Baltimore Orioles 2019 Draft Highlights: LHP Jake Prizina

The Baltimore Orioles 2019 draft class will always be remembered for the number one overall pick, catcher Adley Rutschman, but it was full of impressive picks. Birds Watcher takes a look at several draft picks whose play should put them on the radar (fifth in a series).

Generally speaking, players chosen in the bottom portion of the MLB Draft (rounds 31-40), if signed, are seen as organizational players and not much is expected of them. This year’s 31st round pick of the Baltimore Orioles, LHP Jake Prizina, performed in such a way that exceeded those expectations.

Selected out of Seattle University, the 6’0″, 190 lb. southpaw compiled a four-year record of 19-9 with a 4.19 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 75 walks and 243 strikeouts over 70 appearances and 310.0 innings pitched.

Save for a September 1st appearance in Aberdeen (A-Short), Prizina spent the 2019 season pitching for the Gulf Coast Orioles (Rookie) where he appeared in ten games (five starts) and finished with a 4-1 record over 39.0 innings of work. He surrendered just five earned runs to produce a 1.15 ERA to go along with his 0.64 WHIP, 45 strikeouts and five walks. GCL batters did not have much success against Prizina either, as they hit just .149 off him.

Prizina finished the 2019 season among the GCL Orioles leaders: he was first in strikeouts, second in wins and innings pitched and fourth in starts among the staff. He excelled against right-handed batters who managed to hit just .128 off him. Left handed batters didn’t fare much better as they hit only .200. Incredibly, 80% of the batters who reached base against him stayed there.

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As the next to last pitcher selected and the last pitcher signed from the 2019 draft, it is fair to say that he was not expected to be the pitcher to lead the draft class. Prizina did just that; he emerged as the statistical pitching leader among the 2019 draftees. He led the draft class of pitchers in innings pitched, strikeouts, and WHIP and was tied for the lead in wins with 29th round draft pick Houston Roth (Aberdeen).

Prizina fit right in with the organization’s emphasis on producing strikeouts; he struck out nine batters for every one he walked and he finished with a rate of 10.3 strikeouts per 9 innings pitched. Limiting walks (1.15/9 IP), producing swings and misses, and keeping opposing batter’s average low are all keys to success, especially when a pitcher does all three.

Draft picks in the portion of the draft where Prizina was selected are not expected to perform as well as he did relative to his minor league level, much less lead an entire draft class as he did. Prizina came out of relatively nowhere and checked all the boxes. It is early and too soon to really project much, but I think the qualities are there for future success. Prizina certainly gets my nod as the most impressive and surprising pitcher to come out of the 2019 Orioles draft.

Did you miss any previous parts of this series? Check them all out below!

The Baltimore Orioles 2019 draft class will always be remembered for the number one overall pick, catcher Adley Rutschman, but it was full of impressive picks. Birds Watcher takes a look at several draft picks whose play should put them on the radar (fifth in a series).

More from Birds Watcher

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