TT: The Orioles should let Duquette walk

[Beast]

I've kind of stayed out of this for a few reasons, but what the hell, here's my take.

I like and respect Dan Duquette as the GM here and I think he's a big part of our success. I like the fact that he's not afraid to go for it and is willing to move minor league prospects for major league ready talent in an attempt to win year in and year out, not just try to play .500 baseball while hoping every prospect pans out. In addition, I agree with those who say he's under contract and the last time I checked Duquette would expect the Orioles to honor their commitments so I think he should honor his commitment. Afterall, no one forced him to sign that extension.

Now, saying all of that, I'm at the point that it might be best for all parties if Angelos relents and allows Duquette to leave as long as the Orioles receive some kind of significant return from the Blue Jays. Now don't get me wrong, I'd be lying if I didn't want to stick it to the Blue Jays for how they've gone about this especially when you consider the timing of them leaking their interest at the start of the winter meetings. That's just underhanded and although Duquette historically has done very little of significance at the winter meetings while at the Orioles helm, we have no idea how that has affected things this winter. Afterall, if I'm a perspective player and I just watched Duquette allow two of his outfielders to walk out the door and there are rumors about him leaving the organization, maybe I think twice.

Despite this, here's why I think it might be best if he's allowed to leave. First, as much as I respect him for his baseball knowledge, he's not irreplaceable. I think back to when he was hired and no one wanted to come here and work for Angelos and how Angelos decided to take a chance on a guy who had been out of organized baseball. That worked out pretty well. Either way, there are quality baseball men in and out of this organization who just need a chance to show they can lead an organization.

Secondly, speaking of leading an organization, let's not pull any punches. Various sources within the organization have told me there are factions within the warehouse that almost goes back to the Joe Jordan - Dave Stockstill wars. From what I understand, you are either a Duquette guy or a Buck guy. That doesn't mean they don't work together necessarily, but let's not act like the organization is full of harmony. In fact, there's a reason leaks from within the organization have been coming out that some within the organization might not be upset to see Duquette go.

Third, as much as Duquette has done a great job with trying to find talent from all sources, he's a bit of a control freak when it comes to hiring new talent into the organization and doesn't allow others to build their staffs as they see fit. In the minors, there is no cohesion of effort between the coordinators and the local affiliate staffs and players are getting conflicting advice from one level to another or even at the same level when a coordinator shows up out of nowhere and starts tinkering.

From what I was told, one of the problems is that certain guys are Duquette guys and have free reign to do what they want. There has also been some concerns expressed about how hard some of those guys work and if they are causing more problems then they are helping. Considering the lack of development within the system the last few years, it's hard to argue this lack of cohesion has not had a negative affect.

Lastly, why do the Orioles want to keep a guy who wants to leave? Sure, you may point out that Duquette has never said he wants to leave publicly, but what GM doesn't come out and immediately squash these rumors if he wasn't interested? Buck has helped instill a team philosophy throughout the organization. He wants players to be attached to the past, the city and the fans, but what does it say when the GM wants to be elsewhere?

So at the end of the day, I'd like to see the Blue Jays have to pay for poaching the Orioles GM, but I also think it's best for all if Angelos allows it to happen. The organization can only be at it's best when all parties are moving forward in the same manner. The Orioles are lucky to have a guy like Buck Showalter who understands the team concept and it's why so many guys are so loyal to Buck and vice versa. The Orioles deserve a GM with the same mentality.

Buck is also a bit of a control freak, so it's probably not surprising that there might be points of tension between the two. But frankly, the O's have benefited greatly from their combined work, despite any differences between them. And for all we know, it might just be the presence of two control freaks that have helped to convince Angelos to temper his own control-freakiness in matters regarding baseball. Things were not pretty when Angelos did not have strong trust in his GM. As long as he trusts DD, I think that's argument enough to keep him in Baltimore. While Duquette may not be irreplaceable, the track record is not all that good in finding GM's whom Angelos will trust and allow to operate reasonably freely (within imposed budgetary restrictions).

And I think it would be truly bad for MLB overall to reward Ed Rogers' incompetence and underhandedness in this whole affair by letting him "get his man." For me, the desirable approach is to wait until the Blue Jays are out of this picture, and then give DD a raise and perhaps a new title.

[harp6]

Lastly, why do the Orioles want to keep a guy who wants to leave? Sure, you may point out that Duquette has never said he wants to leave publicly, but what GM doesn't come out and immediately squash these rumors if he wasn't interested? Buck has helped instill a team philosophy throughout the organization. He wants players to be attached to the past, the city and the fans, but what does it say when the GM wants to be elsewhere?

Good points, but I wanted to point out that Duquette usually does not address or comment on rumors. So why would he change now and try and squash the rumors about himself. He usually lets rumors run their course.

[Ohfan67]

Enjoyed TT. If Angelos lets DD go it will be after a prolonged and very painful (for jays and MLB) negotiation. If MLB gets involved then he will squeeze something from both!

[wildbillhiccup]

Great post Tony. I'm not sure about the others, but you captured my sentiment perfectly.

The bottom line is not about what's right (i.e., honoring a contract) it's about what's right for the Orioles. The Orioles need someone who wants to be their GM, not someone who stares longingly out his office window each day in the direction of Canada. Make a deal with Toronto, get compensation, and move on. That would be best for everyone.

[Go_Os]

The bottom line is winning at the major league level.

