The Most Hyped Orioles Prospect...

[Can_of_corn]

Just now, now said:

That's fine, but don't you think career W-L record has merit as a stat?

I don't think it should be completely discounted but it isn't something I put a lot of value in.

[usmcterp]

I was thinking another McDonald would make the list for contention....Darnell.  I remember how he slipped because of signabilty issues and how I excited I was. 

[Moose Milligan]

45 minutes ago, usmcterp said:

I was thinking another McDonald would make the list for contention....Darnell.  I remember how he slipped because of signabilty issues and how I excited I was. 

I was excited for him, too.

I also remember being really excited for Rick Krivda, Jimmy Haynes and Curtis Goodwin.  For some reason I also thought that Alex Ochoa was going to be the next Roberto Clemente.  

I don't know when I started to get so jaded about Orioles prospects.  But for awhile there I'd always have my hopes so high.

[Flash- bd]

I feel like Bundy's hype at its peak was as big was Weiters was, and while I was a bit young when McDonald hype was going on I feel like he would rival that...he was rated BA #1 prospect, and I'm not sure I have experienced hype as strong as that for Bundy in 2012. 

 

Maybe McDonald beats him, but if he does I would put Bundy 2nd on that list, probably Weiters and Machado 3rd and 4th. 

[SouthRider]

McDonald"s hype was just as big as Stephen Strasburg's.  Both guys were heralded as the best pitcher to come out of college in 20 years.  Ben just didn't have the career Stephen is having.  I love seeing our Big Ben working with the current Orioles.  He is a great announcer and spring training coach.  

Bundy was a bigger bust.  I don't think his hype was as great.  Riley has to be the most hyped prospect who flamed out.  

[CarrRun49]

7 hours ago, SouthRider said:

Bundy was a bigger bust.  I don't think his hype was as great.  Riley has to be the most hyped prospect who flamed out.  

I wouldn't necessarily consider a starting pitcher with a career WAR of 7.1 over five years a bust.  Did he not live up to expectations? Maybe.  But, for the past three years, he racked up just over 500 innings.  He will only benefit from moving to LA, where a larger ball park should help aide the HR/9 ratio.

The most hyped Oriole I can remember has to be Wieters.  I mean, the guy had a HOF shrine on his own "mattwietersfacts.com".... before he ever played in a MLB game.

Just some of the ridiculous things on there lol:

Sliced bread is actually the greatest thing since Matt Wieters.

Matt Wieters Once Framed A Pitch So Perfectly That It Counted As Two Strikes.

Matt Wieters took batting practice this morning ... there were no survivors.

The sun rises when Matt Wieters decides to wake up.

I actually think that website had a lot to do with my disdain for Wieters.  He never lived up to those expectations.  Was so fundamentally lackadaisical behind the plate in his later years here.  The amount of times I had to watch Wieters try to backhand pick a ball in the dirt to have it be charged as a "wild pitch", became infuriating.  I will stop before I tell you how I really feel about Matt haha

Edited April 15, 2020 by CarrRun49

[Can_of_corn]

You are bothered he didn't live up to the Matt Wieters facts webpage?

Are you upset with Chuck Norris too?

[CarrRun49]

I said I believe it had something to do with my dislike for him.  Not all of it, as described later in my post about his poor defense that was glorified by Oriole faithful with blinders on.  "Joe Mauer with Power".  

No one can be upset with Chuck Norris.

How about this one for you, @Can_of_corn?

[Can_of_corn]

1 minute ago, CarrRun49 said:

I said I believe it had something to do with my dislike for him.  Not all of it, as described later in my post about his poor defense that was glorified by Oriole faithful with blinders on.  "Joe Mauer with Power".  

No one can be upset with Chuck Norris.

How about this one for you, @Can_of_corn?

That was the last issue of SI I ever bought.

[CarrRun49]

Just now, Can_of_corn said:

That was the last issue of SI I ever bought.

Same

[PaulFolk]

19 hours ago, Moose Milligan said:

I wonder what happened to him.  And Billy Rowell, too.  Seems that most of the time, the guys that had pretty good careers land on their feet elsewhere.  Companies are usually willing to hire someone who is/was recognizable and played at a professional level and people might recognize.

No one outside of the die-hardest Orioles fans remembers Matt Reilly and Billy Rowell.  They never got famous or regionally well known enough to have an easy-ish life outside of baseball.  

Dan Connolly interviewed Riley recently for an article about Steve Bechler.

Quote

Retired from pitching since 2010, Riley lives in Spring Hill, Tenn., with his wife and two daughters. He works for California Baseball Academy Southeast, providing baseball instruction and overseeing youth travel teams along with former Orioles pitcher Rick Bauer.

 

[cridolphi]

42 minutes ago, PaulFolk said:

Dan Connolly interviewed Riley recently for an article about Steve Bechler.

 

Wow, I had no idea he lived in Spring Hill, TN.  I live there.

[DrungoHazewood]

3 hours ago, PaulFolk said:

Dan Connolly interviewed Riley recently for an article about Steve Bechler.

 

Hopefully he's matured a bit.  I think many or most of us can look back on our 20-year-old selves and see the need for some refinement.  Even if we weren't handed million dollar checks and spoke of ourselves in the third person.

[DrungoHazewood]

11 hours ago, SouthRider said:

McDonald"s hype was just as big as Stephen Strasburg's.  Both guys were heralded as the best pitcher to come out of college in 20 years.  Ben just didn't have the career Stephen is having.  I love seeing our Big Ben working with the current Orioles.  He is a great announcer and spring training coach. 

I think I have to disagree with that.  Strasburg's first MLB start was nationally televised (IIRC) on ESPN and he struck out 14 in seven innings.  The hype could not have gotten much bigger, he was basically declared the best pitcher in baseball from day one.  McDonald's MLB debut was getting Cory Snyder to ground into a double play in relief of Curt Schilling in the 3rd inning of a September game.  It was probably on HTS, but I don't recall any wall-to-wall coverage.

[Can_of_corn]

1 minute ago, DrungoHazewood said:

I think I have to disagree with that.  Strasburg's first MLB start was nationally televised (IIRC) on ESPN and he struck out 14 in seven innings.  The hype could not have gotten much bigger, he was basically declared the best pitcher in baseball from day one.  McDonald's MLB debut was getting Cory Snyder to ground into a double play in relief of Curt Schilling in the 3rd inning of a September game.  It was probably on HTS, but I don't recall any wall-to-wall coverage.

I remember watching the sports reporters back before Ben signed.  They were discussing the Blue Jays and Orioles pennant race.  One of them opined that the O's would win, since they would sign Ben and his insertion into the ML rotation would be the difference.

Comparable amount of hype when you adjust for era.