There was little doubt why the Orioles recruited Mike Elias to lead baseball operations and guide a long-overdue rebuild five years ago this week: his scouting and player development ability.
When Elias was presented, the Orioles’ ownership said as much, on a day when he pledged a “elite talent pipeline” that would support the organization’s aspirations for years to come. At the following month’s winter meetings, Elias stated that he was brought to the Orioles — along with assistant general manager Sig Mejdal — “primarily for scouting and player development purposes,” adding that they have “among the best track records” in that space from their time with the St. Louis Cardinals and Houston Astros.
That background offered hope in, and visibility of, the Orioles’ long-term ambitions during the next difficult years, and their plan was vindicated with this season’s 101-win, AL East title. Now comes not just sustaining it, but improving it, and even Elias concedes that the hands-on decision-making required to do so isn’t on his resume.
So, what is his source of inspiration or experience as the Orioles transition from developing a contender through their farm system to whatever comes next? The answer will not only set the tone for the Orioles’ efforts this winter, but it may also define how the next five years of Elias’ time as manager are perceived.
“I think that’s a great question,” Elias responded. “My prior experience was primarily focused on scouting, player development, and international scouting, so I don’t have direct experience with keeping a team at the top, particularly one with a small market and the challenges of the American League East.”
“But I look to my first job, in St. Louis, as a model of a very healthy franchise that has operated in a city our size and shape, and kind of struck the right tone between responsibility but also operating with some urgency at times.” I believe that the same processes, brainpower, and people who got us through this rebuild are well-suited to handle the project of sort of keeping the team at the top. The only thing that keeps us awake at night is the level of competition in our division. But I believe we have the personnel and front-office support in place to carry it happen.”
Elias began his baseball career with the Cardinals, first as an area scout in 2007 and then as a supervisor. In the years after, the Cardinals have made a number of moves to position themselves for a title run. Among them were signing star catcher Yadier Molina to a contract extension that paid him for his arbitration years while delaying his free agency, trading prospects for star outfielder Matt Holliday and then signing him to a club-record contract to keep him in St Louis, and bringing veteran slugger Lance Berkman in ahead of the 2011 championship season. Two years later, St. Louis won its second National League pennant.
