Minor Monday: Stowers has power potential for Orioles

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• The article talks about his defense. What position does he play now, and what position does he project to? Also, I think I've read that he has strikeout issues. Is that true?

  • He's played 719 innings in RF and 165 innings in LF across three minor league teams in 2021 according to Baseball Reference and MiLB dot com. He has struck out 171 times in 530 plate appearances in 2021; struck out 53 times in 228 PAs in 2019. His slash line dropped a bit re: what is provided in the article above to .278/.383/.514/.898 still pretty incredible in light of his high strike out %.

• Hang Ten young Mr. Stowers. Look forward to watching you play ball.

• Love to see him with these guys, can already see an orange & black t-shirt give away, Stowers Power…lol…go O’s…

• Our outfield could be something in the near future....Mullins, Hayes, Santander, Stowers, Kjerstad, Cowser and maybe Elijah Green. We could even trade 1 or 2 for some good quality pitchers.

  • You forgot Stewart.

  • BRR, listen, I agree with you probably 99% of the time but I gotta say this. Your support of Stewart reminds me somewhat of another persons support of Urias and Severino. Don’t get me wrong, as Seinfeld would say, “not that there’s anything wrong with that.” I just have to disagree this one time. I see no future for Stewart in Baltimore. That doesn’t mean I don’t think he’ll have a 10 year MLB career. I just don’t see it being for the O’s.

    • That person who supports Urias and Severino is pretty dern sharp, supporting the 3rd and 4th highest WARs of position players on the O's in 2021 per Baseball Reference. Pretty dern sharp indeedy do bwaaaahahahahaha...WAR WAR WAR is the way to GO GO GO. Yes I've had a beer or two too!

      • I remember my first as well Joey.

    • DL...I know i've defended Stewart in the past and really I don't think he's as bad as the average poster on this site thinks he is, but I was honestly going for a bit of humor on this one.

      Maybe I was a bit off on my delivery. I'll work on it. :)

• Stowers , Rutschman and Neustrom are the reasons that I believe that DJ Stewart and Pedro Severino could be traded before spring training next year.

  • There's no earthly way any of these prospects start the season next year. The Orioles will opt for the delay and extra year of eligibility.

    • As of now, if the O's want to keep control on the prospects, they will have to remain in the minors for at least 3 weeks at the start of next season. With their record this year and the pitching, 3 weeks is not going to make a big difference. Just hope the management(?) some makes some moves this off season to get some quality starters and relief pitchers.

  • Depends on the new CBA…go O’s…

• Hopefully he makes the team over Stewart. Stewart needs to go. He’s a bust. These outfielders we have in the system are the real deal. Coincidentally there all left handed hitters which does not bode well for Stewart. They all can hit for average and power while playing defense something Stewart doesn’t.

• Read some good articles on Brooks Lee, not so sure he may be a better pick for the O’s…especially with a name like Brooks…lol…go O’s…

  • C.P.! What you wrote? It made sense. Among "those in the know" (Mason McRae, Dan Zielinski, etc.), Brooks Lee is the #1 pick right now. A lot could change before the draft (and Mike Elias may try and cut a deal with someone other than Lee). I also asked Mason McRae what names should Orioles' fans think about with next year's MLB draft, and he answered: Brooks Lee, Gavin Cross, Chase DeLauter, Daniel Susac, Carter Young, Kevin Parada, and Jace Jung. Incidentally, all are college players.

  • I wanna preface this comment by saying I’m a 50 plus year fan who has never paid much attention to the draft and minors until the past few seasons. My comment about your post ptjhu is this: The names you mentioned that this Mason McRae person said did not include Elijah Green. I was under the impression he was the next “generational talent”. Has something changed or am I mistaken?

    • Hi DL - Mason McRae is a kid at VCU -- he's heavy into analytics and all that stuff, and the kid is friggin' brilliant in his analysis. Here's his 2022 Big Board: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1CRtv1fP4mDlXy7GrWn6iduN5u6tVUt9i-O9-H4lT_f0/edit#gid=1949220356

      Here are sites for you to visit: https://www.prospectslive.com/prospects-live/2021/9/9/2022-mlb-draft-top-150-prospects
      https://baseballprospectjournal.com/2022-mlb-draft-mock-draft-1/
      https://www.collegebaseball.info/post/2022-mlb-draft-a-peek-ahead

  • ptjhu, appreciate the links. I’ll check them out. Sounds like this kid has a future as a GM.

