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Steve Wilkerson

Orioles Outright Branden Kline, Stevie Wilkerson

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3:49pm: While Wilkerson had the option to elect free agency, he’s instead chosen to accept his assignment to Norfolk, the Orioles announced. Both Kline and Wilkerson will be in Major League camp as non-roster invitees during Spring Training.

12:37pm: The Orioles have outrighted righty Branden Kline and utilityman Stevie Wilkerson, per Dan Connolly of The Athletic (via Twitter). Both cleared waivers after recently being designated for assignment.

Kline, a former second-round draft pick, struggled to a 5.93 ERA in his first taste of the majors last year. He throws hard but didn’t fool many hitters, managing only 7.5 K/9 against 4.2 BB/9 while allowing nearly a fifty percent hard contact rate and 2.0 homers per nine innings. Kline will remain with the Baltimore organization, as he does not have the right to elect free agency.

As for the 28-year-old Wilkerson, he will have the right to choose a trip onto the open market. He has spent his entire career to date with the O’s after being selected in the eighth round of the 2014 draft. Wilkerson got a long look in 2019 but limped to a .225/.286/.383 batting line in 361 plate appearances. He has put up solid numbers at the plate in the upper minors and is capable of playing just about anywhere on the diamond

Orioles Claim Travis Lakins, Designate Stevie Wilkerson

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The Orioles announced Friday that they’ve claimed righty Travis Lakins off waivers from the Cubs. Infielder/outfielder Stevie Wilkerson was designated for assignment in a corresponding roster move.

Lakins, 25, was designated for assignment by the Red Sox earlier this winter and subsequently traded to Chicago for cash. Although he’d consistently ranked in the No. 15-25 range of a thin Boston farm system, the Ohio State product has yet to put together a particularly strong showing in the Majors or in the upper minors. Lakins made his big league debut this past season, yielding a 3.86 ERA with a lackluster 18-to-10 K/BB ratio in 23 2/3 innings for Boston. His work in Triple-A has been rather similar, as he’s compiled a 3.82 ERA with 8.4 K/9, 4.1 BB/9 and slightly below-average grounder rates in parts of two seasons there. Lakins worked as a starter earlier in his career but has pitched primarily out of the bullpen the past couple of seasons.

Wilkerson, 28, is a career .219/.279/.365 hitter in 410 plate appearances — most of which came this past season in Baltimore. He’s spent time at all three outfield positions with the O’s in addition to second base and third base, although he’s most likely remembered by many for his absurd home run robbery against Jackie Bradley Jr. at Fenway Park this past season (video link). He also holds the distinction of being the first position player to earn a save, which he did when pitching the 16th inning of a marathon win over the Angels on July 25 of this past season.

The switch-hitting Wilkerson hasn’t spent much time in Triple-A but has had some success there, hitting .294/.340/.478 through 153 trips to the plate. Wilkerson has generally been a versatile defender with respectable batting average/on-base percentage marks but limited power in the minors; since being drafted out of Clemson in the eighth round back in 2014, he’s hit .268/.342/.371 in six minor league seasons.

Orioles Option Stevie Wilkerson, Austin Wynns

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Following today’s game, the Orioles have optioned INF/OF Stevie Wilkerson and catcher Austin Wynns to Triple-A Norfolk, per an official team release.

While a corresponding move will be officially announced on Tuesday, Roch Kubatko of MASN adds that Chance Sisco will likely rejoin the team to replace Wynns, with Chris Davis in position to come off the injured list ahead of Tuesday’s series opener in Texas.

In 123 plate appearances with the O’s, Wilkerson has posted a .250/.294/.438 slash line. Those are respectable numbers, especially for an inexperienced player on a rebuilding club, but his unimpressive 6:37 K:BB ratio calls for more seasoning in the minors. Meanwhile, Wynns has played just 15 games for the Orioles and has a .529 OPS in 47 plate appearances.

If it’s indeed Sisco who replaces Wynns on the roster, it will mark his 2019 season debut. He started this season in the minors after struggling through 2018 as a rookie; however, it appears that the 24-year-old catcher has turned a corner at Triple-A this year, boasting a robust .288/.381/.528 batting line thus far, a marked improvement over his numbers in previous stints at the level.

As for Davis, who is slated to make his return from the injured list, it’s unclear just how he will fit into the Orioles lineup upon his return to action. Trey Mancini has received the first base reps in Davis’s absence and has excelled with the bat, while the team would like to give promising youngster DJ Stewart an extended opportunity to play right field. And Renato Nunez, who has quietly emerged as one of baseball’s hottest hitters of late, currently occupies the DH spot and has done nothing to warrant a reduction in playing time.

