emmett16

Man, talk about a disciplined AB.

Mullins walk off.

That was the bunting equivalent of John Kruk vs. Randy Johnson. Wow

Palmer cracks me up. "he has no idea how to bunt"

Palmer or Brown said his fastball looked like a right handed Britton. Command not so hot, D helped him out.

Mattingly's troll job is going to come back to bite him.

If you don’t walk, have to sniff out IF hits

Holy running fastball Batman

Pop in to rub salt in wounds

Some pretty good catchers(future hall of famer for the giants*) were former stud SS's as well. *Mike Martin changed him from SS to C

I voted Mountcastle. With SSS it's hard to say definitively, however I've seen Trey play a decent amount of 1b and he's never stood out as being anything more than average. I watched Mountcastle a bit in minors and thought he was a decent fielder, very athletic, but had a poor throwing arm. I'm assuming long term that athleticism translates to 1b, but he has looked a bit shaky there this year learning a new position. When it's a toss up, I go with the talent over the polish.

I appreciate your enthusiasm and excitement over the prospects of having a solid team playing in Baltimore. Phase 1 of the rebuild is almost over. Phase 2 will be occurring over the next ~3-5 years. Phase 3 (final phase)or the rebuild will be in 5-10 years when half of the surnames on the 40 man roster are latin based. Buckle up, it's going to be a long and bumpy ride.

I think this is the obvious player that should get moved. I love him and my son loves him, but its best for all parties. They should be able to get out in front of the story and handle any PR hit. Simply sell it as giving Trey a chance to win. Seems like a no brainer - can't make emotional decisions.

I didn’t think of the visa/passport issues. That obviously adds a layer of complexity. There is a guy that runs a baseball camp in NW DC and he takes a group of players & families down to DR every winter (pre-covid)to workout/play with Julio Franco’s Group. Parents who have have gone have raved about the experience.

I run a travel baseball team and this winter we are planning a trip for the kids to play a tournament in Puerto Rico. Playing sports is about so much more than what happens between the lines. Kids are going to fundraise and learn other valuable lessons throughout the entire experience. As we are planning this out, it got me thinking about all of the baseball facilities that have been built over the years by various MLB teams down in the Dominican Republic. It seems to me it would be advantageous for each MLB team to run a series of tournaments each year at their facilities. Bring in American Travel teams and have them play local teams. It would make for a trip of a lifetime for a lot of the young players, it would drive tourism to the communities we are poaching talent from, it would help build local businesses, and would allow scouts to have players come to them as opposed to traveling all over the place. Anyway, just a thought I had. Curious what others might think or if there are things like this in place (a quick google search didn't result in much). If this is in the wrong section, please move.

As strike outs continue to increase and the ball is being put in play less, a BB is all the more valuable. Players that have more BB than K are extremely valuable.

Long term, or course not. Year after a Pandemic? Maybe. I think they need to hit on as many picks as they can. I'm just wondering if this year, due to pandemic, the risk of the HS was just too high.

Tony, How much do you think Covid played into the draft strategy? Seems like this year picking HS players would be risky. They only played a handful of games (shorter track record & less reps), probably didn't have systems in place (like universities) to keep kids working & playing. I imagine development at the lower levels, HS and on down, were effected much more than Pro & College programs. After reviewing draft I've been wondering if he decided to take a super safe route this year and go heavy College & avoid air balls on HS kids due to a wasted 2020.

Very interesting. The Norfolk% throws off the trend. Do you attribute the high number of Elias acquisitions at the AAA level to simply supplementing the MLB team, waiver claims, etc?

I agree and those are very valid points. It just seems like a trend is starting to emerge. In my 30+ years of watching this team, I can't remember success funneling up the system as it has in the last three years.

Because that was the team he was on along with his teammates. Elias' player development system and coaches were put in to place that year

For comparison sake: 2019 Minor League Records -Norfolk 60-79 -Bowie 76-64 -Frederick 53-84 -Delmarva 90-48

I disagree with your last paragraph. Baseball is a brutal game to play. The day you don't believe in yourself, you are done. There is a lot that goes in to giving players promotions. If a player is not ready (physically, emotionally, or mentally) your risk ending their career. That simple. I'd recommend you go watch him play.

It blows my mind when people say Elias hasn't done anything. His first year GRod and cast, on the Bowie team now, were in Delmarva tearing it up. That was the first wave of talent and they keep winning/improving. Each year after we have added more talent and more systems to the minors and they continue to get better. Next year I'd expect AAA Norfolk to start winning. 2023 The Baltimore Orioles should be looking pretty good. Elias has done an incredible job.

How many times have you gone to see Adley play in the last two years? He has some work to do on his swing. He has struggled for the majority of his professional career. Save the heater he was on a month ago, he has not been impressive as a pro. His swing gets long, pulls off ball and doesn't barrel up hittable low 90s fastballs. All that said, he will probably be a fantastic player for a long time, but he ain't ready. He would get abused by MLB pitchers were he to get a call up right now.