O Dowd

CLEVELAND -- As many people as Peter Angelos fires, you'd think by now he'd get it right.Uh, maybe next time.Roland Hemond is under contract for the rest of the season, but Angelos already is trying to hire his successor as general manager.The word is out, now that Cleveland owner Richard Jacobs has denied the Orioles permission to interview Indians assistant GM Dan O'Dowd.It's typical Angelos.Sloppy, sloppy, sloppy.Last year, when it was reported that the Orioles had requested permission to interview Tony La Russa, Angelos had to fire Johnny Oates the next day.That, at least, happened in the off-season.

If you've been paying attention for the past 10 years or so, you've probably noticed that Baltimore is no longer the center of the baseball universe. Maybe it never was, but there was a time when the Orioles were one of the sport's cornerstone franchises, and during a big chunk of that heady period the general manager of the team was a nice man named Hank Peters. Peters, in fact, was the GM for the final 10 of the Orioles' amazing string of 18 straight winning seasons (1968-1985), somehow keeping the player development component of Oriole Way alive nearly a decade into the free-agent era. This little testimonial is not intended to strike some contrast between the good old days and the frustrating new ones, but to serve as pretext to an uplifting little story about the way a good organizational philosophy is handed down from generation to generation, though not necessarily in the same organization.

Momentum appears to be building for Florida Marlins assistant general manager Frank Wren to succeed Pat Gillick as Orioles general manager, according to sources familiar with the process.The shift occurs at the same time that the club eliminated Cleveland Indians assistant general manager Dan O'Dowd from consideration because of an uncomfortable interview Sunday with majority owner Peter Angelos. The absence of O'Dowd, once considered the front-runner for the position, leaves Wren, Chicago White Sox assistant general manager Dan Evans and Atlanta Braves assistant general manager Dean Taylor as the remaining candidates.

Arizona Diamondbacks Manager: Bob Brenly 2001 record: 92-70 (first) What's new in 2002: This is a clear case of if it ain't broke, don't fix it. The Diamondbacks are the reigning world champions, so it should come as no surprise that they made relatively few changes in the roster that got their first title. They did add former Texas Rangers pitching ace Rick Helling, who should help flesh out a strong rotation, and fourth outfielder Jose Guillen, who has been vying for more playing time with a strong spring performance.

The Orioles have cleared a significant hurdle in their search for a successor to general manager Pat Gillick: The Cleveland Indians granted them permission to interview assistant general manager Dan O'Dowd. But access to O'Dowd, a leading candidate, is conditional, according to sources familiar with the talks.Indians owner Richard Jacobs and general manager John Hart stipulated that O'Dowd's availability is contingent upon an agreement that no Indians personnel follow O'Dowd to Baltimore for a specified length of time.

CLEVELAND -- The Orioles asked for and were denied permission to interview Cleveland assistant general manager Dan O'Dowd for the possibility of hiring him as general manager -- the first hard indication that current Orioles GM Roland Hemond's job is in jeopardy.Orioles owner Peter Angelos called Indians owner Richard J. Jacobs about a week ago to ask to talk to O'Dowd, regarded as one of the game's top young executives. Jacobs refused because O'Dowd has a contract that runs through 1998, with an option for 1999.

Believing Pat Gillick's departure a foregone conclusion, the Orioles yesterday began the process of finding his successor as general manager, according to sources familiar with the situation.Orioles chief operating officer Joe Foss yesterday asked for and received permission to interview Cincinnati general manager Jim Bowden. Reds president John Allen also had granted Bowden permission to interview for the Los Angeles Dodgers' general manager vacancy; however, that job went to former Orioles assistant general manager Kevin Malone on Friday.

CLEVELAND -- Orioles officials have contacted Joe Klein, who is being replaced as the general manager of the Detroit Tigers, and likely will interview him today or tomorrow as a possible replacement for Roland Hemond.Hemond resigned as Orioles general manager last week. Former Montreal general manager Kevin Malone, the first candidate interviewed by the Orioles, remains the front-runner. Boston assistant general manager Mike Port interviewed on Wednesday with Orioles owner Peter Angelos and club counsel Russell Smouse and impressed.

BOSTON -- A Cleveland executive denied a published report that the Orioles are trying to acquire Bill Ripken from the Indians so that he can play with brother Cal Ripken on Sept. 6, the day Cal Ripken is scheduled to break Lou Gehrig's record for consecutive games played."Emphatically denied," said assistant general manager Dan O'Dowd. "We have not had one discussion with anyone from the Orioles about Billy Ripken."Orioles general manager Roland Hemond agreed. "We haven't talked to the Indians about [Bill Ripken]

If you've been paying attention for the past 10 years or so, you've probably noticed that Baltimore is no longer the center of the baseball universe. Maybe it never was, but there was a time when the Orioles were one of the sport's cornerstone franchises, and during a big chunk of that heady period the general manager of the team was a nice man named Hank Peters. Peters, in fact, was the GM for the final 10 of the Orioles' amazing string of 18 straight winning seasons (1968-1985), somehow keeping the player development component of Oriole Way alive nearly a decade into the free-agent era. This little testimonial is not intended to strike some contrast between the good old days and the frustrating new ones, but to serve as pretext to an uplifting little story about the way a good organizational philosophy is handed down from generation to generation, though not necessarily in the same organization.