• Time to slice the dead wood off the roster!

  • Or the roster off the dead wood?

• DJ had repeated opportunities and at best is a streaky hitter who plays poor defense. He’s gone. Santander is too expensive. He’ll be like Villar. Same with Severino.

  • Santander would at least start, Severino would make too much for a backup…go O’s…

• It will be a very different kind of off-season for Mike Elias as he starts to craft a team-of-the-future for these Orioles in Baltimore.

  In looking at the 2022 Outfield, I wont be surprised to see Elias trade-off some of the guys we've been watching here over the last couple of Seasons, guys like; Austin Hays, and Santander being the most valuable trade pieces to move. Don't see them moving Cedric Mullins, but who knows? I would trade any player on this year's Roster except John Means for a decent return.

  The Worm-is-starting-to-turn in Baltimore. That's right--I said it.

• 66!!! wild pitches, 10 passed balls. You can bet another 15 or so were not wild pitches, but passed balls!

• Rich - a question or 2...
  1) Is there any Fall Instructional League going on in Sarasota? Intrasquad games or actual match ups with other teams?
  2) When do Arizona Fall League guys get named?
  3) Any buzz on new CBA progress? I saw a comment somewhere that both sides may agree to a 1-year extension of current deal, since apparently no progress has been made.
  Thanks

  • I will answer your questions later this week, Bob, but I can answer No. 2 now. The AFL guys will be named on Wednesday. Originally, they were supposed to be named today, but MLB has now decided on Wednesday.

• John’s Means wife seems like an incredible woman. She posted photos of them and his no hitter on Instagram. You should see the comments from fans praising the great and enjoyable season and can’t wait to see the birds next year in Camden Yards. Twilight Zone

  • Not surprised…go O’s…

• I can see Rutschman being brought up maybe after the first month if he's still showing all the current signs that he's ready. He would have to be added to the 40 man roster along with all the others that HAVE TO BE ADDED and that list is pretty long!!! Or they could lose them in the Rule 5 draft. There are currently 5 more minor league players that need to be protected. Last year the Orioles lost 2 future pitchers, bullpen (possibly future closer) Zack Pop to the Marlins and Gray Fenter although Fenter was returned. Fenter will have to be added along with the other 5 current on this list. Then there are 8 more that could be lost that were not protected last year or have to be added with Brett Cumberland, Cody Sedlock, Cameron Bishop, Felix Bautista and Mason McCoy heading that list!
  Last year, the Orioles opted to DFA team home run leader Renato Núñez and non-tender everyday second baseman Hanser Alberto and lost 2 real good young pitchers. If they didn't non-tender these 2 guys they surely would have lost 2 more!!! So, anyone that thinks they should have kept these two guys and the Orioles are cheap are not looking at the BIG picture here!!! It makes NO SENSE to draft all these kids and let them go before ever getting to Baltimore!!! Or to complain that the Orioles payroll is low with having all these 1st and 2 year players on the roster either. Arbitration players or trades have to come off one end to add the young minor league players eligible on the other end. Some players are too valuable to just let go so they could be offered salaries but then traded away. Guys like Mancini, Santander could fall into this group for more way younger players that are not eligible to compensate the moves. They also have Richie Martin, John Means, Jorge López, Paul Fry, Adam Plutko, Severino and Tanner Scott all first time arbitration eligible as well. I could see the Orioles keeping Means and Lopez from this group but the others have to come off for the others to get added. I could see the Orioles having a very busy off-season to decide on all of these players. But Rutschman could be added but I see that after the season starts when you can put someone on the 60 day DL. Maybe Stowers as well BUT these 2 kids will need to play consistently or why bother. So again, the Orioles will have a lot of tough decisions to make this off-season!!!

  • Rutschman and G Rodriguez will be on the Oriole's OD roster and the O's will win 75 or more games next season if a full 162 game schedule is played...sleep well ON1F

  • You're saying that Rutschman has to show FURTHER signs that he's ready? Bwaaahhhahaaahaahahahahaaaaa

    • Stop crying. Vlad Guerrero Jr. batted .381 on three levels before he was brought up. Rutschman batted .285. in 2021. Big difference! And no crybabies allowed!!!

