MLBPipeline.com's Jim Callis on O's No. 2 pick and more (with video)

MLBPipeline.com's Jim Callis on O's No. 2 pick and more (with video)
We have just over two weeks to this year's five-round First-Year Player Draft. The Orioles hold the No. 2 pick in the first round behind the Detroit Tigers at No. 1. The Orioles will also pick at No. 30 and No. 39. They are the only major league team with three picks among the first 39 selections. Many analysts seem to be predicting that Arizona State first baseman Spencer Torkelson goes first to the Tigers. He hit 25 homers as a freshman and 23 as a sophomore. When this year's season was...

Even in shutdown, Rizzo says scouting department ready for draft

Even in shutdown, Rizzo says scouting department ready for draft
The Major League Baseball season has been put on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic shutdown. So has the First-Year Player Draft, which has been pushed back from early June to at least sometime in July. It has been reported the event also will be cut to anywhere between five and 10 rounds, with the possibility of deferring signing bonuses into the 2022 season. But that doesn't mean the Nationals have stopped scouting, analyzing players or preparing for the draft. In his weekly conference...

Providing a draft ranking and a Palmer take

Providing a draft ranking and a Palmer take
At a time when we hope, but don't know for sure, that there will be a baseball season, we do know for sure there be a First-Year Player Draft. The draft is going to be held, although we don't yet know for certain if it will be limited to five rounds. But it may be just five. At a date yet to be decided - reportedly between June 10 and July 20 - there will be an amateur draft and the Orioles will make the No. 2 overall selection for the first time in club history. Readers here have asked...

Draft math: O's to top 2019 total pool in just five rounds this year

Draft math: O's to top 2019 total pool in just five rounds this year
If the 2020 First-Year Player Draft is going to consist of just five rounds, the Orioles would make six draft picks this summer, sometime in June or July. The draft date is to be announced later. It was originally going to be a draft of 40 rounds from June 10-12. Since we also know that Major League Baseball is going to freeze the bonuses from the 2019 amounts, we know what the slot values will be for the Orioles for 2020. Here are their selections and the bonus amount from that spot from last...

The comeback that rocked the Yard, plus draft notes

The comeback that rocked the Yard, plus draft notes
Camden Yards was full and loud. Orange shirts were everywhere. Spirits were high and Orioles fans were probably convinced their team was heading to the World Series. That is how it felt in early October 2014 and yesterday, during "opening day at home," we saw a replay of the Orioles' eighth-inning comeback win over Detroit in Game 2 of the American League Division Series. It was a nice way to spend a few hours and a nice diversion from the virus that has put the game on hold for now. The...

Where O's could look with the No. 2 pick in the draft

Where O's could look with the No. 2 pick in the draft
The Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft is scheduled for June 10-12. The Orioles will hold the No. 2 overall pick for the first time. They've now picked No. 1 overall twice, but never had the second pick. While there has been talk that the draft could be delayed, that is only speculation right now. At some point they will almost certainly hold a draft and it may just be beginning June 10 as scheduled. When I interviewed Baseball America national writer Carlos Collazo, who specializes...

In this review of MLB drafts, the Orioles scored well

In this review of MLB drafts, the Orioles scored well
Baseball America published a very interesting article recently as the publication ranked each major league organization by its draft success in the decade starting in 2010 and running through the 2019 draft. They ranked the teams in terms of total Wins Above Replacement those drafts produced. They counted WAR no matter for which team it was accumulated. So the Orioles scored for Manny Machado, but also for Zach Davies, for instance. It may be a surprise to some fans, but the Orioles ranked...

What will keep fans invested in 2020?

What will keep fans invested in 2020?
Welcome to a new year filled with a new season and new hopes for the Orioles. Those hopes are tempered a bit during rebuilding and no one is likely dreaming too big in light of 223 losses over the past two years. During the offseason, some fans I've met tell me they feel for me having to cover a team that losses so much. I tell all of them that I love what I do and that I truthfully enjoyed covering the 2019 Orioles a great deal. We knew it would not be a winning season and the year would be...

Manfred: Investigation of Astros on sign stealing continues toward uncertain discipline

Manfred: Investigation of Astros on sign stealing continues toward uncertain discipline
SAN DIEGO - Evev though Major League Baseball has interviewed 60 witnesses, and read 76,000 emails and troves of instant messages investigating the Astros' alleged electronic sign stealing, commissioner Rob Manfred isn't sure when the investigation will finish and what the appropriate discipline will be. "The review has caused us to conclude that we have to some followup interviewing," Manfred said at a Winter Meetings press conference Wednesday at the Manchester Grand Hyatt. "It is my...

A few notes from the Orioles' 2019 draft

A few notes from the Orioles' 2019 draft
Over the last three days the Orioles drafted 41 players over 40 rounds of the First-Year Player draft. They selected 33 college players and just eight from the high school ranks. Some notes on the Orioles' 2019 draft: * They did not select a pitcher until round eight and of the 19 pitchers they drafted, just one is a high school pitcher. He was taken in round 38. * The first 13 pitchers they selected were right-handers with the first lefty coming in round 27. In all they drafted 16...

