8:30 a.m.: The Orioles officially announced the hiring. The club said in a statement that Banner would be in charge of player development, training and performance. He will work with Elias on recruitment and acquisitions.
7:54 a.m.: The Orioles are hiring Jared Banner as general manager, ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports. Banner was most recently an assistant general manager with the Cubs. He also worked for the Mets and Red Sox.
Banner has been in Chicago since 2020. He was promoted to assistant general manager in 2023. He previously worked in Boston and New York in a player development role. Banner played a key role in the trade that sent Pete Crow Armstrong from the Mets to the Cubs. He was familiar with the development of the PCA from his time in the Mets organization. Banner was also on hand for the A’s general manager’s opening, but ultimately landed in Baltimore.
“When I first heard Mike’s vision, I knew it was something I wanted to be a part of.“, Banner said in a team press release. “The Orioles are a historic franchise with a passionate fan base, a historic stadium and an organization full of talent. I look forward to building on the foundation laid by Mike and his team to build a world-class organization and bring championships back to Baltimore.”.”
Banner, 41, has been playing baseball for nearly 20 years. He got his start with the Red Sox in a low-level player development position in 2007. Banner spent 11 years with the organization, becoming vice president of player personnel at the end of his tenure. He joined the Mets at the end of the 2018 season, where he served as executive director of player development for two years. Banner was hired by the Cubs at the end of the shortened 2020 campaign.
Mike Elias became Baltimore’s general manager in 2018. He was given the title of president of baseball operations ahead of the 2025 season. He mentioned building the front office this offseason and now has his second-in-command in place.
“Jared has been one of the emerging talents in our league for a while now“, Elias said in a press release. “He has demonstrated success leading several different departments and has worked alongside some of the best front office people and talent in the league on multiple occasions. He is the ideal person to grow, evolve and improve the Orioles’ baseball operations, and I look forward to working very closely with him as we build for 2027 and beyond..”
The Orioles went 79-82 last season. They remained in the AL Wild Card race for most of September before fading in the final weeks of the year. The club has now missed the playoffs in back-to-back seasons.
Elias guided the Orioles through a lengthy rebuild when he first took over. The team lost more than 100 games in three of its first four years, with the only reprieve being the shortened 2020 season. Baltimore finished above .500 in 2022 for the first time since 2016. The following year saw the organization’s first 100-win season in over 30 years. The Orioles made the playoffs in 2023 and 2024, but did not win a series in either year.
Photo courtesy of Katie Stratman, Imagn Images
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