Orioles prospects 4/9: Mullins continues to shine in AA

Charlotte (White Sox) 4, Norfolk Tides 3

Norfolk’s attempted comeback in the 9th inning fell just short as the Charlotte Knights completed the 4-game sweep over the Tides. Definitely not an ideal start to the season for the Orioles AAA affiliate, but there’s a reason they play 144 games.

With the Orioles still needing a fifth starter this Saturday against the Blue Jays, Tides starter Jayson Aquino probably wishes he could have back his final audition. Following a strong spring training in which he turned a lot of heads in Sarasota, the 24-year-old southpaw gave up 6 hits and 4 earned runs in only 3 innings of work in his first start of the regular season.

Hammerin’ Hank Urrutia had a chance to give the Tides the lead in the top of the 9th but struck out with runners on second and third to end the game. Norfolk got its RBI’s from three former big-leaguers with Chris Dickerson, Pedro Alvarez, and Robert Andino each plating a run.

Akron (Indians) 5, Bowie Baysox 4 (Game 1)

Following Saturday’s postponement due to rain, the Baysox finished their series against Akron with a doubleheader on Sunday. In the first of the two, 7-inning games, the Baysox took the lead in the top of the 6th but were unable to hold on against the RubberDucks.

Baysox starter David Hess had a solid but not spectacular start, giving up 3 runs in 5 innings with 5 K’s. The 2014 5th-round pick is looking to repeat the success he had in the first half of last season before running into some struggles midway through the year.

Third baseman Aderlin Rodriguez went 3 for 3 with a double and his first home run of the year as he drove in four of Bowie’s six runs. He seems to be picking up right where he left off after hitting 26 long balls for Frederick last season. He may not appear on any top prospects lists, but the Orioles will certainly be taking notice if he continues to swing the bat like he did last season.

Bowie Baysox 9, Akron (Indians) 1 (Game 2)

Unfortunately for the Baysox, baseball series aren’t decided by aggregate score as the Orioles AA squad laid it on the RubberDucks in the second game of Sunday’s doubleheader. Their 8-run victory proved to be the only win of the day among the Orioles minor league affiliates.

Cedric Mullins continued his torrid start to the year with another two hits including a double and his second home run of the young season. Mullins will certainly be rocketing up some Orioles prospect lists if the 2015 draft pick out of Campbell University continues to play anywhere remotely close to the pace he is currently on. Something tells me he won’t finish the season batting .529/.556/1.059. Just a hunch.

Lucas Long put together the best start of the day within the Orioles organization, giving up only 4 hits in 5.2 innings. Aderlin Rodriguez hit another home run and finished the double header going a combined 5-7 at the plate between the two games.

Carolina (Brewers) 8, Frederick Keys 0

The Keys had a tied ballgame going into the second inning of Sunday’s game at Harry Grove Stadium and that was probably the highlight of the day for the high-A squad. Hey, at least the weather was nice for early April.

Unlike the Brewers AA affiliate, Frederick struggled to get much of anything going on offense. It’s actually pretty amazing the Keys were able to hit into four double plays when you consider they only had seven baserunners on the day. Two of their five hits came from Top 10 Orioles prospects Austin Hays and Jomar Reyes with them each reaching on singles.

Greenville (Red Sox) 14, Delmarva Shorebirds 11

It was an offensive explosion in Greenville, South Carolina on Sunday with both teams combining for 30 hits on the afternoon. Unfortunately, the Shorebirds rally in the 9th inning fell just a bit short.

Shorebirds starter Travis Seabrooke didn’t make it out of the first inning after the Drive sent eleven men to the plate and plated seven runs. Fortunately for Seabrooke’s ERA, only two of the runs were earned following the Shorebirds first of four errors on the day. That’s A baseball for you.

2015 4th-round pick Ryan McKenna tried his best to make it a ballgame late. The young outfielder hit home runs in the 8th and 9th innings to bring the Shorebirds within three runs, but that’s where the game would end.

Complete box scores for all of Sunday’s games can be found here.

Today’s Scheduled Games

• Norfolk: vs. Gwinnett, 6:35. Starter: Alec Asher
• Bowie: at Erie, 6:35. Starter: Tanner Scott
• Frederick: vs. Potomac, 7:00. Starter: Cristian Alvarado
• Delmarva: at Greensboro, 7:00. Starter: Alex Wells