MacPhail talks about the club's organizational meetings

The Orioles are scheduled to hold organizational meetings next week in Arizona. They will hold meetings that begin on Wednesday and run through next Saturday. The assembled will also have some time to check out some Arizona Fall League games. "We'll review our season and our needs," O's president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail said. "Talk about how we can fill them internally and externally. Go through some housekeeping matters that pertain to the organization. Nothing too out of the ordinary from what most clubs do. "We did not have one last year and I don't like to go two years without one. Plus it will be an opportunity for most of our guys to meet Buck and give Buck an opportunity to talk about some things - Some maybe more specific than others, some of his philosophies and give our guys exposure to him." The meetings will involve around 50 minor league managers and instructors, along with MacPhail, manager Buck Showalter, the rest of the front office and the pro and amateur scouts. MacPhail said it will not impact the meetings if the club's Major League coaching staff is not final by then. "I don't think so. I think it's more important your Major League manager be there. If we have some of the coaching circumstances resolved by then, they could be additions." Time will be spent reviewing the club's minor league season from 2010 with a thorough review of the organizations' talent. "The minor league managers and coaches will be asked to talk about the players they had with them this summer. The pro scouts will go through the organizations they were responsible for. There will be some joint philosophic discussions on things. "It could be something like our grading system and make sure everyone is on the same page. You have a certain amount of new faces involved and you want them up to date on how we do things. "Philosophically we remind everyone how we think we need to do things to be successful. Those things we sort of prioritize as an organization. It's good to go through those things periodically." Showalter will have a role as well. "Like any manager, he'll give his sense of the team performance. He'll talk about those areas he'd like to see us potentially make upgrades. It will be good for him to listen to what our organization thinks we have in the (minor league) pipeline, how far away it is and how much help it can be once it gets here. "He'll have the opportunity to participate in a review of those players from outside our organization that might address our needs. He'll hear it straight from our scouts their opinions and he can ask follow up questions like where a guy could hit in the lineup. Is he better right or left, that sort of thing." MacPhail said the Orioles need to do a good job of assessing their own players and talent in both their Majors and minor leagues. "That is just as important as trying to get a sense of who might be coming. The thing that really distinguishes the best organizations from average ones, is the ability to understand what they have in house. "No one was better than that for a long period of time than the Braves. Then before that, the Dodgers were good about moving pieces that could be moved without hurting themselves and preserving those critical to the organization's future. It's okay to move a player a year or two early rather than a year or two late. "We will certainly remind everyone at the beginning, that we need to be objective and candid here and to be as analytical as we can to get a real sense of where we are and we what need to do to improve." Coming later today: MacPhail's comments on the Orioles own free agents as the time for free agency in baseball nears.