Nationals make 30 selections on final day of draft

Nationals make 30 selections on final day of draft
The Nationals concluded the 2019 First-Year Player Draft with a total of 39 selections. The Nats selected 13 right-handed pitchers, six left-handed pitchers, two outfielders, 14 infielders and four catchers. 24 of the selections came from four-year universities, seven from junior colleges and eight from the high school ranks. Adding to the nine selections made on the first two days, the Nats started the final day of the draft by selecting Fresno State shortstop J.T. Arruda in the 11th...

A look at the Orioles' draft today through round 40

A look at the Orioles' draft today through round 40
After selecting just two pitchers in 11 picks in the first two days of the draft, the Orioles went very heavy on college pitchers when the final day of the draft resumed at noon today. With their 20 selections so far this afternoon in rounds 11-30 they drafted 13 college right-handed pitchers and two college lefties. They added a first baseman, third baseman, two center fielders and one player just listed as an infielder. All 20 picks so far today have come from college. So through round 30,...

O's take LSU outfielder in round three of the draft (updated)

O's take LSU outfielder in round three of the draft (updated)
The Orioles will make eight picks today in the First-Year Player Draft as the clubs complete rounds 3-10 on the second day of the draft. Check back here often today and hit refresh for updates. In round 3: The Orioles selected LSU junior outfielder Zach Watson with selection No. 79, the first pick of the round. Watson, 21, has outstanding speed and this year he hit .310/.377/.476 with 17 doubles, seven homers, 41 RBIs, 52 runs and 11 steals in 12 tries. He was a draft-eligible sophomore last...

Mike Elias on first day of draft and O's three picks

Mike Elias on first day of draft and O's three picks
The first night of the First-Year Player Draft found the Orioles select three position players in a catcher No. 1 overall followed by a high school shortstop and college center fielder. There were no pitchers selected yet by the Orioles and the draft began with the O's on the clock for the second time in team history. The club selected Oregon State junior catcher Adley Rutschman with the No. 1 pick. He became the first catcher taken 1/1 since Minnesota selected Joe Mauer in 2001. After his...

Rizzo: Rutledge possesses "skill set we really go after"

Rizzo: Rutledge possesses "skill set we really go after"
The Nationals' first-round selection in the First-Year Player Draft, right-hander Jackson Rutledge, said he was pretty excited when he got the news the Nationals had chosen him with the 17th pick in the draft. "Hearing my name called was kind of an out-of-body experience," Rutledge said. "It's something you dream of and it (did not) really hit me until it happened." General manager Mike Rizzo was equally excited to be able to select Rutledge and feels the big right-hander brings a lot to...

Nationals select pitcher Jackson Rutledge with No. 17 pick

Nationals select pitcher Jackson Rutledge with No. 17 pick
The Nationals selected Texas junior college right-hander Jackson Rutledge with the No. 17 selection in the first round of the 2019 First-Year Player Draft. The 6-foot-8, 250-lb. Rutledge is rated as the No. 12 prospect in MLBPipeline.com's Top 200 prospects list. Rutledge features a 94-97 mph fastball that touches 99 mph, has a wipeout slider and a curveball with the classic 12-to-6 drop. Rutledge verbally committed to the University of Kentucky for baseball and hails from a suburb of St....

Elias on Rutschman: "It's a total package" (updated)

Elias on Rutschman: "It's a total package" (updated)
In a live interview tonight on "MASN All Access" coverage of the First-Year Player Draft, Orioles executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias explained his reasons for making Oregon State catcher Adley Rutschman the No. 1 pick. "Well, just the switch-hitter (aspect). A polished college bat," said Elias, minutes after making the selection. "The approach, the plus hit, plus power from both sides. Really, the mental makeup, I think, is a separator with him. He brings leadership...

Orioles select Rutschman with first draft pick (updated)

Orioles select Rutschman with first draft pick (updated)
The mocks didn't miss the mark. The Orioles were projected by numerous outlets to use the first-overall pick in the First-Year Player Draft tonight on Oregon State catcher Adley Rutschman and that's exactly what they did, with the announcement coming on MLB Network. A round loaded with high-ceiling position players began with the Orioles selecting a catcher for the first time since Matt Wieters went fifth overall in 2007 out of Georgia Tech. They passed on Texas high school shortstop Bobby...

Advanced data and analytics will factor in big this draft

Advanced data and analytics will factor in big this draft
As with any and every decision the Orioles make under their new front office, advanced data and analytics will factor into the Monday's First-Year Player Draft as well. There is much more data available on college players, but there is also some available for high school players. On MASN's "O's Xtra" on Saturday, Mike Bordick interviewed Sig Mejdal, the Orioles' vice president and assistant general manager for analytics. How much will the data factor in for this draft? "It's quite a...

Building an elite talent pipeline is about to kick into higher gear

Building an elite talent pipeline is about to kick into higher gear
One of the most exciting days of the 2019 baseball season is approaching for Orioles fans. It is a day where their team won't even play a game. But fans are clearly getting excited about the club's No. 1 draft pick that will be made Monday night. With the Orioles currently contending to pick No. 1 again next year, selling hope for the future might truly be the best marketing tool the Orioles have right now. But beyond marketing, this draft and the start of the July 2 international amateur...