With the 2024 MLB season just weeks away, we’ve finally started to see Orioles GM Mike Elias’ blueprint come full circle in Baltimore. Especially after winning 101 games, the Orioles foundation now looks eerily similar to another AL team.
The team in question is Elias’ former club, the Houston Astros, where he served as assistant GM from 2012-2018.
For starters, Elias has always been a huge advocate for building sustained success through the draft and supplementing the roster with free agent/trade acquisitions when the price is right.
The Astros have never been big spenders in free agency. Through a plethora of home runs in the draft, some savvy trades and well-spent money, they created one of the best dynasties you’ll see in professional sports.
With that being said, let’s go through each step of the Elias blueprint.
Building Through the Draft
Elias has always valued position players more than pitchers, so it’s no surprise that during the Astros’ down years that they spent high first-round picks on the likes of Carlos Correa, Alex Bregman and Kyle Tucker. Three players, who, at one point or another, have been major contributors to Houston’s success.
We’ve seen a very similar approach in Baltimore from Elias. A few notable top picks from Elias’ time in Baltimore include Adley Rutschman (1), Gunnar Henderson (42), Jackson Holliday (1), Colton Cowser (5), Heston Kjerstad (2) and Jordan Westburg (30).
Every single one of these players has been a top 50 prospect at some point, with Rutschman, Henderson and Westburg being key contributors to the O’s 101-win 2023 season.
Solidifying the Pitching Staff
The other key to the Astros’ success was that they built their pitching staff with established arms. For example, Houston was able to acquire Justin Verlander, Gerrit Cole, Ryan Presley and Roberto Osuna, and the only notable player they lost was Joe Musgrove, who is now finding his stride in San Diego.
Sure enough, Elias has stayed on that same trajectory, most recently in his blockbuster trade with the Milwaukee Brewers, turning D.L. Hall and Joey Ortiz, two prospects outside of the O’s top 5, into Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes, who should slide right in as the Orioles’ new ace.
Of course, we also can’t forget Elias flipping right-handers Jorge López and Dylan Bundy at the peak of their values for Yennier Canó, an All-Star and major contributor to the Orioles’ 2023 pen, and Kyle Bradish, who posted a 2.83 ERA and finished fourth in AL Cy Young voting last season. It’s very possible Elias isn’t done yet, but pairing up the younger guys in Bradish and Grayson Rodriguez with an established veteran in Burnes is a textbook Astros move.
Patience
It’s also important to remember that the Astros were not successful instantaneously. In their first postseason run in 2015, they were eliminated in the ALDS by the Kansas City Royals in five games, the same round Baltimore got bounced in their first run with their new young core.
Houston would even go on to miss the postseason completely in 2016, before finally starting their reign of terror on the league in 2017, where they’ve since been to seven straight American League Championship Series and been crowned World Champs twice.
The best lesson Baltimore can learn here is to trust the process Elias has installed. As the Baby Birds garner more postseason experience and the front office continues to put more of an emphasis on “win now” moves, the Orioles are sure to become a powerhouse in the American League, much like Houston was and still is today.
Yordan Álvarez arrived in Houston in 2016 via trade and has since blossomed into maybe the best pure hitter in baseball. While we’ve yet to see Baltimore get results quite like that, it’s hard to not credit Elias and his staff for breakout offensive seasons from Ryan O’Hearn, Adam Frazier and Aaron Hicks, who were all on downward trajectories and put together career seasons for the O’s.
I know watching teams spend big money to get better is always frustrating to watch for Oriole fans everywhere, but it’s best to keep in mind that it took many years for the Astros to start utilizing big money free agency contracts. Now that Elias has put in place a core he knows can win, he can continue to supplement the roster with the necessary pieces over the next few years in hopes to not only be competitive but to keep that competitive window open for extended periods of time.
And now, with the news of John Angelos agreeing to sell the Orioles to a team led by Carlyle Group, Inc. co-founder David Rubenstein, we can only hope the Burnes trade is a sign of things to come. Maybe the Orioles will become like the San Diego Padres and become big spenders in the ever-changing market.
Whichever direction the organization takes, hopefully, when it’s all said and done, Baltimore is a few more World Championships richer.
What do you think of Elias’ game plan and philosophy? Let us know in the comments below! Make sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook, Twitter (X) and TikTok, and use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content!
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