O's senior director, international scouting Koby Perez on upcoming signing period

O's senior director, international scouting Koby Perez on upcoming signing period
For the first time in several years, the July 2 date coming up will be meaningful for Orioles fans. That is the start of a new signing period for international amateur players that can be signed when they turn 16. After years of signing a few international players, the Orioles are now making a major commitment moving forward to tapping into talent in places like the Dominican Republic and Venezuela. In an interview in May, executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias said this July 2...

Remembering draft day: The O's took Dylan Bundy No. 4 in 2011

Remembering draft day: The O's took Dylan Bundy No. 4 in 2011
The Orioles are now days away from making the first pick in the first round of the First-Year Player Draft. That selection will be made on Monday night. The Orioles hold the No. 1 overall pick for just the second time since the draft began in 1965. In 1989 they chose LSU right-hander Ben McDonald 1/1. In the Orioles clubhouse this week the player that can most relate to being taken with the first pick is pitcher Dylan Bundy, who came close to that. He was the No. 4 overall pick out of Owassa...

As the losses mount, how is Birdland dealing with them?

As the losses mount, how is Birdland dealing with them?
So the Orioles had chances to win a couple of games in the series with the New York Yankees, but they went 0-4. They've now lost six in a row and take a 15-35 record into their game in Colorado tonight. As the losses mount, some fans in Birdland are venting, but to me, it appears a large segment of Birdland expected exactly this. They knew rebuilding would be painful in the won-loss column and they actually get it. They want to see some positives and they have and they are not yet getting too...

O's got whipped in Cleveland but go 4-0 on farm Sunday

O's got whipped in Cleveland but go 4-0 on farm Sunday
Well, the Orioles minor league affiliates went 4-0 Sunday with some real nice pitching performances. We'll get to that shortly. But the big league club got blown out 10-0 in Cleveland and the postgame interviews reflected that result. Starting pitcher Yefry Ramirez said he was "just bad." Chris Davis struck out four times against Indians right-hander Shane Bieber and said he didn't make adjustments and that was "just stupidity on my part." Manager Brandon Hyde has been remaining upbeat...

Hess surrenders four home runs in 5-3 Game 1 loss

Hess surrenders four home runs in 5-3 Game 1 loss
NEW YORK - David Hess had to wait two days to make his start against the Yankees. The sun came out, the field dried and he was able to pitch in ideal conditions. Little else seemed to go right for Hess. Mostly the weather. Hess surrendered a career-high four home runs while taking over the major league lead, and the Orioles lost the first game of the doubleheader 5-3 at Yankee Stadium. The 14 home runs off Hess are one more than the Angels' Trevor Cahill has allowed this season. The Yankees...

O's Game 1 game blog: David Hess faces the Yankees

O's Game 1 game blog: David Hess faces the Yankees
The Orioles have not lost since Saturday. They are 1-0 since then, beating the Los Angeles Angels Sunday behind John Means and now they've been rained out twice in New York. Today the Orioles and Yankees will play a straight doubleheader at Yankee Stadium. In Game 1, right-hander David Hess (1-4, 5.50 ERA) gets the start. Hess got off to a strong start to the 2019 season but has struggled lately. He threw 6 1/3 no-hit innings on April 1 at Toronto, his first start of the year. He had a 3.32...

A look at a series-opening loss, Mountcastle's torrid bat and more

A look at a series-opening loss, Mountcastle's torrid bat and more
It was another night when the Orioles got a short outing from a starting pitcher, but the way Tampa Bay's Tyler Glasnow was throwing it was not going to matter. Glasnow was dominant last night as Tampa Bay beat the Orioles 7-0 to take the series and homestand opener. It's not a bad combination for a pitcher when you throw 99 mph, as Glasnow did in the first inning, and combine that with a curveball that three batters took for called third strikes. It didn't get much better for Baltimore...

O's game blog: John Means starts White Sox series opener

O's game blog: John Means starts White Sox series opener
The Orioles road trip moves on to Chicago and they start a three-game series tonight in the windy city. The Orioles (10-19) went 0-3 at Minnesota, scoring just four runs. They've lost seven of nine and 14 of the last 19 games. Left-handers get the start with John Means (3-2, 1.74 ERA) facing Manny Bañuelos (1-0, 2.51 ERA). In his three starts, Means is 1-2 with a 2.08 ERA. He has averaged 6.9 strikeouts/nine innings in his starts and 15.3 per nine when pitching out of the bullpen. The White...

Kline in Baltimore as 26th man for doubleheader

Kline in Baltimore as 26th man for doubleheader
The Orioles have chosen reliever Branden Kline to be their 26th man in Game 2 of today's doubleheader, the first of multiple roster moves that are pending. Kline is at the ballpark and will be recalled from Triple-A Norfolk after Game 1. Alex Cobb will be activated from the injured list and start Game 2, and the Orioles must create a spot for him by optioning a pitcher. They also need to get back down to 25 players following the nightcap, which could mean a brief stay for Kline or involve...

How many top 100 prospects for the Orioles?

How many top 100 prospects for the Orioles?
The new lists of top 100 prospects in baseball will be released soon by several national outlets including Baseball America, MLBPipeline.com, ESPN and others. Last year, on the Baseball America list, the Orioles had three players ranked for just the second time since 2013. They had a list of three after the 2014 and 2018 seasons. Here is a look back at the Orioles on the lists last winter. Baseball America: Austin Hays (21), Chance Sisco (68) and Ryan Mountcastle (71)MLBPipeline.com: Hays (23),...

