Orioles Minor League Rundown: 5/24/14

Norfolk 3 Gwinnett (Atlanta) 4

Tandem start for the Tides yesterday as (LHP) Nick Additon and (RHP) Josh Stinson each managed 4 innings of work. Addition allowed 1 run via a solo HR, while Stinson yielded 3 ER via 3 hits and 4 walks. (CF) Francisco Peguero knocked in a run with a two-out RBI single, and later scored a run after reaching via fielding error. Since coming off the D.L. he has hit to the tune of .339/.394/.407. I'm not certain how the defense plays, but getting the bulk of the starts in CF for the Tides now, so I'd imagine it's more than acceptable for a potential 4th outfielder for the O's. (LF) Quintin Berry drew a walk, stole a base, and knocked in a run on a fielder's choice.

One non-Oriole player I like to keep tabs on is Gwinnett (CF) Todd Cunningham. This is because Cunningham was selected with the 2nd Round draft pick the Orioles forfeited due to the signing of Mike Gonzalez. While at AA in 2012 Cunningham was named the Braves Organizational Player of the Year. Not a top prospect by any means, but he is a solid depth piece in the Braves system at a crucial position. He is hitting .299/.343/.397 so far this season, his second at AAA. I don't know if the O's would have selected Cunningham if they had retained that draft pick. But he's the kid that got selected there and has proven himself to be a solid pro ballplayer thus far. Others who were drafted later that round include Jedd Gyorko by the Padres, Drew Smyly by the the Tigers, and with their own 2nd Round pick, Andrelton Simmons by Atlanta. Mike Gonzalez would eventually return Pedro Strop for the O's, who would then partially begat current Catcher Steve Clevenger.

Bowie 5 Harrisburg (Nationals) 8

Christian Walker, man...he hit his 12th home run of the season (and 5th in his last 10 games), tying him for the Eastern League lead. Of interest is that the normally aggressive hitting Walker is demonstrating awareness of pitchers' hesitance to pitch to him now, as he has walked 8 times and K'd only 8 times in his last 10 games. He already has two Eastern League Player of the Week nods and is making a strong case for the third. I don't know how long this will all last, but man o' man it sure is enjoyable to watch right now. (CF) Dariel Alvarez took an o-fer with 2 Ks. So I am fully expecting him to hit a HR today in the on-going game of 'anything you can do I can do' that him and Walker have been engaged in all season. ( C ) Michael Ohlman seems to be hitting the ball hard when he does hit it. He knocked a 2 RBI triple to centerfield yesterday. The batting average is still sub-.200 on the season, but he is slugging .538 over his last 10, courtesy of 3 doubles, a triple, and 2 HRs. The defense is still what I will charitably dub 'questionable' at the moment. 4 out of 4 stolen bases allowed last night. oof.

After a hot start, (RHP) Tyler Wilson has had 4 less than stellar outings over his last 5. Just 4 innings last night, with 9 hits, 3 walks, and 6 ER allowed. This was certainly his worst start of the season. Time for some adjustments to the adjustments that AA hitters have made on him.

Frederick 4 Wilmington (Royals) 8

I was really excited to go to this game when I saw (RHP) Parker Bridwell listed as the Probable on the Keys website. Good thing I checked again before leaving, as Bridwell was pushed back to Sunday and (RHP) Brady Wager got the start instead. Wager had not pitched since the 11th, but he made no D.L. stint that I recall. He proved a little rusty, as he allowed 7 hits and 7 runs (3 earned) over 4 innings of work. The primary damage was a 3 run HR that followed a fielding error by (SS) Adrian Marin.

Every Key with the exception of (LF) Creede Simpson got a hit. (CF) Glynn Davis reached base twice, once via hit and once via walk.

Kannapolis (White Sox) 2 Delmarva 10

I do really want to learn some more about (LHP) Luis Gonzalez. Particularly after he K'd 9 and walked none over 5 innings yesterday. He ran out of gas in the 6th as he hit the first batter of the inning before allowing 3 straight singles and 1 run to score. A 2nd earned run would later come in via a sacrifice fly. This make 2 straight interesting starts for the 22 year old. Righty-lefty tandem Austin Urban and Bennett Parry closed out the final 4 innings of work with 6 Ks and just 3 hits allowed.

The Shorebird offense is pretty fun to watch right now as well. They managed to pound out 10 runs via 15 hits. (RF) Mike Yastrzemski and ( C ) Chance Sisco each homered. 6 batters managed 2 hit nights, including (CF) Josh Hart, (LF) Gregory Lorenzo, (3B) Drew Dosch, and (1B) Trey Mancini. goodness gracious.

duck was in attendance for this game, so hopefully he can provide some in-person insights on the events described above.

You can peruse the boxscores yourself via this handy link

Today's Probables:

Norfolk: (RHP) Kevin Gausman

Bowie: (LHP) Tim Berry

Frederick: (RHP) Parker Bridwell

Delmarva: (RHP) Hunter Harvey

Wowza! That's a pretty stacked organizational rotation.