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D.L. Hall

Orioles Notes: Infield, Rotation, Hall

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Orioles general manager Mike Elias spoke to reporters today, including Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com, about the team and their future plans for roster construction. (Links from Twitter)

Broadly speaking, Elias said it’s unlikely that the club will be doling out any multi-year contracts. That’s hardly surprising given the state of the franchise. The club has had five straight miserable seasons, finishing in the AL East basement in four of those, only narrowly avoiding the same fate in the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign. Last year, they finished 52-110, tied with the Diamondbacks for the worst record in baseball, while their four division rivals each each won at least 91 games. As the club has been firmly committed to the rebuilding process in recent years, they remarkably haven’t given out a multi-year deal since they signed Alex Cobb four years ago.

Moving from what they won’t do to what they might do, Elias said that the club is still looking to add to their shortstop competition. As the roster currently stands, Ramon Urias and Jorge Mateo would likely be the frontrunners for the position. However, each of them has only around 100 games of MLB experience, making it fairly sensible for the club to consider a more seasoned option. Leaving aside Carlos Correa and Trevor Story, some shortstop-capable options on the free agent market include Jonathan Villar, Matt Duffy and Ronald Torreyes.

Elias also added that they could add another pitcher to their starting rotation. The market for starters has been red hot for the entire offseason, both before and after the lockout, with some of the best remaining options being Tyler Anderson, Johnny Cueto and Michael Pineda. There would certainly be room for another arm of that caliber in Baltimore, given that John Means and Jordan Lyles are the only names currently on the depth chart with more than two years of MLB service time. Younger pitchers like Bruce Zimmermann, Keegan Akin, Zac Lowther and Dean Kremer will likely be competing for spots at the back end.

However, there is hope for the future of the rotation, as Elias had this to say about prospect D.L. Hall: “We may see him in the big leagues this year and we may see him quick.” The club’s first round selection in the 2017 draft, Hall has put up impressive numbers in the minors, though he was sidelined this year due to a stress reaction in his elbow, making his last appearance on June 12th. Despite that, he’s still highly regarded by prospect evaluators, being ranked the #72 prospect in baseball by MLB Pipeline, #52 by Baseball America and #27 by FanGraphs. After throwing just 31 2/3 innings in Double-A last year, the fact that Elias is so bullish about his debut is surely encouraging news for Orioles fans.

Quick Hits: Minors Camp, Guardians, Hall

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Clubs aren’t being allowed any adjustments to their minor league Spring Training camps, as Major League Baseball stated in a recent memo to all 30 teams.  The New York Post’s Joel Sherman has portions of the memo, outlining both how minor league camps are expected to open at their usual time (around March 1), and how veteran players signed to minor league deals can be given the option to either participate in the minor league camp, or not participate in unity with the MLBPA (even though these players are technically not part of the current union membership).

In essence, the memo keeps all 30 teams on an even playing field, as Sherman notes that some teams may have gained a competitive advantage by opening minor league camps early.  Plus, the early opening of a minor league camp “could be seen by the union as an antagonistic act by MLB” in the words of one source familiar with labor talks, as it could paint those minor leaguers as replacement players or scabs.  Since the lack of movement in CBA talks is making it increasingly likely that Major League spring camps won’t open as scheduled on February 16, fans may have to wait until minor league camp in March to get any semblance of a traditional Spring Training experience.

More from around baseball…

  • Players on a 40-man roster are considered locked out even if they haven’t reached the majors yet, thus leaving a young team like the Guardians in a tight spot if Spring Training is delayed or shortened, Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain Dealer writes.  Fourteen players on the Guardians’ 40-man have yet to make their big league debuts, and several others have less than a season of big league playing time under their belts.  As Hoynes puts it, “a four-week flyby” of an abbreviated Spring Training “isn’t going to be much help” for either the players or the Guardians as a whole, since many of these youngsters are expected to fill some key spots on the Cleveland roster.
  • Orioles pitching prospect D.L. Hall is making progress in his recovery from a stress reaction in his left elbow, tweeting last month that he was back on a mound after close to an eight-month layoff.  (Hat tip to MASNSports.com’s Roch Kubatko).  Hall has been a regular on top-100 prospect lists since he was drafted 21st overall in 2017, and even after tossing only 31 2/3 innings in 2021, still clocked in #52 on Baseball America’s recently-released top 100 ranking.  The hard-throwing Hall has posted some big strikeout numbers even if his control (13.35% walk rate) leaves something to be desired, and it isn’t out of the question that he could make his MLB debut this season if he stays healthy and continues to progress.  However, Hall is another 40-man roster player whose spring work is delayed by the lockout, so the Orioles will need to wait before judging whether Hall should return for more Double-A seasoning, or if he is ready for a promotion to Triple-A.

Prospect Notes: Lux, Adell, Dalbec, Hall

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As Gavin Lux continues to shred Triple-A pitching, it isn’t yet clear if the star prospect will make his Dodgers debut in 2019, Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register writes.  Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman simply said “I don’t know” when asked about the possibility of a Lux promotion, as Friedman cited considerations like finding room for Lux on the 40-man roster while juggling the roster status of other players returning from the injured list.  “I think more of our mental energy is being spent on how to configure our pitching staff (for the postseason) more than our position players that are doing pretty well,” Friedman said.

