Baltimore Orioles: Robbie Thorburn Has Stepped Up For The Shorebirds

The Delmarva Shorebirds, Low-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, are off to a torrid start in 2019.  One player, OF Robbie Thorburn, has made a significant contribution to that start since being called up to fill a roster opening.

The Delmarva Shorebirds are tearing it up as an affiliate for the Baltimore Orioles, and currently own a 32-9 record (as of 5/19).  That record is the best in all of minor league baseball and has them in first place by 4.5 games in the South Atlantic League’s Northern Division.

Delmarva’s entire roster has contributed to the Shorebirds’ start, and as such, the team has been exciting to watch. Winning baseball is being played in Salisbury, Maryland, and people are beginning to take notice.  The recent contributions of one player, in particular, are noteworthy.

Outfielder Robbie Thorburn was assigned to the Shorebirds on April 27th to replace Will Robertson, who was promoted to Frederick (A-Adv.) when Zach Jarrett was promoted to Bowie (AA).  Thorburn then had to step in full-time when fellow outfielder Robert Neustrom was placed on the 7-day IL on May 1st.

Since arriving in Delmarva Thorburn has hit. He has a slash line of .330/ .344/ .484/ .828 with three home runs and 12 RBI’s in 22 games.  Additionally,  he has gotten a hit in 18 of those 22 games and is currently riding a 5-game hitting streak.  He also has produced two separate 6-game hitting streaks since joining the Shorebirds.

The month of May has been a good one for the 2017 31st round draft pick out of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.  In 19 games so far this month, Thorburn is hitting .354/ .369/ .524 with 3 home runs, 12 runs scored and 12 RBI.  He has had 11 multi-hit games during the month as well.

Thorburn is also hitting when it counts.  His average with runners in scoring position is .391 and his average with runners in scoring position and two outs is .286.

Remarkable is the fact that the Shorebirds have not missed a beat since Neustrom went down.  At the time of the injury, Neustrom was hitting .329/ .429/ .529 with 14 runs scored and 14 RBI over 19 games; numbers comparable to those Thorburn has produced.

I am certain that at the time of his call-up Thorburn was envisioned as a fourth Shorebirds’ outfielder.  Reality changed that and he has stepped into the role perfectly and the team has not missed a beat.  Depth in the system is a positive thing and Thorburn is proof of that.

Successful teams’ need players that can produce when called upon and Thorburn has done precisely that for the Shorebirds.  The Baltimore Orioles will have a tough decision to make once Neustrom is eligible to return to the active roster.