In June, Ryan Mountcastle got his bat going at Bowie

In June, Ryan Mountcastle got his bat going at Bowie
Double-A Bowie third baseman Ryan Mountcastle might be making up for some lost time with his bat. He didn't begin his season at Bowie until May 10, but as June comes to an end, his bat has heated up for the Baysox. On June 23 at Richmond, Mountcastle went 6-for-7 in a doubleheader. It was part of a run where he had 12 hits in 16 at-bats. And that was part of a stretch where, over his last 10 games, he is batting .447 (17-for-38). It raised his season OPS from .763 to .842. The 21-year-old...

Yefry Ramírez made nice first impression with his new team

Yefry Ramírez made nice first impression with his new team
For now, he might get lost in the shuffle amid dozens of pitchers in spring training. But after being acquired by the Orioles last July 31, right-hander Yefry Ramírez might have a shot to make the big leagues during the 2018 season. He was 10-3 with a 3.41 ERA for Double-A Trenton when the Orioles acquired him from the New York Yankees for international bonus pool money. He then went 5-0 with an ERA of 3.66 in six starts for Double-A Bowie to end a strong 2017 season. One where he was an...

The readers respond and some props for a minor league player

The readers respond and some props for a minor league player
Some days, many of them actually, one of the best things about having this baseball blog is reading the interesting opinions of the readers here. Yesterday was clearly one of those days. The topic was the Jeff Passan column about the economic system in Major League Baseball, whether it is broken and/or in need of a major overhaul. If you haven't read the column, it's long, but well done and worth your time. If you haven't read some of the 200 or so responses from readers yesterday, that is...

Notes on DJ Stewart and Ryan Mountcastle

Notes on DJ Stewart and Ryan Mountcastle
On their way to a 72-68 record and an Eastern League playoff berth, the Double-A Bowie Baysox were the best hitting team in the league this season. Bowie led all clubs in batting average (.283), on-base percentage (.345), slugging (.436) and runs (697). There were several hitters that had good seasons for Bowie, including Austin Hays, Garabez Rosa, Aderlin Rodriguez, Steve Wilkerson and Cedric Mullins. But when I asked Bowie hitting coach Butch Davis which player improved the most from the...

Solid year: DJ Stewart produced 20-20 season at Bowie

Solid year: DJ Stewart produced 20-20 season at Bowie
Most minor league players do not put up much better statistics in Double-A than they posted at lower levels on the farm. But outfielder DJ Stewart is not like most minor league players. Written off on some message boards as a first-round bust when he hit .218 at short-season Single-A Aberdeen after the 2015 draft, Stewart emerged this season with the best year of his career. It ended with him ranking among the Eastern League leaders in several offensive categories. It also ended with Stewart as...

Tanner Scott starts for Bowie in Game 2 tonight (updated)

Tanner Scott starts for Bowie in Game 2 tonight (updated)
BOWIE, Md. - The Double-A Bowie Baysox don't face a must-win situation tonight, but it's pretty close. They need to beat Altoona at Prince George's Stadium or they fall behind two games to none in a best-of-five series. And after this game, the rest of the series will be played at Altoona. Bowie was held to one-hit last night - a Cedric Mullins single in the fourth - in a 2-0 Game 1 loss. Altoona starter Mitch Keller issued two walks and had four strikeouts in a 90-pitch complete-game...

Kendall on Mullins, Hays stacks up, Gausman faces New York

Kendall on Mullins, Hays stacks up, Gausman faces New York
BOWIE, Md. - When the Eastern League playoffs begin tonight as Double-A Bowie hosts Altoona in a best of five series, Baysox manager Gary Kendall is confident he can count on outfielder Cedric Mullins. The young man was the talk of Orioles spring training camp in March as he kept getting called over from minor league camp and kept impressing manager Buck Showalter. He even hit an opposite field homer off Boston closer Craig Kimbrel. The Orioles skipped Mullins, who played last year for Single-A...

Eastern League playoff notes and quotes from Bowie

Eastern League playoff notes and quotes from Bowie
BOWIE, Md. - It has been an exciting few days here in Bowie. On Tuesday, the Double-A Bowie Baysox sent outfielder Austin Hays to join the Orioles. Today, Bowie's Garabez Rosa was named the Eastern League Most Valuable Player. But tonight's scheduled playoff series opener between Bowie and Altoona has been rained out. The first two games in Bowie are now scheduled for Thursday and Friday nights at 7:05 p.m at Prince George's Stadium. Go to baysox.com for ticket information. Rosa joins Calvin...

Ryan Mountcastle makes Double-A debut at Bowie (updated)

Ryan Mountcastle makes Double-A debut at Bowie (updated)
BOWIE, Md. - Promoted today from Single-A Frederick to Double-A Bowie, 20-year-old infielder Ryan Mountcastle is batting fifth and playing third base tonight for the Baysox. Mountcastle played exclusively at shortstop this season for Frederick, where he hit .314/.343/.542 with 35 doubles, a triple, 15 homers, 47 RBIs and with an OPS of .885 in 88 games. He began today leading all of minor league baseball in doubles and ranks second in extra-base hits. This is a position change for Mountcastle,...

Kendall on Mullins: "There hasn't been any glaring weakness"

Kendall on Mullins: "There hasn't been any glaring weakness"
Outfielder Cedric Mullins, who's emerged as an elite position prospect in the organization, continues to perform light baseball activities in Sarasota as he recovers from a left hamstring injury. Mullins strained the hamstring on April 20 and the initial projection had him missing two weeks. He's batting .367/.406/.683 with five doubles, a triple, four home runs, 11 RBIs and 17 runs scored in 14 games. It wasn't the fast track that caused the injury, but he's certainly on it. The Orioles...

