For Basallo and Holliday, stock rising
Evaluating the farm system’s biggest risers and fallers during the 2023 season
Samuel Basallo’s promotion is just further proof of his standout 2023 campaign.
At 18 years old, the catcher began his first year of full-season ball with Low-A Delmarva. He’s ending it in Double-A.
Basallo, now 19, hasn’t just zoomed up the Orioles’ prospect rankings, but he’s been one of the biggest risers in the sport. He began the season ranked by Baseball America as Baltimore’s 15th-best prospect, nowhere near the publication’s top 100. He leapfrogged up to No. 4 on the Orioles’ list and No. 44 in the top 100 thanks to his impressive production.
Basallo, the best player the Orioles have signed internationally under general manager Mike Elias’ regime, posted solid numbers in Low-A (.887 OPS) but then broke out with High-A Aberdeen over the summer, slashing .333/.444/.688 — good for a 1.131 OPS — in 27 games. In his 110 contests between the two levels, he totaled 25 doubles, 20 home runs, 84 RBIs, 12 stolen bases and 60 walks against 93 strikeouts. The IronBirds’ season ended Sunday, and Basallo will spend the last week of his age-18 season with the Baysox.
Basallo, though, is far from the only player in the Orioles’ minor league system to improve his stock this season. Others, meanwhile, have seen theirs worsen. Here’s a look at the biggest risers and fallers in Baltimore’s farm system this season.
Risers Triple-A Norfolk shortstop Jackson Holliday:
Simply the fact that “Triple-A Norfolk” is preceding “shortstop Jackson Holliday” is enough evidence that he deserves to be on this list. The 19-year-old began his first full professional season alongside Basallo in Low-A and just completed his first week with the Tides — a ladder that only a few have climbed as quickly. Between the four levels, Holliday is hitting .326 with a .948 OPS, including 28 doubles, nine triples, 10 home runs and 23 stolen bases. He opened the season as Baseball America’s No. 15 prospect and will end it — and open 2024 — headlining the list.
Triple-A Norfolk corner infielder Coby Mayo: Aside from Basallo, perhaps no player has seen his stock improve more than Mayo. The 21-year-old earned some recognition on preseason top 100 lists, but he was left out of Baseball America’s as Baltimore’s 10th-best prospect. He’s now ranked No. 3 on the club’s list and No. 25 in the sport after posting a .404 on-base percentage and .566 slugging between Bowie and Norfolk. His 27 home runs lead all Orioles minor leaguers.
Triple-A Norfolk outfielder-first baseman Heston Kjerstad:
Another player who was left out of Baseball America’s top 100, Kjerstad entered the season with more question marks than perhaps any player in the Orioles’ system. He returned in 2022 after missing two years because of heart and hamstring ailments, and 2023 was set to be his first full professional season if he could remain healthy. He has, and all he’s done is hit. In 120 games between Double- and Triple-A, the 24-year-old has hit .303 with a .905 OPS to go from No. 12 to No. 5 in the Orioles’ system and No. 45 in Baseball America’s top 100.
Triple-A Norfolk right-hander Chayce McDermott:
Given the makeup of Baltimore’s position player-dominant farm system, not many pitchers are on this list. But McDermott is an obvious choice, rising from No. 23 to No. 13 on Baltimore’s list. In his first full season with the organization after joining it in the Trey Mancini trade, McDermott pitched well enough in Double-A to earn a promotion to Triple-A, where he’s pitched better than almost any other prospect this year. In 50 ⅔ innings with the Tides, the right-hander has a 2.49 ERA and 1.007 WHIP.
Double-A Bowie right-hander Alex Pham:
Pham was transitioned to a starting pitcher this season, and he’s handled the new role with aplomb. The right-hander had a 4.09 ERA in 33 relief innings last season in the lower minors, but he’s been one of the best pitchers in Baltimore’s farm system this year. He wasn’t inside the Orioles’ top 30 entering the season but is now No. 16 thanks to a 2.61 ERA and a 10.5 strikeouts-per-nine-innings rate between Aberdeen and Bowie.
