Requiem for a Dork

An Ode to Andy MacPhail, the GM Who Brought the Orioles Back to Prominence

By: Jeff McDonough

This moment in the 2015 Baltimore Orioles season could be remembered as the low point from which they rebounded, or as the beginning of the end from which they never recovered. Time will only tell — though I’m leaning toward the latter at the moment. On Wednesday, the O’s fell victim to a no-hitter for the first time in seven years at the hands of the Mariners’ Hisashi Iwakuma — the second Asian-born pitcher ever to throw a no-hitter after Japan’s Hideo Nomo, who also no-hit the Orioles back in 2001. This closed a turbulent West Coast road trip, where the team lost two games in extra innings — both due to a shallow bullpen that forced ineffectual relievers to remain in the game after they had walked the bases loaded.

With seven players set to hit free agency this offseason — including red-hot slugger Chris Davis, three-time All-Star Matt Wieters and dominant reliever Darren O’Day — this current era of success in Baltimore could possibly be coming to a close. Meanwhile, 90 miles up I-95, the Philadelphia Phillies — currently the worst team in baseball — are beginning a new era with recently-hired Team President Andy MacPhail in charge. He, of course, served in the same role in Baltimore for four years before Dan Duquette took over after the 2011 season. MacPhail was also the man behind the Kirby Puckett-Era Twins teams that won two World Series, serving as general manager from 1985 to 1994. He left Minnesota that year to become President and CEO of the Cubs and presided over the Sammy Sosa-Era in Chicago. While his dozen years there did not result in a championship like his previous post, he did usher in arguably the most successful era of Cubs baseball of the last 70 years — including the 2003 team that found itself five outs from the World Series before exploding into a million pieces.

MacPhail’s four and a half seasons in Baltimore were viewed as pretty unremarkable — both when they ended and while they were going on. Why wouldn’t they be? They were a “rebuilding” team that failed to win even 70 games for five consecutive years. It was the previous regime that had shown at least some promise — after the big signings of Miguel Tejada and Javy López — in the 2005 season, where the O’s were in first place as late as June 23 with four All-Stars before falling off a cliff after the break. And it is this new regime headed by Duquette that has seen the birds end their 14-year playoff drought with three straight winning seasons — and on pace for a fourth. The high water mark came last year after sweeping the Tigers in the ALDS, when the Orioles found themselves in the final four as Vegas favorites to win the World Series. Duquette was named MLB Executive of the Year, so you'd think this column would be all about his accomplishments, right? Well, there’s reason to dwell on MacPhail’s time in B-more, as I’d argue he, not Dan Duquette, is the person most responsible for this current era of Oriole prominence.

Let’s start with one of the best trades in baseball history. When the 2007 season ended, MacPhail decided the best course of action in his first offseason was to blow up a talented-but-underachieving team. The ace of the pitching staff was Canadian left-hander Érik Bédard, who had just set the franchise record for strikeouts with 221. He was dealt to the Seattle Mariners, where he never recaptured that magic, underperforming or missing time due to injury the entire duration of his three and a half years in the Pacific Northwest. What the Orioles netted in this stroke of unbelievably fortuitous timing was Adam Jones, Chris Tillman and George Sherril, who would all become All-Stars in Baltimore.

Sherill was the oldest of the players the Orioles received and became an All-Star closer here immediately, compiling 52 saves in his year and a half in Birdland before being traded himself for Josh Bell (talented prospect that didn’t pan out) and Steve Johnson (27 year-old pitcher currently at Triple-A Norfolk). Tillman has been the Orioles’ best overall starting pitcher the last four years, serving as the Opening Starter and de facto #1 starter the last two seasons. Jones, of course, is the crown jewel of this deal — a five-tool player and team leader in center field, who’s started the All-Star Game the last three years and been to five total.

That same offseason, MacPhail also unloaded former MVP Miguel Tejada to the Astros in a deal that earned far less dividends, but was still solid. In addition to a few ultimately-failed prospects, the O’s received Luke Scott and Troy Patton. Scott went on to hit 75 home runs in orange the next three seasons. Patton would become an effective reliever in Baltimore before being traded in 2014 — after Matt Wieters went on IR — for catcher Nick Hundley, who was relied upon during the O’s postseason run. The real coup of this trade was that Tejada would re-sign with the Orioles two years later.

