We’re now just over a month into the 2022 MiLB regular season and as expected, there are a lot of notable storylines taking shape across the system as one of the league’s top farm systems continues to flex its deep repertoire of skills.
RHP Kyle Bradish is now up in the majors, throwing a quality start at home against the Boston Red Sox in his MLB debut, signaling what is hopefully the start of a new era of Baltimore Orioles baseball. The league’s top overall prospect, catcher Adley Rutschman, should wrap up his rehab and make his MLB debut any day now, RHP Grayson Rodriguez shouldn’t see too many more starts in Norfolk, and LHP DL Hall continues to impress as he is slowly built up after seeing just seven starts in 2021 and not throwing for around seven months due to an injury. When Mike Elias said Hall could be in the majors sooner rather than later, it’s becoming more clear that he was serious about that comment.
In a recent conversation with On The Verge, Elias said he hopes to see five of the team’s top ten prospects debut in 2022. A major league roster with Rodriguez, Hall, Bradish, Rutschman, and Stowers? The top prospects are coming, not in two years, not next year, but right now.
But as I enjoy doing, let’s dig deeper and highlight a few early storylines that are getting overlooked, or not being hyped up enough.
Gunnar Henderson is on another level
All Gunner Henderson did in his first season of pro ball as a 19/20 year old was play across three levels, ending the season as a key piece to Bowie’s championship series lineup, log 49 extra-base hits (17 home runs), put up an .826 OPS, and even go 16-18 in stolen base attempts.
He’s back in Bowie to begin 2022, is still more than a month away from his 21st birthday, and has showcased a much more mature approach at the plate. Through his first 31 games, Henderson owns a 22.6% walk rate, compared to a 17.5% strikeout rate. One of the big “issues” Henderson faced last year was the 143 strikeouts in 105 games. It’s a notable improvement for someone who is playing against competition three years older than him, on average.
Gunnar Henderson has yet to face a pitcher younger than he is in 2022 and managed to reach base in his first 29 games of the season. He went 0/4 with a strikeout in game one of a doubleheader on May 15, which ended the streak, but responded just minutes later with a triple and his 12th stolen base of the season in game two of the twin bill.
Questions about where he ends up defensively continue to follow Henderson, but just like his approach at the plate, his defense has improved under the watchful eye of Tim DeJohn and playing alongside defensive standouts in Jordan Westburg and Joey Ortiz. The questions about Henderson’s defense aren’t due to a lack of ability, but more about his size and the fact that his arm is so good, it could play at either third base or even in the outfield. But the “he’s too big” storyline is tired. Maybe he does end up at a position other than shortstop, but it won’t be because of his size. The throwing errors that continued to pop up last season have been cleaned up. He’s a future impactful big leaguer. There’s no doubt about that.
Elias admitted that perhaps some initial minor league assignments, going back to 2021, might be a bit conservative to begin with, but the organization is willing to move prospects up quickly, once it’s clear that they aren’t being challenged. Slashing .293/.453/.485 with a 165 wRC+ and his uber-impressive K/BB numbers seems to be a big enough sign that Henderson is ready for his next challenge- taking on Triple-A pitchers before he turns 21.
Maybe I’m being too optimistic here, but those walk numbers continue to climb up, while the strikeout numbers continue to decrease, and he’s emerging as one of the top prospects in all of baseball.
Bowie pitchers needing love
I could run through a long list here, from Zach Peek to Brandon Young, Drew Rom, Easton Lucas, and more, but I want to focus on two arms in particular, RHPs Ryan Watson and Garrett Stallings. (I highly suggest listening to one of our recent episodes of On The Verge where we sit down with Drew Rom who provided tremendous insight into a lot of his Bowie teammates, including Watson and Stallings)
Watson was an undrafted free agent out of Auburn in 2020, so I’ll put the disclaimer here- calling him an “undrafted guy” is only a technicality. He pitched exclusively out of the bullpen while at Auburn, but has worked in multiple roles since joining the Orioles. He has a starter’s repertoire, the body and stamina to work as a long reliever/starter, and seems to have the mentality of a bulldog closer (maybe I should say Tiger?).
Overall, Watson is 2-0 with a 2.28 ERA through his first five outings (two four innings relief appearances and three starts with each going at least five innings), putting together a 0.76 WHIP, .159 batting average against, a 32.2% strikeout rate, and a 5.7% walk rate. He kicked off his Double-A career with nine perfect innings. One of the only blemishes on his record could be the three home runs allowed, doubling his career HR/9 rate, but one of those home runs was very clearly a foul ball.
His mid–90s fastball and impressive slider have effectively handled Double-A hitters (also throws a changeup and curveball), proving that his 79 strikeouts across 64 innings in the lower levels of the minor leagues were indeed a sign of something to come. His future role may not be defined yet (in a good way), but I think it’s safe to say that Watson is a legitimate major league prospect.
