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Baltimore Orioles Top Ten Prospects for 2017

By Benjamin Chase

Apr 6, 2015; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; A general view of Baltimore Orioles glove and hat lays in the dugout against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 6, 2015; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; A general view of Baltimore Orioles glove and hat lays in the dugout against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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9. Chris Lee, LHP

Birthdate: 8/17/92 (24 years old)
Level(s) Played in 2016: AA
Stats in 2016: 51 1/3 IP, 2.98 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 6.4 BB%, 9.36 K%

Lee struggled for three years in rookie ball before he finally had a breakout in 2014. The Orioles acquired him from the Astros in May of 2015 for two international bonus slots.

A long, lean lefty with arms and legs for days, Lee has big issues keeping his delivery from the left side, which has led to command issues in his pro career at times. The Orioles have worked with him to be more consistent in his delivery, but after shoulder issues in May of 2016, he slipped into old inconsistent habits.

At his best, Lee sits 91-94 with his fastball, touching 96. He has good downhill plane on the pitch with his long arms and gets some good late movement on the pitch.

He has good downhill plane on the (fastball) with his long arms and gets some good late movement on the pitch

Lee throws two variations of his slider and a change. His big issues when he is off in his delivery is in locating his off speed stuff.

Lee is quite athletic on the mound, and when healthy, his stuff was incredibly difficult for AA hitters to square up, even if he wasn’t missing many bats.

If he can get back on the mound in 2017, it’s likely he’ll get one last chance as a starter before being relegated to the bullpen due to his age.

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