Evaluating MLB Pipeline's changes to Orioles' 2024 top 30 prospects list
MLB Pipeline's newest top 30 ranking shuffled around some exciting Orioles prospects.
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The Orioles come into 2024 with the best farm system in baseball, but their top 30 ranking has changed slightly from 2023 to 2024.
Here are the major risers, fallers, and new additions to their top 30, according to MLB Pipeline.
Notable Orioles Top Prospect Risers
Samuel Basallo, C/1B
Basallo is the latest Orioles prospect to soar up the rankings, moving from fifth in the top 30 to second behind the phenom Jackson Holliday. At just 19 years old, Basallo put together a truly dominant season across three minor league levels. He moved from Low-A, to High-A, to Double-A in just his third professional season, raking at every level.
Basallo finished the season with an absurd .313/.402/.551 slash line, clubbing 20 home runs and driving in 86 runs in the process. He even stole 12 bases last season, putting his tremendous athleticism on display. Basallo has all of the potential in the world, and could very well be the top prospect in baseball by the end of the season.
Seth Johnson, RHP
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Johnson didn't pitch much for the O's in 2023 because he was recovering from Tommy John Surgery, but it seems like MLB Pipeline is confident in his progression going forward. Johnson moved from 14th in the top 30 to 11th in their newest ranking.
Johnson was one of the center pieces of the Trey Mancini trade in 2022, along with fellow pitching prospect Chayce McDermott. Johnson pitched in just five games last season for a combined 10.1 innings, but he has good stuff and could be in the majors sometime this season. MLB Pipeline likes his fastball and slider, grading them at 60 and 55 respectively on their 80-grade scale.
Trace Bright, RHP
Bright was the biggest riser in the top 30, jumping all the way from 30th in 2023 to 17th in 2024. Bright pitched between two levels last season, spending most of his time in High-A Aberdeen. He saw mixed results, but the upside is clear with Bright.
In 82.2 High-A innings, Bright struck out an astonishing 127 batters, while allowing an opponent batting average of just .203. He also had great results in a limited sample at Double-A, recording a 2.12 ERA in 17 innings. Bright does have control issues (walked 56 batters in 99.2 total innings), but if that improves, he could continue to rise up the rankings.
Luis De Leon, LHP
Similarly to Bright, De Leon rose up the rankings quite a bit. He was ranked 25th in the top 30 in 2023, but is now up to 18th in the newest rankings. De Leon is yet another high-upside arm coming off of a fantastic 2023 season.
De Leon dominated rookie ball to start the season, pitching to just a 1.65 ERA in 27.1 innings. This earned him a promotion to Delmarva, where he continued his success. He pitched to a 2.39 ERA in 26.1 innings, while recording 31 strikeouts and holding opponents to just a .177 batting average.
Notable Orioles Fallers
Hudson Haskin, OF
Haskin's 2023 was filled with injuries, leading to just 33 games played and a significant drop in the rankings. Haskin was ranked 16th in MLB Pipeline's top 30 in 2023, but he enters 2024 down 10 spots to 26th.
Even though Haskin fell down 10 spots in the ranking, he still put together a decent season in his limited time on the field. In 23 games with Triple-A Norfolk, Haskin sustained an OPS of .831 and recorded 22 hits. The big struggle for Haskin was the strikeouts, recording 34 in just 82 at-bats.
Frederick Bencosme, SS
Bencosme was ranked 22nd in the last top 30 ranking, after a season where he hit over .300 at just 20 years old in 2022. 2023 was a different story for the young shortstop, leading to a fall in the rankings to 28th.
Bencosme struggled to adjust to High-A pitching, resulting in a .657 OPS in 114 games. This can be attributed to his lack of power, which produced just a pair of home runs and a slugging percentage of .319 on the season. Even with the lack of power, Bencosme has shown good plate discipline (55 walks) and is a major stolen base threat (28 steals) going forward.
Carter Baumler, RHP
We don't know much about Baumler due to the variety of injuries that he's sustained throughout his career. After he was drafted in 2020, he had to undergo Tommy John Surgery. Then last April, Baumler had to have shoulder surgery, limiting him to just 17 innings pitched in 2023.
These injuries ultimately moved Baumler down from 21st in the top 30 in 2023 to 29th going into 2024. Baumler has thrown just over 28 innings in his career, but has still shown some upside. He's pitched to a 2.51 ERA in those 28.2 innings, holding opponents to just a .167 average. Hopefully Baumler can put together a healthy season in 2024 and move back up the rankings.
Creed Willems, C
Willems fell quite a bit in the most recent rankings, moving from 20th to 30th, according to MLB Pipeline. I'd imagine a big reason for this is due to the volatility Willems has shown so far.
Willems started this season on a tear, recording an OPS over 1.000 and hitting eight home runs in 30 games at Delmarva. He was then promoted to High-A Aberdeen, where his production fell off of a cliff. He would go on to have an OPS under .600 in 75 games with the Iron Birds, but did still hit nine home runs. Willems will have to find some consistency if he wants to move back up the rankings.
Orioles' New Addition
Thomas Sosa, OF
Sosa is the only new prospect added to MLB Pipeline's top 30, coming in at 23rd for the Orioles. Sosa signed with the O's in 2022 and is just 19 years old.
In his second full season of rookie ball, Sosa took major leaps forward offensively. After an OPS under .600 in 2022, Sosa bounced back in 2023. He slashed .290/.385/.492 in 39 games played. It'll be interesting to see how Sosa continues to develop going forward, and to see how he adjusts to higher-level pitching.
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