At the trade deadline of his final season in Baltimore, MacPhail was at it again, dealing reliever Koji Uehara for Chris Davis and Tommy Hunter. We all know what know what Davis has become in Baltimore, especially in his monster 2013 and 2015 seasons. Hunter was an innings-eater as a starter, but really found his niche when he transitioned to the bullpen and started rearing back on his fastball. Hunter was just traded at the deadline for Cubs’ prospect Junior Lake — and the circle of life in the world of trades continues. Even on his way out, MacPhail was setting up the Orioles for future glory.

These would be the three signature moves of the MacPhail Era, but there is much more below the surface that has ramifications through the playoff years and with today’s roster. Perhaps his most important move was the hiring of manager Buck Showalter halfway through the 2010 season. Showalter had been the precursor to World Series teams with the Yankees, Diamondbacks and Rangers. He would shepherd those teams to success that they would improve upon once he departed. In Baltimore, he was given the chance to take the team to the Promised Land himself.

Running the Orioles is not an easy job, especially while they were compiling 14 straight losing seasons — and even more than that, two playoff appearances in 28 years. The previous head of the O’s front office, Mike Flanagan — and I apologize if this comes off harsh — committed suicide after struggling with depression that his widow attributed, at least in part, to the shortcomings of the team with him at the helm. Things were rough at Oriole Park for a long time. There were some meaningful players long-term players from the Flanagan Era, including Jim Johnson, Brian Roberts, Nick Markakis and, believe it or not, current Oriole Nolan Reimold. Zach Britton was drafted by that regime as well, but didn't debut until 2011.

The success of the last four seasons in Baltimore has been extraordinary, especially considering the recent history of this franchise. Dan Duquette has done a ton of maneuvering during his tenure. In 2012, when the Orioles ended their postseason drought, they had more roster moves then games played that season. Duquette has always been a bargain shopper, looking for diamonds in the rough. Darren O’Day was claimed on waivers days before Duquette would finalize his deal to become GM in Baltimore. O’Day has been perhaps the most consistent pitcher for the team the last four seasons, his ERA improving each year and earning himself an 2015 All-Star appearance.

That offseason, rotation mainstays Wei-Yin Chen and Miguel González were also signed out of relative obscurity. Duquette sought to turn over his roster as well, dealing the next “ace” of the time, veteran Jeremy Guthrie, Jason Hammel and Matt Lindstrom. This trade really seemed to spark the Orioles in early 2012, as Hammel performed exceptionally atop the O’s rotation and Lindstrom was effective in relief. Hammel would fall off a bit in the second half and then seem as shell of himself in a disastrous 2013 — and would eventually rebound nicely for the Cubs the next two years after leaving in free agency. Lindstrom was an effective reliever in 2012 before being dealt at the trade deadline for starter Joe Saunders from Arizona. Saunders was only okay for the O’s down the stretch in 2012, but then was inexplicably chosen to start the inaugural AL Wild Card Game. He ended up out-dueling Yu Darvish and the reigning back-to-back AL Champion Rangers in Texas, as the Orioles earned their first postseason win in 15 years. Guthrie would find his way to Kansas City, where's he's been a decent innings-eater and came back to bite the O's in the 2014 ALCS.

These are the kinds of incremental moves Duquette makes, all while Showalter attempts to then move the chess pieces in the most prudent matter. He also brought in key utility man Ryan Flaherty and reclamation projects Steve Pearce, Nate McLouth and Delmon Young. These aren’t superstars, but they're players that the team has relied upon during crucial moments. He did trade Jake Arrieta and Pedro Strop for Scott Feldman at the 2013 deadline. Feldman was fine for the O's as they came short in their playoff pursuit. Meanwhile, Strop has been a solid reliever in Chicago and Arrieta has turned into their ace. This season he is a Cy Young candidate and has led the Cubs to the fourth best record in baseball. Arrieta and Strop had been struggling mightily in Baltimore and I believe benefited greatly from a change of scenery, so I don't mean to come down too hard on Duquette — but man, it has to be tough for Orioles fans to watch Cubs games now.

The biggest feather in Duquette’s cap though, is one of the best signings in major league history — as far as value and production gained in one season — when he brought in multi-time All-Star Nelson Cruz. Texas had let Cruz walk after he missed the final 50 games of the season for a failed PED test, and Duquette brought him to Baltimore on a one-year, $8 million contract. Cruz was the Orioles’ best player in 2014 with 108 RBIs and an MLB-leading 40 home runs, as they won their first division title since 1997. It cannot be understated how monumental a signing this was.

