O's farm hurler Daniel Federman on his WBC experience and scoreless inning

Just like another O’s minor league hurler, righty Ryan Long, right-hander Daniel Federman hoped he could make it onto a roster for the World Baseball Classic. And like Long, Federman had never even pitched as high as Double-A ball and not only did he make it, he has a 0.00 ERA to show for his one inning on the mound.

On March 13 in Miami, Federman pitched a scoreless and quick 1-2-3 bottom of the seventh inning on just nine pitches for Team Israel against Puerto Rico. He got three groundouts against Johneshwy Fargas, Nelson Velazquez and Vimael Machin.

It was over fast as he averaged, per Statcast, 92.8 mph on his fastball, which topped at 93.4. He threw four fastballs, three curves, one changeup and one cutter.

“You know, warming up in the bullpen, it definitely sped up a little bit,” Federman, 24, said over the phone this week from O's minor league camp. “You look around and see the most people you have ever pitched in front of. But I think it was good that we had some veteran guys that had played in pro ball 10 or 15 years and guys that had been in the World Series. A big emphasis to the younger guys was 'just breathe.' It’s the same game.

“So, in the ‘pen it sped up a bit, but after the first pitch it felt weirdly calm out there. I’m definitely a fiery person and definitely very energetic. But I didn’t feel sped up when out on the mound. Glad how it all worked out.”

The injuries were tough to take but overall the WBC has been great

New York Mets closer Edwin Díaz injured his right knee and may be out for the year. Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve has a fractured right thumb and will need surgery. The first injury happened during a World Baseball Classic postgame celebration and the second during a WBC game.

Those are two key players that will miss significant portions of the coming season – maybe most or all of it – and both were injured as a result of taking part in the WBC.

No doubt fans of those teams may not be that excited about the WBC moving forward. In the game where Altuve got hit by a pitch on Saturday night, the Orioles' Anthony Santander followed him in the batting order and it could have been him that was hit and injured but luckily for the Orioles, he was not.

Despite these injuries, the WBC has been great to watch this year.

It’s great to see the talent around the world in the sport of baseball and more importantly the passion for the sport around the world. The crowds and the cheering and the TV ratings outside of the United States show us how much fans and players alike care about this event. It is a huge deal, maybe more so than it is here.

Kyle Gibson remembers the phone call that convinced him to become an Oriole

They were rotation mates in parts of the 2020 and 2021 seasons with the Texas Rangers. They became more than teammates, forming a pretty close friendship as well. 

That friendship played out again over the winter when right-hander Kyle Gibson called another righty pitcher, Jordan Lyles. Gibson wanted to know about Lyles' experience pitching for the Orioles in 2022. That is because Gibson was closing in on signing with the Orioles to pitch for them in 2023.

“I think, for the most part I kind of knew that I wasn’t going to be back with Philly," Gibson recalled on a recent day at the Orioles' spring training camp. "Those few days the team has to talk to you and every team has that time where no one else can talk to them. Normally, if you don’t talk to the team then you’re not coming back,”

That led to Gibson to grab the phone and call his former Rangers teammate. Even though if he signed with the Orioles, he might be sort of taking Lyles’ spot in the rotation. He did and he, essentially, is.

Gibson said their friendship made it so that call was not awkward in any way.

Bruce Zimmermann makes his rotation pitch, plus a WBC update

Bruce Zimmermann throw black away

When I was in Sarasota earlier this week, lefty Bruce Zimmermann talked about his spring performance. He has thrown more innings in spring games, 12, than any other O’s pitcher and has an ERA of 3.75, allowing 11 hits and five runs with three walks and eight strikeouts.

The young man from Baltimore liked how he has been mixing pitches and attacking hitters.

“I like how efficient I have been most of this spring. That is a big thing to show,” said Zimmermann, 28. “Limit walks, get guys out early. The way you get burned as a starting pitcher is going deep (in counts) in certain innings and pitch count racks up, and right now that is a positive for me to take away.”

