The Orioles Minor League Hotsheet

Here’s the lowdown on how this entry and future entries of this nature are going to work…You see, I like inspiration. When I see an idea I like, I try to emulate it and make it my own. Each week on Fridays, Baseball America does a column called the Prospect Hot Sheet where they highlight the hottest prospects in all the minor leagues. That folks, is the inspiration for this gnarly little column I’m starting with the focus being on the “who’s hot, who’s not” of Oriole prospects. I’m going to write a hotsheet entry after every ten minor league games though so that I can analyze 10 game samples. We are now over ten games into the season for all four Orioles affiliates. Hence, it is time to debut the Orioles prospect hot sheet and check out which players are off to the best starts thus far.

Note: Organizational filler types or players with extended major league experience (like Jair Jurrjens) won’t be included in these lists. However, those worth mentioning will be mentioned separately. I want to try to keep the focus on the prospects. I’m a man of the people and I’m a man of the prospects.

Without further ado, here are the ten prospects off to the hottest starts in the Orioles minor leagues:

1) Nick Delmonico – 3B – Frederick Keys (High A)

Age: 20

Top 20 Rank: 6

The Numbers:

G	AVG	AB	H	HR	RBI	2B	3B	BB	S0	OBP	SLG	OPS
10	.333	36	12	2	9	4	0	9	8	.467	.611	1.078

This is a fantastic start – love the 9 BB to 8 K ratio in particular – to see from our prized hitting prospect and former 1.5 million bonus baby, Nick Delmonico. An offensive breakout season along with favorable reports on his 3B defense could establish himself as a Top 100 prospect at the end of the season. But, lets not get ahead of ourselves. This is a small (but promising) sample after all.

2) Russ Canzler – 3B/1B/OF – Norfolk Tides (AAA)

Age: 27

Top 20 Rank: Unranked

The Numbers:

G	AVG	AB	H	HR	RBI	2B	3B	BB	S0	OBP	SLG	OPS
13	.346	52	18	3	13	4	1	6	15	.407	.635	1.041

He may be 27 but Russ Canzler still meets rookie qualifications so, “technically speaking”, he’s a prospect. He’s been the hottest hitter at Norfolk so far and with Conor Jackson’s retirement – could be next in line for a call up to the Orioles if a spot on the bench arises. He’s got some pop and technically offers defensive versatility but is not to be confused as a great defender at any of the positions he plays. I wasn’t too impressed with his at bats I saw in Spring Training and he’s never been rated highly as a prospect. Seems like AAA depth more than anything. Nevertheless, nice to see him performing well.

3) Christian Walker – 1B – Delmarva Shorebirds (Low A)

Age: 22

Top 10 Short Season Rank: 3

The Numbers:

G	AVG	AB	H	HR	RBI	2B	3B	BB	S0	OBP	SLG	OPS
13	.354	48	17	2	8	0	0	6	7	.429	.479	.908

My goodness. As a proud Gamecock myself, those early season numbers my boy Christian Walker has put up so far are like eye candy to me. It’s great to see a dominant, polished college hitter like Walker dominate Low A like I expected. If Walker keeps this up, his stay in Delmarva should be a brief one, especially with Jason Esposito keeping the first base seat warm for him at Frederick with his sterling .194 AVG.

4) Josh Hader – LHP – Delmarva Shorebirds (Low A)

Hader’s gonna hate

Age: 19

Top 10 Short Season Rank: 2

The Numbers:

G	W	L	ERA	IP	H	HR	BB	K	GO/AO	AVG
2	1	0	O.82	11	4	0	3	10	1.30	.111

Hader enters this season has perhaps the most intriguing sleeper prospect in the organization. If you don’t know the story by now, the Orioles took a flier on Hader in the 19th Round out of Old Mill high school here in Maryland, signed him, and watched him suddenly go from 85-87 in high school to 89-93 overnight after getting him on a long tossing program. With a deceptive low 3/4 arm angle that allows for great movement and deception on his pitches, Hader has brought last year’s short season dominance with him to full season Delmarva in his first two starts.

5) Josh Stinson – RHP – Norfolk Tides (AAA)

Age: 25

Top 20 Rank: Not Eligible

The Numbers:

G	W	L	ERA	IP	H	HR	BB	K	GO/AO	AVG
2	1	0	0.77	11.2	10	1	4	10	0.91	.244

Let’s be honest. How many people besides me are aware that Stinson is a proud member of the Orioles 40 man roster? I’d venture to say very few. That’s right, Stinson was claimed off waivers from the Athletics on April 4th and quietly assigned to Norfolk where he has pitched great in his first two starts as the Tides 5th starter. He throws in the low-to-mid 90’s with average secondaries and could be a long reliever candidate at some point this season.

6) Xavier Avery – CF – Bowie Baysox (AA)

Age: 23

Top 20 rank: 10

The numbers:

G	AVG	AB	H	HR	RBI	2B	3B	BB	S0	OBP	SLG	OPS
14	.333	60	20	1	6	6	1	5	18	.394	.517	.911

X is currently giving it to AA pitching, as he should be considering he played the entire 2012 season a level up at AAA. The high number of strikeouts bothers me and Xavier is notorious for getting off to hot starts before hitting a wall in the second half of the season. However, it’s still nice to see Xavier dominating after essentially being forced to AA due to the outfield depth surplus at AAA.

