Kansas City, Mo. ? New Kansas City Royals General Manager Dayton Moore wasted little time in putting together his front office.

Moore, who was hired on May 31 to turn around the woeful franchise, named former Royals executive and Cincinnati Reds assistant general manager Dean Taylor vice president of baseball operations on Tuesday.

He also named longtime Kansas City executive Muzzy Jackson vice president of player personnel.

“I’m very excited in Dean’s decision to return to the Kansas City Royals. He is a highly skilled executive with vast knowledge of baseball operations,” Moore said in a news release announcing the moves.

“Muzzy’s in-depth knowledge of our system makes him a perfect fit for this position. I feel the combination of Muzzy’s and Dean’s 46 years of professional baseball experience will allow us to strengthen our baseball operations department for the future.”

To replace Taylor, the Reds promoted Bob Miller, their director of baseball administration.

Taylor, 54, joined the Royals front office in 1981 as an administrative assistant and a year later was named assistant director of scouting and player development.

After Kansas City won the 1985 World Series, Taylor was named assistant to the general manager under John Schuerholz, whom he followed to the Atlanta Braves. In nine seasons, he helped the franchise win eight consecutive National League East titles and the 1995 World Series.

Taylor, who also has spent time working for the commissioner’s office, was general manager of the Milwaukee Brewers from 2000-02 and spent 2003 as a consultant with the Los Angeles Dodgers, before joining the Reds.

Jackson has been assistant general manager of the Royals since 1999 and was vice president of baseball operations under former general manager Allard Baird.

¢ Action under fire: The Kansas City Press Club is asking Kansas City Royals management to reconsider its decision to revoke the credentials of two reporters who asked contentious questions at a news conference.

Bob Fescoe of WHB and Rhonda Moss of KCSP, who work at competing sports-talk radio stations, had their credentials taken away Friday, a day after Dayton Moore was introduced as the Royals’ general manager.

David Witty, the team’s vice president for communications and marketing, has said the credentials were withdrawn for the remainder of the season.

At the news conference Thursday, the two reporters questioned Royals owner David Glass about his handling of the firing of general manager Allard Baird.

“The questions asked at the press conference were tough, but fair. The game played at Kauffman Stadium is hardball, not softball, after all,” a statement from the Kansas City Press Club said.

“Decisions made in the heat of the moment often lead to mistakes,” it said. “But now that time has elapsed, the Kansas City Press Club trusts that cooler head will prevail, credentials will be reinstated quickly, and the focus will return to where it belongs: getting the Royals back to winning form.”

A spokesman for the Royals did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment Tuesday.