FCLoutfielderBraylinTavera: Tavera still has a ways to go before he could ever see a big league field, but his performance in 2023 is a good sign for the Dominican Republic native the Orioles signed in January 2022. The 18-yearold posted an .812 OPS in 35 Florida Complex Games this season. After entering the season unranked, he is now the club’s 21st-best prospect.
High-A Aberdeen catcher Creed Willems:
Basallo isn’t the only catcher who has improved his stock this season. Willems struggled mightily in 2022 with a .190 average and .586 OPS with Delmarva, but he dominated Low-A pitching this season to earn his promotion to Aberdeen. He’s stumbled at the new level, but on the season he has a .711 OPS with 17 home runs and 75 RBIs in 105 games. Willems is up to No. 23 in the Orioles’ system.
Double-A Bowie outfielder Billy Cook: Asa 10th-round pick in 2021, Cook has never been considered a top prospect. But after hitting just .221 for Aberdeen last season, the 24-yearold has been a surprise this season with his combination of power and speed. In 116 games with Bowie, Cook has 24 home runs, 81 RBIs and 30 stolen bases. He isn’t inside the Orioles’ top 30 on Baseball America, but he’s jumped into MLB Pipeline’s Orioles top 30 at No. 27.
Fallers
Orioles left-hander DL Hall: Hall will likely graduate from prospect status next season, and he’s already reached the majors and proved he can get big league hitters out as a reliever. But the 2017 first-round pick struggled with his velocity for much of the season before gaining it back recently. He was No. 75 on Baseball America’s top 100 list but is no longer on it.
Triple-A Norfolk second baseman Connor Norby:
Norby also opened the season as a top 100 prospect but fell out after a slow start to the season. The 23-year-old has been jumped by seven players in Baltimore’s system this year despite hitting .290 with an .831 OPS with 37 doubles and 18 homers.
The power-hitting lefty entered spring training with the potential to earn a regular role in the Orioles’ lineup against right-handed pitchers. But he struggled early, was sent down to
Triple-A Norfolk outfielder Kyle Stowers:
Norfolk and saw that role filled by veteran Ryan O’Hearn. Stowers opened the season ranked No. 9 in Baltimore’s system and is now No. 12. He’s hitting .235 with an .849 OPS with the Tides but hasn’t played since late August when he was hit in the face by a pitch.
Double-A Bowie outfielder Dylan Beavers:
Like Norby, Beavers’ stock has fallen despite overall good numbers. After posting an .832 OPS in High-A, the 2022 No. 33 overall pick has slashed .320/.420/.467 — good for an .887 OPS — with the Baysox. The 22-yearold opened the season ranked as the Orioles’ 11th-best prospect but is now No. 20, according to Baseball America, although MLB Pipeline still has Beavers at No. 9.
Triple-A Norfolk outfielder Hudson Haskin:
The 2020 second-round pick entered the season as the club’s No. 26 prospect, according to Baseball America, but is now outside the top 30 after missing most of the season because of injuries. He underwent season-ending surgery in mid-July to repair a left hip impingement. The 24-year-old had an .832 OPS in 23 games with the Tides before injuries derailed his campaign.
High-A Aberdeen infielder Frederick Bencosme:
The international signee has struggled throughout the year, failing to post a single month with an OPS above .700. The 20-year-old entered the year ranked No. 29 by Baseball America and is no longer inside the Orioles’ top 30.
Low-A Delmarva third baseman Anderson De Los Santos:
The 19-year-old has hit just .228 with a .626 OPS in his first year of full-season ball. De Los Santos, whom the Orioles signed out of the Dominican Republic in January 2021, was also near the bottom of the club’s top 30 to begin the season but has since fallen out of it.
Entering 2022, Hernández was ranked by Baseball America ahead of Basallo and infielder Joey Ortiz at No. 13 in the Orioles’ system. But he’s since fallen off the list as he’s struggled to adjust to professional ball after joining the organization out of Venezuela in January 2021. The 19-year-old hit .179 with a .577 OPS in the FCL this season.