{"id":20330,"date":"2024-12-23T08:27:46","date_gmt":"2024-12-23T08:27:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=20330"},"modified":"2024-12-23T08:27:46","modified_gmt":"2024-12-23T08:27:46","slug":"breaking-news-2-orioles-prospects-untouchable-in-offseason-talks-2-who-arent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=20330","title":{"rendered":"Breaking News: 2 Orioles prospects untouchable in offseason talks, 2 who aren’t"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

The Orioles will likely need to acquire an ace via trade. Are any prospects untouchable?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\"Los<\/div>\n
\n

Based on how the MLB offseason has shaken out up to this point, it\u2019s become more clear that if the Baltimore Orioles want to replace the void at the top of their rotation left by Corbin Burnes, they are going to need to fill that void via trade.<\/p>\n

The longer Corbin Burnes remains on the market, the more hopeful I become of Burnes returning to Birdland.<\/p>\n

But let\u2019s assume he ends up where many expect him to end up, on the west coast, and the Orioles are forced to turn to the trade market to acquire a top of the rotation arm.<\/p>\n

Even after moving a number of top prospects at the 2024 trade deadline, the Orioles still possess a deep and uber-talented farm system, deep enough to acquire any arm they covet.<\/p>\n

We also know that Mike Elias is hesitant to trade his top-ranked prospects, which isn\u2019t unique among MLB general managers in today\u2019s game.<\/p>\n

However, the Orioles are stacked at a couple of different positions down on the farm, giving the organization plenty of ammo to pull off a trade with, without greatly hurting the pipeline.<\/p>\n

Here are two Orioles prospects who should be \u201cuntouchable\u201d this offseason, and two who shouldn\u2019t be
\nCatching prospect Samuel Basallo is the obvious choice here.<\/p>\n

After hitting 16 home runs with an .820 OPS and a whopping 134 wRC+ in Double-A, Basallo ended 2024 in Triple-A at just 19 years of age.<\/p>\n

His numbers in Norfolk across a very small sample weren\u2019t great, but they are pretty much irrelevant. The fact that the 19-year-old backstop earned himself a promotion to Triple-A to get his feet wet there ahead of the 2025 season is the real accomplishment.<\/p>\n

One of the more fun stats from Basallo\u2019s 2024 season? His stat line against pitchers younger than him – it doesn\u2019t exist. All 532 plate appearances came against older pitchers.<\/p>\n

Basallo\u2019s work to improve defensively has been described as \u201ccerebral\u201d and internally, the organization has been very pleased with his defensive work. With Adley Rutschman on the big league roster, Basallo won\u2019t be needed to spend a large amount of time at the catching position though.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s also played an extensive amount of first base recently and has shown off sneaky athleticism at the position.<\/p>\n

Basallo\u2019s value comes in his bat. In a recent conversation with MLB veteran Niko Goodrum, Goodrum told me that Basallo reminds him of a young Yordan Alvarez. Goodrum played with Alvarez in Houston and was teammates with Basallo in Norfolk this season. High praise from someone who has been around the game for a long time.<\/p>\n

The other \u201cuntouchable right now is outfielder Enrique Bradfield Jr. Most would probably say it\u2019s infielder Coby Mayo, but let\u2019s get a little different here.<\/p>\n

Bradfield\u2019s plus-plus defense and speed are major league quality tools, and could benefit the Orioles in the big leagues come playoff time should Jorge Mateo not be around, for whatever reason. Cedric Mullins may not be in Baltimore for much longer and the Orioles have what appears to be a more than competent heir waiting in the wings in Bradfield.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s still a way to go with his bat, but if Bradfield can be just a league-average bat in the big leagues, he\u2019s a bonafide All-Star with his defensive abilities and base stealing ability. After returning from a concussion while in High-A, Bradfield\u2019s offensive game started to reach a new level in 2024.<\/p>\n

Enrique Bradfield Jr. and Coby Mayo just homered back-to-back \ud83e\udd29 pic.twitter.com\/ei2dOzl2qX<\/p>\n