Talking player development: The O's team that did it well while losing

Talking player development: The O's team that did it well while losing
If you look at the job of any minor league organization, its biggest task by far (but not the only one) is to develop players. Coach, teach, instruct and provide a framework for players to get better so they can one day reach the bigs and help the major league team win games. If you can win games on the farm while doing the first job, all the better. But make no mistake, when it comes to developing players or winning, the first is much more important than the second. Let's look at some players...

Notes from Bowie on the rotation, Mullins, DJ Stewart and more

Notes from Bowie on the rotation, Mullins, DJ Stewart and more
BOWIE, Md. - Two years removed from an Eastern League championship, the Double-A Bowie Baysox begin their 25th season on Thursday. Bowie opens at Akron and plays seven games on the road before its April 13 home opener with Harrisburg. Right-hander Brandon Barker will start on opening night for the Baysox. Bowie will use a five-man rotation but in its fourth starter slot the Baysox will use both lefty Tanner Scott and right-hander Jason Garcia. The Orioles will have Scott start games and pitch...

Baseball America's top 10 Orioles prospects: Chance Sisco is No. 1

Baseball America's top 10 Orioles prospects: Chance Sisco is No. 1
After he was drafted in the first round of the 2011 First-Year Player Draft, right-hander Dylan Bundy became the Orioles' No. 1 ranked prospect at the end of that season. And Bundy stayed as the club's top-ranked prospect every year after, even as he underwent Tommy John surgery in 2013. But with Bundy no longer eligible for prospects lists, there is a new Orioles No. 1. Catcher Chance Sisco's steady move up the rankings has led him to the top spot. When Baseball America released its latest...

Bowie media day: Gausman to pitch, Mancini on Baysox

Bowie media day: Gausman to pitch, Mancini on Baysox
BOWIE - The defending Double-A Eastern League champion Bowie Baysox will open a new season at Prince George's Stadium on Thursday night. Orioles reliever Brian Matusz may pitch during that game for the Baysox. And right-hander Kevin Gausman, who like Matusz is also on the O's disabled list, is slated to start on Saturday night for Bowie, according to manager Gary Kendall. Gausman, who got a cortisone injection on March 20 for shoulder tendinitis, is working his way back to the O's rotation...

Orioles announce minor league managers and staffs for 2016

Orioles announce minor league managers and staffs for 2016
The Orioles have named their minor league managers and coaching staffs for the 2016 season. Ron Johnson returns for his fifth season as manager at Triple-A Norfolk after guiding the Tides to the International League South Division title and earning Manager of the Year honors in 2015. The 2016 season will be Johnson's 23rd as a minor league manager. He has compiled 1,555 career victories (1,555-1,544 overall) and became the winningest manager in Tides franchise history last season, going...

Prospect profile: Now on 40-man, Andrew Triggs could help O's 'pen next year

Prospect profile: Now on 40-man, Andrew Triggs could help O's 'pen next year
The Orioles added three pitchers to their 40-man roster on Nov. 20 when they selected the contracts of right-handers Parker Bridwell and Andrew Triggs and left-hander Chris Lee. The additions kept the trio from being taken in the Rule 5 draft and moved them one step closer to the big leagues. Of the three, Triggs might have the best chance to impact the Orioles roster in 2016 as he is a reliever and the other two are starters. They could certainly be moved to the bullpen to help, but Triggs is...

Bodie at Bowie: New to O's in 2015, Bodie did solid job with Baysox (plus qualifying offer notes)

Bodie at Bowie: New to O's in 2015, Bodie did solid job with Baysox (plus qualifying offer notes)
There were many reasons the Double-A Bowie Baysox won their first Eastern League championship this season. The great leadership of manager Gary Kendall and his coaching staff and the strong performances of so many players were pretty important. But there was one man who was there for all of it and did some solid work out of the media spotlight. But as I talked to Bowie hitters, his name came up often. They were happy to thank hitting coach Keith Bodie for his help during the season. This...

Showalter on the rotation, Hardy and Bowie's title

Showalter on the rotation, Hardy and Bowie's title
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The Orioles continue to list Ubaldo Jimenez and Chris Tillman as the first two starters for the D.C. series, and TBD on Wednesday. Tyler Wilson's turn falls on Wednesday after he allowed six runs in 4 1/3 innings against the Rays in the second game of the series. "Wally (Dave Wallace) wants to wait on a couple of things," said manager Buck Showalter. "I think we'll be able to announce that after today. He wants to see a work day, a couple of other things. With the...

Dan Duquette on Bowie's title and more after Baysox win Eastern League championship

Dan Duquette on Bowie's title and more after Baysox win Eastern League championship
BOWIE, Md. - Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette was at Prince George's Stadium tonight to watch the Bowie Baysox as they won their first Eastern League championship with a 7-2 victory over Reading in Game 5. Duquette spent some time in the Baysox clubhouse postgame congratulating players and coaches. "The staff here did a great job and we have some real gritty players here that learned how to win," Duquette said. "We had some good veteran players here along with some prospects to...

Joe Gunkel on the mound tonight for Bowie in decisive Game 5 (Bowie leads 7-2)

Joe Gunkel on the mound tonight for Bowie in decisive Game 5 (Bowie leads 7-2)
BOWIE, Md. - After playing 150 games between the regular season and postseason, the Double-A Bowie Baysox have one more left to play tonight. It's being billed as the biggest game in the 23-year history of the franchise. Tonight at 6:05 p.m., Bowie hosts Reading in the fifth and deciding game of the Eastern League Championship Series. The Baysox crushed the Fightin Phils 9-1 on Friday night to force the final game, where the winner claims the league title. Bowie, which had never even won a...