It’s official. Andy MacPhail is indeed moving on from the Baltimore Orioles. He will leave the organization at the end of the month, once his contract expires.
The only thing I can say is that MacPhail has had a mixed amount of success with the Orioles (depending on whose perspective you get). His overall record at the helm of the organization was far below .500 and the Orioles never won more than 70 games in a season during his tenure; however, he has indeed improved the organization. Then again, in a results-driven profession, MacPhail seemingly didn’t do much to get the Orioles out of last place.
He was able to get Adam Jones from the Seattle Mariners in a very lopsided trade for Eric Bedard, traded Miguel Tejada for five prospects, sign J.J. Hardy and Mark Reynolds bring in Buck Showalter and improve the farm system somewhat; however, like any general manager, he had his share of failures.
I would not consider Vladmir Guerrero or Ty Wigginton in that category; sadly, Mike Gonzalez, Garrett Atkins, Kevin Millwood and Derrek Lee did not do much as part of the black and orange. These moves didn’t placate the fan base all the much as they were band-aids and could not get the Orioles out of the second division.
Whether it is because of poor drafting, bad decision making, not spending the money or whatever — the Orioles have endured 14th straight losing seasons.
The young pitching that was supposed bolster the big league squad and get Baltimore close to .500 ran into some bumps, and the simple fact is that the American League East is probably the toughest division in all of professional sports. In a results-driven business, MacPhail barely moved the neddle of success to the right direction. That’s just the reality of the situation.
Now, four years later, most are simply wondering … can this organization turn the tide for a change?
At this point, a lot more has to happen with the Baltimore Orioles aside from a general manager swap. There’s a lot that needs to change with the organization, from top to bottom. Whoever comes into the fold has a lot to accomplish with the foundation that MacPhail has built.
Sadly, right now, this organization is maybe three, four, if not five years from contending – especially in the American League East.
