Macphail

Twelve months ago in this space, we humbly welcomed the Orioles' newly hired team president to town with an itemized to-do list. One year into the job, it's time to check on his progress.

The Orioles are looking to further bolster their amateur scouting department by adding a second national crosschecker, and they are focusing on a candidate that has strong ties to the organization and executive vice president Dan Duquette. The Orioles have asked for and been granted permission to interview Matt Haas, the Eastern U.S. crosschecker for the Miami Marlins. Teams typically permit their staff to interview with other clubs only if it signifies a promotion, which this would.

A second opinion on Daniel Cabrera's sprained right elbow revealed no further damage, Orioles president Andy MacPhail said yesterday. Cabrera, who was 8-10 with a 5.25 ERA in 30 starts before being shut down after his Sept. 13 start with elbow pain, was examined this week by University of Miami orthopedist Dr. John Uribe. MacPhail said Uribe's diagnosis "echoed" the one from team orthopedist Dr. John Wilckens. "It just requires time off and rest, no surgery," MacPhail said. "It was something that was actually healing.

When Andy MacPhail wrestled with the idea of walking away from the Orioles as club president last fall, one of the primary factors in ultimately making the decision was the chance to spend more time with his elderly father. Lee MacPhail Jr., the Hall of Fame baseball executive, died Friday at age 95, roughly a year after Andy stepped down from the Orioles. Andy MacPhail told me last month he had no regrets in making the decision, and that he had been able to visit his father in Florida several times in 2012.

It was a different job, a different town and a different time. You might have missed it because Orioles fans were still on their honeymoon, sipping mojitos with their favorite team's new owner. In the fall of 1994, back in Chicago, a newly hired Andy MacPhail addressed reporters and, according to published reports at the time, talked about building a winner in a city frustrated from years of losing. "I've had my name spelled with an `F,'" MacPhail said. And he was right. Two days before he even accepted the gig as Chicago Cubs president, a local columnist, known for breathing fire and penning poison, introduced fans to the phrase "MacFail," which the writer would use nearly two dozen more times in the ensuing years.

The trade deadline is two months away, giving Andy MacPhail plenty of time to plot the next move in the Orioles' rebuilding process. But for now, MacPhail is satisfied to sit and observe a team that has exceeded expectations a third of the way through the season. "I'm not married to any blueprint that was set up in [organizational meetings] in October," said MacPhail, the Orioles president of baseball operations. "I use the military analogy: You move with the facts on the ground. These guys are playing hard.

You've been here before, right? This little midseason crossroads where you hope that whatever transpires the next three months of the baseball season makes you forget everything that transpired the previous three months. It's where you gaze up at the top row of warehouse windows and beg, plead and bargain. I'll dress my kid like an Oriole Bird bobblehead for the next 10 Halloweens if you can just sign a cleanup hitter. The on-field story lines are yawn material at this point. Almost all of the intrigue surrounding the Orioles over the second half of the season will take place away from the playing field.

The Orioles will hold their first workout for pitchers and catchers Thursday at Fort Lauderdale Stadium in Florida. Meanwhile, club president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail still has plenty to accomplish as spring training approaches. 1. Decide Brian Roberts' fate When the offseason began, it was expected that Miguel Tejada would be the first Orioles veteran standout to be traded, followed by Erik Bedard and then Brian Roberts. Well, Tejada and Bedard are gone, and Roberts' future hangs in the balance.

Clearly, the Orioles are a much more entertaining team when you don't have to watch them play. It has been six weeks since they closed out their 10th straight losing season, and things are just starting to get interesting. Club president Andy MacPhail basically shopped the whole roster at the general managers meetings, leaving little doubt he will move aggressively over the next couple of months to remodel the ballclub. That should not come as a great surprise to Orioles fans. MacPhail was brought here to be an agent of change - otherwise, what was the point?

Just like almost anyone who has decided to retire, Bill MacPhail admits that these first few days away from the office will be a little antsy.But when you've had the kind of impact on the world of sports broadcasting as MacPhail, the former head of the sports divisions of both CBS and CNN, you've earned the right to rest."

Lee MacPhail, a Hall of Fame baseball executive who served as Orioles general manager from 1959 to 1965, died Thursday evening at his home in Delray Beach, Fla. He was 95. Mr. MacPhail, who was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1998, represented the middle of a four-generation baseball dynasty. His father, Larry, was also a Hall of Fame executive. His son, Andy, became the Orioles' top baseball executive from 2007 to 2011 after serving in similar roles for the Minnesota Twins and Chicago Cubs.

