Every Oriole that Melanie Newman mentioned on the MLB Draft broadcast

Fans of the Baltimore Orioles who tuned into the first day of the MLB draft broadcast yesterday were greeted by a familiar face, MASN host/commentator Melanie Newman. No matter how you take in your Orioles games, Newman is a part of the action. She appears on both the pre-game and the post-game shows, does play-by-play for both the radio and TV broadcasts, and hops on the field for post-game interviews. She's one of the most recognizable voices of the Baltimore Orioles.

Besides being a Swiss Army Knife for MASN, Newman also periodically hosts work for MLB Network, which is how she ended up on draft duty. The draft is obviously not an Orioles broadcast, but having the main host be someone who spends most of their days with the Orioles did make the broadcast more fun for Orioles fans, as Newman referenced numerous Orioles players both past and present throughout the draft.

Every Oriole mentioned during the MLB draft broadcast

Orioles prospect Trey Gibson came up when the Tampa Bay Rays drafted Ben Blair out of Liberty University. The connection is that Gibson also went to Liberty, although he was undrafted in 2023. Gibson is currently the Orioles' top pitching prospect, who debuted earlier this season. As the Orioles' top pitching prospect who will hopefully nail down a rotation spot next season, he's a big deal to Orioles fans, but most baseball fans have probably never heard of him.

Orioles outfielder Tyler O'Neill got a shoutout from Newman when the Padres took O'Neill's countryman, Elliott Lascelles, out of Ontario. O'Neill is not the best Canadian baseball player and also not the most famous, but he is the most Oriole.

Nick Markakis came up a couple of times during the draft. He was listed as a notable #7 pick, and then, when a player from Markakis' same high school was drafted later in the day, Newman made sure to bring him up again.

John Means came up when the Cardinals took Dawson Montesa out of West Virginia, where Means also went to college. Means has not been a relevant big-league pitcher in several years due to injury, but Orioles fans will always remember his efforts to lift the team up during the tank, as well as his no-hitter. He'll be a fun "remember some guys" guy for years, and it was fun to hear him referenced during the draft.

It was actually not Newman but co-host Lance Brozdowski who brought up Rico Garcia, but for the purposes of this article, it feels like it should count. Garcia has had a tough last couple of months after a brilliant start, but even amidst the struggles, he's still made enough of a name for himself that a prospect could get comped to him in the draft, which is impressive for a guy who looked like he was out of the league a few years ago. They didn't even make the comparison becuase the prospect was Hawaiian; it was just a straight-up baseball comp.

The last Orioles reference was a bit of low-hanging fruit, but former Orioles prospect Connor Norby's brother was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the fourth round. As Ethan Norby was being discussed, it seemed like the panel was going to gloss over his brother also being a big leaguer (maybe a little awkward cuz he just got sent down), but right at the end of the segment, Newman slipped in that Ethan Norby's brother, Connor, is on the Marlins.

The MLB draft is harder to present than the other major sports drafts, but the hosts who were charged with presenting did a good job keeping the energy up and knowing about each player selected. The stream of references to Orioles fan favorites also helped with the entertainment factor.

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