00:00A little Orioles talk here before we get to NFL lunch at the top of the hour.
00:04I've been doing these top fives.
00:05I'm going to keep them going for the rest of the week.
00:07And today's Orioles top five, as we anticipate opening day,
00:11is five prospects who could have a decent impact to a pretty big impact
00:16on the Major League Club this year.
00:18A lot of guys in here that we haven't really been talking about a ton.
00:23The focus for the Orioles, of course, has shifted more from prospect-driven stuff
00:28and hope for the future to more concrete in what's happening now.
00:31And obviously, there's pressing needs right now.
00:34They need to show that they can turn it around at the Major League level.
00:37But I think some of these guys, and there's a lot of pitchers in here, could be a part of
00:41that.
00:41We'll start with a guy, Honorable Mention.
00:43Would have loved to have put him in here.
00:44If he didn't get hurt last year, definitely would have been in here
00:47and probably could have even been upwards of number one or number two on this list.
00:51And that's Braxton Bragg, pitching prospect who came out of nowhere last year.
00:55Steve Molesky tipped me off to him.
00:56He was just having a hell of a year, but unfortunately, Tommy John was his fate.
01:01So even as you look to this year, maybe he can make an appearance
01:06in the minors and AAA by the end of the year.
01:08But it is unfortunate timing because he's coming up on his Rule 5 decision.
01:13And if you're not going to see him much at all this year,
01:16minors or majors for that matter, could make it more of a tough decision for Mike Elias.
01:21Number five, pitcher here, Levi Wells, right-handed pitcher.
01:25Some early struggles last year, did have an IL stint that took some time away from him,
01:30but settled in with 95 total innings between AAA and AA.
01:34The intrigue with him, the fastball.
01:36This thing touches triple digits at times.
01:38Anytime I hear that, my ears perk up in a second.
01:41And then the secondary stuff where your typical off-speed pitches are high speed for him.
01:47So it's not a drastic dip from triple digits down to like a typical slider or a curve.
01:51That stuff is pretty high velocity as well.
01:54The make-up screams starter, and that's what he should be at least to start the year in AAA.
01:59But if we're looking for a route to get him up to the majors,
02:02unless this team just gets absolutely decimated by injuries,
02:06again, that triple digits on the fastball could play out of the bullpen.
02:09So keep an eye on him.
02:11Another pitcher comes in at four, another righty, Nestor Herman.
02:14Another guy very similar to me, Levi Wells and Herman.
02:18The starter make-up.
02:19He's going to be penciled into that tides rotation to begin the year.
02:22But it is a big year, just like Braxton Bragg coming up on that Rule 5 decision.
02:27So Mike Elias needs to see a lot out of a lot of these pitchers.
02:30Cup of coffee for him in AAA last year just needs a little more seasoning.
02:34You know, who's got a better shot?
02:37Wells of those two, probably a better shot to be up here.
02:40But maybe the intrigue with a Nestor Herman, the upside with him, maybe a little bit higher.
02:47Third guy on this list is a left-handed pitcher.
02:50The only lefty on this list, which is definitely a bonus for his resume, Luis de Leon.
02:57International signing.
02:58You know, Samuel Basayo was of that mold.
03:00It's taken a while.
03:02The Orioles, before the Mike Elias regime, completely ignored the international signing period.
03:07They had that infamous quote from Dan Duquette at the time as to, you know,
03:12why weren't you in on the Shohei Ohtani stuff?
03:14Not like he was going to come here anyway, but you didn't even make an effort to reach out to
03:18him.
03:18Said, well, we don't believe in that.
03:20That's not our philosophical belief as an organization.
03:23Thank God that's gone.
03:25Thank God we actually do believe in that now because look around Major League Baseball.
03:28Look at Team Venezuela last night.
03:30Yeah, these international guys, they can play.
03:32They've always been able to play.
03:33Eliminate.
03:34I don't know.
03:35You know, that was a Duquette thing.
03:38You know, he did a lot of good things, but that was probably one of the biggest blemishes
03:42was completely neglecting the international market.
03:45Roundabout way, we get back to De Leon here.
03:47Orioles get this guy $30,000 signing bonus in 2021.
03:52Right at the buzzer, right at the gun before the signing bonus period ended.
03:56And boy, are they happy now.
03:57Left-handed pitcher, high 90s on the fastball.
