Tony-OH

I heard Baumann threw an inning a few days ago, but not to expect him to join a team anytime soon. If we see Kjerstad at all, it probably won't be until August or September.

He did not look good at the plate at all. Was pretty much dominated by mid-90s heat and curveballs. He did look very good behind the plate receiving DL Hall though. Stuck some tough pitches and showed a lot of energy back there even late in the game after his awful day at the plate.

This is really the key. There is no one that needs to play 2B because no one is the future 2B on this roster, so play the hot hand. That appears to be Valaika for now. SSS or not, I could care less if Urias or Ruiz play.

Thank you. Appreciate the support.

The spin on his fastball and curveball was a bit better, but his cutter was not great last night and he's still getting hit too hard overall. They averaged 92.5 MPH EV off him last night despite the one run and lack of hits, and that has been a problem form him as he's in the 2% percentile in all of MLB for EV, 1% percentile for Mav EV, and 6th percentile in hard hit %. Last night was a step but it wasn't a huge step since he got a little lucky with guys hitting balls deep and hit but too high.

Let's hope that's true. This would be a great development. I'm looking forward to seeing him at Bowie this year.

I sure hope the public is allowed to see the data collected in this combine. I would find this fascinating! Imagine getting EV and spin rate data just to name a few prior to being drafted.

Actually, this is better for the guys who get drafted after the 20th round. Now they can be free agents and potentially get multiple offers and be able to pick the organization that he may be better fit in with more opportunity. If I'm a catcher, do I want to sign with a team that drafted three catchers already or one that may have more of an opportunity for me to play right away? I like the 20 rounds. With free agency and DSL players that should be plenty and allow the cream to rise instead of drafting a bunch of senior college signs with very little chance of becoming major leaguers.

Well here's a better reason. He has well below average arm strength that is even worse because of the long arm action he needs to generate any kind of velocity on his throws. He would be absolutely awful at turning double plays and although he has good sprint speed, he doesn't have a ton of good first step quickness so he would be a well, well below average second baseman. His position will end up at 1B and occasion LF but a good team will want a better defender in LF. He settle in at 1B or DH on a good team.

I remember reading his scouting reports after he was drafted and some said he had a strong arm. I don't know what the original Orioles scout said about Mountcastle, but I remember hearing about his arm strength in instructional league that first year and the word I got was, "Awful arm, like a 30. No way he can play shortstop." Reports after he was drafted: Oriole scouting director Gary Rajsich: "Ryan is an advanced hitter. He has on-base and slugging ability," he said. "He has bat speed and will grind at-bats with pitch recognition and discipline at the plate. He likes to hit, he's aggressive, but he's also selective and patient and has a very good feel for situation hitting. "You watch his approach in games - especially in showcases where we saw him against top competition - we saw him change his approach in the middle of an at-bat. Those are the things we notice. Defensively he has loose actions, sure hands and a good first step for the left side of the infield and an accurate arm. He's a heads-up baserunner and we look forward to watching him out here at Camden Yards." Tony's Take: Notice he didn't say strong arm. Minorleague ball (John Sickles) "Ryan Mountcastle is not a future shortstop. I don't know where he will play. I don't really care where he will play. Probably 3B or a corner OF spot but what I do care about is the bat. Mountcastle has impressive bat speed. He doesn't have the cleanest swing but he hits line drives from line to line and has the raw power to hit plenty of home runs. He hit well in the games I've seen him and I have a lot of faith that he will be one of the better hitters in the draft. He has a good arm, good enough for 3B and he has enough foot speed to be useful as a corner OF. If he goes to school, he is committed to UCF but I don't think he'll get there." Tony's Take: Brutally wrong and one of the reasons why people kept repeating that he had a good arm initially. Stotle from 2080 baseball: "No -- the profile is a third round profile for me (generally) because there isn't much value in the glove or legs. So it's all bat, and the performance has been erratic. I like Mountcastle; he isn't my favorite as a sandwich round pick. But you grab the guys you like and no team is worried about where a website has their players ranked." Tony's Take: He missed on the legs but he wasn't a huge fan overall. Here are some reports from Baseball America After he played in the GCL in 2015: "A high school shortstop, Mountcastle stayed at the position in the GCL but won't be there for long. His hands are fine and he doesn't play out of control, but despite solid-average speed, he lacks the quickness and range for shortstop. He got into a better pre-pitch setup to get better jumps off the bat in the GCL. He doesn't rush his throws, but his arm grades as well below-average, so a move to third base would be difficult. Some think he might be able to become a tall, angular second baseman in the mold of the Rockies' D.J. LeMahieu, while others think he's destined for left field." Tony's Take: Pretty good assessment other than the potential 2nd base thing. In 2016 after his Delmarva year "Baltimore plans to develop Mountcastle as a shortstop, though some scouts project him move to left field. He has a quick release with good hands but a below-average arm. He has a good game clock to compensate for his lack of arm strength." Tony's Take: Mountcastle's long arm action was another reason why his well below average arm doesn't play on the left side of an infield. Maybe he flipped a few easy ones over there quickly but he never had a quick release.

He was a much better hitter as a left-handed hitter than as a right-handed hitter and if you look at my scouting reports for him over time, you can see how myself and many other scouts and player development personnel noted the difference in swings. Saying that, I can't think of a single hitter who gave up switch hitting at the major league level and became good at hitting the same hand pitching. So this is really a new situation that could encourage other struggling switch hitters in the minors to try this as well.

Thanks for the catches WC. I'll get those changed. I was going to update once the season got started with the actual rotations and such anyways, but appreciate the catches.

It was very hard to get information as even some of my contacts seemed leery on giving up much info, especially anything about injuries or who wasn't pitching. I'm guessing this comes from above. I got the same thing as some of the Orioles press about Ortiz gaining some weight and really hitting the ball with authority. I saw on some video posted on Twitter that Zach Peek was hitting 94 MPH this spring and supposedly pitching 92-94. Felix Bautista was hitting 100 MPH. Heard Conner Greene started slow but has thrown the ball much better of late and that Fernando Abad and Eric Hanhold both could help the team this year in some roles if needed. I'm just glad the season is getting started so we can see for ourselves finally.

Why? Giving a struggling guy a four run lead to work with is not a bad idea. He got him out once the runs were scored.

Armstrong is definitely pitching like a guy who wants to be DFA'd. Can't throw many quality strikes.

Ok, and now he has to go...

Haha, yep.

Heck yeah, now Armstrong can pitch the 8th. Nice oppo shot by Galvis. nothing like burning your bullpen only to watch the late guys blow it.

I'd really like to see Mountcastle get into one.

Franco has been really bad in these situations this year. At least it seems like he's been bad.

They gotta sit Armstrong now, right? Can't imagine they will bring him in with a close lead.

I did too. I was thinking. Tag up Valaika!

And just like that, Cedric comes through! 2-1!

Sure would be nice for the Orioles to score tonight.