I asked Zimmermann if he evaluates his spring mostly off the stats and box scores, or does he look at other aspects in grading his own performance?

“That is a tough question," he replied. "Because you don’t want to have an outing where the box score looks horrendous and think, ‘I want to spin this in a positive light.’ As far as box scores go, you take care of what you are wanting to show in the spring, what you work on in the offseason, and how you are attacking hitters is really important. It is still spring and you are still getting tuned up. But you still want positive outings while you tune things up in the spring.

Don't forget me: Hudson Haskin making his own mark among talented farm group

When we talk about some of the top outfield prospects on the O’s farm, everyone mentions Colton Cowser and Heston Kjerstad, but fewer make note of Hudson Haskin. But after a very solid 2022 season, when he played all year for Double-A Bowie, Haskin deserves to be noticed.

He was on Monday in Sarasota. Needing more players on a split-squad day, the Orioles brought him over from minor league camp at Twin Lakes Park, and he went 1-for-3 with a homer against the Detroit Tigers. He didn’t get a non-roster invite to big league camp this year, but given a small chance this week, he flashed some of his considerable talents.

Talents that make Haskin the O’s No. 15 prospect by MLBPipeline.com and fourth among their list in the outfield, behind only Cowser, Kjerstad and Dylan Beavers. Haskin is ranked No. 21 by FanGraphs.com and No. 26 via Baseball America.

He made some news for Bowie last April 10, when he hit three homers against Richmond in the third game of the year. He hit one out to left-center, one to right-center and one to right.

“That was a surreal experience,” Haskin recalled when I interviewed him recently at Twin Lakes Park. “Something I am definitely going to remember for the rest of my life. Was just happy to do something to help the team, and it was cool how supportive all my teammates were.”

Gunnar Henderson on slow batting start, being the No. 1 prospect and more

SARASOTA, Fla. – Almost any major outlet that ranks the top 100 prospects in baseball has the Orioles' Gunnar Henderson topping their list at No. 1.

In fact, he tops the rankings for Baseball America, MLBPipeline.com, ESPN, FanGraphs.com and Baseball Prospectus.

But it won't surprise anyone around the O’s minor leagues, or O’s fans that are getting to know the 21-year-old Henderson, that accolades won’t change him.

“I mean, it’s really humbling to hear that,” he said of No. 1 rankings. “Growing up, those are things you dream of, but to accomplish it is really cool. But it doesn’t mean anything until you go out there and do the work. That is what I’m going to do, and just looking forward to helping this team win.

“No, sir (accolades won’t change me). I feel that is just what my parents taught me: No matter what happens, good or bad, stay the same. Just know it could all change in an instant. Keeping a humble mindset.”

O's had strong vet leadership last year and 2023 group wants to carry that on

SARASOTA, Fla. – Some of them may not have produced big numbers for the Orioles on the field last year, but veteran players like Rougned Odor, Robinson Chirinos and Jordan Lyles all were big for the Orioles young group of players. They encouraged them, they cheered them and at times led them and helped show them how to win.

Their veteran presence – something we hear a lot about in this sport – made a big difference for the 2022 Orioles.

Now a new group of veterans are on the team. They have heard about the group that was here last year and want to pick up the ball where they left off.

Right-handed starter Kyle Gibson, 35, a vet of 10 MLB seasons and 261 career starts, said the O’s young clubhouse has impressed him this spring. He is ready to lead and help where he can, but he also sees a young core group that collectively approaches the game in a very professional manner.

“You know what for having such a young team it just seems like a lot of guys understand the process of getting their work done and the process of being focused during the workouts and getting your reps,” he told me recently at Ed Smith Stadium. “Sometimes you have to do more work as young team because of simple mistakes or mental mistakes that are made a lot. This team doesn’t do that. It’s quick work and in and out because we are getting the job done and are doing it right.

