Baltimore Orioles General Manager Mike Elias is unwilling to spend significant amounts of money in free agency this offseason, despite new team owner David Rubenstein’s expressed willingness to do so, according to a source close to the Orioles’ front office.
The source described a very siloed front office, in which Elias has few checks or balances against his vision for the team.
That vision for the Orioles—which the source described as a “vanity project” for Elias—is to build a team that serves as the antithesis to teams like the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers and prove that an organization can be built from the ground up, rather than purchased through free agency.
However, Elias is in over his head in building a Major League roster, the source noted, and there is currently no one within the Orioles’ front office on as close to equal footing as Elias that could serve as a check on his decisions. Instead, Elias is elevating people within the organization who will allow him to maintain his personal vision for the team, rather than shaking things up.
Last year, the Orioles finished their season in second place in the American League East with a 91-71 record before being swept by the Kansas City Royals in the American Wild Card Series. By contrast, both the Yankees and Dodgers won their respective divisions and faced each other in the 2024 World Series, with the Dodgers ultimately winning their eighth title.
Rubenstein, who led an investment group that acquired the Orioles from Peter Angelos last year, has expressed a willingness to spend money in free agency this offseason. However, it appears that willingness doesn’t necessarily align with Elias’s vision for building the Orioles.
In addition, Elias doesn’t want ownership to spend large amounts of money on free agents because it would make Elias more accountable and place higher expectations on him, according to the source.
The source added that the Orioles’ new ownership group is “naive” and has no idea what they bought last year, and Rubenstein himself will often defer to Elias rather than force Elias’s hand.
This isn’t the first time ownership has given Elias the green light to make a big splash and Elias has declined to do so. The source noted that former Orioles chair and CEO John Angelos gave Elias permission last year to seek out a deal to acquire San Diego Padres outfielder Juan Soto, but Elias was uninterested in the proposition. The Yankees went on to acquire Soto as part of a larger trade with the Padres in December 2023.
The source also spoke to manager Brandon Hyde’s role in the organization, describing Hyde as a “puppet” and pushover for Elias. According to the source, Hyde attempted to push back regarding the Orioles’ shaky bullpen situation last year, arguing the team needed to get better and not necessarily younger—as a result, the team fired bench coach Fredi Gonzalez and co-hitting coach Ryan Fuller, two of Hyde’s confidants.
The Orioles lost two major pieces of their 2024 roster to free agency this year in starting pitcher Corbin Burnes—whom the Orioles acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for pitcher DL Hall and infielder Joey Ortiz in February—and right fielder Anthony Santander.
Given recent free agency deals for major pitchers like Max Fried, who received an eight-year, $218 million deal from the Yankees, and Blake Snell, who received a five-year, $182 million deal from the Dodgers, the Orioles would very likely have to spend a significant amount of money if they wish to re-sign Burnes.
Currently, MLB Trade Rumors projects Burnes to receive a seven-year, $200 million contract, and recent reporting from USA Today’s Bob Nightengale suggests the San Francisco Giants have been in “serious talks” with Burnes.
That being said, the Orioles have spent some in free agency to this point. On Saturday, they signed outfielder Tyler O’Neill to a three-year, $49.5 million deal as well as catcher Gary Sánchez to a one-year, $8.5 million deal.
Pitcher List has reached out to the Orioles for comment and did not receive a response at the time of publication.
