Steve Melewski

Voting for the Hall of Fame must certainly have its challenges

Voting for the Hall of Fame must certainly have its challenges
While I am a member of the Baseball Writers' Association of America, I have not yet been a member for 10 years, and that means I do not yet vote for the Hall of Fame. So I dodged that bullet, so to speak. As no more than an interested observer right now, I look at the writers that do have a vote and wonder how they possibly figure out a way to handle the steroids and/or performance-enhancing drug issue? I have heard voters who will not even consider anyone linked to PEDs and voters that have...
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Steve Melewski

Will the next team for Grayson Rodriguez be Norfolk or Baltimore?

Will the next team for Grayson Rodriguez be Norfolk or Baltimore?
It usually comes down to more than this, oftentimes much more, but if the Orioles simply headed north for opening day 2022 with their five most talented pitchers in their rotation, no doubt right-hander Grayson Rodriguez would have a great chance to be one of those five. Could he be in the opening day rotation? He certainly could. Will he? That is a much more complicated question. There is lot to consider beyond whether he one of the best five. There is what the new collective bargaining...
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Steve Melewski

While waiting for baseball, discussing prospects and an acquisition

While waiting for baseball, discussing prospects and an acquisition
Let's take a look back at a few stories that made news around here this week as we wait for the lockout to end. It's good news that another negotiating session is taking place tomorrow between Major League Baseball players and owners. It's now Jan. 23 and go time for these sides to get moving with spring training camps set to open in less than a month. The players are expected to make a proposal after the owners side did the same about a week ago. Let's see where it leads with fingers...
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Steve Melewski

J.J. Cooper on what kept Adley Rutschman at No. 1

J.J. Cooper on what kept Adley Rutschman at No. 1
When I interviewed Baseball America executive editor J.J. Cooper this week about the publication's new top 100 prospects list, it was clear that while the Orioles' Adley Rutschman was ranked as the outlet's No. 1 prospect, he was not an easy choice to be No. 1. As good as Rutschman is, and Baseball America also rates him with three 70-grade tools, two other players had strong cases for No. 1. They are Seattle's 21-year-old outfield prospect Julio Rodriguez from the Dominican Republic and...
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Steve Melewski

A look at the only 20-20 player on the O's farm in 2021

A look at the only 20-20 player on the O's farm in 2021
On the Orioles farm, a case could be made that no player showed a better speed-power combination in 2021 than outfielder Zach Watson. He was the only player on the O's farm to both hit 20 or more homers and steal 20 or more bases. And he did that during the combined 105 games he played for high Single-A Aberdeen and Double-A Bowie. Watson, 24, was the Orioles' third-round pick (No. 79 overall) in 2019 out of LSU. He batted .248/.294/.468/.762 between the IronBirds and Baysox last season with...
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Steve Melewski

Still No. 1: Rutschman leads five players on Baseball America list

Orioles
Still No. 1: Rutschman leads five players on Baseball America list
For just the third time since Baseball America started releasing top 100 prospect lists in 1990, the Orioles had five players in the initial top 100 of the year when the newest list came out on Wednesday. We say initial top 100 because now these lists are tweaked and changed often during the year. Some outlets, including Baseball America, move players in and out as they "graduate" and lose prospect and rookie eligibility. There was once a time when outlets released one list per year and a...
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Steve Melewski

O's 2022 rotation candidate: right-hander Jordan Lyles

Orioles
O's 2022 rotation candidate: right-hander Jordan Lyles
It's an assumption - but probably a pretty safe assumption - that right-hander Jordan Lyles is not only a rotation candidate for the 2022 Orioles, but he is very likely to be a key member of their rotation. This is why the club agreed with the free agent pitcher on a one-year deal for $7 million right before the lockout, and the Orioles hold a team option on his 2023 contract. Lyles went 10-13 with a 5.15 ERA for Texas last season. And that produced an ERA+ of 85 for last year or 15 percent...
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Steve Melewski

Some O's international players will be moving on up this season

Orioles
Some O's international players will be moving on up this season
A little over a month ago, I wrote in this space taking a look ahead at some of the projected roster for the 2022 low Single-A Delmarva Shorebirds and how they are expected to feature a club with a strong international flavor. This is yet another big step for the Orioles in their emerging international program, which added 24 signees on Saturday and three more were reported by Baseball America on Monday for a class of 27 to this point. Keep it coming, the fans might say. With major league...
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Steve Melewski

A closer look at a couple of minor league hitters

Orioles
A closer look at a couple of minor league hitters
Both players advanced to Double-A Bowie last season and both produced a final OPS of .800 or better. They both showed some nice pop during their time on the field, which was limited by injury for one of these players. When I spoke recently with the new Orioles co-hitting coach Ryan Fuller for this entry and also this one, we talked further about minor league first baseman Andrew Daschbach and shortstop Joey Ortiz. Ortiz had labrum surgery on his non-throwing left shoulder in July, but did take...
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Steve Melewski

International program's contribution to the elite talent pipeline

Orioles
International program's contribution to the elite talent pipeline
With a new academy coming in the Dominican Republic and their latest signing class announced yesterday, the Orioles' resurgent international program keeps growing and getting better. The elite talent pipeline, international division, got better as a result. On one Saturday afternoon, the Orioles announced the signings of 24 players and spent their entire pool allotment of over $6.2 million, according to Koby Perez, the club's senior director of international scouting. Where the Orioles once...
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Steve Melewski

