Jonathan Schoop: The Orioles Underrated Prospect

For the past year, Manny Machado has been the Infield prospect getting all the attention. But ladies and gentlemen, we have another Infielder begging for your attention. His name is Jonathan Schoop.

I have been fascinated with following Schoop ever since last year. I think he will someday become a starter for the Orioles, although he still does have a long ways to go. Here is a recent tweet from Dave Cameron of Fangraphs, who recently saw Schoop at Single A Frederick:





So obviously Schoop does have a ways to go as a baseball player, but he has all the raw talent and natural ability to excel at every level.

Schoop was hitting .316 at Single A Delmarva with a .890 OPS before getting called up to A+ Frederick. He is now hitting .289 in Frederick through 48 AB. Obviously if Schoop continues to hit like this as a SS/3B he will bolt through the system.

However, Schoop is very raw defensively and has made a lot of errors this year. But as he grows as a player, he will undoubtedly get better as a defensive player. Overall, I am extremely excited to see Jonathan Schoop move through the system, and I plan to try and catch a few games that he plays in this year, whether at Frederick or Bowie!

Chris Davis: An Option For The Orioles?

As the trade deadline slowly beings to creep closer, the Orioles most likely are beginning to prepare themselves for a few trades. The Orioles do have attractive trade pieces such as Jeremy Guthrie, Vlad Guerrero, Luke Scott, Koji Uehara, Jim Johnson, Robert Andino and Derrek Lee.

But the main point I want to discuss is WHO they could get back in return: Chris Davis.

Davis is an all or nothing type of player. If you think Mark Reynolds is frustrating, then Chris Davis is not your type of player. However, Davis has shown tremendous power at both the minor and major league levels. He hit 17 HR in 2008 and 21 in 2009. Those numbers are not without flaws though. He strikes out around 34% of the time, and his OBP can be a burden. However at only 25 years old, Davis could very well be a long term fixture at either 1B or DH for the Orioles.

What would it takes to get Davis? The Rangers are currently looking for relievers, so I would  expect that Jim Johnson and Koji Uehara would be very attractive options for the Rangers. I would trade Koji for Davis, but I would be hesitant to give up our best reliever for Davis (I am a huge fan of Jim Johnson). Would they part with Davis for one of them? Possibly. The Rangers most likely feel comfortable with their current option at first base in Mitch Moreland.

Overall, I would love for the Orioles to explore this option for first base. I will be the first to shoot down our chances of signing a Prince Fielder, so this could be a strong plan B.

Orioles Draft: Rounds 16-30

 Through Day two the Orioles have drafted 10 RHP, 5 LHP, 2 catchers, 1 1B, 4 3B, 2 SS and 6 OF in 1st 30 rounds of draft. 21 have been college or Juco players.

Round 16: Mark Blackmar (RHP) Temple University
Round 17: Nicholas Carmichael (RHP) Palomar College
Round 18: Bradley Roney (3B) Wetumpka High School
Round 19: Dustin Ward (LHP) Central Arkansas
Round 20: Mark Wik (CF) Chabot College
Round 21: Jose Rivera (RHP) Hill JuCo
Round 22: Michael Miedzianowski (SS) Martin County High School
Round 23: Adam Matthews (RF) South Carolina University
Round 24: Jalen Simmons (RF) Camden County High School
Round 25: Michael Finnigan (LHP) San Bernardino Valley College
Round 26: Zachary Davies (RHP) Mesquite High School
Round 27: Christopher Oliver (RHP) Shiloh Christian High School
Round 28: Kyle Raubinger (1B) Arroya Grande High School
Round 29: Cameron Edman (C) Gonzaga University
Round 30: Mike Reynolds (SS) Paradise Valley CC

Orioles Draft: Rounds 1-15

Round 1: Dylan Bundy (RHP)  Owasso High School
Round 2: Jason Esposito (3B) Vanderbilt University
Round 3: Mike Wright (RHP). ECU
Round 4: Kyle Simon (RHP)  Arizona University
Round 5: Matt Taylor (RHP) Middle Georgia College
Round 6: Nick Delmonico (3B) Farragut High School TN
Round 7: Trent Howard  (LHP) Central Michigan
Round 8: Johnny Reuttiger (OF) Arizona State
Round 9: Devin Jones (RHP) Miss State
Round 10: Philip Wilson (LHP) University of Virginia
Round 11: Adam Davis (C) University of Illinois
Round 12: Jason Coats (LHP) TCU
Round 13: Derek Jones (OF) Washington State
Round 14: Kevin Hockaday (3B)  JOHN CARROL HS BALTIMORE MD. Congrats!
Round 15: Eric Wooten (LHP) Central Arizona



Also on a side note, Ryan Kemp, whom I played with at MSJ, got drafted by the Reds in the 14th round. Congrats!

June 6 Tidbits: Draft, Adams, Hendrickson

As most know, Today is the Rule 4 MLB Draft.

The Orioles are expected to take one of:

Anthony Rendon, 3B, Rice
Danny Hultzen, LHP, Virginia
Dylan Bundy, RHP, Owassa HS
Archie Bradley, RHP, Broken Arrow HS

-The only way Rendon falls to the Orioles is if the Mariners are scared by his health reports. I highly doubt this, and it surely seems he is a lock at #2 for the Mariners
Hultzen is asking for a significant price. It sounds as if that is scaring off the Orioles, which is maddening since they are willing to spend 10mil on Kevin Gregg in the off-season.
The Same goes for Bundy, who could ask for well over slot. Bundy would be my pick for the Orioles spot.
Apparently the Orioles have turned to Archie Bradley though with the #4 pick and he seems to be the consensus for that spot now. This could all be a smokescreen, but we shall see in a few hours.

-It has become more and more obvious that Ryan Adams will not be used on this team for the time being. Unfortunately it is only hindering his development and I wish they would just send him down NOW rather than have him sitting on the bench.

-Don't look now but Mark Hendrickson is pitching lights out at AAA. It could only be a matter of time before we see tall Mark back up with the Orioles.

The Orioles Conservative Approach Towards Young Pitching

The Orioles are relying on Zach Britton, Brian Matusz, and Jake Arrieta this season to take them to the next level. However, the Orioles have already shown that they are not going to forget about the health and wear of the young arms over the course of the season. Very rarely has an Orioles pitcher gone over 100 pitches(excluding Jeremy Guthrie)on the season. I can understand this to an extent. They want to keep the players healthy, not overwork them, and they are paying a lot of money to them (especially Matusz). However, it also seems apparent that the leash could be a little longer.
-Jake Arrieta has not been allowed into the 7th inning many times this season. Mostly, it has been because his pitch count is near or at 100 pitches. However, I think that Arrieta could fully handle another 10-20 pitches and be fine. Arrieta is the type of pitcher that when he is in a groove he practically dominates.
-Zach Britton has been more effective when it comes to pitch count, and I understand them holding him back more than the others. It is his first season and he still is a year behind in terms of growth compared to the others.
-Chris Tillman and Brad Bergesen were both highly ineffective with their overall numbers, as well as pitch count, thus them being back at AAA.
-Brian Matusz had a decent pitch count when he was taken out with 5.2 innings pitched. I understand that he was coming back from a rehab assignment, and this was his first start. I personally would have let him finish the inning. I honestly expected them to be conservative with Matusz yesterday.

Overall, I just hope the Orioles make the leashes of these youngsters a little longer. They could very well be teaching them a lesson in how to lower their pitch count, but I think it is imperative for these young guys to step up and pitch an extra inning so the bullpen can be spared from the hell they are currently dealing with.