Mike Elias will hire a general manager to operate beneath him in Baltimore's baseball operations hierarchy, the first structural change since he took the executive vice president title in 2018. The move splits decision-making authority across two roles for the first time in the Elias era and follows a 101-win season that left the Orioles exposed in October.

The club announced plans to expand the front office without naming candidates or specifying a timeline. Elias retains final authority on roster construction, but the new GM will handle day-to-day operations, agent negotiations, and arbitration filings. The Orioles currently employ eleven front-office staffers with director or assistant GM titles, none of whom carry the GM designation. The last person to hold the title was Dan Duquette, who departed in November 2018.

The timing matters because Baltimore faces seven arbitration-eligible players this winter, including Adley Rutschman, who projects to earn $8M in his first year of eligibility. The Orioles have avoided arbitration hearings under Elias, settling all nineteen cases before trial. Adding a GM creates a buffer for those conversations while Elias focuses on trade architecture and draft strategy. The structure mirrors Tampa Bay's setup under Erik Neander, where Peter Bendix handled arbitration and contract logistics before leaving to run Miami's front office.

Payroll pressure explains the restructuring. Baltimore spent $103M in 2024, ranking 22nd in MLB, but Gunnar Henderson's extension clock starts ticking in two years and Jackson Holliday will reach arbitration in 2027. The Orioles have not signed a player to a nine-figure deal since Chris Davis in 2016. Ownership under David Rubenstein, who bought the team for $1.725B in March, has not yet demonstrated willingness to operate above $140M in payroll. A GM can execute smaller trades and manage pre-arbitration callups while Elias navigates ownership's spending threshold on extension talks.

The front-office model also signals transition planning. Elias turns 42 in March and signed a contract extension through 2029, but assistant GMs Sig Mejdal and Eve Rosenbaum have drawn interest from other clubs. Creating a GM role builds succession depth and reduces flight risk by offering a tangible promotion path. Philadelphia lost Sam Fuld to the Orioles' front office in 2021 after he spent three years waiting for a GM title that never opened. Baltimore now has that title available internally or externally.

Watch for the GM hire to arrive before arbitration filing deadlines in early March, which means interviews will run through January. Candidates will likely include Mejdal, who built Houston's analytics infrastructure, and Rosenbaum, who oversees pro scouting. External names to track include Twins assistant GM Daniel Adler and Dodgers VP Jeffrey Kingston, both of whom interviewed for Pittsburgh's GM opening last winter. Elias will also need to clarify reporting lines for director-level staff, several of whom currently report directly to him.

The Orioles open spring training in 78 days with no clarity on whether Corbin Burnes will return or if they will add payroll through free agency. The new GM will inherit those questions immediately.