Kiley Mcdaniel on Bundy/Harvey/Sisco/Bridwell/Guasman/Davies

I recently got to ask Kiley Mcdaniel of Fangraphs (also a former O's employee among other teams) about all these prospects above (I ask every question but the Bridwell one since I think he's a guy with talent who will never put it together in the bigs) since they are the best guys the O's have drafted in recent years plus the guys I think have a bright future with the O's minus Bridwell. I will post the Q and A in this post and some comments in another post for formatting reasons with that said enjoy!

Here are the excerpts from the 12/5 chat-

Is Dylan Bundy still look at as a possible Ace or a back end guy with the chance to become a number 3 if everything breaks right

Kiley McDaniel: Spent over an hour today on Orioles calls, so my mind is already on the topic. Harvey/Bundy is very close right now. Bundy had 55-60 stuff this year when he came back and he wasn?t throwing the cutter, which is an 80 pitch when his fastball is mid-90′s. He was 90-94 t96 but there?s some expectation he?ll get back to 93-97 t99 as he was before. Next year will tell us if the stuff comes back, but it understandably is quite back yet.

Is Chance Sisco a star in the making?

Kiley McDaniel: I?ll take another BAL question since I have the notes right here. Potential plus bat with 12-15 homers and one scout suggested it could be a 70 or more bat. Some questions on the receiving and it needs work, but he?s still new to the position and the tools are there. Will be in top 5 of Orioles list but behind Harvey and Bundy

Whose the better mid tier prospect Zach Davies Tim Berry or Mike Wright?

Kiley McDaniel: Davies by a good margin. I?m a big Davies believer. 50 FB, 50+ CB, 60 CH, 50-55 CMD. He?s small but he can really pitch and has an outpitch.

Of all the Orioles 2nd/3rd tier pitching prospects, I?m most intrigued by Parker Bridwell? Is there any reason to think he could develop into a #4 starter or a late-inning pen guy? Or are the control problems irreparable?

Kiley McDaniel: Bridwell ticked up late in the season, hitting 97 as a starter but he was very inconsistent with lower velos most of the season. He was a max effort type reliever in the AFL and looked like a nice 8th inning bullpen piece at times, 60-65 FB, 50-55 CH and CB.

Can Kevin Gausman break out into a top 15 starter sometime in the next couple years?

Kiley McDaniel: He?s got even more stuff than Beede and he?s taller and more consistent. 65 CH, 60 SL, 70 FB. He?s gonna figure it out soon. Could be a frontline guy.

Would love to hear some feedback from everyone!

Thanks for posting this. Really good report on Bundy. I'll be interested to see the results when they give him his cutter back.

Seems like Cisco is going to have enough bat, regardless of his position, which is nice to hear.

Thanks. I like what he had to say.

Good stuff. Thanks. Nice to hear that he confirms how Tony feels about Davies.

Yea I was really glad to hear that to. I like Davies and think he could be good piece. You need the TOR guys but good pitchers who can fill that 4/5 role have more value than they get credit for.

Thanks for asking all these O's-related questions! I'm pretty happy with all his comments on our top four guys (per the OH list), plus Gausman. Overall, the pitching in our system is quite decent. The position prospects leave a lot to be desired.

I think it is a pretty weak system (all guys mentioned above were here last year), but things can change quickly with some good drafts especially with the supplemental first and competitive balance second rounders in 2015. There is reasons/opinions to be pleased that our biggest prospects (Bundy, Harvey and Cisco) are legit plus players - those two pitchers can really help our competitiveness going forward while keeping payroll in the $110M-$125M range over the next few years.