Around the Minors: week 10!

Norfolk is 4-6 in their last 10 and a game out of last place. Xavier Avery continues to struggle since his demotion, OPSing 510 over his last 10 (in fairness a K/BB of 9/7 in 38 ABs, so not all bad). For the season, his slash line is 253/355/396/751. AAA is proving to be a challenge for LJ Hoes, who is now batting 146 in a dozen AAA games, slashing 180/250/430 so far with a K/BB of 6/2 in 48 at bats. Chris Tillman had a tough go of it this week, but for the year his FIP is 3.24 with a K/BB of 69/27 in 72.1 IP His WHIP continues to tumble, all the way down to 1.37. I would much rather see him in the rotation than Tommy Hunter. Does Chirs Tillman need to be freed? Other Tide notes: Steve Johnson has been lit up since being added to the 40 man roster. though for the season has a shiny 3.40 ERA with a 43/17 K/BB ratio in 50.1 IP. I look forward to seeing him in September. Jai Miller has struck out 93 times in 174 tries. Miguel Socolovich continues to impress; for the year the righty sports a K/BB of 33/9 in 32.1 IP

Bowie is riding a six game winning streak and is now a game out of last place. Manny Machado has been in something of a rut of late, OPSing 589 over his last 10. For the season, his line: 242/335/368/702 with a 47/28 K/BB in 223 at bats. Jonathan Schoop feels like he has been doing better of late, and for the season his slash line is at 242/303/319/603 with a K/BB of 43/14 in 207 at bats. He is still very young for his league, but when the Orioles are aggressive and a player struggles, you have to wonder if they know what they are doing. Bobby Bundy continues to get beaten regularly, and for the season has a 5.09 ERA (4.26 FIP) with a 49/25 K/BB in 63.2 IP and a GB/FB ratio of 1.01. Not sure if he is plateauing at this point. Mike Belfiore has gotten lit up of late, and in AA is for the season the lefty reliever is now posting a line 3.03 ERA in 29.2 IP with a K/BB of 40/12. Oliver Drake, Tyler Townsend and Mike Wright continue to reside on the DL. I'm a hardliner on PED, but am willing to give Brian Ward a chance to redeem himself. He is a little long in the tooth to be much of a prospect, but he might be a good backup C type if he can bring anything to the batter's box. He is 26 now, but does have a cannon for an arm. What do you want to see from him, or do you not care?

The lower affiliates are below the jump!

Frederick continues to be in last place, having lost six of ten. Trent Mummey is back playing and over his last 4 is 2-16. For the season the 23 y/o RH OF is 226/320/321/640 with a K/BB of 12/13 in 106 at bats. Johnny Ruettiger is on the DL. On the mound, perhaps you have heard of Dylan Bundy? He picked up a win this week, and for the season has a K/BB of 58/5 in 45 minor league innings. Also on the plus side, Tim Berry has yet to allow a run in his first 8.1 Carolina League innings, scattering 9 hits and 2 walks, striking out 9. Clayton Schrader now sports a K/BB of 47/24 in 31 IP. He is definitely a little wild, but would like to see him challenged in AA. Kyle Simon struggled on Wednesday night, and for the season has a 4.36 ERA in 66 IP with a K/BB of 42/20 and a GB/FB ratio of 2.37. You would like to see him miss more bats, but you have to wonder how he would do with a good defense. Might be an attractive pitcher to the Rangers.

Delmarva is 5-5 in their last 10 and is six and a half games clear of last place. Nicky Delmonico is an all-star and I think a pretty good prospect. The 19 y/o left handed hitting infielder is batting 268 but more impressively is slashing 358/424/782 with a K/BB of 45/29 in 224 at bats. Should be promoted? Will the Orioles promote him? What would you do? Jason Esposito is OPSing 667 over his last 10 which sadly is an improvement for him, as his overall line is 228/298/316/614. Glynn Davis has also struggled a bit this year, and is now hitting 270 with a slash line of 355/321/676 and a K/BB of 48/28 in 215 at bats. Gabriel Lino has shown some signs of late over the last 10 games, OPSing 818 over that time. For the season, his is posting the following line: 228/288/341/629. The 19 y/o RH catcher has been up and down this season, which can't be too surprising. Zach Davies has a 40/21 K/BB in 52.2 IP and an ERA of 3.76 though a FIP of 4.42. 10 point scale, how excited are you about him? I think I'm a little over exuberant given the K/IP and FIP aren't all that exciting! 19 y/o Eduardo Rodriguez struggled in his start this week. For the season he has a 2.49 ERA in 47 IP with a K/BB of 33/18 (FIP of 3.62). Similar to Mr. Davies in some ways. Parker Bridwell just makes me sad, which happens when a prospect has an ERA approach six in Delmarva. Jake Cowan was cut free by the Orioles. I was saddened to learn this because of he can miss some bats. Good luck to him wherever his path takes him.

Aberdeen and the GCL start their seasons next week!

The DSL Orioles are 3-7 in their first 10 games. You can guess what place they are in. 17 y/o Rochendrick Alexander is OPSing 614 on the season. 18 y/o Oscar Vazquez is OPSing 898. We'll let the season unfold and and see where it takes us!