04:00Again, I think that makes him an intriguing bullpen piece late in the year.
04:04That left-handed ability, managers always looking to play the matchups.
04:07He could have a leg up over, say, a righty who's having a similar season in the minors.
04:13Now we get to the two guys who have the best shot, in my opinion.
04:17Another right-handed pitcher, Trey Gibson, undrafted free agent in 2023, will be the top
04:23ranked prospect in the Orioles' farm system as soon as Basayo and Dylan Beavers reach their
04:28games played threshold where they officially graduate.
04:31This guy will be your top prospect in the O's system, so get used to hearing the name.
04:35Big presence on the mound.
04:37Six foot five, long arms.
04:39He's coming right at you.
04:40That fastball's up on you before you know it.
04:42Played in all three levels last year.
04:44High A ball, double A, triple A.
04:46But maybe ran out of some steam at the end.
04:48120 innings pitch, so the most for him in quite a while seemed to have an impact on
04:54him when he reached the tides at the end of the year.
04:57Potential, big potential early in spring this year.
05:01Had a start against the Yankees, three scoreless innings, but since then a little more shaky.
05:05So again, we talk about seasoning here.
05:07He needs it, but you're going to be hearing this name for sure.
05:10If not this year, definitely next year.
05:12And of course, last but not least, our only position player, in my opinion, who's got
05:18a chance to make some noise, Enrique Bradfield Jr.
05:21And you want to talk about flash and potential in spring, that speed, and the defense for
05:26that matter, will play at the major league level.
05:29So all, you know, full meltdown scenario with the Orioles outfield.
05:36You know, injuries for Muscles O'Neal and right field.
05:40Beavers, maybe a regression.
05:41Like, this is absolute nightmare situation.
05:43Couser strikes out a million times.
05:45Right, more so injuries, I think, would lead to an Enrique Bradfield Jr.
05:51getting more starting opportunities in the outfield this year.
05:54But if he's going to be, say, a September call-up, defense, speed, that's enough to have
05:59a spot on my bench.
06:00I think any manager would love to have that.
06:02Now, as has been the conversation with him this entire time as his ascent through the
06:07minors, similar to a Jorge Mateo, he gets on base, that's great.
06:12He can steal a ton of bags.
06:13But getting on base in the first place is the hard part.
06:16And similar to a Mateo, he has not shown high average ability, power.
06:20Forget it.
06:21That's not his game.
06:22He's the speed and defensive guy for sure.
06:24But, yeah, I think he's guaranteed, unless he gets injured himself, he's guaranteed to
06:29be here later this year.
06:30It's just a matter of, do they wait for the rosters to expand in September, or do they
06:35maybe have a more pressing need to get him up here a little bit sooner than that?
06:40Did you see him, Nolan, in WBC?
06:44No, I didn't.
06:45He played for, who did he play for?
06:46Um, I, I, I can't remember what team he played for, but he, he was in, in, when I watched
06:52him, he had two bunts, you know, and then he stole bases, you know, I mean, he was, the
06:58speed was phenomenal and he had two bunt hits.
07:01Uh, team Panama.
07:03Yeah.
07:03Uh, Panama, Panamanian, Panamanian descent.
07:06I'm not even going to try that one.
07:08Uh, anyway, but yeah, those are my five prospects.
07:11If I'm missing anybody, glaring weakness, uh, anything of that sort, let us know.
07:164-1-0-5-8-3-1-0-5-7.
07:18If you've got thoughts on the Orioles barreling towards opening day, if you've got thoughts
07:22on the Ravens, the Max Crosby debacle, we'd love to hear from you.
07:264-1-0-5-8-3-1-0-5-7.
07:28We got NFL lunch coming up next.
07:30We'll take a trip around the league, see if there's any pressing news to get to.
07:34And then later in the one o'clock hour, Vinny's second draft profile of the day.
07:37We're going out to Auburn to look at a pass rusher, Keldrick Falk.
07:41He's next on our docket.
07:43The fans, Ed Norris.
07:46I love football as a kid, and one of my idols was a hard-nosed safety in the Baltimore Colts.
07:50So, I won number 40 from peewee football to college football whenever it's available.
07:54It was Bruce Laird.
07:55We're close friends to this day.
07:56No other career would have made that happen.
07:58It's been a great ride.
07:59Join the fan alone.
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