Former Baltimore Orioles Executive Added to Pirates' Front Office

During the past few years of the rebuild that general manager Mike Elias has overseen, the Baltimore Orioles are widely considered to be one of the best front offices in all of Major League Baseball.

After winning an AL-most 101 games last season, Elias was recognized by taking home the Executive of the Year award.

There's not much to complain about regarding the Orioles' organization. They have drafted and developed players at an elite level, one of the reasons why they have turned into contenders despite not spending money.

Elias took over as general manager in November of 2018.

That was the same month that their former executive, Sarah Gelles, left the franchise and took over a role with the Houston Astros.

Gelles began her career as an intern with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2009 before taking another baseball operations intern role with Baltimore in 2011.

The rising executive launched her career with the Orioles, starting as the coordinator of baseball analytics from 2012-14 before being promoted to director of baseball analytics.

She held that role from 2014-16 before getting promoted again to director of analytics and Major League contracts.

Gelles and Elias were like two ships passing in the night as Baltimore's current GM left the Astros to take his current job and Gelles departed the Orioles for Houston's program manager of research and development role.

The rising executive was promoted within a front office again, getting the director of research and development title with the Astros. She held that position for just under five years before Houston's new general manager, Dana Brown, decided to restructure the organization.

After being dismissed, it looks like the former Baltimore executive has found a new role.

According to Eno Sarris and Britt Ghiroli of The Athletic, sources have told them that the Pirates have hired Gelles to be an assistant general manager within their front office.

Pittsburgh has yet to confirm this report, but it looks like the rising executive has found another home within the MLB.