\u2014 Orioles Player Development (@OsPlayerDev) June 14, 2024
\nHe ended the year with 27 games at the Double-A level where Bradfield hit .287 with a 133 wRC+, a 12.5% walk rate and an 11.7% strikeout rate. The organization was impressed with his quality of contact and swing decisions down the stretch.<\/p>\n

Bradfield could eventually be moved in a deal or challenged down the road by a Vance Honeycutt\/Jud Fabian\/Dylan Beavers\/or Austin Overn breakout, but the Orioles don\u2019t need to move on from Bradfield THIS offseason, making him currently \u201cuntouchable\u201d. With more development to go in his bat, they could also potentially be selling low on Bradfield if a move is made now.<\/p>\n

These two Orioles prospects could be used as trade chips this winter<\/strong><\/p>\n

When it comes to prospects who shouldn\u2019t be untouchable, RHP Chayce McDermott is one. The 26-year-old logged 100 innings in Triple-A last season, posting a 3.78 ERA with a very impressive 33% strikeout rate.<\/p>\n

He looked to be turning a corner when it comes to his high walk rate at the beginning of the season, but McDermott ended up with a 13.7% walk rate in 2024, a couple of ticks higher than his 11.7% walk rate during his time in Triple-A back in 2023.<\/p>\n

When McDermott is in the strike zone, his stuff is virtually unhittable and it\u2019s without a doubt some of the best stuff in the entire organization.<\/p>\n

As long as he remains in the organization, he will continue to be worked as a starter, but McDermott\u2019s long-term future is likely in the bullpen. With a fastball that he can run into the upper-90s in a relief role and multiple above-average secondary offerings, McDermott could be a gem out of the bullpen, but he could also be valuable as a trade piece for an ace to an organization who views him as a potential starter.<\/p>\n

Last year\u2019s first round draft pick, outfielder Vance Honeycutt, could be another potential trade piece this offseason. While the organization would likely prefer to keep Honeycutt to see if the bat can come around, if another organization is willing to deal a front-line starter for a near major league starter in McDermott and a potential five-tool center fielder in Honeycutt, neither should be untouchable.<\/p>\n

FLASH THE LEATHER\u2728<\/strong><\/p>\n

Vance Honeycutt shows off the 70-grade fielding as he takes away extras bases to end the inning!<\/p>\n

IronBirds trail 2-0 in the 3rd pic.twitter.com\/ai0VWA3kGa<\/p>\n

\u2014 Aberdeen IronBirds (@IronBirds) September 8, 2024<\/p>\n

The Orioles quickly moved on from 2023 draft picks Mac Horvath (2nd round), Jackson Baumeister (Competitive Balance B round), and Matthew Etzel (10th round) to acquire Zach Eflin at this year\u2019s trade deadline, which proved Elias wasn\u2019t opposed to moving highly-ranked prospects who they just invested heavy draft capital in.<\/p>\n

With Bradfield, Fabian, and Overn in the org and Colton Cowser\u2019s ability to slide over to center field if needed, Honeycutt\u2019s upside is extremely promising, but so are the upsides of each of the players previously mentioned.<\/p>\n

The tricky thing about Honeycutt is knowing just how many other teams have him as highly rated as the Orioles do. Honeycutt was seen as a potential first overall pick last year, but extreme swing and miss issues and questions about his hit tool led his stock to drop and him remaining available 22nd overall in the 2024 draft.<\/p>\n

No prospect should be truly untouchable, but for this offseason in particular, the Orioles would be wise to keep Samuel Basallo and Enrique Bradfield Jr in the organization. On the flip side, if they can acquire an ace for top prospects like Chayce McDermott or Vance Honeycutt, the Orioles should absolutely be on board moving these prospects.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Orioles will likely need to acquire an ace via trade. Are any prospects untouchable? Based on how the MLB offseason has shaken out up to this… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":20340,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20330","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"\nBreaking News: 2 Orioles prospects untouchable in offseason talks, 2 who aren't - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=20330\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Breaking News: 2 Orioles prospects untouchable in offseason talks, 2 who aren't - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Orioles will likely need to acquire an ace via trade. 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