Orioles already seeing promising signs from under-the-radar trade with Reds

The Baltimore Orioles are always on the hunt for a recently DFA'd bat that they can add to their roster as minor league depth, and when the Reds did so with Christian Encarnacion-Strand to make room for a backup catcher, the Orioles swooped in and swapped a handful of cash for the down-on-his-luck first baseman. This classic buy-low move seems to have paid off. Since joining the Orioles Triple-A squad, Encarnacion-Strand has been on a tear at the plate.

So far in Norfolk, Encarnacion-Strand is slashing .351/.409/.622. He's been absolutely smashing the ball with five extra base hits in just nine games as a Tide and 90th percentile EV of 107.3%. His hard hit rate is up over 50%. With several Orioles off to a slow start in the majors, he's making a case to get another chance at the big league level.  

When the Orioles first traded for Encarnacion-Strand, it seemed almost impossible that room could be made for him at the big league level. They obviously had just given Pete Alonso a massive deal to be the everyday first baseman, and they had Ryan Mountcastle, who's a very similar player to Encarnacion-Strand, on the bench.

Christian Encarnacion-Strand would be an interesting addition to the Orioles lineup

Since then, a couple of things have happened. Mountcastle went on the 60-day IL with a broken foot, and the Orioles have been starting Encarnacion-Strand at third base in Norfolk as much as any other position.

Encarnacion-Strand came up through the minors as a third baseman and was moved to first base in Cincinnati because he's not a great defender, and they had better defensive options there. If the Orioles think their coaching staff could make Encarnacion-Strand into a passable third baseman, that opens up an interesting path for him to make an impact in the majors.

Coby Mayo and Blaze Alexander have shared the third base position for the Orioles. They have both been really tough watches at the plate. If Encarnacion-Strand could carry over even some of the momentum from his hot start in triple-A up to the majors, he could provide an instant offensive boost to the position.

That's not to say that the Orioles should just bail on Mayo and Alexander, but they could call up Encarnacion-Strand to replace Weston Wilson, who hasn't played much over the last few weeks and give him a couple starts a week at third or at first if Alonso is taking a DH day and if he outperforms the other two in those opportunities then slowly give him more playing time.

This is supposed to be the team of accountability, which should mean that if you play well, you should get a chance to play more, whether you are a top prospect or a waiver claim. If the Orioles think it's possible Encarnacion-Strand is breaking out, they should give him a chance to contribute to the major league team.

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