Maximizing service time and a Machado take

Maximizing service time and a Machado take
Former Orioles baseball operations leader Andy MacPhail once stated that it's better to call up a prospect a month too late rather than a month too soon. The new management of the Orioles may look to adhere to that philosophy. And not just because they agree with MacPhail. Maybe because it makes good business sense. At a time when fans seem excited to see young players get more opportunities with the club, some young players may have to wait their turn. Like most good organizations, the...

Orioles select Ortiz's contract (plus notes)

Orioles select Ortiz's contract (plus notes)
SEATTLE - The Orioles expanded their roster to 29 players today by selecting the contract of right-hander Luis Ortiz from Triple-A Norfolk. The 40-man roster still has one open spot. Ortiz, 22, was acquired from the Brewers with infielder Jonathan Villar and shortstop Jean Carmona in exchange for second baseman Jonathan Schoop. He went 2-1 with a 3.69 ERA in six starts with Norfolk, and his 31 2/3 innings raised his season total to 99 2/3. Ortiz will become the 54th player used by the Orioles...

Alex Cobb finished what he started, plus farm notes

Alex Cobb finished what he started, plus farm notes
The Orioles have played two pretty solid games in Cleveland this weekend and they posted an impressive 4-2 win on Saturday afternoon to end the Indians' six-game win streak. Right-hander Alex Cobb had another strong start. In fact, he pitched a complete-game five-hitter to improve to 4-15 with a 5.09 ERA. Cobb posted his fourth career complete game and his first nine-inning complete-game since a shutout versus Oakland on Aug. 23, 2012. Cobb has posted five straight quality starts with a 2.06...

More on Machado trade and talking O's prospects with J.J. Cooper of Baseball America

More on Machado trade and talking O's prospects with J.J. Cooper of Baseball America
The Manny Machado trade to the Los Angeles Dodgers brought the Orioles a five-player return headlined by Double-A outfielder Yusniel Díaz. The rebuilding of the Orioles has begun. Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette made some comments last night that should prove very popular with the Orioles fan base. He laid out the plan that fans have been asking about often. Duquette said more trades are likely and that, "In conjunction with that, we're also going to be making significant...

Manny Machado's All-Star break numbers are much better in 2018

Manny Machado's All-Star break numbers are much better in 2018
While the trade rumors and speculation swirls around him and his days in an Orioles uniform are likely numbered, we should take a second to appreciate how good a first-half shortstop Manny Machado has had. He's among the American League leaders in several categories and his 2018 first-half far surpasses his 2017 first-half which featured struggles and numbers unlike Machado. But he had a big first-half with the bat and that is going to provide the Orioles a chance to get a bigger haul for him...

For Mountcastle and Wells, Futures Game was quite an experience

For Mountcastle and Wells, Futures Game was quite an experience
WASHINGTON - The two Orioles players in the All-Star Futures Game didn't have much of an impact on the final score today at Nationals Park. But after the U.S. Team beat the World Team 10-6, both Double-A Bowie third baseman Ryan Mountcastle and Single-A Frederick lefty pitcher Alex Wells were raving about their experience playing on such a big stage. Mountcastle entered the game in the fifth as a pinch-hitter for the designated hitter and went 0-for-2. Wells faced two batters from the U.S....

Ryan Mountcastle and Alex Wells on today's Futures Game (updated)

Ryan Mountcastle and Alex Wells on today's Futures Game (updated)
WASHINGTON - Today's SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game is a real showcase for some of the best talent in minor league baseball. From last year's rosters for Team USA and the World team, 23 of those players have already been on a major league roster or disabled list in 2018. The Orioles have one player on each roster today. Neither will start the game, but around midgame we could see both Double-A Bowie third baseman Ryan Mountcastle enter as a reserve for the U.S. and Single-A Frederick lefty...

A few notes from the Orioles' second 1-0 win of 2018

A few notes from the Orioles' second 1-0 win of 2018
The Orioles are now 2-24 this year when they score one run or no runs. And yes, it is hard to win doing that. You pretty much have to win 1-0. In fact, you do have to win by that score, and they did last night over Texas. Right-hander Yefry Ramírez had another strong start going the first five innings, but he didn't get the win. Reliever Brad Brach did. Ramírez, Brach, Donnie Hart, Mychal Givens and Zach Britton teamed on a four-hitter with 12 strikeouts to give the Orioles their second...

Alex Wells on Futures Game honor and his move to Frederick this year

Alex Wells on Futures Game honor and his move to Frederick this year
Orioles left-handed pitching prospect Alex Wells of the Single-A Frederick Keys had such elite command and control last year that it was almost a given that he could not duplicate that this season in moving up from the South Atlantic League to the Carolina League. But for the most part, he's handled the move up well, albeit with a couple of recent bumps in the road. But a road that has taken him from Newcastle, South Wales, Australia to the Orioles will take the 21-year-old Wells to the...

Frederick notes on Zac Lowther, Alex Wells and Wilson Garcia

Frederick notes on Zac Lowther, Alex Wells and Wilson Garcia
Frederick, MD. - Left-hander Zac Lowther will get the start for the Single-A Frederick Keys tonight at home against Wilmington. If it goes anything like most of his previous starts this year, he'll have a good night. In a combined 13 outings between Single-A Delmarva and Frederick, the 22-year-old Lowther is 6-2 with a 1.47 ERA. Over 67 1/3 he's allowed just 43 hits with 19 walks, 88 strikeouts, a 0.92 WHIP and .181 batting average against. So, yeah pretty strong season for the second-year...