Rodriguez struggles in fourth, Rutschman hits grand slam as O's top Boston

SARASOTA, Fla. – In the first few innings today, Orioles right-hander Grayson Rodriguez was getting swings and misses, putting up zeros, hitting the high 90s at times and showing why he is one of the best pitching prospects in baseball. But it got away from him a bit in the fourth as Boston scored four runs.

The Orioles ended the day with a win, thanks in large part to Adley Rutschman’s grand slam to left in the last of the fourth. That turned a two-run deficit into a 6-4 Baltimore lead and they won by that score. The Orioles improved to 6-8-2 in front of a sun-splashed crowd of 6,959 at Ed Smith Stadium.

Boston (9-3-3) lost for just the third time in 15 games.

Rodriguez fanned two batters in each of the first three innings. Through three he had faced one batter over the minimum with a shutout on one single allowed. He needed just 26 pitches the first two innings as his fastball touched 97 and 98 mph on the stadium radar gun.

But Boston put the first five batters on against him in the fourth, scoring twice to gain the lead. He left down 2-1 with the bases loaded and no outs. Right-hander Morgan McSweeney inherited the huge jam and two more runs scored on his watch, both charged to Rodriguez.

O's mourn passing of Luis Andrés Ortiz Soriano (plus other pregame notes)

SARASOTA, Fla. – The Orioles announced today the passing of Luis Andrés Ortiz Soriano, a 20-year-old minor league player from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. 

A team statement read: "Our hearts are heavy today as we mourn the passing of minor league pitcher Luis Andrés Ortiz Soriano. Luis was an inspiration to all who knew him, especially as he courageously battled cancer. Our hearts go out to his family and friends."

The young man did not have any stats for the 2022 season. In 2021 in the Rookie-level Florida Complex League he went 1-2 with a 5.52 ERA in 14 2/3 innings.

Manager Brandon Hyde passed along his thoughts to start his pregame press update.

"Want to pass on condolences to the Luis Ortiz family. Sad news last night. From all of us here - our major league staff and players - we want to give our condolences to the Ortiz family," he said. 

Notes on prospects still raking, pitcher disengagements and Rodriguez's home start

SARASOTA, Fla. – When Connor Norby slammed an RBI single to left at 94.1 mph and later Heston Kjerstad smoked an RBI double to center at 105 mph Saturday in Dunedin, those were the two most recent examples of the young kids continuing to swing the bat well and impress at O’s spring camp.

Some of these prospects won’t make the Opening Day roster this time around but they are nonetheless making an impact and starting to make a mark on this team and its future. Yes it’s just spring and a small sample, but some of the OPS figures for this group of talented young players are strong: 

1.447 – Heston Kjerstad
.884 – Jackson Holliday
.857 – Joey Ortiz
.809 – Connor Norby
.793 – Colton Cowser

Norby hit the ball hard twice Saturday, going 2-for-2. He is 7-for-21 this spring with three doubles and two RBIs. He led the O’s minors last year with 29 homers and produced an .886 OPS between High-A Aberdeen, Double-A Bowie and Triple-A Norfolk.

“He has swung the bat extremely well (this camp),” manager Brandon Hyde said after the Orioles lost 8-6 in Saturday’s matchup with Toronto. “He’s making strides defensively, but we like the bat a lot. Had a really good minor league year last year at the upper levels and he’s going to have a chance to hit.”

Comfort and competition could be big for O's young talent

When I interviewed O’s Hall of Famer Mike Bordick this week to get his take on the club’s talented young infield prospects, he made some interesting points that involve the words "comfort" and "competition." 

The first was used to show that when a club like the Orioles has so many talented young players, those players can see plenty of familiar faces in the clubhouse when they get to the majors. It greatly helps in their move to and transition to the big leagues.

Bordick returned a few days ago from a stint at O’s spring training, where he was a guest instructor for the club.

”Gunnar (Henderson) said it was awesome to come to the majors last year," Bordick noted. "He said there were so many young guys there he had already played with that it gave him some familiarity and the ‘We’re all in this together’ feeling. They are learning from each other and basically knowing there is another group behind them knocking on the door.

