O’s load up on pitchers in Day 2 of draft

Towson’s Palacios goes to Indians; UM’s Dunn, ex-Gator Morris picked

While it can be easy to evaluate draft prospects based on radar-gun readings and other superficial numbers, the Orioles clearly looked beyond them Tuesday when making their early selections during the second day of this year’s Major League Baseball draft.

In taking Arkansas right-hander Blaine Knight with their third-round pick (87th overall) and Kentucky high school left-hander Drew Rom in the fourth round (115th overall), the Orioles had to be drawn to both pitchers, at least in part, by their secondary-pitch spin rates.

Knight owns a mid-90s mph fastball and a breaking ball with one of the highest spin rates in the country, according to Baseball America, which named him a second-team All-American.

And while Rom, a senior at Highlands High School in Fort Thomas, Ky., throws a fastball that a seemingly pedestrian 88 to 91 mph, he complements it with a split-fingered fastball that recorded the lowest changeup spin rate — a good quality for an off-speed pitch — at a national showcase in February.

The Orioles also continued their run on pitching in the early rounds, drafting eight pitchers Tuesday, including six college arms, in their first 10 picks.

Knight, a 6-foot-3, 165-pound junior, went 11-0 with a 2.74 ERA in 16 starts as the Razorbacks’ Friday night starter. He held opponents to a .224 batting average and struck out 88 batters in 951⁄ innings while walking just 22.

Knight, whose draft slot holds a $663,200 bonus value, was selected by the Texas Rangers in the 29th round in 2017 as a draft-eligible sophomore but decided to return to college for his junior season.

Rom, a 6-2, 170-pound left-hander with a lean, long frame who has led his high school team to the state tournament, is 8-6 with a 2.42 ERA and 119 strikeouts in 60 innings this season. He’s committed to pitch at Michigan, but his draft spot is slotted a $483,300 bonus.

The Orioles took Iowa junior Robert Neustrom with their fifth-round selection. The 6-2, 208-pound left-handed-hitting outfielder batted .311/.386/.538 with 15 doubles, 11 homers and 36 RBIs in 53 games for the Hawkeyes.

With their sixth-round selection, the Orioles took Puerto Rican right-hander Yeankarlos Lleras out of the Leadership Christian Academy in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. He is committed to Florida International.

Central Florida right-hander J.J. Montgomery was the Orioles’ seventh-round pick.

The Orioles selected Elon right-hander Ryan Conroy in the eighth round. Conroy, a 6-3, 190-pound junior, was 4-3 with a 3.29 ERA in 791⁄ innings this season.

In the ninth round, the Orioles took St. John’s left-hander Kevin Magee.

And with their final pick of Day Two, the Orioles took pitcher Dallas Litscher, a 6-8, 250-pound right-hander out of the University of Saint Katherine in San Marcos, Calif.

On Monday, the Orioles took high school right-hander Grayson Rodriguez of Nacogdoches, Texas, with their No. 11 overall pick and selected Oregon State shortstop Cadyn Grenier with the 37th overall selection.

Among local prospects, the Cleveland Indians took Towson University junior shortstop Richard Palacios with the penultimate pick in the third round (103rd overall). It’s the highest a Tigers position player and third highest any player from the school has been drafted. Palacios’ pick has a bonus slot value of $544,200. Maryland second baseman Nick Dunn was taken in the fifth round by the St. Louis Cardinals.

South Carolina right-hander Cody Morris (Reservoir), a drafteligible sophomore, was selected by the Indians in the seventh round. Blaine Knight O’Day reaches milestones: Orioles reliever Darren O’Day celebrated milestones of varying levels of meaning Tuesday, even if neither came with his major league teammates in New York.

O’Day, who has been on the disabled list for nearly a month after hyperextending his elbow in a freak bullpen incident, remained back in Baltimore and drove to join High-A Frederick at Potomac for his first rehabilitation outing since a cortisone shot late last month sped up his recovery.

He did so on the day he reached 10 years of major league service time, which, combined with the fact that he’s spent the last five seasons with the Orioles, gives him full no-trade protection known as 10-5 rights.

“If that goes well, he could join us in Toronto,” manager Buck Showalter said of O’Day’s outing Tuesday.

Outfielder Colby Rasmus (hip), who went 0-for-6 with a walk and three strikeouts in six at-bats over two rehab games for Double-A Bowie this weekend, is also playing for Frederick this week, while reliever Zach Britton (Achilles tendon) had the first of two appearances scheduled for Triple-A Norfolk on Tuesday at Columbus. Moore to manage Aberdeen: Frederick hitting coach Kyle Moore has been tapped to manage Short-A Aberdeen, which begins its season June 15, after manager Kevin Bradshaw suffered an undisclosed injury and will remain in Florida to recover, the team announced.

Moore, 32, is in his third season as a coach in the Orioles’ system and spent parts of two seasons as a player before transitioning to coaching roles. Around the horn: Outfielder Ryan McKenna on Monday was named both the Orioles’ minor league Player of the Month and the Carolina League Player of the Week for his efforts at High-A Frederick. Right-hander Matthias Dietz of Low-A Delmarva took Pitcher of the Month honors in the organization. … Shorebirds first baseman Seamus Curran, outfielder Zach Jarrett and infielder Trevor Craport were named South Atlantic League All-Stars on Tuesday.