VIERA, Fla. -- Though the Orioles seem confident that promising Sidney Ponson and Jason Johnson will be able to move up in the rotation to soften the temporary loss of veteran pitcher Scott Erickson, club officials appear to be intensifying the search for another starting pitcher. The focus of that search is the Colorado Rockies, a team that spent the winter stockpiling pitching talent. Orioles vice president of baseball operations Syd Thrift confirmed yesterday that he has had recent conversations with Rockies general manager Dan O'Dowd and has dispatched two scouts to shadow the club in Arizona.

Though the naming of the Orioles' next general manager might now come later than sooner, momentum appears to be building within the warehouse for Florida Marlins assistant general manager Frank Wren to succeed Pat Gillick, according to sources familiar with the process.Atlanta Braves assistant general manager Dean Taylor, Chicago White Sox assistant GM Dan Evans and Cleveland Indians assistant GM Dan O'Dowd also remain under consideration.Apparently no longer certain of reaching a decision by this weekend, majority owner Peter Angelos and chief operating officer Joe Foss did not return phone calls yesterday.

BOSTON -- Orioles chief operating officer Joe Foss finished two days of observation and meetings with manager Ray Miller yesterday regarding the club's ongoing general manager search. While Foss holds to his original deadline of making a hire by the end of the World Series, he would not rule out an earlier conclusion.Meanwhile, the first round of interviews won't conclude until at least Thursday when Foss meets with Cleveland Indians assistant general manager Dan O'Dowd. Indians majority owner Richard Jacobs last week seconded general manager John Hart's authorization for the Orioles to interview O'Dowd.

The Orioles have cleared a significant hurdle in their search for a successor to general manager Pat Gillick: The Cleveland Indians granted them permission to interview assistant general manager Dan O'Dowd. But access to O'Dowd, a leading candidate, is conditional, according to sources familiar with the talks.Indians owner Richard Jacobs and general manager John Hart stipulated that O'Dowd's availability is contingent upon an agreement that no Indians personnel follow O'Dowd to Baltimore for a specified length of time.

Believing Pat Gillick's departure a foregone conclusion, the Orioles yesterday began the process of finding his successor as general manager, according to sources familiar with the situation.Orioles chief operating officer Joe Foss yesterday asked for and received permission to interview Cincinnati general manager Jim Bowden. Reds president John Allen also had granted Bowden permission to interview for the Los Angeles Dodgers' general manager vacancy; however, that job went to former Orioles assistant general manager Kevin Malone on Friday.

The Orioles interviewed former New York Yankees general manager Gene Michael on Friday as a possible replacement for Roland Hemond as Orioles GM, and they will interview ex-Detroit Tigers GM Joe Klein today.Michael, 57, was the fourth GM candidate interviewed by the Orioles, following former San Diego Padres GM Randy Smith, who will take the Detroit GM job tomorrow; Kevin Malone, who resigned as Montreal Expos general manager the first week of October and appears to be a slight front-runner to replace Hemond; and Mike Port, the assistant general manager of the Boston Red Sox.Michael accepted a demotion last week to become the Yankees' director of major-league scouting, because he wouldn't accept a pay cut of $200,000 that Yankees owner George Steinbrenner insisted he take.

VIERA, Fla. -- Though the Orioles seem confident that promising Sidney Ponson and Jason Johnson will be able to move up in the rotation to soften the temporary loss of veteran pitcher Scott Erickson, club officials appear to be intensifying the search for another starting pitcher. The focus of that search is the Colorado Rockies, a team that spent the winter stockpiling pitching talent. Orioles vice president of baseball operations Syd Thrift confirmed yesterday that he has had recent conversations with Rockies general manager Dan O'Dowd and has dispatched two scouts to shadow the club in Arizona.

ATLANTA -- Hank Peters redeemed his name with the Cleveland Indians. Now, the Indians might provide redemption for the biggest disappointment of his career.Remember '79.That's what Peters told John Hart, Dan O'Dowd and Co. before leaving Cleveland to return home to Baltimore after Game 4 of the World Series.They worked together for the Orioles once, and then they went to Cleveland, laying the groundwork for the Indians' first Series appearance since 1954.Peters, 70, is retired now, but he reminded Hart and O'Dowd of how the Orioles collapsed against Pittsburgh when he was their general manager in '79.And two members of that Orioles team, Dennis Martinez and Eddie Murray, preached the same gospel in the Indians' clubhouse.