Lee MacPhail, a Hall of Fame baseball executive who served as the Orioles' general manager from 1959 to 1965, died Thursday evening at his home in Delray Beach, Fla. He was 95. Mr. MacPhail, who was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1998, represented the middle of a four-generation baseball dynasty. His father, Larry, was also a Hall of Fame executive. His son Andy became the Orioles' top baseball executive from 2007 to 2011 after serving in similar roles for the Minnesota Twins and Chicago Cubs.

Before former club president Andy MacPhail discusses how he personally feels about the Orioles' playoff run this season, a year after he stepped down from his post, he rattles off a checklist. "First and foremost," he said, "there are just a lot of people I am happy for. " There are the Orioles players, many of whom he brought into the organization. There's manager Buck Showalter, whom MacPhail hired in July 2010. There's owner Peter Angelos, who tried to convince MacPhail to stay last fall.

Work has begun on what local public works officials say is Harford County's first mini-roundabout, being constructed at the intersection of West MacPhail and Tollgate roads in Bel Air. The project is expected to be completed prior to the Labor Day weekend, Sept. 1-3, the Harford County Department of Public Works said Monday. The intersection, which serves the Upper Chesapeake Medical Center as well as a number of residential neighborhoods, is closed while the work is being done.

Maybe it's a little early to start passing around the credit for the Orioles' surprising, uplifting and just plain fun first half of the 2012 season, but this could be a clear case of better early than never. The O's have exceeded expectations, and it's easy to point a couple of fingers in a couple of obvious directions. Buck Showalter clearly has changed the culture both on the field and in the clubhouse, so you can put a big gold star on his photo in the Orioles yearbook. New baseball operations guru Dan Duquette has made a couple of dynamic moves to upgrade the starting rotation, so his impact is easily measurable, even if he tried to acquire just about everybody with a pulse during the offseason.

Major League Baseball announced today that Joe Torre has stepped down as executive vice president of baseball operations to join a prospective ownership group that will be among those competing to buy the Los Angeles Dodgers. So there's a high-profile opening in the commissioner's office. And around here, that means one thing: Andy MacPhail's name will be floated as a candidate. In fact, within minutes of the official announcement, at least one writer mentioned MacPhail as a replacement possibility.

It has been more than a week since the Orioles fired manager Sam Perlozzo, and the search to find his replacement begins in earnest today when new club president Andy MacPhail settles in at the warehouse. MacPhail and the Orioles' front office thought an extended search wouldn't be necessary when they made an offer to former Florida Marlins manager Joe Girardi last week. But after Girardi turned them down, the club started over with plenty of possibilities and no specific front-runner.

The Orioles are still pursuing trades involving several of their best players, but they'll soon turn their attention toward free agency if acceptable offers don't come this month. Orioles president Andy MacPhail confirmed that he is still in trade talks with various clubs but that the intensity has not picked up significantly in the past few weeks. "There's no change in status," MacPhail said. "I talk to different clubs about different things, but I wouldn't characterize anything as `heating up' these days."

Dan Duquette had been out of a major league front office since 2002, the year he was fired by the Boston Red Sox after eight seasons as the team's general manager. The Orioles had been rejected by one candidate — and possibly more — in the team's month-long search to replace Andy MacPhail as the club's top baseball executive. On Sunday, Duquette found his way back to the big leagues and the Orioles found what they hoped was the man who would lead the team out of its 14-season abyss.

The Orioles have taken another preliminary step in their search for the new executive who will replace Andy MacPhail as head of baseball operations. Manager Buck Showalter flew to Baltimore on Wednesday and met with owner Peter Angelos and other front office personnel to discuss possible candidates for the position. Now, club officials must get permission from the current employers of some of those candidates before setting up formal interviews. That process almost certainly is under way. The club is believed to be working from a list that includes Arizona Diamondbacks senior vice president for scouting and player development Jerry DiPoto, Texas Rangers assistant general manager Thad Levine, Toronto Blue Jays assistant GM Tony LaCava, Florida Marlins assistant GM Dan Jennings, Los Angeles Dodgers assistant GM De Jon Watson, Detroit Tigers assistant GM Al Avila, Los Angeles Angels executive and former GM Tony Reagins and Dodgers assistant GM Logan White.