The person spoke Friday night on condition of anonymity because the Orioles hadn’t announced the move.
Baltimore went 69-93 during its 14th consecutive losing season, and MacPhail’s contract expires Oct. 31.
MacPhail took the job in June 2007 with the intention of bringing his favorite childhood team back into prominence.
He made several moves that paid off, acquiring shortstop J.J. Hardy, outfielder Adam Jones and All-Star catcher Matt Wieters, but Baltimore was hurt by its inexperienced pitching staff while trying to navigate the tough AL East.
There is talk manager Buck Showalter could move upstairs.
DODGERS REBUFFED
Major League Baseball will not have to give the Los Angeles Dodgers evidence on how the league has dealt with other teams as lawyers prepare for a court showdown that will determine the Dodgers’ fate.
Attorneys for the team argued they need information about the league’s treatment of other teams to show that commissioner Bud Selig has not dealt with the Dodgers fairly.
But a judge in Dover, Del., stood by his earlier decision restricting an upcoming court fight to the league’s relationship with the Dodgers.
At the hearing starting later this month, the judge will consider dueling plans for the Dodgers to exit bankruptcy. The team wants to sell future television rights, while the league, which is serving as the Dodgers’ bankruptcy lender, wants the team to be sold.
GOOD NEWS FOR NOVA
New York Yankees rookie right-hander Ivan Nova, who left Game 5 of the American League Division Series after two innings Thursday night because of forearm tightness, emerged from the MRI tube Friday and received good news: No surgery is necessary.
The MRI showed a Grade 1 flexor strain of his right forearm. The Yankees announced “the injury is expected to heal without complications this winter.”
