Is MacPhail the right GM to take this team to the next level?

[Sports Guy]

Other than hope, why do you truly believe that AM is the guy to take us to the next level?

Do you feel he is that good of a baseball mind/man?

[scOtt]

I voted no.

I think he is the perfect GM to get us to the brink of contention on a consistent basis.

I think he could do it in any other division.

But I don't think he will do what it takes to get us into consistent contention in this division.

I think our only hope, as long as AM is the GM, is if we hit on almost all of our young talent, which is just so tough to do.

I fear all that but don't see it as a certainty as you do. Is why I voted not sure.

[Mackus]

Other than hope, why do you truly believe that AM is the guy to take us to the next level?

Do you feel he is that good of a baseball mind/man?

I think he's a fantastic baseball mind/man.

I also don't think that his previous conservative nature is necessarily the way he'll be when trying to take us from a mostly internally built 80-85 win team to a 90-95 win team. He was conservative before largely because he was in charge of teams with pretty significant financial limitations. He wasn't allowed to spend freely. Maybe he wouldn't have taken big risks even if he could have, but there isn't really any proof one way or the other that points to how he'll be like once we're close. There also isn't really any proof as to how much rope Angelos will actually give him payroll wise.

I have far more doubt about Angelos opening up the purse strings than I do about MacPhail being too frugal or risk-averse to get us where we need to be if those purse strings are opened enough to do so.

[byrdz]

Other than hope, why do you truly believe that AM is the guy to take us to the next level?

Faith, based on past performances, he's taken teams to the next level before.

[tywright]

How can anyone say AM is not the right man for the job when he's never been put in this type of situation up until now and when there is more than one way to build a winning team.

[SilentJames]

fact: MacPhail has revamped the minor league system and has laid the first pieces of a reliable pipeline of quality young talent in a very short amount of time

fact: he has shown committment to a long-term vision for the team, something that this organization has lacked for the better part of 20 years

fact: he seems to have more autonomy than any GM over the last decade

fact: he has made the Orioles a much more repsected organization within the league

fact: he has begun to get the Orioles more involved in the international market on the whole - though much much more needs to be done

fact: He has shown the ability to make significant trades in the middle of the season

fact: He has been honest and forthright with the fanbase with reguards to the goals of the team and the organization

[Mackus]

How can anyone say AM is not the right man for the job when he's never been put in this type of situation up until now and when there is more than one way to build a winning team.

Bingo. Great point.

Similarly, how can anyone say he is the right man for the job with any certainty.

The bottom line is, we just don't know. But we all should certainly hope so. There isn't really any reason to think he is or isn't capable of doing it any moreso than the other way around, aside from perhaps just the shear odds against anybody building a contender in this division.

[Sports Guy]

I guess in a way its not fair to just answer flat out no.

The reason I say that is you never know what kind of bargains may fall into his lap..Does he find the next Ortiz or Carlos Pena?

Is there an upper tier FA that signs a very manageable contract, like Vlad and Miggy did?

I guess if those things happen, that changes things..but I think that is probably the only way to consistent contend.

[tywright]

Bingo. Great point.

Similarly, how can anyone say he is the right man for the job with any certainty.

The bottom line is, we just don't know. But we all should certainly hope so. There isn't really any reason to think he is or isn't capable of doing it any moreso than the other way around, aside from perhaps just the shear odds against anybody building a contender in this division.

Exactly... it's almost as crazy as saying Jack Zduriencik is the perfect GM for the O's because he has shown to be aggressive in his first few months as a GM. But the fact is, were those moves smart decisions to build a winning club for the long haul?...probably not.

[Mackus]

I guess in a way its not fair to just answer flat out no.

The reason I say that is you never know what kind of bargains may fall into his lap..Does he find the next Ortiz or Carlos Pena?

Is there an upper tier FA that signs a very manageable contract, like Vlad and Miggy did?

I guess if those things happen, that changes things..but I think that is probably the only way to consistent contend.

So you're ready to conclude from the incomplete evidence at hand that he'll never be a guy to go out and spend the really super huge dollars on a FA?

I don't think that's a completely jumped-to conclusion, but it was at least walked-to briskly.

[Sports Guy]

So you're ready to conclude from the incomplete evidence at hand that he'll never be a guy to go out and spend the really super huge dollars on a FA?

I don't think that's a completely jumped-to conclusion, but it was at least walked-to briskly.

How are you defining super huge FA dollars?

[better]

I don't know about you guys, but I have never as much as set foot into the front office of a baseball franchise before. As much as we'd like to believe that by followig things closely we can get some kind of insight into the business of baseball, it's still untrue. Trea, you are just speculating. Maybe your "facts" don't make sense to every team in every given situation, because you need to build a foundation before you can play with the big boys! Andy McPhail understands that. Haven't you learned from the Albert Belles, Sammy Sosas, Miguel Tejadas...? I'm as frustrated as you are with all the losing, but I can't believe how you can continue to bash a GM who has clearly put this team into the best position to begin competing again in years (and in a pretty short time)..

Of course, "Not Sure" is the only credible option here. But I put in "Yes", because I felt like I needed to work against the bias of this poll and because I believe there's a good chance that he can make us successful again. But I could never be sure.

[tommyboy]

I voted No.

I like what he has done to improve the talent in the system via trades and thru the draft, but disagree with his approach on free agents. Sports Guy hit it right on the head with his comments. I don't think he will do what it takes to get us into consistent contention in this division.

[Peace21]

I said not sure because the next level is two years from now and still want to see what he can do between now and then.

[Mackus]

How are you defining super huge FA dollars?

$70-100M for a pitcher. Anything over $100M for a hitter. Anything $15M+ annually even if its for a slightly older guy so its a shorter deal.

Lackey, Sabathia, Teixeira, Bay, Holliday type deals. Basically any of the best two or three available FA in any given year.

I don't see him signing a pitcher, but I do think he'd sign that type of hitter.

For example, if we win 86 games this year and both Snyder and Bell come up and play very well and the Mets for some reason decline Reyes option (but he's still a premium guy, sort of a stretch, but just roll with the example). I'd have confidence that MacPhail would be able to get him signed. If that situation unfolds and he refused to land a premium player at an obvious position of need when we are very close to the playoffs, I'd be both furious and convinced he would never do so. But I don't feel that way yet.