Jammer7

Good question. Cleveland, Dodgers, Padres and Cardinals come to mind. I don't have empirical data to back that up, just my perception. Several years ago, it seemed like the Mets were well stocked in young pitching on the major league roster and in the minors. Aside from Degrom, not much left from that group, and that was only 5-6 years ago.

Well, things change fast. Try to keep up. lol

During an interview, another player, maybe DL Hall, said that Ortiz really shined in Instructs. He asked Ortiz what he did to up his power and Ortiz replied that he just hit off a tee all Summer, lol. And then Matt Blood mentioned him a short time later. I agree, we don't know if we can trust what Blood says, not yet. It sure would be nice if Blood was accurate in his comments, but Ortiz and Bradish certainly have a lot to prove. Someone we never seem to hear anything about is Kyle Stowers, Comp B pick in 2019. That was a pick that I questioned at the time, and I wonder if he is one player that the layoff may have really hurt in his development. Seems to have a long way to go and really needs at bats.

A sleeper in round 3, Doug Nikhazy LHP Mississippi. I know him personally, watched him grow up. A very well-schooled kid, who gets the most out of what he has. Not projectable, but a very efficient pitcher with high spin rates. Doug is a pitcher, and knows how to vary his pitches to make them have different action. Has not had any injury issues that I am aware of. https://www.mlb.com/prospects/draft/doug-nikhazy-680951

What are your thoughts on Rocker if he falls to #5? If the first four picks are, for instance, Leiter, Lawlar, Mayer and House, then Rocker is in play. I see a very big man who will be challenged to repeat his mechanics and to keep his weight in check in his career. Not saying he cannot be an excellent pitcher for along time. I just find him to be extremely risky. Are we in a position to take that risk? IDK

Some, including Jim Callis in his recent podcast, have recently said House may be able to stay at SS, but most believe he is an athletic 3B with an elite arm. Like you wrote, it’s a long way there. But if you can rake with power, they will find a place for you to play. He is well known by the scouting community, been on the radar for a long time. Played a lot of showcases and been in the spotlight a long time. He struggled some last summer, trying to do too much. But by all accounts, he is back to crushing the ball. I like what I have seen, but it is very little honestly. If they take someone else, great. Elias is a very astute scout. A 3B in today’s game is much more valuable than they were a decade ago with all of the shifts and such. I agree that Lawlar will likely be gone, sure. The top 4 are generally separated from the next group. But things can certainly change, I mean Toronto getting Martin last year was a shocker. We’ll see how it all develops. Rocker may fall some too.

Agreed. We should not shy away from taking another college catcher. Injuries, trades, position changes, etc...but I do like those other three. I have been high on Brady House for two years.

Good point on location. I can only guess that perhaps the major league rehab guys are at the Alt Site until Minor League Spring Training is over in Sarasota? Only so much room down there due to COVID. And maybe they don't want rehab guys traveling from MD to Florida and back for COVID reasons? Does that somehow change their intake period? IDK.

At this early stage, I think it comes down to Lawlar, Mayer, House and Davis for the Orioles. I would just fine with any of the first 3, but I am still learning about Davis. Take the best player available, regardless of position. If Davis proves to be that guy, good.

He has not played or done anything since last summer to exert himself, I would imagine it will be a few months before his body is ready to resume baseball activities. Spring Training would have taken what, six weeks? So, perhaps he takes two or three months, and he should be in games by late June or July. It is what it is.

So, just as simple as that, the mysterious drama comes to an end. LOL

I agree that the Astros did not seem to have success. I guess we’ll see if this is different.

This was what the Astros did for several years. I remember we obtained a LHP (Chris Lee) in 2015 who stalled in Norfolk. I remember the discussion about him being a reliever, but it was discovered that the Astros had been piggy-backing starters. It’s an interesting idea, and it makes sense to keep the innings under control. They can always throw more in the pen after they exit , if they need more.

Does everyone in the organization need to know Kjerstad’s medical status? I mean, not sure to whom you are referring, or what their job is, but if they should know, perhaps they just cannot tell you. This organization does seem to be a little more right with their info leaking out that the past regimes. Mancini disclosed the majority of his diagnosis. The team spoke about it briefly initially. Then Trey put out a video and released a statement. Perhaps Kjerstad’s agent and parents want to be a little more private about his situation. Hopefully, a reporter asks the question in one of these Zoom conferences. Or maybe Elias makes some brief statement. But until then, can we not just assume he has not been cleared? I think they are just trying to respect Heston’s privacy and not make this a circus. The kid and the Orioles want that to be sooner than later I assume.