1. The O's didn't win for 14 years before DD arrived and they have won the last three years with him.

2. It took Peter Angelos 22 years be find a VP of Baseball Operation that he liked and that could win. It will probably be very hard to find that combination again.

3. I think DD has demonstrated that he would like a promotion and raise if it offered to him. I don't blame DD for that. He hasn't shown that needs to be in Toronto. If the O's offer something attractive he would probably be glad to stay.

All the internal back story is minutiae to me. The O's are producing winners under DD. That is the bottom line to me.

Agree 100%.

DD signed an extension so he should stay and finish the job. The longer we wait the odds increase that Toronto will go in another direction. F the BJs.

[El Gordo]

Angelos wants a big haul for Duke's services. Buck feels that if he(Duke) has a better deal with Toronto he should go where he's happiest otherwise you breed discontent. I think Duke is gone personally, how it shakes out I don't know.

If this is how Buck feels then DD will eventually go. Buck is the main man and if he signs off on the compensation it will happen. PA listens to him.

[24fps]

Great post Tony. I'm not sure about the others, but you captured my sentiment perfectly.

The bottom line is not about what's right (i.e., honoring a contract) it's about what's right for the Orioles. The Orioles need someone who wants to be their GM, not someone who stares longingly out his office window each day in the direction of Canada. Make a deal with Toronto, get compensation, and move on. That would be best for everyone.

It wouldn't be best for the Orioles if Duquette's replacement was the functional equivalent of Syd Thrift or Frank Wren or Jim Beattie or even Andy MacPhail. Talent trumps all and it's foolish to throw it away for pennies on the dollar which is what would happen in any conventional scenario. Has anybody firmly established that differences between Duquette and the Orioles exist in any substantial way, much less are irreconcilable?

[brianod]

History is replete with examples of great managers/coaches that overstepped their bounds into GMship and failed. The most successful model in professional sports is a strong GM who hires a strong coach/manager and makes the personnel decisions.

The unwritten but implied sense I get from Tony's post is that he is a Buck guy. Be careful what you wish for Tony. Great managers/coaches often make horrible gms and drive the team into the ground.

Pay DD and promote him. No-one should expect a gm and manager to agree on everything and putting all the decisions with the manager is fools gold.

[El Gordo]

It not a simple matter of more money and a better title, IMO. It's a matter of how much power DD would have with TOR v BAL. Here he has to share the reins with Buck, Brady and the PA boys. He may feel he'll have more control in TOR.

[UMDTerrapins]

I'd let Dan know he'll be allowed to pursue any CEO/President positions that open up in the future, as long as they are not in the AL East. Restructure his contract for a decent sized raise. The only way Angelos would allow Toronto to emerge with Duquette is if Angelos himself wants him gone. His statements have been exceptionally clear that he's under contract and going nowhere. Toronto has been shady in their pursuit, and they're a division rival. Do people really expect Angelos to allow this to happen? Seems like such a far fetched notion to me.

[UMDTerrapins]

It not a simple matter of more money and a better title, IMO. It's a matter of how much power DD would have with TOR v BAL. Here he has to share the reins with Buck, Brady and the PA boys. He may feel he'll have more control in TOR.

I'm sure it's frustrating after the offseason the O's have had to see our neighborhood rival/quasi-subsidiary shell out a $210 million contract while already having a stacked rotation. It's no surprise that Dan would like to have more resources to work with.

[Ohfan67]

It not a simple matter of more money and a better title, IMO. It's a matter of how much power DD would have with TOR v BAL. Here he has to share the reins with Buck, Brady and the PA boys. He may feel he'll have more control in TOR.

Good points. There's a chance that DD would like to use this situation to get more authority in the Orioles organization. That would be a good reason not to address the rumors to the press and let this play out a little. A restructured deal with the O's could include more guarantees of autonomy. I'm sure that would be attractive to DD and any GM equivalent in the O's organization.

[brianod]

The alarming thing to me is that DD wants to go. (Apparently). What do the Blue Jays have over the Orioles? A little more money to spend, but not all that much. The Orioles seem better set up for long term success unless DD has made the judgment that ownership is cheap and too interested in profit...

[brianod]

Good points. There's a chance that DD would like to use this situation to get more authority in the Orioles organization. That would be a good reason not to address the rumors to the press and let this play out a little. A restructured deal with the O's could include more guarantees of autonomy. I'm sure that would be attractive to DD and any GM equivalent in the O's organization.

Now that is an interesting take on all this. I really hope you are right.

[SteveA]

The alarming thing to me is that DD wants to go. (Apparently). What do the Blue Jays have over the Orioles? A little more money to spend, but not all that much. The Orioles seem better set up for long term success unless DD has made the judgment that ownership is cheap and too interested in profit...

Some of the previous posts above this one might be getting to the heart of it. It might be about controle. In Toronto, he would have complete control. Here, Buck is an integral part of the team leadership. Buck is far more knowledgable about ALL the details of the organization than most managers are. He knows what is going on at every minor league level, you can see it when he talks about minor leaguers occasionally during his press conferences.

And from everything I have heard, Buck has the ear of the owner.

I think it's a good thing that Buck has so much influence here because I think Buck is a great baseball guy.

But the fact is, Buck will always have a certain degree of power and influence here, while Toronto's manager is merely... an employee.

And that's not going to change. If he wants to completely run the show from top to bottom... Toronto is a better place for Dan than here.