Lux entered today’s action hitting an unfathomable .415/.497/.768 over 191 plate appearances for Triple-A Oklahoma City (not to mention “only” a .313/.375/.521 slash line in 291 PA at Double-A before his latest promotion).  While he has spent much of his pro career at shortstop, Lux has also seen a lot of action at second base, which would be his logical position both in the event of a September call-up and probably for the future, since Corey Seager isn’t leaving L.A. anytime soon.  Then again, the Dodgers’ list of second base candidates is also long — Chris Taylor and Enrique Hernandez are expected to return from the IL on Tuesday, Jedd Gyorko and Kristopher Negron are utility options, and Max Muncy needs an everyday role if the Dodgers continue to deploy Cody Bellinger at first base.  Interestingly, Friedman hinted that Lux could potentially join the Dodgers in a non-roster capacity in September, traveling with the team and learning the ropes of being a big leaguer without actually being on the active roster.

Here’s some more on some of the game’s stars of the future…

  • There’s more clarity on a heralded youngster on Los Angeles’ other team, as the Angels currently aren’t planning to call Jo Adell up for his first taste of MLB action in September, Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times tweets.  Prospect ranking outlets have Adell as a consensus top-four minor leaguer in the sport, though preseason ankle and hamstring injuries kept him from making his 2019 debut until May 24, and he has only a modest .233/.303/.317 slash line over 67 plate appearances in his first stint at Triple-A.  As a result, the Angels look to give Adell more seasoning and some time at winter ball before looking to promote him to the majors.  It has been widely speculated that Adell could be an everyday member of the Halos’ outfield as early as Opening Day 2020, as Kole Calhoun is a free agent this offseason.
  • Could the Red Sox go with a youth movement at first base next season?  Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe wonders if this could be the case, as since Mitch Moreland and Steve Pearce will both be free agents, the Sox could turn to either Michael Chavis or top prospect Bobby Dalbec.  Abraham notes that while Chavis has played a lot of second base this season, the keystone is “probably not a long-term position for him,” and thus Chavis could be used at first base, in the outfield, all over the diamond as a super-utility player, or potentially even as an offseason trade chip to add pitching.  A fourth-rounder for Boston in the 2016 draft, Dalbec (ranked 92nd on Baseball America’s list of the game’s top 100 prospects) has steadily climbed through the farm system and is now hitting well over his first two weeks at Triple-A.  Dalbec was originally drafted as a third baseman, but has increasingly seen more time at first base thanks to Rafael Devers establishing himself at the hot corner for the Sox.  While Devers and Xander Bogaerts have the left side of Boston’s infield locked down for the foreseeable future, the right side is much more in flux, between Moreland and Pearce possibly leaving and the continued uncertainty about whether Dustin Pedroia will ever be able to play again.  The Red Sox are likely to explore the market for first base and second base options this offseason, and Chavis will certainly be in the conversation at either position, Dalbec could also be an important piece of the team’s puzzle for 2020.
  • Orioles left-handed pitching prospect D.L. Hall has been shut down for the season following a left lat strain, MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko reports (Twitter link).  While the injury isn’t considered serious, Hall won’t have enough time to get back before the Orioles’ A-ball affiliate in Frederick completes its season.  The 21st overall pick of the 2017 draft, Hall has a 3.46 ERA and 12.9 K/9 over 80 2/3 innings for Frederick this season, though with a troubling 6.0 BB/9.  ESPN’s Keith Law ranked Hall 35th in his midseason top-50 prospects list and Baseball America has Hall 38th in their top 100 list, while MLB.com (62) and Fangraphs (63) are just a touch less bullish on his promise.

Orioles Notes: Davis, Rotation, Hall

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Chris Davis is probably headed to the disabled list, Orioles manager Buck Showalter told reporters today (Twitter link via the Baltimore Sun’s Jon Meoli). Earlier in the day, Meoli reported that an MRI on Davis revealed what looks to be a strained oblique muscle, and Showalter confirmed that Davis does indeed have a Grade 1 strain. There’s no timeline for his recovery available just yet, but history suggests that even a Grade 1 oblique strain could sideline Davis for more than a month. David Hall of the Virginian Pilot reports (on Twitter) that slugger David Washington will join the Orioles in place of Davis. However, as MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko notes, rookie Trey Mancini could see the most significant uptick in playing time as he returns to his natural position of first base.

More on the O’s…

  • The Orioles’ awful performance from their rotation has led to a 9-21 slide, dropping Baltimore to a half-game out of last place in the AL East, writes Fangraphs’ Dave Cameron. In that stretch, opponents have posted OBP and slugging marks that nearly mirror Miguel Sano’s current rates. Cameron examines Chris Tillman’s rapid drop in velocity and notes that colleague Jeff Sullivan recently profiled Tillman’s change in arm slot, suggesting that perhaps he’s not quite recovered from recent shoulder injuries. Kevin Gausman’s struggles are more troubling, Cameron continues, given the fact that his stuff appears similar to last year but the results aren’t there. The Orioles need to augment their rotation with multiple arms but have little in the way of minor league reinforcements, and Cameron wonders if that could push them to the trade market this summer. All of these rotation struggles come against the backdrop of a $165MM payroll club that will soon lose Manny Machado, Zach Britton and others to free agency.
  • The Orioles weren’t expecting left-hander D.L. Hall to last until their No. 21 overall selection last night, scouting director Gary Rajsich told reporters on a conference call (link via MASNsports.com’s Steve Melewski). Rajsich candidly stated that the Orioles “weren’t real thrilled with our options there” but became increasingly excited as the teams in front of them passed on Hall, whom they held in very high regard. “We project him to be a future starter in our rotation, and it shouldn’t take very long,” said Rajsich of Hall. Of course, Hall was taken out of Valdosta High School in Georgia, so Rajsich’s comment is presumably in reference to Hall’s proximity to the Majors relative to other prep arms. Even a fast-moving high school arm is likely to be several years from realistically sniffing the Majors, though Hall turns 19 in September, so he is a bit more physically advanced than some of his high school peers in the draft.
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