Mike Elias on building the talent pipeline, Keith Law on analytics

LAS VEGAS - Hiring the next manager for the Orioles is an important priority in the short term for new executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias. He will pick one of six candidates he's interviewed for the job.

Though Elias wouldn't confirm any of the reported names, the six candidates are known to be Nationals bench coach Chip Hale, Cubs bench coach Brandon Hyde, Royals quality control/catching coach Pedro Grifol, Diamondbacks director of player development Mike Bell, Rockies bench coach Mike Redmond and former Nationals and Indians manager Manny Acta.

But the long-range goal, the one Elias cited the day of his first press conference, was essentially repeated Monday as he spoke to Baltimore reporters at the Winter Meetings. The long-term success will eventually come as the talent base - particularly on the farm - is among the best in the sport. That is the direction in which the Orioles hope to head.

I asked Elias yesterday to look at his basic beginning point. Where is this organization's talent base right now?

"Look, I'm very accustomed to having an elite farm system wherever I've been," he said. "That is what I'm used to. Are we there? Is this a top five, top 10 farm system right now? I don't think there are a lot of rankings that would place the farm system in that regard.

"But I know there are a lot of individual players in the farm system that I'm very excited about. So I think there are some really good pieces there. I think there are some really good pieces on the major league roster. But my standards in this regard are really high. Just because of where I've been in my career and what we've been able to do. So, I won't be satisfied until I feel that is the case here."

So along those lines, Elias stated yesterday what is readily apparent: The Orioles' 2019 won-loss record is not incredibly significant in the larger picture as the team rebuilds.

"I'd like to see the record improve," he said. "But our organizational goal and direction is to improve the aggregate talent base across this organization. That is our directive, first and foremost. My hope and expectation is that will come alongside an improvement in the major league record."

On Monday, I had a chance to interview ESPN's Keith Law, who provided his take on the Orioles' hires of Mike Elias and Sig Mejdal. Law is impressed with both, and you can read more of his comments here. You can read more of what Elias told reporters yesterday here.

We also talked about the Orioles getting up to speed in analytics and the various ways that data and information can help a front office. One key way is as a tool for evaluating potential player acquisitions, both at the pro level and in sizing up amateurs in advance of a draft. Major league players can use analytics to help them improve their performance. So is analytics more critical in one area over the other?

"I don't know if there is a clear answer," Law said. "I will say that I think, to the casual fan, it is probably more evident where analytics comes into play on the major league field. You see it in defensive positioning all the time. You see it in pitchers coming out of games, especially playoff games, when facing hitters twice through the order.

"But teams are using analytics now on the amateur side and in the draft, and that is part of why Houston was so successful in the draft. They are using it on the international front.

"I was at a showcase recently for Venezuelan amateur players as young as 13 where they had Trackman style data. They had equipment installed in this park in Aruba to try and capture some of that kind of information. All teams that have R&D (research and development) departments want that information, even on 13-year-olds in Latin America. The Orioles didn't have that information, and that always put them at a disadvantage in the draft and in the international market."

The battle to best use the data and information is on big-time in Major League Baseball.

"You are always looking for new information and advantages," Law said. "Temporary inefficiencies that you can hopefully exploit - whether it's in the draft, pro scouting or on the major league level. Also, you need your analytics department to keep up with 29 other teams you are competing with on the field and in the market for players. You need to understand why other teams are doing the things they are doing."

Join us for Day Two coverage: Once again today, and through the rest of the Winter Meetings, Roch Kubatko and I will be filing several blog entries and updating fans via our Twitter accounts. Also be sure to check "MASN All Access" on Facebook as we broadcast live today from 3-5 p.m. Eastern time and again from 9-11 p.m. Eastern time. And watch "The Mid-Atlantic Sports Report" on MASN today from 5-7 p.m. Eastern time.

Click here for our Facebook page, where you can watch some of yesterday's four hours of coverage. You can fast-forward to interviews you want to see the most.