“I think there is an overall excitement with the young players that they are going to make an incredible impact on the Orioles, as they already have in kind of elevating the minors to the best in baseball. They want to have the same impact in the majors.

The young infield prospects impressed an Orioles Hall of Famer

When it comes to getting an opinion on the young Orioles infield prospects that are showing so well at this spring training, we could do a lot worse than Orioles Hall of Famer Mike Bordick.

A 14-year big league veteran who played home games in Baltimore for parts of 1997 through 2002, Bordick was inducted into the Orioles Hall of Fame in 2011. A 2000 All-Star, he played a major league-record 110 straight errorless games at shortstop during the 2002 season.

He just spent time in Sarasota as a camp instructor for the team and got to see and work directly with top 100 infield prospects who have won much recognition: Gunnar Henderson, Jackson Holliday, Jordan Westburg, Connor Norby, Joey Ortiz and Coby Mayo.

“The Orioles really have stockpiled some of the best athletes in the country as far as shortstops and guys that can play with versatility in the infield,” Bordick told me in an interview this week. “I got to witness some of that with the young players. And I was blown away on many fronts. First of all, their skill level is at the top. A very exciting group of athletic young players.

“Connor Norby, Mayo, Jackson Holliday, and all of this is kind of spearheaded by Gunnar Henderson. Might be sooner than we think that they will talk about him as an MVP candidate in the American League. Just a skillsy, five-tool player. The speed, the power, the great arm and defensive intelligence.

Some pitchers filter in as we hit the third day of the O's international prospects rankings

When we published the Orioles' top 20 international prospects list Saturday with players we have ranked No. 2 through No. 10, there were no pitchers, but several do make this list as we wrap it up today.

Among the final 10 players here are six pitchers, five right-handers and a lefty. Several can bring some heat for such young players but most have to work on deliveries and command to lower walk rates as they move up the minor league ladder.

No. 11 - RHP Luis Sánchez: The Orioles signed Sanchez for $200,000 on Jan. 15, 2019. He turns 20 on March 4. He had some small, nagging injury issues and did not pitch in an official minor league game in 2022 while working on a strengthening program. But he did throw innings against live hitters at instructional league after the season and pitched well and impressed, showing some upper-90s velocity.

From San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic, Sánchez brings a fastball that has been up to 99 mph and often sits in the mid-90s. His slider has become a solid secondary, and he throws an average changeup at this point. Between the Florida Complex League and Dominican Summer League in 2021, he went 0-4 with a 7.23 ERA. In 37 1/3 innings he walked 29 and fanned 39, allowing a .268 batting average. But the stuff is plus at times and he needs to just harness his command and stay healthy. He could be a starter for low Single-A Delmarva this year. 

No. 12 – Infielder Joshua Liranzo: A right-handed hitter, he was part of the January 2023 signing class and, at $500,000, got the second-highest bonus from the Orioles in this class after Luis Almeyda, who received $2.3 million and is fourth on this list.

He's No. 2: Shortstop Frederick Bencosme heads up next group of international prospects

Sometimes on the international amateur market, because players sign at such a young age, teams can get a big talent off a small investment. Players who may not command a big signing bonus when the deadline to sign players arrives, but then mature fast or grow into solid players quickly and produce much more than their signing bonuses might indicate.

The Orioles sure seem to have such a player in 20-year-old shortstop Frederick Bencosme, a young man that I found has an engaging personality to match a smooth left-handed swing. Signed for the small sum of $10,000 out of the Dominican Republic on Aug. 14, 2020, Bencosme was among the best hitters for average last summer on the Baltimore farm, which, considering the bats they have, is saying something.

In fact, among O’s farmhands with 250 or more at-bats last year, no one outhit Bencosme’s average of .311 between his 59 games at low Single-A Delmarva, two in the Rookie-level Florida Complex League and 12 to end the year with High-A Aberdeen.

He is our No. 2-ranked O’s international prospect as today I unveil more of our top 20 international prospects rankings.

