Duquette doesn't think Orioles are interviewing other execs

The Baltimore Orioles are in a rough patch, and reports have surfaced stating the team is looking at new candidates for the front office. Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette rejected this notion on Saturday.

“My understanding is it’s not true,” Duquette said, according to Dan Connolly of BaltimoreBaseball.com.

This follows a Friday report from The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal that stated the team had interviewed former Los Angeles Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti for an unspecified executive position. Rosenthal added the team is believed to be interviewing other candidates, as well.

Hiring Colletti or another executive would not necessarily spell the end for Duquette or manager Buck Showalter, though it's unclear what role any new hire would serve.

It wouldn't be the first time the Orioles have shuffled the deck in the front office midseason, either. Owner Peter Angelos hired Andy MacPhail as team president in June 2007 and kept then-executive VP Mike Flanagan and VP Jim Duquette on board.

It's increasingly looking like a lost season in Baltimore after the team became the first in the majors to lose 50 games after dropping its ninth consecutive contest on Saturday. Still, Duquette remains optimistic about the future and his role with the team.

"You know, my heart is in Baltimore and I want to do whatever I can in my power to get this team back into a competitive position," Duquette said. "We have a pretty good idea of what we need to work on - we have a very intimate idea of what we need to work on. And a lot of experience and a proven track record. There’s a lot of work that needs to be done. We have the people that can do the job. We’ve done the job."