Baltimore Orioles: A Trio Of Outfielders Looking For A Big 2020

This trio of Baltimore Orioles outfielders need a strong rebound in 2020 if they want to stick around.

Believe it or not, we’re just a few weeks away from the first spring training workouts of 2020 and the return of having baseball to occupy our evenings on a nightly basis. If your excitement for 2020 has been a bit tempered by the Baltimore Orioles, I understand.

While I’m excited to be back in my usual seats at all of the local college baseball fields around my house and have an MLB game on TV every night, my excitement for the return of Orioles baseball isn’t as high, but they are still our Orioles and I’ll be at Camden Yards plenty of times this season, regardless of how bad the product on the field gets.

As we have discussed a few times already this offseason, finding small storylines to follow and keep you interested in 2020 shouldn’t be too difficult. They aren’t franchise-altering storylines, but they will have to suffice to get us through September.

One area I want to focus on today is the growth of three outfielders who entered 2019 with expectations of claiming starting roles at the major league level or continuing their climb up prospect boards. All three struggled to live up to the hype last year, but they are all still young and have the ability to create a life for themselves at the major league level. Will it happen in 2020?

First up, let’s look at a center fielder who has an opportunity to earn himself a 26-man roster spot after spring training.

Cedric Mullins can still provide value for the Baltimore Orioles.

The outfield should be an improved unit in 2020, with Austin Hays patrolling center field and Anthony Santander sticking to a corner outfield spot instead of being pushed into center field duties, but the Orioles still need a plan B in place in case injuries continue to be an issue for Hays.

Mason Williams was brought back on another minor league deal after a solid season in Triple-A for the Orioles in 2019, but Mike Elias still wants to add another veteran center fielder to come in and compete in spring training.

Cedric Mullins has an opportunity in front of him to win a reserve outfield role out of camp, if the late-season version of Mullins shows up. The 25-year-old switch-hitter hit .094 with a wRC+ of -12 in 22 games at the major league level before being sent to Triple-A to work on his game. Things didn’t go well for him there either.

With the Tides, Mullins hit .205 with a wRC+ of 46 and was demoted, once again, after 66 games in Norfolk. His time in Bowie was productive and after looking lost at the plate with body language that spoke volumes about how his 2019 was going, a re-energized Mullins appeared.

Mullins hit .271 with a near 10% walk rate, a 13.7% strikeout rate, and a wRC+ of 118, providing offensive help during Bowie’s playoff run in the Eastern League. The big question now is whether or not Mullins can get back to the big leagues and prove his doubters wrong.

We can rightfully question his bat, but his speed and defensive abilities are attractive. With an extra roster spot available beginning next year, a guy who can play all three outfield positions and swipe a base late in games is a huge bonus (swiped a combined 34 bags last year).

Hopefully, after some time at a private training facility and a personalized offseason program, the exciting and fun-loving Mullins many took a liking to returns.

It’s not time to write off Baltimore Orioles outfield prospect Ryan McKenna.

A number of people want to point at Ryan McKenna’s 2019 numbers and say he had a down year, but the 22-year-old outfielder was rewarded with a 40-man roster ahead of December’s Rule 5 draft, where McKenna was eligible to be drafted if left unprotected.

McKenna spent his entire 2019 season in Double-A with the Bowie Baysox, slashing .232/.321/.365 with a wRC+ of 104. He also chipped in 41 extra-base hits, 25 stolen bases, and maintained a walk rate above 10% for a second-straight season.

Finishing his second season in the Eastern League, McKenna was still much younger than most of his peers in Double-A ball, arguably the toughest level of minor league baseball. With a set of tools that includes some of the most elite speed you will find in the minors, the ability to barrel a baseball and a glove and arm more than capable of staying in center field, McKenna is still one of the more exciting prospects in the Orioles system.

McKenna will have a big outfield in Norfolk to play with next season, as he likely begins the year in Triple-A. One thing I’d like to see is a decrease in his flyball rate. McKenna owned a flyball of more than 40% last season, around a 12% increase from 2018. His 18% line-drive rate ranked in the bottom half of the Eastern League and was nearly 10% lower than his 2018 season in High-A, where McKenna had his breakout performance.

I’m still very high on McKenna, probably higher than most, and believe another year of maturity will go a long way for the former fourth-round pick. With a group of outfielders set to battle it out and try and prove their worth in the major leagues in 2020 and other outfield prospects like Yusniel Diaz likely getting their shot at the big leagues first, McKenna will have a full season to showcase his skills in Triple-A and prepare for a strong push in 2021.