Watson’s teammate, Garrett Stallings, also continues to fly under the radar. His 2021 pro debut was strong, ending the year in Double-A, finishing with much stronger expected stats than what his final line showed in a number of categories, continuing to do a solid job of limiting walks (a staple of his game throughout his career), and posting a combined groundball rate of around 55%. His extreme home run/flyball rates combined with his GB rates seemed abnormal, but still something to monitor as the season progresses.
Through his first six starts (which includes a six inning, no-hit performance), Stallings is striking out 25% of hitters and owns a 0.96 WHIP and a .167 average against. That strikeout rate is five percent higher than his 2021 K-rate in AA last season (same sample size) and the average against is 98 points lower. He may not have a true standout pitch, but has four good offerings, great control and command, especially with the fastball, and works quickly and effectively. No pitch clock is needed when Stallings is on the mound. If his higher strikeout rates stick and he can limit the long ball, Stallings should be in Triple-A by the end of the season with a shot of earning himself a major league rotation job in the no so distant future.
Teenage arms in Delmarva are arriving
The Aberdeen IronBirds have been an absolute wagon this season, with many members of the 2021 draft class continuing to hit well as they move up, Coby Mayo doing Coby May othings, César Prieto shocking everyone (except maybe the Orioles) with seven home runs in his first month of pro ball in the States, and a highly overlooked but super intriguing pitching staff starting to separate themselves (Jean Pinto, Noah Denoyer, Justin Armbruester, Carlos Tavera etc). I mentioned before the season started that Aberdeen’s rotation would go overlooked, but it was going to be the most intriguing staff in the system. That’s become more and more true as the season has progressed. I’ll be diving into that more in the next few days.
However, let’s go one level deeper to Delmarva and point out a few impressive 18/19-year-old arms who are settling in very well. While some nights have been hard to watch, it’s important to remember that this roster is mainly constructed with teenage, international prospects making their full-season debut, with no more short-season ball to help with the transition (a step that did serve a purpose as we discussed with Drew Rom last week). Also, if you haven’t read Jon Meoli’s peek into life as a Delmarva Shorebird, I highly encourage you to read it (as soon as you finish this up). There’s a lot more than just baseball learning go on in Salisbury and despite the losses piling up and frequent tough games, this team clearly remains fully bought in.
19-year-old RHP Juan De Los Santos is currently leading the way, currently posting a 1.97 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, and a .186 average against with a 35/13 K/BB ratio through seven starts. Listed at 6’3” and 250 pounds, De Los Santos has been relying heavily on his fastball to overpower hitters (topping out at 96 mph from limited info), with the occasional slider mixed in which has played well. Shorebirds’ broadcaster Sam Jellinek confirmed this, recently stating that De Los Santos was throwing his fastball 75% of the time, but he’s been working on mixing in more secondaries over his last few starts and has seen equally impressive results. As a 19-year-old trying to find his footing in full-season ball, I think that’s ok. Step one has been a success so far, now let’s see him work in those secondaries and build on his impressive start.
I first started this article when Moises Chace was mowing down Low-A hitters, but since then (turns out having a newborn and two-year-old is extremely time-consuming), Chace and fellow teenage standout, Raul Rangel, have hit the Injured List. But both opened eyes in their first taste of full-season ball and are on the must-watch list.
Chace has routinely been a name that was been brought up on the podcast without prompting, with both Orioles Director of International Scouting Koby Perez and Baseball America’s Ben Badler hyping up Chace on our show as young international arms who show notable promise. In his first 13.1 innings with Delmarva, Chace struck out 21 hitters with an impressive fastball/slider combo (FB topping out at 94, again with limited info, and a hard, diving slider).
De Los Santos, Chace, and Rangel are all very young with a very long road to becoming top prospects who are excelling in the upper-minors, but there has been enough buzz and enough impressive performances to put them firmly on the radar as names to watch. Hopefully, Chace and Rangel are back in Delmarva soon, throwing to 18-year-old catcher Creed Willems, who made his Delmarva debut recently and has looked like a veteran behind the plate and has received some high praise from organizational teammates like Rom and Rutschman, who note his maturity and high baseball IQ.
Don’t let the record fool you when looking at what’s happening with Delmarva. There are some real talents on this roster and after watching night in and night out, there’s clear development happening with this group, it’s just going to take a while.
Orioles Analyst
A former high school teacher and coach in the mountains of Virginia, Nick Stevens has been writing about the Baltimore Orioles and their minor league system for five years. When he isn’t at a minor league stadium, he’s enjoying a Wizards game or supporting his alma mater, James Madison University. Co-Host of The Verge.