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Baltimore Orioles highlight Week 2 of minor league notes

By Brody Hilgenkamp

Mar 17, 2016; Fort Myers, FL, USA; Baltimore Orioles first baseman Christian Walker (34) waits on deck in the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at JetBlue Park. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 17, 2016; Fort Myers, FL, USA; Baltimore Orioles first baseman Christian Walker (34) waits on deck in the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at JetBlue Park. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

Two Baltimore Orioles prospects are hitting well and could add even more pop to an already impressive lineup. Week 2 of the minor league notes column.

Our feature of this week’s minor league notes column is a pair of hitters who could’ve saved the Baltimore Orioles almost $6 million.

The Orioles had a rough offseason: they missed out on Yoenis Cespedes; thought they had Dexter Fowler before the Chicago Cubs swept him away at the 11th hour; starting pitcher Wei-Yin Chen bolted for Miami; and Yovani Gallardo had to have his contract restructured due to health concerns.

The O’s did sign former Pirates first baseman Pedro Alvarez for $5.75 million and Seattle Mariners outfielder/first baseman Mark Trumbo for $9.15 million. The Orioles needed bats, and while two high strikeout hitters weren’t ideal, the results have generally been positive.

Except for Alvarez. He’s hitting .186 and slugging just .256 in 51 plate appearances and has yet to hit a home run. It’s too early to panic on Alvarez, but it definitely hasn’t been good so far.

The Orioles could’ve been aggressive by filling Alvarez’s role internally. Two Orioles prospects are crushing early on this season, and soon could be ready to contribute some pop to an already potent lineup.

One is outfielder Christian Walker. Walker has had cups of tea in the majors in each of the past two seasons but never made a significant contribution. After hitting .257.324/.423 in Triple-A last season, Walker seems to be putting it all together in 2016 with a .284/.338/.527 line with four home runs. His strikeout rate has gone up and his walk rate has gone down, which is cause for some concern, but the uptick in power mitigates that concern.

The other is first baseman Trey Mancini. He bashed Double-A pitching to the tune of a .302/.413/.698 slash line seven home runs, so the Orioles promoted him to Triple-A on Monday. In addition to those impressive numbers, Mancini was drawing a walk in 13.3 percent of his plate appearances, which is more than double his career pace.

While they would’ve been cheaper options than Alvarez, the Orioles did need a left-handed bat and both Walker and Mancini are right-handed. They also weren’t 100 percent ready for the majors, so at the time the Alvarez signing made some sense.

Entering play Wednesday, the Orioles had the third highest OPS+ (118) in the majors, according to Baseball-Reference. A very mediocre starting rotation has been just good enough to support one of the game’s best bullpens. That three-part combo has allowed the Orioles to jump to a 12-8 record out of the gate. Walker and/or Mancini could be contributing to that effort soon.

Let’s head to the rest of the minors. This week, I’ll start in Double-A.

Next: Double-A

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