The only thing close to an assumption I made was whether or not he may or may not have had COVID. It is a fact that myocarditis can kill you if you exert yourself as you may as a professional athlete. I read quite a bit about it on the Mayo Clinic site awhile ago for more personal reasons. Elias has spoken about his situation as much as he can and that Heston is receiving treatment in preparation to come back when he is healthy enough to do so. Not sure why anyone would have issue with an artificial “deadline” of the beginning of the alt site when these things are all different for each case. No draft picks played in games last year. Some went to alternate sites for a week or two at the end of the season. Sure, he missed three weeks of instructs. And he has now missed two months of Spring Training and alternate site activity. Nearly all others slotted to play A ball are just beginning Spring Training. So, why not be a little more patient? I would imagine he needs to go through certain protocols and obviously get a clearance from the doctors. Until that happens, we will not see him report. As someone pointed out several posts ago, Red Sox pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez missed the 2020 truncated season due to the same diagnosis. Precedent has been set with this. So, maybe he debuts in 2024 instead of 2023. Fans can have any opinion they wish, certainly. But this is a young man’s life we are talking about. Some are portraying this to be critical of the player, or the pick. Good grief!

So, we are being hyper-critical of the decision to draft Kjerstad, check. And we are criticizing the organization for not releasing more information about his health status, which they cannot as it is protected by federal law, check. And we are being critical of a guy for not doing anything yet, when nothing could have been done, check. We are criticizing a very talented young OF prospect because he has not played yet because he has myocarditis, which may or may not have occurred as a result of COVID, check. And we are criticizing said prospect for not exerting himself when that exertion could kill him, check. Fellas, really? I want to see him playing as bad as anyone, and hopefully that will be in the next month or so. I would imagine they will be cautious and ramp him up slowly. He missed half a season due to no minors season. So, he has missed two months that he could have done something, and perhaps instructs. Going forward, I would be happy if he gets back into competitive games by June and ends the year healthy. I am not expecting much from him this year.

I would like to see Urias get an extended shot at 2B. Hard to make much of his game when he gets an inning and an at bat every other game or so. Urias’ swing works. He is balanced and stays inside the ball well. Ruiz has an option and should have gone down to AAA/alternate site, but Jones and Bannon are there. I still think he can hit much better than he has, but his clock is ticking. His swing decisions are still poor, seems like he is pressing. Still a confidence issue with him, I think. Maybe that is why Hyde is showing confidence in him, for now.

We went through this months ago, at length. The arbitration figure was more than he was worth, certainly. But so would just about any figure above a AAA contract. It was time for him to go. We have no need for a guy who cannot play any position on the field; I mean he’s not just a poor defender, he is absolutely terrible. So, a full time DH has to produce to justify taking the at bats away from younger position players who need the at bats. Those players have more value to the team in the future and that is plain as day. This has been Elias’ plan all along. For him to be of value, he would have to be in the realm of an Edwin Encarnacionfrom a few years ago, I’d settle for a light version even. He is not even close. He is a mistake hitter, and gets beat by average fastballs in the middle of the plate. There is a reason why no one else wanted him on their major league team. So, no thanks.

Please, no more Nunez. I hope he does well in Detroit’s AAA team, but the Orioles moved on for good reason. There are reasons he was not signed by any other team as well. And those reasons are well documented. Give this team a few months before you start casting people off the island. They have played six games in very cold weather, and the ball was not carrying. They have faced some high level pitching as well, and they are 4-2. I believe they will hit for power and a solid average. The defense is suspect in spots, and Nunez will not help that in any way. The starting pitching has some questions to answer, and right now, I think that is our biggest weakness.

I liked what I saw from Urias last year in limited looks. His swing is simple and he drives the ball more consistently than Alberto, and he does so with the entire field. He has more arm and range than Alberto, but the jury is still out on his hands. He looks above average at times, and he’ll make some flashier plays with his glove. And then, he’ll clank one that was hit right to him. It may be a lack of focus at times. We’ll see. Alberto could make a lot of contact, certainly. Overall, I think Urias has more tools and a more rounded game.

No thanks. I don’t think he is any upgrade to Urias or Valaika. Odor stinks. ?

Austin Hays, without a doubt, is the most exciting player on the roster when healthy. He has been my favorite Oriole valor a few years.

The only thing I can figure is maybe Ruiz is out, or Franco goes to the Alternate site initially. That would mean they take 15 pitchers on OD and make a move in a week or two. I know, it sounds odd. But so does re-signing LeBlanc and then cutting him a few days later. Or maybe there is an injury to a pen guy we do not know about yet. Maybe Sceroler has a sore pinky toe or such. IDK

You are absolutely correct, but we are operating as if a small market, though I do not agree that we are. Maybe not that we are, but we should not be. And it depends on how much all of the initial capital outlay is.

That quote is just noise, low hanging fruit for those who do not agree with Elias’ development model. Of course they are not signing the better minor league free agents. Many of them would block the prospects we have at AAA, or even in AA. You have to have roster spots for prospects, and those prospects need innings to develop. We have many actual prospects in AAA for a change. Why waste money on guys who will not play here? I think it smart to maximize what we already have here and cherry pick a few reclamation projects. Makes me wonder if he disliked the shrinking of the scouting department and has a personal axe to grind. I get the impatience with losing at the major league level, but we know the money is being spent on infrastructure improvements and technology. Elias has not gone half in, he is all in. This is the management of our team we have been waiting for most of our adult lives. I was 15 years old in 1983. I was used to winning baseball. I took it for granted.