The Orioles announced Tuesday that they’ve signed right-hander Hans Crouse to a minor league contract. Ty Daubert of Phillies Nation first reported the signing and added that Crouse will be a non-roster invitee in Orioles camp this spring. He’s represented by Wasserman.
A second-round pick by the Rangers back in 2022, Crouse ranked among the sport’s top pitching prospects in the 2019-20 offseason. Texas included Crouse alongside Kyle Gibson and Ian Kennedy in a 2021 trade with the Phillies, netting then-top prospect Spencer Howard and fellow minor leaguers Kevin Gowdy and Josh Gessner. Crouse spent several seasons in the Phillies system and made a brief MLB debut with the ’21 Phillies but has spent the past two seasons in the Angels organization after landing there in ’24 as a minor league free agent.
Crouse has pitched a total of 32 1/3 innings in the majors between Philadelphia and Anaheim. He’s posted a shiny 3.34 ERA in that time, but the rest of his numbers don’t support that small-sample earned run average. Crouse has an impressive 25.9% strikeout rate but has also walked a gruesome 17.3% of the 139 batters he’s faced in the majors (in addition to plunking a pair). He’s navigated that glut of free passes not by erasing them with double plays — Crouse has just a 22.7% grounder rate in the majors — but thanks to good fortune on balls in play (.192 BABIP).
In 69 1/3 career innings at the Triple-A level, Crouse has an ERA close to 6.00, though that number is skewed by a 2022 season in which he served up 18 earned runs in only 12 1/3 innings. That minimal innings total in Triple-A comes despite pitching parts of five seasons there. He’s been hampered by injuries throughout his career. Crouse has undergone surgery to remove bone spurs from his elbow, required thoracic outlet surgery in 2023 and also missed most of the 2022 season due to a torn tendon in his right biceps.
Earlier in his career, Crouse showed a power heater that climbed to the upper 90s and helped him miss bats in droves. He’s fanned 33% of his opponents in Triple-A and 28% of his overall opponents in pro ball. More recently, following all those injury troubles, his velocity has been pedestrian. He sat 93.3 mph with his heater in his most recent full season of Triple-A ball in 2024, and sat 95.3 mph in his lone Triple-A frame last season.
There’s little harm in bringing Crouse aboard on a non-guaranteed deal, but his days a starter are surely behind him. At this point he’s a no-risk bullpen flyer with a big track record of missing bats but an even bigger injury history.
Always gonna root for this guy. Seems like a cool dude.
Alright we’re getting all of the small depth transactions out of the way. Just need to get that top of rotation type guy and we’re good to go.
On here multiple times daily, bracing for a Valdez piece.
@Ruffity Ruff Ruff – Sign Valdez or make a trade?
I think the Orioles have a decent chance of getting Valdez if they are okay with giving up their 3rd round pick.
Valdez is the more likely one to happen. The trade for Baz kind of shows just how premium a price you have to pay for starting pitching in a trade. And for me unless its Skubal (I wish) or Skenes (I wish again) or someone in that type of quality the cost might just be too much. Framber and to a lesser degree in my opinion Zac Gallen are plenty good enough to just spend money on, rather than spend a ton of prospects on a guy and really deplete your farm system.
If you get Gallen, I’d rather get Framber.
Love guy named Hans….
Hans Gruber
Hans & Franz
Hans Crouse
Not the orioles news we’re looking for.
Drafted after his days as a prospect, neat twist
When Alexander saw the breadth of his domain, he wept, for there were no more worlds to conquer.
“A second-round pick by the Rangers back in 2022, Crouse ranked among the sport’s top pitching prospects in the 2019-20”
Steve gotta update that to 2017
article is silent on whether he has options. wonder if he does? (to work in Norfolk on attacking the zone and continuing to get his velo back.)
He was good on the angels.