The final chapter in our positional review of Oriole prospects focuses on Oriole prospects who play the outfield.
The good:
Glynn Davis: Apropos of nothing, 11 months after the Orioles acquired Glenn Davis and on the 50th anniversary of D Day, Glynn Davis was born. The just turned 20 year old was signed by the Orioles rather stealthily by 2011 Oriole scout of the year, Dean Albany as he felt that Davis likely would have been picked highly in the following draft. And in 2011, you caught a glimpse of why. In his age 19 season, across 3 levels mostly at Aberdeen, the speedy 6' 3" righthander put up the following line: 284/351/362/713. He stole 24 bases in 69 games against 10 CS. He walked 29 times in 317 plate appearances. At 6'3" 170 lbs, you figure he has room to grow and hopefully some power can follow. No word on his defense, though the web is alive with praise about his speed.
More below the jump!
The bad:
Ronnie Welty...I'm putting him here probably because I like him more than most, and the reality is that there is a big obstacle on his resume. The 23 year old righthander does a few things I like, with a 166 ISO and 51 walks in 453 plate appearances, but it's also true that he struck out 125 times in 391 at bats in Bowie this year. I will say that his K rate has been fairly consistent from the SALLY to the Eastern League, but a K rate like that is pretty discouraging.
Xavier Avery: I know he's 21. But like Welty, 156 strikeouts is 557 at bats is what it is. Sure, he drew 49 walks in 626 plate appearances which isn't bad, but his ISO was .084. So while he was young considering his competition, it is clear that he needs to repeat AA. Fun fact about Avery...one pick after him (2nd round, 2008, Matusz), a toolsy athletic high school outfielder was selected: Anthony Gose.
The meh:
Trent Mummey: The 22 year old lefty impressed this year when on the field, but injuries prevented the former 4th round in 2010 (Machado) from playing much. In fact, he played only 21 games this year across Salisbury and Frederick, so his 851 OPS doesn't mean a whole lot. Presumably he'll begin 2012 back in Frederick and hopefully Oriole fans can get a better sense of what tools he brings to the table. SSS aside in those 29 games: 293/373/478 with 19 steals against 3 times caught.
Rod Bernadina: the 18 year old put up the following line in the GCL: 239/341/413/754. An ISO of 174 combined with 26 walks in 219 plate appearances and some major league bloodlines will get some attention even if it was in the GCL.
Matt Angle and Kyle Hudson: I know that these are not the same person, but both seem like 4th outfielders, with Angle likely having a better career than Hudson due to Angle (.065 career minor league ISO v. .038). Hudson's career MiL ISO is not a typo.
LJ Hoes: Hoes had a fine year offensively when he finally got up to Bowie, but he's in the meh column strictly because of the offensive requirements for an outfielder are higher than that of a second baseman. 285/354/390/745 across both levels this year (136 games) with 53 walks in 566 plate appearances, he struck out 81 times. But if he can't play second, I'm not sure that he's much more than a 4th outfielder.
Johnny Ruettiger: The 8th rounder in this past draft, Ruettiger started the year on fire in the GCL (which he should have being 2 or 3 years older than most of the other kids there) and didn't so poorly in Salisbury. He only had a combined 99 plate appearances, but OPS'd 725 and looks to be back in Delmarva in 2012 as a 22 year old.
Kipp Schutz: I know that Kipp has his fans based on his Shorebird slash line (381/429/568/997) which was based on 197 plate appearances. But the Carolina League was a rude awakening for the 23 year old, as he struggled as a Key, batting 212/266/346/612. I am not really sure if Schutz will ever be in Baltimore, but I really do hope that he can rebound in 2012 back in Frederick.
In sum: Here is hoping Markakis, Jones and Moldy can realize their potential because I am not really sure how much help there is in the system. Guys like Matt Angle and Kyle Hudson are nice fourth outfielders, I guess, but there is not much internally to replace any of the projected starting 3 anytime soon. I will admit that I am lower on Avery than most, and I'm not sure that Hoes hits enough to play a corner OF spot. I do like Mummey and Davis but at this point these guys are really unknown quantities.