Bencosme has a sweet-looking left-handed swing and some solid contact skills. His strikeout rate was just 11.4 in 2021, when he hit .310 in the Dominican Summer League. It was just 12.4 with a 10.8 walk rate during an impressive 59-game run with the Shorebirds last year. With Delmarva he hit .336/.410/.432/.842. He moved to Aberdeen on Aug. 27. And while he only hit .154 in 12 games with the IronBirds, he would show off that smooth and polished swing in the playoffs, where he had a three-hit game. He projects to start this year as the shortstop at Aberdeen and also mix in some games at second and third base.

He's No. 1: Catcher Samuel Basallo heads up O's international rankings

It was last August on a back field at Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota. O’s top pitching prospect Grayson Rodriguez was going to throw a couple innings of live batting practice in working his way back on rehab toward his September minor league return from a lat issue.

One of the hitters he faced that day was from the O’s Rookie-level Florida Complex League roster, a lefty-hitting catcher named Samuel Basallo. He is a touted young Dominican-born prospect who was signed in January 2021 for $1.3 million, the highest bonus for the club in that international class.

Basallo, now 18, had obviously already grabbed the Orioles' attention with his big power potential and strong right arm. And then he garnered more attention that afternoon when he took the stud pitching prospect opposite field for a big fly.

At Ed Smith Stadium a few days ago, Rodriguez, ranked as the No. 6 prospect in the sport by Baseball America, recalled that one at-bat against Basallo.

“Some of the staff in Florida, I was asking about some of the kids I would face that day and they mentioned Basallo," Rodriguez said. "They were joking around with me. They said, ‘You better not throw him fastballs.’ I went out that day - and I think it was an FCL off-day - and I only got to face two hitters. He was one.

O's farm ranked No. 1 by Baseball America (plus other notes)

When Baseball America recently released a new top 100 prospects lists, the Orioles had eight players ranked, with three among the top 15. That included the No. 1-ranked prospect in baseball: Gunnar Henderson, who for now still holds prospect eligibility.

On the strength of those rankings, and with a farm showing strong depth as well, Baseball America now ranks the Orioles as having the top-ranked farm system in the major leagues. The Orioles are No. 1, followed by Arizona, the Los Angeles Dodgers, Cleveland and the New York Mets.

The next-highest-rated American League East team is Tampa Bay at No. 6. Boston is No. 10 with New York at No. 15 and Toronto No. 17.

According to Baseball America, since 2005, 17 of the 18 teams to have the No. 1 farm system made the playoffs within two years. The only team that took longer, the 2011 Kansas City Royals, made back-to-back World Series appearances in years three and four, winning the Fall Classic in 2015. Five of the last 15 No. 1 farms saw their major league organization win the World Series in the near future after their No. 1 ranking, and there were a total of 13 World Series appearances over the following five seasons between the 15 selections.

With Henderson at No. 1 on the Baseball America top 100, the O’s also have Grayson Rodriguez at No. 6, Jackson Holliday No. 15, Colton Cowser at No. 41, DL Hall No. 75, Jordan Westburg No. 76, Connor Norby at No. 93 and Joey Ortiz ranked No. 95.

Coby Mayo on getting to start the spring training opener

SARASOTA, Fla. – For young Orioles infield prospect Coby Mayo, it was not just another spring training game. It was his first chance to be in the starting lineup wearing an Orioles jersey.

In an interview before yesterday’s spring training opener with the Twins, Mayo recalled he had gotten one previous spring at-bat against the Yankees and had played one inning in the field versus the Phillies last spring. But Saturday he got the start, batting eighth for the Orioles and playing at third base.

He is a non-roster player at O’s spring camp and his day to make this team is not quite yet at hand, but for now Mayo, 21, is soaking up all he can in a clubhouse with big leaguers.

“Just being in this environment has been great,” he said in the Baltimore clubhouse. “Really cool to watch these guys last year do what they did and have a lot of success during the season. Coming in and being a part of this environment this spring – it’s been really good. It’s a fun group to be around and cool to see how everyone acts with each other. This (a playoff chase) is hopefully the next big thing for this team.”

