Baltimore Orioles Pitching Continues To Dominate Out West

Baltimore Orioles pitching prospects continue to excel in the Arizona Fall League.

With one week left in the 2019 Arizona Fall League, it’s a good time to check in one more time on how each Baltimore Orioles prospect has performed out west. The sample sizes may be small and there’s only so much you can take away from a handful of performances, but many of the Orioles representatives have had successful fall seasons to end their 2019 campaigns.

The Surprise Saguaros came out hot to start the season, hit a bit of lull around the Fall Stars game, but are 7-3 over their last ten games and once again own the top record in the AFL at 16-7. Among the impressive performers for Surprise have been the four Baltimore Orioles pitchers sent to work on their game.

Fall Stars participant and the 8th-ranked prospect in the Orioles system, RHP Dean Kremer is now 1-0 with a 1.29 ERA and .136 average against through five AFL outings. In 14 innings, Kremer has allowed just six hits and four walks while impressively striking out 17 hitters. He’s given up one hit over his last five innings and has limited right-handed hitters to a .111 average this season.

Fellow starting pitching prospect (20th overall in the Orioles organization) Alex Wells has also been impressive during his time out west. Used mainly out of the bullpen, Wells has worked 11.2 innings across seven outings, posting a 0.77 ERA and recording 12 strikeouts to just two walks.

The one blemish is the batting average against Wells. The left-handed Aussie has allowed 12 hits, but not of them have been home runs. Wells is coming off a season in Bowie in which he recorded a 2.95 ERA in 24 starts and held opponents to a .236 average.

RHP David Lebron and RHP Cody Carroll have rebounded from rough early outings to put together a string of strong performances. Overall, Lebron is 0-0 with a 3.38 ERA, four walks, and nine strikeouts. Since giving up four earned runs in his first outing, Lebron has logged six-straight scoreless outings (9 IP).

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Carroll, returning from a back injury that kept him out for the entire 2019 season, owns a 2.70 ERA through seven outings (6.2 IP). Walks have been an issue, allowing six of them so far, but he has eight strikeouts under his belt and four of his six hits allowed came in one outing.

The story is a bit reversed for the Orioles hitters playing in Arizona. Both IF Mason McCoy and IF Rylan Bannon have struggled lately after coming out of the gates hot. McCoy is currently hitting .277 and owns a .414 OBP after 13 games. Ten of his 13 hits have been singles and he has almost as many walks (11) as strikeouts (13). He has just one hit in his last four outings (1-12).

As for Bannon, he is 1-16 in his last five games, hitting .197 overall with a .256 OBP. He has also chipped in one home run, one double, and is a perfect 3-3 in stolen bases.

A late addition to the roster, former Charlotte standout T.J. Nichting has played in four games, going 1-12 (.083) with a double, one walk, and two strikeouts. He was sent to Arizona late in the game once the Orioles decided they would not send outfielder Austin Hays.

The Saguaros have six more games on the schedule before the AFL season concludes on October 26th with a Championship game.