      • I was laughing.

  • Dario, Adam Plutko is not on a major league contract and would have to be put back on the 40-man roster, which isn't going to happen, to be eligible for arbitration. I don't believe Richie Martin has accumulated enough service time to be eligible for arbitration.

    There is plenty of room for the Orioles to protect all the players they would like to this year.

    There is no need to add Rutschman and Stowers until they are added to the 26-man major league roster. There will be decisions to make, but many of them will not be tough ones.

    • Rich - You need to read "The Orioles face a looming 40-man roster crunch this offseason" written by By Tyler Young@_TyYoung Aug 9, 2021, 9:01am EDT - one of your fellow writers and tell him he's wrong then!!!

  • McCoy is not considered a prospect.

    • Guys don't need to be a prospect to be added to the 40 man roster. DJ Stewart and Severino WERE considered prospects and you're looking to cut them. John Means was NOT considered a prospect and he out performs both of them!!! Also, J.D. Martinez went undrafted and unrecruited out of high school, wound up at Nova Southeastern (Fla.) and got a $30,000 bonus as an Astros 20th-rounder in 2009. And look at him now!!!

      Whit Merrifield, 2B delivered the walk-off hit to win the 2010 College World Series for South Carolina but lasted nine rounds that June because scouts didn't see a carrying tool. That rap dogged him in the Minors too and he never made MLB Pipeline's Royals Top 30 -- and yet he led the AL with 192 hits and 45 steals last year and made his first All-Star team this summer.

      And there's a lot more players that outperformed their draft status!

      • Oh and I forgot Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom, He famously spent more time on the dirt than the mound at Stetson, but the promise he showed in the latter role earned him a ninth-round selection by the Mets in 2010.
        Oh and Cards: first baseman Paul Goldschmidt - Even after breaking the home record during his three years at Texas State, Goldschmidt received little fanfare ahead of the 2009 Draft before signing with Arizona for $95,000 as an eighth-round pick.

        • Anybody else?

        • Diamondbacks OF David Peralta was signed by the St. Louis Cardinals as a non-drafted free agent in September 2004, Peralta struggled as a pitcher in the Cardinals’ system for two seasons and was released at the end of 2008. He resurfaced as an outfielder in 2011 and, after three successful seasons in independent ball, signed with the D-backs in mid-2013. He played in just 104 Minor League games before making his big league debut at age 26 in 2014, launching a career that’s seen him slash .291/.347/.479 and post at least a 3.6 WAR twice in six seasons going forward!
          LA Dodgers 3rd Baseman Justin Turner - A $50,000 senior sign out of Cal State Fullerton by the Reds in 2006, Turner bounced around the Minors as a utility type with contact hitting ability but no other notable tool, topping out at No. 27 on Baseball America's 2008 list of the Reds' top prospects. Since signing a Minor League deal with the Dodgers in 2014 and reworking his swing, he has batted .303/.382/.505 and been a force in the postseason.
          SF Giants OF Kevin Pillar - He went undrafted despite setting an NCAA Division II record with a 54-game hitting streak at Cal State Dominguez Hills in 2010 and wound up signing for $1,000 with the Blue Jays as a 32nd-round senior the next June. He didn't move the prospect needle much after winning low Class A Midwest League honors in his first full pro season, climbing only as high as No. 15 on MLB Pipeline's Blue Jays Top 30, yet he has carved out a career as one of the better defensive center fielders in the big leagues.
          Reds: RHP Luis Castillo - Originally signed by the Giants in May 2012, Castillo was traded three times before he finally landed with the Reds in January 2017, after the Marlins -- who believed that the young right-hander would never develop a good enough breaking ball to remain a starter -- packaged him with two others prospects for Dan Straily. Ranked as the Reds' No. 7 prospect entering the 2017 season, Castillo excelled in Double-A, made the jump straight to the Majors in June and delivered 15 impressive starts in the Reds’ rotation. The 26-year-old has since become the team’s ace and garnered All-Star honors in 2019 as part of dominant campaign.

  • If I were Brett Cumberland I’d hope to be left off the 40 man roster. What future does he have in Baltimore?

• Rich! Hearing of all sorts of coaches and managers being let go or reassigned by the Orioles! Give us the scoop please!

• Whoops Severino is in his second year of arbitration!