Baltimore Orioles: Adley Rutschman, intriguing prospects joining pool

Adley Rutschman and a small group of intriguing prospects have been added to the Baltimore Orioles player pool for the 2020 season.

While fans likely won’t see him in a big league game this summer, Adley Rutschman is one of a few top prospects who have been added to the Baltimore Orioles player pool ahead of the 2020 season.

The Baltimore Orioles didn’t rush to fill out their 60-man player pool for the upcoming Major League Baseball season, electing to be a bit more selective and patient while attempting to balance putting together a big league roster and getting their top prospects in the upper minors on a workable player development program this year with no minor leagues during a global pandemic.

Over the last few days, the Orioles have added 1B/OF Ryan Mountcastle, LHP Keegan Akin, RHP Michael Baumann, RHP Isaac Mattson, and Rutschman to their 60-man player pool, bringing them to 53 total players in camp.

There have been rumors of LHP DL Hall coming to camp, but nothing has been officially announced at the time of this writing.

Mountcastle and Akin figured to spend a majority of the season in the majors, during a normal 2020, but will now likely begin the shortened season at Baltimore’s second site to begin the year. Mountcastle’s bat is major league ready, it’s finding and sticking with a defensive position that’s the issue. The 2019 International League MVP played well at first base last season, but was switched to left field later in the year to learn his second new position within just a few months.

With Trey Mancini out in 2020 as he fights colon cancer, there will be more playing time available in the outfield, where Mountcastle figures to see the majority of his time (at least until the logjam that is Chris Davis is finally off the roster).

Akin, who led the International League in strikeouts last season, is about as major league ready as he is going to get. While walks remain an issue (4.89/9 IP), Akin is now at the point where he needs to be facing major league hitters as the organization determines whether or not he has a future in the starting rotation or in the bullpen.

An overlooked yet very interesting name on the initial list of top prospects added to the Baltimore Orioles 60-man player pool is reliever Isaac Mattson.

Mattson was acquired in an offseason trade with Los Angeles that sent RHP Dylan Bundy to the Angels in exchange for four pitching prospects, including Mattson.

A 2017 draft pick out of Pittsburgh, Mattson worked his way through three levels in 2019, beginning the year in High-A and ending 2019 with a handful of relief appearances in Triple-A.

Across all three levels, Mattson posted a 6-3 record with a 2.33 ERA, a .184 batting average against, and 110 strikeouts in 73.1 innings pitched. He may not be the highest-ranked prospect among the four acquired by Baltimore, but he is widely considered the most major league ready.

Mattson has a three-pitch mix, with a low-90’s fastball, but he’s able to pile up the strikeouts with a bit of deception in his delivery. As the Orioles cycle through relief arms to try and find a few who can stick around next season, don’t be surprised to see Mattson make his major league debut later in the season.

He may not have the stuff to be a dominant late-inning arm, but the former starting pitcher can be effective in the 6th-7th innings and be used for slightly longer stints.

The 2020 season was supposed to be an exciting year for Baltimore Orioles fans, with the arrival of prospects throughout the year providing something to look forward to in what was likely to be a third-straight 100-loss season for the Orioles.

A few of those prospects may still make their debuts this season. Fans will just have to wait a bit longer.