The Baltimore Orioles confirmed a formal general manager search is underway, three weeks after their third consecutive September collapse ended a 101-win regular season without postseason play. Four internal candidates are circulating alongside external names, according to people familiar with the process who spoke to Baltimore outlets this week. The vacancy sits directly beneath Mike Elias, who entered his sixth year as president of baseball operations in January.
The Orioles won 101 games in 2024, their second straight season above 100 wins, but missed the playoffs for the sixth time under Elias. They held a Wild Card spot through August before losing 18 of 26 games in September, finishing four games behind the final playoff berth. The last Baltimore playoff appearance was 2016, when Buck Showalter managed the club. Elias arrived from the Houston Astros in November 2018 with a mandate to rebuild through the draft and international signings. The farm system now ranks top-five by consensus, but the major-league roster has posted a combined 2-8 postseason record across two Wild Card exits under his tenure—both sweeps.
The public search creates two pressure points. First, it signals ownership wants visible accountability after spending $173 million in 2024 payroll, the club's highest since 2017, without playoff revenue. The Angelos family sold the franchise to a David Rubenstein-led group for $1.73 billion in March, and the new ownership has privately told executives it expects October baseball by 2025, according to two people briefed on internal conversations. Second, the GM role will directly manage the player-development pipeline Elias built. The next hire inherits Adley Rutschman, Gunnar Henderson, and Jackson Holliday—three players with a combined $47 million in future arbitration exposure—plus $92 million committed to free-agent additions from the past two winters. The new GM will also handle contract negotiations with Corbin Burnes, who is entering free agency after one season in Baltimore and is expected to command $200 million over six or seven years.
Internal candidates include Eve Rosenbaum, the assistant GM who runs player personnel; Sig Mejdal, the analytics architect who followed Elias from Houston; Matt Blood, director of player development; and Brad Ciolek, scouting director. External names being floated include former Mets GM Zack Scott, now a special assistant in Boston, and several Rays front-office alumni who worked under Andrew Friedman. The Orioles are using executive search firm Turnkey Search, which also handled their recent chief revenue officer search. Interviews are expected to begin the week of October 21, with a hire targeted before the general managers' meetings in Scottsdale on November 4.
The Orioles' front-office structure has been unusual. Elias operates with final say on all baseball decisions, but the GM role—vacant since Dan Duquette was dismissed in 2018—handles day-to-day roster construction, contract negotiations, and player-development coordination. The hire will report directly to Elias but will functionally act as COO of baseball operations, a title some other clubs use for the same scope. The distinction matters because it determines who sits in arbitration hearings, who negotiates extensions, and who fields trade calls. Those responsibilities have been distributed across Elias and his senior staff since 2019, which has worked during the rebuild but becomes unwieldy as payroll rises and the roster matures.
Rubenstein's group paid a 28% premium over the Angelos family's initial asking price, and the new ownership has already committed $45 million toward stadium renovations at Camden Yards. The franchise is projected to generate $412 million in revenue for 2024, per Forbes estimates, but missed an estimated $18 million in playoff ticket and concession sales. The next GM will also manage a minor-league system that produced 11 top-100 prospects per MLB Pipeline's midseason rankings, the most in baseball. Those prospects create trade capital, but they also create payroll pressure as they reach arbitration.
The GM search timeline overlaps with Burnes' free agency and the start of the offseason trade market. Burnes is represented by Scott Boras, who typically waits until January to close deals. The Orioles have explored extensions with Burnes since July, but no agreement materialized before his opt-out deadline passed on October 7. The next GM will inherit those stalled talks and will also handle potential extensions for Henderson and Rutschman, who both reach arbitration eligibility after the 2025 season.
The hire is expected by early November. The Orioles' first offseason decision—whether to tender a qualifying offer to Burnes—comes 10 days after the World Series ends. The new GM's phone will start ringing the day the hire is announced, and the first call will likely be Boras asking about Burnes.
The takeaway
Orioles' public GM search signals ownership accountability after **$173M** payroll failed to reach playoffs, with hire expected before November GM meetings.
Editorial & Disclosure Notice: This article was written with artificial intelligence from public sources and is published without individual human review. Artificial intelligence and other digital tools are also used for research, analysis, editing, formatting, and production. Errors, omissions, outdated information, or inaccuracies may occur. References to companies, brands, products, services, organizations, or individuals are for informational and editorial purposes and do not imply endorsement, sponsorship, affiliation, partnership, or approval unless expressly stated. All trademarks and other intellectual property remain the property of their respective owners. Opinions, analysis, estimates, and commentary are informational only and should not be construed as financial, investment, legal, tax, medical, procurement, or other professional advice. Information may be corrected, clarified, or updated after publication. Corrections or removal requests: jenny@pops4.com.
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