BALTIMORE — After weeks of speculation, it appears that the Baltimore Orioles have found their next general manager.
Update 11/16/18:
The Orioles have officially announced the hiring of Mike Elias as their new executive vice president and general manager. Elias will be introduced in a press conference set to take place on Monday, November 19, at 11:00 am.
Original story:
Just after midnight on Wednesday morning, Bob Nightengale of USA Today revealed on Twitter that Houston Astros assistant general manager Mike Elias is set to become the Orioles’ next general manager.
The Orioles parted ways with former general manager Dan Duquette following a 115-loss season that saw the Orioles finish with their worst record in franchise history. Duquette’s tenure as Baltimore’s GM lasted just over seven seasons, with the 2014 American League East-winning Orioles highlighting his reign.
Along with Duquette, manager Buck Showalter was also let go as the franchise undergoes a full rebuild. Showalter had been Baltimore’s skipper since July 2010, winning the American League’s Manager of the Year award in 2014.
Elias arrived In Houston in 2012, where he handled both scouting and player development as the assistant to general manager Jeff Luhnow. Elias, 36, has worked in Major League Baseball since 2007. He graduated from Yale University, where he was a pitcher on the baseball team.
Along with Elias, it’s rumored that Sig Mejdal, who served as a special assistant to Luhnow up until a few days ago, could be on his way to Baltimore. Mejdal is a former NASA Engineer that orchestrated an analytics team that worked under Luhnow.
The Astros have openly credited Elias as the man who pushed for the organization to draft All-Star shortstop Carlos Correa with the first pick in the 2012 draft. Elias oversaw the next six Houston drafts and, under Luhnow, had a helping hand in the Astros winning their first ever World Series championship in 2017.
If Elias’s exit from Houston becomes official, he will be the sixth front office member to leave the Astros this offseason.
Take: The Orioles have yet to make this news official, but this is great news for a fan-base that’s desperate for a glimmer of hope. In recent months, there’s been a transition of power in the ownership of the Orioles from Peter Angelos to his sons John and Lou Angelos. The Angelos family has not made any public statements, but it’s assumed that the kids are heavily involved in deciding the next general manager and manager.
It would be quite a stamp for John and Lou to bring in a young mind who just helped rebuild the Astros, who five years ago were among the worst teams in baseball. If Mejdal follows Elias to Baltimore, that sounds like a solid pickup for the analytical department that’s currently being developed.
Image Credit: Houston Chronicle