The following offseason is where Duquette started to lose me. Cruz, who was well-liked by coaches, teammates and fans, left for Seattle after the Orioles refused to match the four-year, $57 million offer that he ultimately accepted. Nick Markakis, who was by far the Orioles’ longest tenured player by that point, was also allowed to depart in free agency, but this was not anyway near as upsetting. While Markakis was a great fielder and nice leadoff hitter, his power numbers and ability to drive the ball at all had eroded beyond the point of where his four-year, $44 million contract would be prudent. Markakis hit zero home runs before the All-Star break this year, while Cruz once again leads the majors in home runs with 34, but this time with a remarkable .324 batting average. The money that was denied for the two free agent outfielders was allotted to shortstop JJ Hardy — in my humble opinion — when the O’s hastily signed him to a three-year, $40 million extension during the American League Champion Series.

Hardy was once the best shortstop in the American League. His value was in a unique combination of power and defensive acumen — a three-time Gold Glover who hit 77 home runs his first three seasons in Baltimore, by far the most of any shortstop in that time. I feel the need to mention that it was MacPhail who brought in JJ Hardy in 2011, when he absolutely fleeced the Twins in a trade, giving up only failed prospect Brett Jacobson and terrible relief pitcher Jim Hooey. Hardy’s tenure in Baltimore has been amazing, but extensions are meant to project future performance not past achievements. Generally with age, you can expect a decline with a shortstop’s range in the field and power stroke at the plate.

So why would Duquette give eight-figures a season to a shortstop who once specialized in those categories, but would now be under contract until age 35? We had already gotten fair warning when Hardy’s home run numbers dipped to nine in 2014. You expect some decline on the back end of contracts with veteran players, but you’d hope they don’t start backfiring immediately. Well, in Hardy’s case, he opened this season on the DL, is still good in the field but you can see the decline and has hit seven home runs with what would be a career-low .233 batting average. It is a recently novel concept in baseball’s history that you need some tall, big-hitting shortstop to lead your team, a la Cal Ripken, Alex Rodriguez or Troy Tulowitzki. Innumerable successful teams have started shortstops who are good in the field, have some speed, but can’t hit a lick. And these guys are easy to bring in on the cheap. It’s how the Orioles brought in former All-Star late last offseason, and although he didn’t work out, maybe things would’ve faired better if he was made the starter from day one. Even if that is a pipedream with Cabrera, the Yankees proved this theory true with how they replaced Derek Jeter this offseason by acquiring Didi Gregorious from Arizona for nothing, who’s been a rousing success in New York.

It wasn’t simply choosing Hardy over Cruz that irked me; it was the players that Duquette viewed as suitable replacements in the outfield and at the plate. Opening Day starters Alejandro De Aza, Travis Snider, Delmon Young were all designated for assignment and are no longer with the team. Steve Pearce, Nolan Reimold and David Lough have struggled mightily hitting .227, .226 and .202 respectively. This dearth of outfield talent forced Showalter to move Chris Davis to right field where he had once played, which proved decently fruitful. The problem was that just served as a whack-a-mole type quandary, as Chris Parmalee (.216) and Ryan Flaherty (.209) were thrust into starting roles at first base. Parmalee was DFA’d as well, then accepted his assignment to AAA with no major league suitors, only to fracture his forearm in his second game back in Norfolk. Flaherty is not doing much better, hitless in his last 33 at-bats. Jimmy Paredes was once an answer as a position-less DH, but he has been hit by the same slump bug that ravaged all these men, seeing his batting average fall by 50 points the last seven weeks.

There’s a thinking with all of Duquette’s bargain bin moves that there’s no harm in taking a bunch of shots until something sticks. The Orioles are paying $18.2 million in dead salaries from players that DFA’d or otherwise kicked to the curb — there is an additional $2.5 million in dead money attributed to Nick Markakis and, amazingly, Bobby Bonilla, who last played for the Orioles in 1996. Kicking all these scrubs to the curb when they just can’t cut the mustard adds up. It adds up to $4 million more than Nelson Cruz is making in Seattle this year. And don’t even get me started with how they’ve managed the relievers this year, by keeping the likes of Jason Garcia and Bud Norris way past their expiration date while others could’ve filled their roster spots.

