[Cole Irvin 2023]

Really hoping Irvin is able to provide some value for this team. Looked up to see how Hernaiz is doing - and he really seems to be hitting for Oakland's AA team (.349/.390/.541).  I'm pulling for Hernaiz, but I'd more so love to see Irvin thrive in some role for Baltimore this year.   https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=hernai000dar

[A Few Observations from Delmarva's Game 5/4 (Hernaiz, Willems, De los Santos)]

1 minute ago, Just Regular said:

I'd be interested to hear how big Hernaiz looked.

I remember a month ago the huge delta between Felix Bautista (still at 6-5, 190 on B-Ref this morning) listings from when he signed at 17 and today.   Brown said in telecast Bautista gave him I believe a 6-8, 270 report.

B-Ref has Hernaiz at 6-1, 190 today, but don't know if those measureables are from when he affiliated as a young draftee way back when.    Wondering if he looks more like Jorge Mateo or Carlos Correa, physically.

6-1, 190 seems pretty close. Maybe a little more weight, but I wouldn't think more than 200. I am actually a little surprised to hear he is listed at 6-1, I would have thought he was shorter than that.

[A Few Observations from Delmarva's Game 5/4 (Hernaiz, Willems, De los Santos)]

Darell Hernaiz was the best player on the field, and it wasn't close. He was hitting the ball hard, even if he only had one hit. He had a clear plan at the plate, and has a pretty big swing - looking to launch the ball and drive it. The Shorebirds nearly turned an incredible double play in the 6th, with Hernaiz making a great turn playing 2nd base - but the 1B Cruz came off the bag a bit. Hernaiz also seems to have a really high baseball IQ. On a play where the runner at first was stealing, the batter hit a sharp grounder to him, and was quick enough to still throw to the SS to get the lead out. All of this to say, I was really impressed by Hernaiz.

Creed Willems looked absolutely lost. Half-swings on 0-0 counts, swinging at balls outside the zone - he looked like he had no plan, and was overmatched. This is really sad since none of the Firefly pitchers had overwhelming stuff (even though the starter, Cameron, threw a perfect 5-innings, it was 87-88 with a decent changeup). It wasn't pretty, guys.

Juan De los Santos had great stuff. He was 91-93 (according to the stadium gun), and the home run he gave up was the only hard hit ball against him the whole game. He had 6 k's in 4 innings, and was in control the entire time. He had 3 walks, and some of them seemed like they were on close pitches, and it never felt like he was going to give up the big hit. I'm going to follow him a lot closer. Also, he is a large man. I didn't realize how big he was. He is listed at 6'3" 250lbs, and he just looks like a man among boys. His physique reminds me of Jose Contreras.

A few other tidbits: Luis Valdez had himself a game. He had a great catch in CF with runners on (played some 3B later in the game also), a HR, and a SB. He is 22, but played really well. Moises Ramirez didn't have any hits, but hit the ball hard a few times. He seems like he'll bust out of his slump soon. 

[Article on Less Heralded Prospects]

Came across this fantasy article this morning that has some good nuggets on some prospects we may not hear as much about. They even pull a Luke Siler tweet, so you know they know their stuff. References Drew Rom's embrace of analytics, which I found encouraging, and just some more information on some of our DSL players. Nothing ground-breaking, but always enjoyable to read.

 

https://fantasysixpack.net/2021-baltimore-orioles-diamonds-in-the-rough/

[Grade the Gausman Deal]

Looks like the guys and Fangraphs really loved the haul we got for Gausman, Machado, and Schoop.  This is from an Eric Longenhagen chat yesterday:

2:03	Snooker: If you were to rank the various organizations based on player development, who would be up top, who would be at the bottom, and where would the Tigers fit?

2:06	Eric A Longenhagen: Top ones for me are CLE, LAD, NYY, hard not to put BAL at the bottom.  Some orgs, and I think DET falls into this category, are tough to evaluate through this lens because their roster situations have made it difficult.

 

I have a hard time believing this, even before the trades.  I'd like to chalk this up to lazy writing, just giving the easy and typical answer without considering recent events and developments.  It makes me wonder what is necessary to gain respect from the propsect writing community.