O's add Braylin Tavera at $1.7 million as signing period begins (updated)

Orioles
O's add Braylin Tavera at $1.7 million as signing period begins (updated)
A new international signing period arrived today in Major League Baseball and the Orioles have announced a class of 24 players. This includes 16-year-old outfielder Braylin Tavera from the Dominican Republic. The 6-foot-2, 175-lb. right-handed hitter agreed to a bonus of $1.7 million, according to MLB.com, and that is the largest ever given by the club to an international amateur. Tavera, who profiles as a speedy center fielder, also features some power potential and gets scouting grades of 50...
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Steve Melewski

Speed and outfield defense will be important in new Oriole Park left field

Orioles
Speed and outfield defense will be important in new Oriole Park left field
While we expect Oriole Park at Camden Yards to yield fewer homers in 2022 with the deeper outfield fence coming in left and left-center, the new dimensions and angles of those outfield walls will create more ground to cover for the defenders. Outfield defense in left and center just got more important for the Orioles. The Orioles may now place more of a premium on that outfield defense than before. And an outfield of Austin Hays in left and Cedric Mullins in center with have more frequent...
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Steve Melewski

Elias and Mejdal on outfield changes at Oriole Park

Orioles
Elias and Mejdal on outfield changes at Oriole Park
Yes, the Orioles are quite aware that their pitching staffs in recent years have struggled. But the changes underway in left field and left-center field at Camden Yards are more about producing a park that plays more neutral and more toward norms in Major League Baseball. Right now, the club plays in a stadium that produces among the most home runs and runs in baseball - for all pitchers - and this will create a shift in that. Orioles executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias said...
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Steve Melewski

New owners for Baysox and Keys, left field construction pics and more

Orioles
New owners for Baysox and Keys, left field construction pics and more
In a transaction that took effect on Jan. 1, 2022, the Orioles' Double-A Bowie affiliate has a new owner. So does a former O's affiliate, the Frederick Keys. Attain Sports and Entertainment - Maryland Baseball, LLC announced that it has purchased the Bowie Baysox and Frederick Keys of the MLB Draft League. Led by owners Greg Baroni, CEO and principal general partner, and Richard Roberts, president and general partner, Attain Sports and Entertainment's mission is to present baseball as...
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Steve Melewski

O's will take BP program from the minors to the majors

Orioles
O's will take BP program from the minors to the majors
When the 2022 big league season begins, no doubt, the Orioles' new, young co-hitting coaches, Ryan Fuller and Matt Borgschulte, may have some thoughts on how O's hitters can improve. There may be some methods they eventually want to introduce and/or enhance for the big league hitters. One aspect that the Orioles are now likely to implement at the big league level was the batting practice routine and approach they used on the farm last year. The Orioles had actually intended to begin this...
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Steve Melewski

Orioles set to make latest splash in the international market

Orioles
Orioles set to make latest splash in the international market
A new 11-month international amateur signing period begins for major league teams on Jan. 15. And the Orioles are expected to sign several of their key targets, including an outfielder that will be given the largest bonus for an international amateur in club history. In the signing period at this time last year, the club announced its first two seven-figure signings in this marketplace. The Orioles announced the signings of 17 players last year on Jan. 15, including 13 that got six-figure...
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Steve Melewski

O's 2022 rotation candidate: Keegan Akin

Orioles
O's 2022 rotation candidate: Keegan Akin
In a season where his ERA ballooned to over 8.00 and ended up at 6.63, the strides lefty Keegan Akin made late last season might fly under the radar, but also should give him reason to be encouraged about his 2022 Orioles rotation chances. Akin didn't make the 2021 opening day roster after a rough spring, but he was pitching for the Orioles by May 12. And because the minor league season didn't start until May, he wound up throwing 97 innings last year - 95 for Baltimore and just two for...
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Steve Melewski

A look at O's co-hitting coach approach with Ryan Fuller

Orioles
A look at O's co-hitting coach approach with Ryan Fuller
The Orioles coaching staff, as of late last year, now officially includes co-hitting coaches, and those coaches will work together in 2022. For both, it will be their first season at the major league level. Matt Borgschulte and Ryan Fuller are both just 31 and may work with some hitters in Baltimore that are older than they are. Borgschulte spent the last four years in the Minnesota Twins organization and was at Triple-A St. Paul last year. Fuller has been with the Orioles for two years, spent...
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Steve Melewski

Recent discussions have included rotation candidates, chasing balls and more

Orioles
Recent discussions have included rotation candidates, chasing balls and more
Sometimes you never quite know what you may be reading about in this space. Some days it could be potential free agent pitchers the club could sign, 2022 rotation candidates or chasing home run balls in batting practice. Trying to keep it interesting here during a lockout with almost no news taking place can be a challenge. Especially with snow and/or ice on the ground. A challenge to the baseball mood. But before long, spring will emerge, the lockout hopefully ends and a new collective...
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Steve Melewski

O's 2022 rotation candidate: Dean Kremer

Orioles
O's 2022 rotation candidate: Dean Kremer
It was September 2020 and the shortened 60-game season was nearing its end. On Sept. 6, right-hander Dean Kremer, a key player in the Orioles' trade of Manny Machado to the Los Angeles Dodgers, made his major league debut. It went quite well. Over six innings he gave up just one run and one hit versus the New York Yankees as he got his first big league win and the Orioles beat New York, 5-1. Six days later he faced the same team and allowed just one run on five hits. A few days later he faced...
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