2022 Orioles Prospects Power Rankings (Top 40)

[Tony-OH]

17 hours ago, seak05 said:

Thanks Tony, I know you prefer Coby to Gunnar, but did you give any consideration to moving them around given Coby's slow start to the year, while Gunnar is holding his own at double-A?

I didn't move anyone that were top prospects going into the season. I really only moved guys around that either have looked real good so far, changed something, or I got a better look at and didn't like what I saw (Deson comes to mind). I figured the top guys will get at least 3-4 weeks before I do any movement with them.

[Tony-OH]

17 hours ago, UMDTerrapins said:

Love this feature Tony!  Just as Greg Cullen became my mega dark horse prospect last year, this year it’s Cole Uvila. I love pitching mechanics and his are about as weird as you’ll ever see, so I really can’t explain why I’ve latched onto him. Though he does have three nice pitches in his arsenal. I just can’t look away. 
 

 

Cool video. What is his story. Why did he start pro ball so late at 24 years old? The Rangers moved him very slowly despite good K numbers. I'll keep an eye on him for sure if he's throwing 96 MPH with success at AAA.

[Tony-OH]

3 hours ago, waroriole said:

How close is Westburg to passing some people in front of him (Stowers, Gunnar, Hall, Cowser, Mayo)?

I'm waiting about 3-4 weeks before moving any of the top prospects. They deserve to settle into the year before moving too much but obviously Westburg and Stowers have looked real good early on.

2 hours ago, Aristotelian said:

Why did Alex Wells go down? 0.00 ERA in AAA and MLB to start the year.

He only went down by 1 and that was only because I really see him as a bulk reliever guy and had to move some guys back on the rankings who have higher ceilings. 

[blid]

On 4/15/2022 at 7:59 PM, justD said:

I don’t see him back in the lineup tonight, am hoping he didn’t really hurt himself sliding head-first the other night and being taken out. 

Hasn't played again since.

edit: Oh he's back, and I found his dedicated thread!

[waroriole]

9 hours ago, Tony-OH said:

I didn't move anyone that were top prospects going into the season. I really only moved guys around that either have looked real good so far, changed something, or I got a better look at and didn't like what I saw (Deson comes to mind). I figured the top guys will get at least 3-4 weeks before I do any movement with them.

What did you not like about Deson? On paper he seems decent. 19 and holding his own at Delmarva in CF. 

[Tony-OH]

15 hours ago, waroriole said:

What did you not like about Deson? On paper he seems decent. 19 and holding his own at Delmarva in CF. 

He has a real unbalance swing. He's always out in front and hits a lot of ground balls. I'm not sure I've seen him really drive a ball. For a guy who is 6-foot-4, he runs a little gangly (like Nolan Reimold) and i just don't see the power projection there without some major swing adjustments. 

[RZNJ]

2 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

He has a real unbalance swing. He's always out in front and hits a lot of ground balls. I'm not sure I've seen him really drive a ball. For a guy who is 6-foot-4, he runs a little gangly (like Nolan Reimold) and i just don't see the power projection there without some major swing adjustments. 

 

He does look a bit gangly as if he hasn't grown into his body just yet but he did pop 2 or 3 homers last year in the GCL where there are very few cheapies.   He's got 3 doubles so far and is holding his own.    I hope he can get comfortable in Delmarva and come on like he did second half in the GCL last year.   Swing adjustments and fixing flaws seems to be something this organization is pretty good at so I guess we'll see.

[Tony-OH]

3 minutes ago, RZNJ said:

 

He does look a bit gangly as if he hasn't grown into his body just yet but he did pop 2 or 3 homers last year in the GCL where there are very few cheapies.   He's got 3 doubles so far and is holding his own.    I hope he can get comfortable in Delmarva and come on like he did second half in the GCL last year.   Swing adjustments and fixing flaws seems to be something this organization is pretty good at so I guess we'll see.

