Orioles' No. 5 prospect Ike Irish feeling the pull of the Arizona Fall League

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- When a top prospect gets hurt and misses extended time during the regular season, people hoping he can return to the field may take a look at the baseball calendar and hope he can make up for lost time in the Arizona Fall League.

But when Ike Irish tore his meniscus in late July, most assumed there wouldn’t be enough time for the left-handed hitter to be ready to compete in the desert. Not so.

“When the Fall League first came up, it was right after surgery, and for me, I kind of took the stance of ... I want to wait a little bit,” said Irish, who is indeed playing for the Peoria Javelinas this fall. “My knee recovered really well and recovered pretty fast, and so when I was running on it and rehabbing it, it felt really good and I felt confident in it. 

“As soon as I got confidence in it, it was a no-brainer. ... I want to play baseball. I'm watching games every night and I got the itch again and I was like, ‘If I'm healthy, I'd love to play.’”

MLB's No. 95 prospect especially wanted to get back to it because at the time of the injury, he was one of the most locked-in hitters in the Minor Leagues. The 2025 first-rounder out of Auburn was living up to his billing as one of the most advanced college bats in the class and his .361/.388/.754 line in 13 July games were pointing Irish toward a promotion to Double-A when the injury occurred.

“I hadn't caught a really hot streak in professional baseball yet like I had in college, and so for me, it stunk getting injured, but at the same time I was like, all right, I caught a hot streak, I can turn it on now. I just know in the back of my head that it's there and just continue to just try and get back to that spot,” he said.

Irish’s mode of operation at the plate is a little different, perhaps a little old school in today’s game of gripping, ripping, lifting and elevating to the pull side. He loves going the other way, with a majority of his 16 homers and 37 extra-base hits going to left field. It’s a lesson imparted to him as a kid growing up in Michigan, working with long-time Major League coach Bruce Fields, who was coached in high school by Irish’s grandfather. 

“He just had so much knowledge about the game and he ingrained it into me that going the other way is how you make money in this game and it's how you get a scholarship to college and it's how you stay in college and how you stay in the lineup,” Irish said. “And so from that point on, I just, in my head, going backside is what I like to do.”

Coaches at Auburn did nothing to dissuade him and he responded by hitting .350 with an OPS of 1.060 in three years, capping his college career off with a 1.179 OPS in 2025 ahead of the Draft.

“I mean, I like to pull baseballs, don't get me wrong, but naturally speaking, that's where I'm good and that's what I like to keep doing,” Irish said. “In college, our head coach hammered it home: Keep your strengths your strengths. That just makes so much sense. 

“The plate's what, 17 inches long? I feel like I can hit any ball that's 17 inches the other way on the plate. And then for me, it's just continuing my swing and continuing my timing to get to the pull side because that's really all it is. It's the same swing. It's just the contact point out front so I just want to keep my strengths my strengths.”

While there was some thought that Irish might be developed as a catcher -- he had spent time behind the plate in college and even saw a few games back there during his pro debut after signing -- he’s strictly an outfielder and first baseman now. He doesn’t look back at his time as a backstop longingly, and pointed to working on his reads and routes in the outfield as one of his priorities this fall.

“That was so, so easy,” Irish said of the decision to leave catching behind. “I think you have to play baseball with freedom, and I just never had really any freedom behind the plate. I moved out to the outfield and it just felt like I was playing the game of baseball free again, and I wouldn't trade that feeling for the world.”

Orioles hitters in the Fall League

Brandon Butterworth, INF/OF: Selected in the 12th round of the 2024 Draft by the Padres, Butterworth was dealt to the Orioles as part of the package sent by San Diego for Ramon Laureano and Ryan O’Hearn. He missed considerable time this year with a knee injury, though he did reach Triple-A for the first time. There’s some pop (15 homers) and speed (23 steals) and he’s capable of playing just about anywhere on the field.

Vance Honeycutt, OF: The Orioles’ first-rounder in 2024 out of North Carolina, Honeycutt has offered good outfield defense, power, speed … and a lot of strikeouts (40 percent K rate in his pro career). Something seemed to click with a move to Double-A late in the year (.997 OPS, 25 percent K rate in 20 games) and he’s using the Fall League to keep the good vibes going.

Miguel Rodriguez, C: The Orioles signed Rodriguez for $122,500 in January 2023 and the 20-year-old backstop spent most of the 2026 season with Single-A Delmarva after missing almost all of 2025 with a broken ankle. He has a good approach at the plate and a knack for contact, with more walks than strikeouts in his early career. He’s playing for Salt River as the Orioles answered the circuit's call for catching depth on other teams.

Orioles pitchers in the Fall League

Braxton Bragg, RHP (BAL No. 22): Bragg was a senior sign out of Dallas Baptist who received an under-slot $100,000 as an eighth-rounder in 2023. He pitched well in 2024, albeit as a 23-year-old at Single-A, but was off to a good start and quickly reached Double-A in 2025 until he needed Tommy John surgery at the end of July. His innings with Peoria this fall are his first post-surgery, and he has been showing a sinking fastball up to 95-96 mph and a solid changeup. 

Kailen Hamson, LHP: An Australia native, Hamson excelled as a senior starter at the University of the Cumberlands, an NAIA school in Kentucky, en route to being a money-saving eighth-round pick in 2025. He missed bats (9.6 K/9) as a 24-year-old reliever with Single-A Delmarva, but really struggled to find the zone (9.2 K/9). He relies on a low-90s fastball, a low-80s slider and an upper-80s cutter.

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Kiefer Lord, RHP: The O’s nabbed Lord in the third round of the 2023 Draft out of Washington because of his arm strength and feel for spin. They couldn’t get any return on the investment as he needed Tommy John surgery in 2024, not returning until late August the next year, so the 2026 season was really his first full year. He missed bats (14.3 K/9) but struggled with command (5.1 BB/9) across two levels of A ball, though a lat injury forced him from the mound again.

Patrick Reilly, RHP: Reilly came to the Orioles from the Pirates in return for Billy Cook at the 2024 Trade Deadline and was, at one point, in the team’s top 10. Tommy John surgery early in 2025 stopped his progress and he tumbled off the list as the O’s have added a lot of talent. He did make it back this year for 53 innings, and the stuff is still there, with a fastball up to 97 mph, a slider and a cutter. Command is the biggest hurdle he needs to clear.

Teddy Sharkey, RHP:  After recording 11 saves as Coastal Carolina’s closer in 2023, Sharkey went in the seventh round that July to the Orioles. Injuries have largely kept the right-handed reliever off the mound, with just 31 appearances since signing, 16 this past season. He’s yet to pitch above A ball, but the Fall League could prepare the 25-year old with a mid-90s fastball and an 86-87 mph slider for the upper levels.