In that aforementioned quartet, the Orioles have no fewer than four offense-heavy corner bats on the roster, a construction that could make it difficult for Brandon Hyde to allocate playing time. Davis, of course, is the highest-paid of the bunch, but perhaps also the least deserving of at-bats, based solely on production. With that in mind, it will be interesting to monitor Hyde’s handling of the 1B/DH logjam, especially as he attempts to navigate the challenges of managing a rebuilding team, striking a balance between youth and incumbent veterans like Davis.

Orioles Option Cedric Mullins, Select Stevie Wilkerson, Designate Josh Lucas

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The Orioles announced a series of roster moves Monday afternoon: Opening Day center fielder Cedric Mullins has been optioned to Triple-A Norfolk, while infielder Stevie Wilkerson has had his contract selected from Norfolk to take Mullins’ place. In order to clear a spot on the 40-roster for Wilkerson, Baltimore has designated right-hander Josh Lucas for assignment.

Mullins, 24, stumbled to a slow start to open the year but excited Orioles fans with a two-triple game against the visiting A’s back on April 8. The organization hoped that day might’ve served as a turning point for the talented young center fielder, but he’s instead collected just two hits (both singles) in 44 plate appearances since that time. Mullins hasn’t been striking out at a lofty rate, with just nine punchouts in that time, but he’s already popped up to the infield on five occasions this year.

A 13th-round pick back in 2015, Mullins moved fairly quickly through the Orioles’ farm system; he only logged 125 games in Double-A and another 60 in the Majors before making his big league debut last year. It’s certainly feasible that he needs a bit more development time in Triple-A, where he held his own last year but didn’t exactly excel (.269/.333/.438 in 269 PAs). The Orioles likely still view Mullins as a potential long-term piece in the outfield, but he’ll be asked to earn his way back to the big leagues for the time being. In his place, it seems likely that Joey Rickard will step up and assume more playing time in center field.

The 27-year-old Wilkerson was outrighted off the 40-man roster earlier this year but will return for a second stint on the Orioles’ 40-man roster. He made his MLB debut with the club last year but didn’t fare well in a minuscule sample of 49 plate appearances (.174/.224/.239). Wilkerson, however, is a .290/.338/.481 hitter through 35 games at the Triple-A level and a career .268/.342/.371 hitter in parts of six minor league seasons. He’s played second base, third base, shortstop and corner outfield in the minors and should give manager Brandon Hyde some versatility off the bench.

As for Lucas, the 28-year-old made a trio of appearances for the O’s after being selected to the big leagues earlier this month. In 4 1/3 innings, he yielded a pair of earned runs on four hits and a walk with four strikeouts. Lucas has spent a bit of time in the Majors in each of the past three seasons now, and in 108 2/3 career innings of Triple-A ball, he has a 3.32 ERA with just under a strikeout per inning and 2.6 BB/9 while working primarily as a reliever.

Orioles Release Craig Gentry

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The Orioles announced Wednesday that they’ve released outfielder Craig Gentry. He’d been designated for assignment on Aug. 31 when the club began its September roster expansion. Additionally, the O’s announced that infielder Steve Wilkerson has been recalled from Triple-A and will join the club for the remainder of the season.

Gentry, 34, appeared in 68 games for Baltimore this season and posted a .269/.321/.346 with a homer, five doubles, two triples and a dozen steals (in 15 tries) over the life of 169 plate appearances. He’s spent most of the past two seasons as a reserve with the Orioles organization, serving as a defense- and baserunning-focused backup outfielder. The former 10th-round pick (Rangers, 2006) has a long history in that sort of role, though he hasn’t amassed even 200 plate appearances in a season since 2014.

Overall, he’s a career .262/.333/.339 hitter with solid but unspectacular numbers against left-handed pitching and more troublesome numbers against righties. He’s consistently drawn solid marks for his glovework in the outfield, and 2018 was no exception (+6 DRS, +2.2 UZR, +3 Outs Above Average in 386 innings).

As for Wilkerson, the versatile 26-year-old will be getting his second look with the O’s after a brief seven-game cup of coffee earlier this year. He batted .270/.329/.500 in a small 86-game sample in his first run at Triple-A this season and is a career .282/.342/.399 hitter in parts of three Double-A campaigns. Wilkerson, the Orioles’ eighth-round selection in the 2014 draft, has played all four infield positions and both corner outfield positions in his minor league career.

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