They are ranked as the Orioles' top two pitching prospects and their inclusion in the 60-man player pool this summer was expected. They were not expected to pitch yet for the Orioles and they did not. But it was a big summer of developing - even without minor league games - for right-hander Grayson Rodriguez and left-hander DL Hall. Rodriguez will turn 21 on Nov. 16. Hall turned 22 on Sept. 19. Both are ranked as top 100 prospects. Rodriguez is No. 31 for both Baseball America and...

It was all a bit of mystery. They were playing baseball at Double-A Bowie this year but there were not any games that counted. No other Eastern League teams came to town. Bowie was an important place however, as it was the site of the Orioles' alternate camp this summer. No media or fans were allowed to watch and/or chronicle the happenings. But it was clear that some good instruction and work was going on out of the limelight and the major league spotlight. We saw Ryan Mountcastle come from...

For the Orioles, the progress in 2019 of young pitcher Ryan Wilson had to be a real positive development. The 23-year-old lefty was moved from a bullpen role to starting and he had a big season for Single-A Delmarva. His year flew under the radar a bit as he pitched in a rotation with pitchers like Grayson Rodriguez, Gray Fenter and Drew Rom, but Wilson made 17 starts for the Shorebirds. He went 6-5 with a 2.80 ERA. Over 93 1/3 innings he allowed 73 hits and gave up just six homers with 29...

The new hires and reassignments in the Orioles' minor league system that were made public yesterday in a press release included a batch of names from outside professional baseball. As expected and, in some cases, already reported. Tim Gibbons, the hitting coach at Double-A Bowie, worked as director of hitting at Elite Sports Training. Ryan Fuller, the hitting coach at Single-A Delmarva, comes from Power in Training. These aren't affiliates. There are recent interns, trainees and apprentices....

The Orioles went the more traditional pitching route last night in a 7-6 loss to the Mariners at Camden Yards. Asher Wojciechowski was the starter instead of an opener. No reliever worked more than Dillon Tate's 2 1/3 innings. Manager Brandon Hyde used six of them as the game marched into the 13th. The seven relief innings logged Friday night by Aaron Brooks rank among the most in Orioles history. As you might expect. Brooks was the fourth pitcher in the majors this season to throw seven or...

Ryan Mountcastle didn't squeeze onto the Orioles' expanded roster this month. However, he's going to be at Camden Yards this weekend. His name won't be in the lineup, but it's etched with the past recipients of the Brooks Robinson Minor League Player of the Year Award. Mountcastle has been chosen as the organization's top position player and will be honored in an on-field ceremony before Saturday's game against the Mariners. Joining Mountcastle are right-handers Michael Baumann and...

Two Orioles minor league pitchers were named classification All-Stars by Baseball America. The publication names All-Star teams for each classification - Triple-A, Double-A and so on down the line. That involves three leagues in each classification in most cases and Baseball America selected six pitchers - five starters and one reliever for each team. Double-A Bowie lefty Zac Lowther was named a Double-A classification All-Star. For the Baysox he went 13-7 with a 2.55 ERA. Over 148 innings he...

Hanser Alberto has been cleared to play tonight and is starting at third base in D.C. Alberto left Sunday's game with a head contusion and cervical neck strain. Renato Núñez was removed from the same game with discomfort behind his left knee. In the hamstring "area." But he's starting at first base tonight. The off-day worked wonders. Anthony Santander is left field and Stevie Wilkerson is in center. Jonathan Villar, who just joined the 20/20 club, is playing second base. Aaron Brooks...

The Single-A Delmarva Shorebirds (86-44) have won a lot of games this year as a well-rounded team that can beat you many ways. But pitching has been the constant. They lead the 14-team South Atlantic League in ERA, WHIP and strikeouts. It's success like this at Delmarva, where they have a pitching coach in his first year in the Orioles organization, that the O's brass hopes they can build on. This is the start of producing what general manager Mike Elias has called the "elite talent...

One of the offseason trends for the Orioles involves the hiring of college coaches to minor league positions, and the announcements coming via their Twitter accounts. Social media working its magic again. The latest confirmation arrived Tuesday night, with Matt Trate tweeting that "my family and I are looking forward to the next chapter with @Orioles as I have accepted a position as a MiLB hitting coach." Trate had been working as associate head baseball coach/recruiting coordinator at...

With exactly one week remaining before pitchers and catchers report to spring training, the Orioles are applying the finishing touches to the construction of their minor league staffs and an announcement is coming within the next few days. Certainly before I board my Monday flight to Sarasota. What do we know? Well, let's start with Gary Kendall, who's replacing Ron Johnson as manager at Triple-A Norfolk. Mike Griffin returns as Tides pitching coach. Buck Britton moves up from low Single-A...

Beyond the outside hires that have been made public via Twitter, the Orioles also are shuffling minor league personnel to fill vacancies at multiple levels of their farm system. The Triple-A affiliate in Norfolk has announced the promotion of manager Gary Kendall, 55, from Double-A Bowie. Kendall will replace Ron Johnson. Buck Britton, 32, is moving up from low Single-A Delmarva to Bowie as Kendall's replacement, according to sources. An announcement from the Orioles is pending on the...

The Orioles' search for a veteran catcher to toss into the spring training competition led them to Jesús Sucre, who has agreed to terms on a minor league deal. The announcement came this afternoon. Sucre's contract includes an invitation to major league camp and guarantees $850,000 if he makes the club. USA Today reported that the deal also includes a March 22 opt-out date. The 40-man roster still holds only two catchers - Austin Wynns and Chance Sisco, who were rookies in 2018. Non-roster...