He's got age on his side for sure, but I'd like to see a little more plate discipline. Also, he has struck out too much for a guy without much pop. Basically he has an empty average. 

[RZNJ]

5 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

He's got age on his side for sure, but I'd like to see a little more plate discipline. Also, he has struck out too much for a guy without much pop. Basically he has an empty average. 

I agree that he's got an empty average right now.   However, we're talking about a 19 year old making the jump from the GCL which is a pretty good jump in competition.  No Bluefield or Aberdeen to make it more gradual.   I'm hoping he's still feeling his way and takes off once he gains some confidence that he belongs at that level.   He slugged .515 in the GCL last year with 3 homers which is pretty significant at that level.   I guess it's possible that some or all of those were inside the parkers.    He walked 9 times and struck out 23 times 114 PA.    Those are not great but not terrible plate discipline numbers, certainly much better than his current numbers.   Again, we're talking about a kid who doesn't turn 20 until July and has made a pretty big jump.

[Tony-OH]

33 minutes ago, RZNJ said:

I agree that he's got an empty average right now.   However, we're talking about a 19 year old making the jump from the GCL which is a pretty good jump in competition.  No Bluefield or Aberdeen to make it more gradual.   I'm hoping he's still feeling his way and takes off once he gains some confidence that he belongs at that level.   He slugged .515 in the GCL last year with 3 homers which is pretty significant at that level.   I guess it's possible that some or all of those were inside the parkers.    He walked 9 times and struck out 23 times 114 PA.    Those are not great but not terrible plate discipline numbers, certainly much better than his current numbers.   Again, we're talking about a kid who doesn't turn 20 until July and has made a pretty big jump.

Yep, and that's why he worth keeping an eye on. 

[RZNJ]

Westburg at #8 seems to be the ranking that sticks out the most right now.  He can play middle infield and he clicks all of the boxes.  I believe Cowser will hit and even hit with power.  But is the optimistic take on Cowser better than what Westburg looks like right now?

[Tony-OH]

3 minutes ago, RZNJ said:

Westburg at #8 seems to be the ranking that sticks out the most right now.  He can play middle infield and he clicks all of the boxes.  I believe Cowser will hit and even hit with power.  But is the optimistic take on Cowser better than what Westburg looks like right now?

I'll start making some adjustements in a few weeks with the top guys, but not going to make it off 10 games or so of play. Saying that, Westburg has certainly looked good so far this season and Cowser not so much. I wish I had some good video of Cowser to see if I can pick up anything in his swing. It's early and certainly a SSS, but the K's are shocking for a guy who barely struck out last year.

[RZNJ]

4 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

I'll start making some adjustements in a few weeks with the top guys, but not going to make it off 10 games or so of play. Saying that, Westburg has certainly looked good so far this season and Cowser not so much. I wish I had some good video of Cowser to see if I can pick up anything in his swing. It's early and certainly a SSS, but the K's are shocking for a guy who barely struck out last year.

I'll go check but, although not nearly as alarming, Cowser struck out more than I expected in Delmarva last year.  I feel like he must be trying to get more loft in his swing and is struggling with the adjustment.  Not worried.  Yet!.

[Tony-OH]

2 minutes ago, RZNJ said:

I'll go check but, although not nearly as alarming, Cowser struck out more than I expected in Delmarva last year.  I feel like he must be trying to get more loft in his swing and is struggling with the adjustment.  Not worried.  Yet!.

Nah, only 19 times in 124 PAs with 22 walks. His 37.5 K% shows whatever he's doing differently is not working because I cant beleive it's the level of pitching. He's swinging through pitches that he did not last year. It's weird.

[RZNJ]

4 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

Nah, only 19 times in 124 PAs with 22 walks. His 37.5 K% shows whatever he's doing differently is not working because I cant beleive it's the level of pitching. He's swinging through pitches that he did not last year. It's weird.

It's not working now. Doesn't mean it won't.  Again, that's if that's the cause.  I don't want to think about any other possibility.