant general manager Dave Stewart, New York Mets assistant general manager and international scouting director Omar Minaya and Chicago White Sox assistant general manager Dan Evans.