Baltimore Orioles: Three Rookie Of The Year Candidates For 2020

Will the Baltimore Orioles have another rookie contend for Rookie of the Year honors in 2020? The competition will be intense, but it’s possible.

We don’t want to get ahead of ourselves, or buy into a large amount of hype based on small sample sizes, but it’s November and the Baltimore Orioles are expected to be very quiet this winter, so we’re going to allow ourselves to daydream about a few young rookies looking to make in impact in 2020.

It’s been a long time since Gregg Olson won Rookie of the Year honors in 1989, but plenty of Orioles rookies have made immediate impacts in their first year in the major leagues and put together strong resumes for ROY honors.

The Orioles have had seven players named American League Rookie of the Year since 1954, with Trey Mancini finishing third in 2017 voting and John Means emerging from middling minor league pitcher to a second-place finish in 2019.

Will we see another Orioles rookie among the finalists in 2020, perhaps even take home the award? It won’t be easy, but there are a few very early contenders.

Next season should be another exciting year of big name prospects making the jump to the major leagues, so the competition for Rookie of the Year honors is likely to be intense. Just in the American League East, Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Nate Pearson and Tampa Bay’s Brendan McKay are primed to become impact starters for their ballclubs and cause fits for AL East hitters.

Outfielders Luis Robert (Chicago White Sox) and Jo Adell (Los Angeles Angels) will surely slug their way through highly-anticipated rookie campaigns, while a slew of other pitchers, including Casey Mize (Detroit Tigers), Jesus Luzardo (Oakland Athletics), and Forrest Whitley (Houston Astros) all bring hope for a bright future when it comes to major league starting pitching .

And these names are just the tip of the iceberg who represent the American League. What about the Baltimore Orioles?

Here are three Orioles to keep an eye on in the race for the 2020 American League Rookie of the Year award.

Whether as a starter or a reliever, Baltimore Orioles fans just want to see Hunter Harvey healthy.

Speaking of guys who seem to have been around forever, it’s truly fascinating to include RHP Hunter Harvey in this conversation. The Catawba, North Carolina native, and owner of some of the best hair in baseball, earned it with his very brief, yet exhilarating, major league debut in 2019.

Like Hays, injuries are certainly one of the top concerns when it comes to Hunter Harvey. After working a little more than 60 innings from 2015-2018, Harvey logged 75.2 innings between Double-A Bowie and Triple-A Norfolk last season, before finishing the year with 6.1 innings across seven appearances at the major league level.

It was quite the debut for Harvey, who showcased a fastball that touched triple-digits and the ability to work himself out of jams. Most importantly, he remained healthy all year long up until being shut down with two weeks left in the regular season with arm soreness.

Harvey and the Orioles claimed that if the team were competing and needed Harvey, he could have pitched, but the Orioles were limping their way to another 100+ loss season and Harvey was healthy for the first time since 2014.

Obviously, a reliever winning ROY honors isn’t out of the question, but unlike Gregg Olson, the last Orioles player to win the award, Harvey likely won’t be the team’s closer in 2020. In fact, the Orioles likely won’t have anyone designated as the closer next year.

It’s only a matter of time before we see Ryan Mountcastle with the Baltimore Orioles.

The one thing I’m most looking forward to in 2020 is the debut of what is sure to be a decently sized list of Orioles prospects. Pitchers Keegan Akin, Bruce Zimmermann, and Dean Kremer all figure to be active in the major leagues at some point next year, but it may take a bit for Zimmermann and Kremer to reach that point.

Both saw limited time in Triple-A in 2019 and we know that Mike Elias isn’t going to rush any prospect who can likely develop into a major league contributor. Akin could crack the roster out of spring training, but while he’s been a favorite prospect of mine since routinely making two-hour drives to watch him pitch with the Frederick Keys, Akin is going to have to learn how to limit walks if he wants to be a successful starter in the big leagues.

With that being said, we’re slotting Ryan Mountcastle into this list. Mountcastle won’t make the Opening Day roster due to service time, but he will surely bring his powerful bat to Camden Yards not too long after the Orioles kick off their 2020 run against the New York Yankees.

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Mountcastle is coming off his first season in Triple-A, a year that saw him win International League MVP honors with 25 home runs, 35 doubles, a .312 batting average, and an .871 OPS. He did all that as a 22-year-old in a league where the average player is two-three years older.

There are a few issues that may prevent Mountcastle from earning consideration for ROY honors. No one knows where he will play defensively, he doesn’t walk, and just about all of his power is to the pull-side. Using more of the field would certainly help, but the first two points are more glaring.

Buck Showalter already challenged him to walk more and that worked for one season before regressing to a 4.3% walk rate this year.

The Orioles have moved him from shortstop, to third base, to first base, and now to left field. He played a really solid first base, but Baltimore already features Chris Davis, Trey Mancini, and Renato Nunez (among others) who will act as first base/designated hitter options.

I’m confident in Hyde and his staff finding regular at-bats for Mountcastle next season. The question becomes, can he replicate his 2019 success at the plate while adjusting to major league pitching and continuing to learn whatever position he ends up at?

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