On a day the Orioles beat the Twins 10-5, Mayo had a somewhat uneventful day. He went 0-for-1 with a walk and played five innings at third base, but no balls were hit his way. 

Drew Rom and a host of non-roster pitchers scheduled to take the mound for spring opener

SARASOTA, Fla. – The Orioles' 2023 spring training schedule begins today at Ed Smith Stadium. They host the Minnesota Twins at 1:05 this afternoon to begin a Grapefruit League schedule that runs through March 27 in advance of the club’s March 30th regular-season opener at Boston.

So the battle for rotation spots and pitching staff jobs takes another step today with the start of spring games. While veterans like Cole Irvin and Kyle Gibson – barring injury – almost certainly have a starting-five spot secure, there are a host of others battling for only three other spots.

There are more strong candidates than just three for those jobs, including Grayson Rodriguez, Kyle Bradish, Dean Kremer, Tyler Wells and DL Hall. And then there are Spenser Watkins, who made 20 O’s starts last year, Austin Voth, who made 17, and Bruce Zimmermann, who took the mound as a starter 13 times.

On Thursday night I hosted the "Orioles Hot Stove" radio show on WBAL and one of the guests was assistant pitching coach Darren Holmes, who is beginning his fourth season with the club and third in his current role.

Holmes said the entire pitching staff seemed to report in pretty good shape, and all did good work on their games and pitches over the winter.

Rotation candidate: Irvin looks to bring command, pitch efficiency to O's

It’s been less than a month since he was traded to the Orioles. But over the next month we’ll see lefty Cole Irvin pitch in spring training games for his new team as he hopes to make a mark in the Orioles rotation this year.

On Jan. 26 the Orioles traded minor league infielder Darell Hernaiz, their No. 16 prospect at the time via MLBPipeline.com, to the Oakland Athletics for Irvin and A-ball right-hander Kyle Virbitsky.

Irvin went 9-13 with a career-best 3.98 ERA and 15 quality starts for the A’s in 2022. He threw 181 innings – the 12th-most in the American League – and recorded a 1.16 WHIP with a low 1.8 walk rate and low 6.4 strikeout rate. His ERA was 17th-best in the AL among qualifying pitchers.

Irvin’s command and control are very good and his walk rate was the sixth-best among AL qualifying pitchers. And among pitchers that threw 100 innings or more last season, his walk rate was 18th-best. In 2022 he walked two batters or fewer in 29 of 30 starts, and eight times he didn’t walk a single batter.

And his 14.4 pitches per inning, which would be 86 for six innings and 101 pitches over seven frames, ranked second-best in the AL last season and third in the major leagues. He needed just 15.0 pitches per inning during the 2021 season. He's the model of pitch efficiency.

Another top 100 list as prospect rankings season winds down

We have about come to the end of “prospects ranking season” in baseball with the release on Wednesday of the FanGraphs.com top 100 prospects list. It actually goes 112 players deep.

The Orioles placed six players on this list, all among the first 66 ranked players. Infielder Gunnar Henderson got another No. 1 ranking and is the consensus top prospect in baseball, and he still holds rookie eligibility as 2023 begins. He is among the favorites to win the American League Rookie of the Year Award this November.

On the FanGraphs list, he also got just one of two 65 FV player rankings, meaning their Future Value number. FanGraphs calls Henderson “a well-rounded star and franchise cornerstone.”

Young Jackson Holliday, an O’s non-roster spring invitee about to enter his first full pro season, is ranked No. 9 and is one of 12 players on the FanGraphs list getting 60 FV grades.

Here is recap of where six major outlets ranked 11 different Orioles who got a top 100 listing from at least one outlet. I abbreviate BA for Baseball America, BP for Baseball Prospectus, MLBP for MLBPipeline.com and Athl for The Athletic. The rest are self-explanatory.