Duquette’s little moves are low-risk, but they’ve often proved low reward. In addition to the massive hauls I spotlighted that MacPhail has brought in via trade, he also invested in young talent. He signed Jonathan Schoop as a 17 year-old amateur free agent out of Curaçao in 2008. Matt Wieters was drafted right before MacPhail finalized his deal to become Team President in 2010 and Manny Machado was drafted three years later. The times that Duquette took big swings have had varying results. The Cruz deal was amazing, but a lot of that good will has been undone by how they handled his free agency and replacements. I was very pleased when Ubaldo Jiménez was brought in before last season, even if he would become the first Orioles’ pitcher to make eight figures a season. His 2014 season was disastrous and he was left off the postseason roster. He rebounded this year though and was the surprisingly Orioles’ best pitcher before the All-Star break. The verdict on that deal will be determined by how his next 2+ years under contract play out.

It’s not as simple as Duquette handles the little moves better and MacPahil handles the big move better. MacPhail brought in Mark Reynolds in 2011 — in another trade where he gave up what amounted to nothing in return — and he hit 60 home runs in his two seasons in Baltimore. Also, it was Reynolds’ move from abysmal third baseman to Gold Glove caliber first baseman midseason in 2012 that was arguably the turning point that year as the Orioles return to the playoffs. Duquette conversely traded Danny Valencia in 2014, when he was their hottest hitter down the stretch the year before and with fellow third baseman Manny Machado set to miss the start of the season — he would ultimately miss the stretch run of the season as well. The Orioles surrendered Valencia, who’s hit .302 as a part-time player for Toronto and Oakland this year, for the aforementioned David Lough, who’s weak bat and noodle arm has given me nothing but fits for two seasons. Today Lough became the latest player to be designated for assignment. With Valencia gone and Machado injured, Flaherty — a career .218 hitter, who’s not a natural third baseman — was thrust into a starting role, including for all seven postseason games. These moves aren’t huge in the grand scheme of things, but this is just a small example of how each GM handled a hole at third base.

With less than 50 games left this season, and the possible team overhaul coming in the offseason, a lot hangs in the balance for the O’s. The best lineups the Orioles have run out there are — not surprisingly — days when the lineup does not include a sub-.240 hitter. This has been all too rare, with the cavalry of scrubs I mentioned earlier. Outfielder Gerardo Parra was acquired at the deadline in the midst of a career year, showing that Duquette is starting to realize this club’s shrinking window. With Parra now at the top of the order, after Machado and before Jones and Davis, this lineup started to look promising. That addition was combined with the hot streak of backup catcher Caleb Joseph — drafted by MacPhail as well — had really filled out the lineup, with Wieters forced to play more DH and first base. However, with Wieters now injured, and Paredes mired in an awful slump, the “no scrubs” lineups I have yearned for are now a thing of the past.

The rotation has had its issues as well. Chen and Jiménez were clearly the Orioles’ best two pitchers before a recent few bad outings by each caused worry among fans. Each has seemed to be back on the winning path with a fruitful outing in their last start — Jiménez chief among them with an eight-inning, two-hit shutout. Tillman was having major struggles in the first half of the season but has seemed to regain his All-Star form with a recent stretch of six starts with a 1.11 ERA. Miguel González — and I am not trying to overstate this — is perhaps the most inconsistent pitcher in baseball. In his 21 starts this year, he has let up one or less runs in eight starts and four runs or more in nine starts. That is truly an amazing statistic. How can one have that many moments both of mastery and incompetence evenly dispersed throughout a season? Rounding out the rotation, Bud Norris was an unmitigated disaster and was cut. Kevin Gausman inherited his spot in the rotation, and while he's showed some of the promise that made him a highly-touted prospect, he's largely disappointed. The 24 year-old threw two masterful shutouts, but has allowed 24 earned runs in his other six starts.

The Orioles have been passed by both the Twins and Rays in the standings at this point, and no longer hold the perch they’ve long held of “first team out of the playoffs.” It will be interesting to see how they play down the stretch, but I’m not exactly beaming with confidence. And with the big offseason afterwards looming, a sense of dread has overtaken this O’s fan. Dan Duquette has done a nice job running the Orioles the last four years. He knows how to play the transaction game and acquire talent. At times I think he’s being too “cute” in how he operates instead of making the common sense solution. I also don’t know when the big additions are coming, like the ones MacPhail made to build this current team. The base was in place when Duquette took over and he’s made the necessary adjustments to keep it running smoothly. He bought a house and fixed it up… but don’t forget who built the house.