7) Wynston Sawyer – C – Delmarva Shorebirds (A)

Age: 21

Top 20 rank: Unranked

The numbers:

G	AVG	AB	H	HR	RBI	2B	3B	BB	S0	OBP	SLG	OPS
11	.349	43	15	0	4	4	1	4	10	.417	.488	.905

Sawyer put up a pretty sub par showing last year at Delmarva so it’s encouraging to see him start the year hot in his repeat season. He’s not a highly thought of prospect but he’s still young and an unexpected big season from him could put himself on the radar as a sleeper to watch.

8) Parker Bridwell – RHP – Delmarva Shorebirds (Low A)

Age: 21

Top 20 rank: 17

The Numbers:

G	W	L	ERA	IP	H	HR	BB	K	GO/AO	AVG
3	1	1	2.30	15.2	13	0	5	14	1.13	.217

Another youngster repeating a level and off to a promising start as we would hope to see – because he’s repeating the level! Last year was a disaster at Delmarva for Bridwell; one of the most talented arms in the system but a big work in progress. It’s a small sample of course but it appears the hard work he put in the offseason while living with the Bundy’s is paying off.

9) Tim Berry – LHP – Frederick Keys (High A)

Age: 22

Top 20 Rank: 15

The Numbers:

G	W	L	ERA	IP	H	HR	BB	K	GO/AO	AVG
3	0	1	3.18	17	11	1	3	21	0.93	.180

Berry has been a favorite sleeper of mine the past few years and the early season strikeout rate spike is both a pleasant surprise and a potential indicator of a breakout season. He could be a candidate to move up to Bowie midway through the year if he keeps performing well.

10) Adrian Marin – SS – Delmarva Shorebirds (Low A)

Age: 19

Top 10 Short Season Rank: 1

The Numbers:

G	AVG	AB	H	HR	RBI	2B	3B	BB	S0	OBP	SLG	OPS
10	.344	32	11	0	6	2	1	2	7	.389	.469	.858

The number prospect from last year’s short season ranks is off to a damn good start for a kid just out of high school getting his first taste of full season ball. I like Marin’s upside and a strong season at Delmarva will put him easily amongst the the Top 10 prospects in the system.

(The Honorable Mention “organizational guys” tearing it up: Zealous Wheeler – 3B – AA, Joel Hutter – UTL – A, Caleb Joseph – UTL – AA)

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While the purpose of thus column is to focus on who is performing well lately, the reality is that not all is bright and shiny in the minors and there are those with struggles worth a brief mention.

Who’s cold…uh oh…

– Jonathan Schoop – SS – Norfolk Tides – Not great to see our top hitting prospect struggle early on at AAA. Batting just .149 in his first 47 at bats. He is just 21 years old, making him one of the youngest players in the league. Hopefully he makes adjustments. Probably should’ve started in AA but its the O’s decision not mine.

– Mike Wright – RHP – Bowie Baysox – I’m a big Wright supporter as a potential no. 4 starter but his awful performance (7.30 ERA, .333 opponent AVG) thus far will begin to test my faith if it continues. C’mon Michael

– Tyler Wilson – RHP – Frederick Keys – Uncharacteristic control issues (10 BB in 15 innings; only 19 BB in 111 innings at Frederick last year) have hampered Wilson’s effectiveness so far resulting in a 6.46 ERA after three starts. Not what I wanted to see, especially when I figured he’d begin in AA. But, Wilson also started last season slow and got progressively better each month so I’m not too concerned.

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– Kevin Gausman Update: The good: 18 K and 0 BB in 16 innings pitched. The bad: 20 hits allowed and a 5.63 ERA. He’s fine. The premium stuff is there. Just needs to keep out out of the middle of the zone more consistently. The high ERA could also be the product of bad luck and a questionable infield defense behind him.

– Eduardo Rodriguez Update: Solid K rate (12 K in 12  innings) and great GO/AO ratio (3.20) in his first two outings for the Keys = what I like to see.

Remember our old friend, Matthew Hobgood…

– Matt Hobgood Update: Five scoreless outings spanning 10 innings out of the Delmarva bullpen for Hobgood thus far. Can’t ask for a better start.

– Promotion Alert: Devin Jones – RHP – With Dylan Bundy opening the season on the DL, an opportunity for Jones has arisen as he took Bundy’s spot at AA after pitching well in Frederick’s season opener. I’m a big fan of Jones and his 91-94 MPH sinking fastball. If he can pass the AA test as a starter this year, we may have an interesting #3/#4 starter prospect on our hands. He ranked #12 on my preseason Top 20.

– Yet to return from the DL: Steve Johnson, Both Bundy’s

All three should be back in action by the first week of May…I presume from what I’ve read.

That’s all I got this time. Today is the 18th, so I’ll do another one of these at the end of the month.