Britton

[Runs2the1Show]

Good start by Britton tonight.

5 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 7 K's to 3 BB's, lowered his ERA to 1.82.

[AVencill]

Britton could have easily gone 6 innings, but with two extra day's rest they held him off I guess. Britton threw 83 pitches in 5 innings, but threw 35 in the final inning.

[bOhs01]

After going to school down in salisbury last year and meeting him a few times and watching him pitch several times, I'm very happy for him he's a great guy and not surprised at all by his success. His sinker was dominant last year each time i saw him. Great to see him improving and getting better each start. I think we could have a gem of a sleeper in britton.

[Frobby]

After going to school down in salisbury last year and meeting him a few times and watching him pitch several times, I'm very happy for him he's a great guy and not surprised at all by his success. His sinker was dominant last year each time i saw him. Great to see him improving and getting better each start. I think we could have a gem of a sleeper in britton.

Is he that big of a sleeper? He was in the OH top 10 last offseason and was our 3rd round pick in 2006. In any event, he's making solid progress.

[bOhs01]

Is he that big of a sleeper? He was in the OH top 10 last offseason and was our 3rd round pick in 2006. In any event, he's making solid progress.

In relation to the big 3 and some of our other prospects he is. He definitely hasn't gotten the attention that he deserves compared to them but if he keeps up the way he's pitching he won't be much of a sleeper at all anymore.

[Aloe]

I think he's considered a sleeper because he's hardly ever mentioned on TV or in the paper as being one of the Orioles top pitching prospects. He's pitching better than Matusz at the same level and he's a bit younger.

I think he should be considered the Orioles 4th or 5th best pitching prospect.

[LookinUp]

I think he's considered a sleeper because he's hardly ever mentioned on TV or in the paper as being one of the Orioles top pitching prospects. He's pitching better than Matusz at the same level and he's a bit younger.

I think he should be considered the Orioles 4th or 5th best pitching prospect.

Well, right now he's in the top 7 for sure. Some would certainly rate him higher than Hernandez, and Patton may not technically even be a prospect at this point. Others can say one way or the other.

Current top 7 (in no particular order)

Matusz, Arietta, Tillman, Erbe, Patton, Britton, Hernandez

Recent graduate

Bergesen

Injury Exception

Spoone

Next wave

Bundy, Drake, Zagone, Nery?

Other than Berken and Perez, who am I missing?

[hoosiers]

Glad to see Britton is moving up successfully. According to BA, he has barely missed the League Top 20s the past two years in prospect laden leagues. Hopefully, he gets over that hump this year.

I really like the Britton pick. His fastball did not cross 90 until his senior year in hs - so his arm does not have as much wear and tear as some of the prospects who were throwing harder at younger ages. I believe Bergesen was a somewhat similar pick in this regard. IIRC, Britton's body also projected to pick up some mph. Not sure how many HS arms exist like this, but I could scoop up the high 80s throwers with projection to add velo all day.

Like several of our prospects, if Britton could tick the BB rate down by one-third or so, he would be able to go deeper into games and his results would be that much more effective.

[ChaosLex]

Any chance he sees the majors in 2010?

[LookinUp]

I hope not, because I shudder to think what that would mean for all of the guys ahead of him. I guess a September cup of coffee isn't out of the question, but 2011 seems more likely to me.

[blueguy]

Just curious, what is Britton's velocity? I read on some threads its low 90's to 95MPH, what 's true and is it recent?

Also, whats stopping him from being a top prospect?

I noticed he's not throwing alot innings per start, but it seems like alot of the O's top pitchers are averaging 4.5 to 5 innings. Plus, I am worried about his poor walk rate.

[DuffMan]

I think he's considered a sleeper because he's hardly ever mentioned on TV or in the paper as being one of the Orioles top pitching prospects. He's pitching better than Matusz at the same level and he's a bit younger.

I think he should be considered the Orioles 4th or 5th best pitching prospect.

If you looked at last year's prospects rankings you would realize he is. Tony's order for the pitchers was Matsuz, Tilman, Arrieta, Spoone, Britton and then Erbe. He may not be mentioned much on TV and in the paper, but not many are sleeping on him on the OH.

[DuffMan]

Any chance he sees the majors in 2010?

I'd say none. Considering how methodical the O's are in promoting players and that he is only at Frederick this year. I would expect if he keeps progressing well that he spends all of this year at Frederick, and all of 2010 at Bowie. Maybe in '11 we could see him as a mid summer call up after pitching at Norfolk, but that's the earliest I would expect him.

[Anlbdz]

I would also like to echo a few other posters by asking if we have any solid proof that he has picked up some velocity this year? meaning, what does he now throw his pitches at, opposed to last year?

AVencill? can you help out here?

[wickedwitch]

I think he's considered a sleeper because he's hardly ever mentioned on TV or in the paper as being one of the Orioles top pitching prospects. He's pitching better than Matusz at the same level and he's a bit younger.

I think he should be considered the Orioles 4th or 5th best pitching prospect.

He's only in A+, while the others are in AA/AAA. Players who are excelling at higher levels generally get more attention than those who excel at lower levels. So it makes sense he's not getting much attention. He's clearly not at the level of the big three. Bergesen made his way to the ML, so he'll get attention, and Hernandez has a good chance to do the same. Many people rank Erbe higher, and he's had an amazing spring, as has Patton. There's only so much time the media can talk about Orioles pitching prospects before people who aren't diehards get bored.

I think you can argue that he's 4th or 5th, but you can also argue that he's 6th or 7th.

And while he may be performing better than Matusz, he's not a better prospect, any more that any random player who is hitting better than Wieters is a better prospect than him.