This surging Orioles prospect is destined for the trade block

Just as the Baltimore Orioles saw Samuel Basallo graduate from prospect status, it appears they have another top catching prospect on their hands. Creed Willems was drafted out of high school in the 8th round of the 2021 draft, and for the past half-decade, he has been steadily progressing through the Orioles farm system. It hasn't been smooth sailing the entire way; there have been some typical rough adjustment periods as he's moved up from level to level. After spending the entirety of 2025 in Double-A putting up good but not eye-popping numbers, the Orioles decided to start him in Triple-A in 2026, and over the past few months in Norfolk, Willems has had a breakout that should put him on the radar to join the major league team sometime this season. That's where things get a little tricky for the Orioles.

Willems is a catcher, and the Orioles already carry two catchers on their roster whose talent demands that they both be in the lineup almost every day. Adding a third offense first catcher would be very difficult. Willems could also play first base, but the Orioles just signed Pete Alonso to a five-year contract to play first base, and he's currently got the second-longest games played streak in baseball, so it's not like there is a ton of opportunity to get playing time behind him.

Creed Willems is great but the Orioles just don't have room for his talents

Both of Willems' possible positions are firmly blocked up, not just for this season but for the foreseeable future as well. The earliest any real playing time could open up would be if the Orioles were to let Rutschman walk after the 2027 season, but that would be a long time for Willems to sit around in Triple-A as depth. Even then, Basallo and Alonso would both be the unquestioned first stringers at their positions.

Besides it being rude to make Willems wait multiple years in triple-A to get a real shot at some big league playing time, it's also a poor use of a valuable player. A catching prospect who can OPS in the .800s is something that a lot of teams would like to get their hands on, so just sitting on him while your roster has multiple holes on the pitching front would be irresponsible.

This would not be new to the Orioles, as they sat on Kyle Stowers, Coby Mayo, Heston Kjerstad, and Connor Norby when they were blocked until they'd lost almost all their trade value. One would hope that the way things turned out with those players would influence the Orioles to do things differently this time.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow