This week's top O's Minor League performers

July 25th, 2021

With the Orioles' Minor League system now ranked the fifth-best in baseball by MLB Pipeline, it's time to pay attention.

All summer at orioles.com, we’ll be keeping tabs on the top performers from each rung of the Minor League ladder with weekly Sunday roundups. Think of it as a way to track the rebuilding process in real time.

Here are the O’s top Minor League performers, plus some additional news items, from the past week (all stats as of Sunday morning).

NOTABLE PROMOTIONS/TRANSACTIONS
No. 13 prospect OF Hudson Haskin promoted from Low-A Delmarva to High-A Aberdeen
No. 17 prospect LHP Alexander Wells from Triple-A Norfolk to Majors
• OF Ryan McKenna from Triple-A Norfolk to Majors
• OF Robert Neustrom from Double-A Bowie to Triple-A Norfolk
• OF Zach Watson from High-A Aberdeen to Bowie
• OF Craig Lewis from Aberdeen to Bowie
• RHP Ryan Conroy from Aberdeen to Bowie
• RHP Ignacio Feliz from Low-A Delmarva to Aberdeen
• RHP Zach Peek from Delmarva to Aberdeen
• RHP Ryan Watson from Delmarva to Aberdeen

Triple-A Norfolk

Pitcher: RHP Konner Wade
Prospect ranking: Unranked

It’s been a rough go on the pitching side for the Tides this month, but right-hander Wade continues to produce consistently. Wade took a hard-luck loss despite logging six innings of one-run ball in the Tides’ 2-1 loss to Gwinnett in Game 1 of Wednesday's doubleheader, striking out three against one walk. Wade is 2-1 with a 2.78 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 45 1/3 innings this season for Norfolk overall.

Position Player: SS Mason McCoy
Prospect ranking: Unranked

McCoy reached base in five of six games this week, going 7-for-17 with three doubles at the plate during that stretch. He leads the Tides with 13 doubles and four triples on the season, hitting .223 with a .638 OPS in 61 games overall.

Double-A Bowie

Pitcher: RHP Kyle Brnovich
Prospect ranking: Unranked

One of the four righties acquired in the 2019 Dylan Bundy trade, Brnovich earned a promotion to Double-A Bowie after eight solid starts at Aberdeen. He struggled in his first two outings for the Baysox, but strung together 10 consecutive scoreless innings in his past two. The last was a five-inning, 10-strikeout gem against Hartford on July 22. The 23-year old has a 2.45 ERA in five games (four starts) at Bowie overall.

Also worth noting: No. 7 O’s prospect Mike Baumann enjoyed his best start of the season on Friday night, blanking Hartford for six innings with seven strikeouts. Slowed by an elbow injury earlier in the year, Baumann is 3-0 with a 2.05 ERA this month at Bowie.

Position Player: C Adley Rutschman
Prospect ranking: No. 2 overall, club No. 1

Rutschman continues to rake at Bowie, hitting .297/.395/.649 with three home runs and 24 total bases over the past 10 days. He homered from both sides of the plate and drove in seven runs on Wednesday against Hartford, also doubling and walking en route to 10 total bases. Rutschman is hitting .280/.405/.520 with 15 home runs and a .926 OPS in 67 games overall, and leads all Orioles Minor Leaguers in homers.

High-A Aberdeen

Pitcher: RHP Garrett Stallings
Prospect ranking: No. 26 club

Acquired from the Angels for José Iglesias last winter, Stallings is putting together a serviceable first season in pro ball, going 7-3 with a 4.09 ERA and a 59-8 strikeout to walk ratio in 14 games (13 starts) for Aberdeen. He logged five shutout innings on Friday against Hudson Valley in the IronBirds' top pitching performance of the week.

Position Player: SS Gunnar Henderson
Prospect ranking: No. 5 club, No. 90 overall

Henderson is becoming a regular presence in this roundup. The 20-year-old is in the midst of his best stretch since being promoted to Aberdeen in late June, hitting .342/.422/.474 with four extra-base hits over his past 10 games. He’s also stolen four bases, after swiping five in 35 games at Delmarva.

Low-A Delmarva

Pitcher: RHP Noah Denoyer
Prospect ranking: Unranked

Denoyer is a 23-year-old right-hander who has become the Shorebirds' most dependable starter, leading Delmarva in wins (five), innings (53 1/3) and quality starts. Denoyer held Lynchburg to one run over six innings on Thursday night, striking out five without a walk. He owns a 0.86 ERA and 0.90 WHIP in four starts this month.

Position Player: OF Lamar Sparks
Prospect ranking: Unranked

Sparks is one of the most athletic players in the Orioles' system, a free-ranging outfielder who hasn’t played much due to the pandemic. He’s getting his first run at Delmarva these days and playing well, going 11-for-28 (.393) with two doubles and a home run over his past eight games. He leads off for the Shorebirds most nights.

Worth mentioning
Slowed by a knee issue until late June, No. 14 prospect Coby Mayo is heating up in the Florida Complex League. Mayo hit his first professional homer on July 22 against Bradenton, and followed that up with his first multi-homer game on July 23, driving in five. Mayo, 19, was the O’s fourth-round Draft pick in 2020. He is known for his 60-grade power.