BOWIE, Md. - From the day they signed him to a big bonus, the largest in their international signing class in January of 2021, the Orioles envisioned this for catcher Samuel Basallo from the Dominican Republic.

Big arm and big power.

He’s thrown runners out as a catcher and mashed homers with big exit velocity with his massive raw power. He has done all that and more on the O's watch. Last year he flew up prospects lists. He began the 2023 season as the No. 15 prospect on the O’s top 30 team list. Now that is the area he is ranked in on a top 100 list.

Basallo ended the 2023 season, one where he produced a .953 OPS between Low-A Delmarva, High-A Aberdeen and Double-A Bowie, ranked No. 46 in the top 100 by both Baseball America and MLBPipeline.com. Right now, he is No. 12 by MLBPipeline and No. 16 via Baseball America.

Everyone in the industry knows he’s one of baseball’s top prospects. And he is taking his talents to Arlington, Tex. on July 13 to represent the Orioles in the All-Star Futures Game.

SEATTLE – The news yesterday that Double-A Bowie catcher Samuel Basallo was selected to play in the All-Star Futures Game stirred up further discussion about his standing in the Orioles organization. Specifically, how long he’ll be in it. How long he should be in it.

We should pause that topic and mention how he’s a deserving choice as the No. 2 prospect in a stacked farm system and 12^th in baseball, per MLB Pipeline’s newest rankings. He’s batting .279 with a .798 OPS, 14 doubles, 11 home runs and 34 RBIs in 69 games, and he had a double and run scored last night in Bowie’s 3-0 win over Richmond.

He’s a real weapon behind the plate, too.

Basallo has endured some health setbacks along the way, the most serious a stress fracture in his right elbow that limited his work in spring training and confined him to serving as designated hitter until April 30. The Futures Game assignment is a nice reward for his talent and perseverance.

Can he co-exist with Adley Rutschman on an Orioles roster, perhaps by 2025? Yes he can. James McCann gets plenty of work behind the plate with Rutschman’s rest consisting of DH duty. Basallo can do that and also play first base. It’s feasible. Why fight it?

Double-A Bowie catcher Samuel Basallo, one of baseball’s top prospects and a shining star of the Orioles international program, was selected today to take part in the All-Star Futures Game on July 13 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Tex.

Basallo is the only O’s rep in the game set for 4:10 p.m. ET that will be televised live on MLB Network.

Basallo, 19, is ranked as the Orioles’ No. 2 prospect behind Jackson Holliday who played in this game last year. He is rated No. 12 in the top 100 by MLBPipeline.com and No. 18 via Baseball America.

Basallo over 68 games this season for the Baysox, is batting .278/.338/.456/.794 with 13 doubles, 11 homers, 39 runs and 34 RBIs.

He got off to a slow start but produced an OPS of .791 in May and .894 in June.

The Nationals will have two of their top prospects representing the organization at next month’s All-Star Futures Game.

Outfielder James Wood and third baseman Brady House have been selected to represent the Nats in the 2023 SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game, the announcement coming tonight on MLB Network.

Wood, 20, is the No. 5 prospect in baseball according to Baseball America and the No. 6 prospect per MLBPipeline.com’s recently updated rankings. As the Nats’ top overall prospect per both publications, he leads the Nats’ minor league system in home runs (12), RBIs (52), slugging percentage (.536), OPS (tied for first, .903), triples (six), extra-base hits (33) and total bases (128).

From April 25 to May 28, Wood posted a 30-game on-base streak, the longest active streak in all of Minor League Baseball at the time. He hit .299 with a .415 on-base percentage and a .626 slugging percentage during that stretch.

In 66 games between High-A Wilmington and Double-A Harrisburg, Wood has hit .272 with 15 doubles, six triples, 12 homers, 52 RBIs, 37 walks, 13 stolen bases and 46 runs scored. He was promoted to Harrisburg on May 28, an early promotion compared to some of the Nats’ top prospects of the past. In the week leading up his promotion to Double-A, Wood went 9-for-19 (.474) with a double, triple, three home runs, seven RBIs, four walks, two stolen bases and eight runs scored in his last five games with the Blue Rocks.

The All-Star Game’s week-long festivities are not just to celebrate the best in today’s game. They are also to put the best of baseball’s future on the national stage. And we now know who will be representing the Nationals on that stage in just over a week.

Cade Cavalli and Darren Baker have been selected to represent the Nationals in the 2022 SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game, Major League Baseball announced today on MLB Network’s “MLB Central.” The 23rd All-Star Futures Game features the top prospects across the minor leagues as they’ll compete as part of the first-ever All-Star Saturday on July 16.

Cavalli, 23, will be appearing in his second straight All-Star Futures Game after representing the Nats in Colorado last year. The 2020 first-round pick pitched a scoreless fifth inning for the National League side while matching his two walks with two strikeouts and touching 100 mph with his fastball three times.

Currently the Nats’ top prospect, according to both MLBPipeline.com and Baseball America, Cavalli is tied for third in the system with 68 strikeouts after being one of the strikeout leaders in all the minor leagues in 2021. In 14 starts for Triple-A Rochester, he is 4-3 with a 4.54 ERA and 9.1 K/9. But Cavalli has upped his game recently, going 3-0 with a 2.31 ERA, 41 strikeouts and a .182 batting average against over his last seven starts. 

That includes last night, when the right-hander enjoyed one his most impressive outings to date, retiring the first 17 batters he faced en route to completing seven scoreless innings of two-hit ball at Lehigh Valley. He finished with seven strikeouts and no walks.

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