Orioles Quarter Season Report Card

We are a little over a quarter through the season, so I decided to give a report card to our 2023 Baltimore Orioles starting lineup. I'm not grading players who don't typically start, i.e. Terrin Vavra. Also not grading Ramon Urias as he has been injured a bit this season. 

Catcher: Adley Rutschman

Starting off with, in my opinion, the best player on the team. I don't think many will disagree with that. However, I will still add some stats to back it up. Adley's slashing .271/.400/.435 which gives him an OPS of .835, pretty good, What's amazing about him is the walks. He leads the league in walks with 38 and he has more walks than strikeouts. Plus he is a very good defensive catcher. He will be getting MVP votes this year.

Grade: A+

First Base: Ryan Mountcastle

Ryan has been a bit streaky this year. He has 10 HR and 34 RBI... which is good! But he has an OBP of .267 with 48 strikeouts and 8 walks, which is bad. If he can figure it out, he will be a solid contributor, but he just needs to do that still.

Grade: B-

Second Base: Adam Frazier

A lot of Orioles fans were angry with the signing of Adam Frazier, which is understandable since he is not flashy whatsoever. While he hasn't been amazing, he has been a very solid player this season. His stats don't blow you away, but they are all pretty good. He is also very reliable on defense with only 2 errors all season and helping to turn 26 double plays.

Grade: B

Shortstop: Jorge Mateo

If you asked me a month ago, I would have told you that Jorge Mateo should be the team's MVP, but he has slowly cooled down from his hot start. When he gets on base, he is incredible. He's stolen 14 bases this season and has really made life hard for pitchers. The problem is, his OBP is only .286, which is not ideal. He does play pretty good defense, but I feel like the Jorge Mateo story in Baltimore may be coming to an end pretty soon.

Grade: C+

Third Base: Gunnar Henderson

This is the inverse of Jorge Mateo. He started off terribly, just very bad both offensively and defensively. However, he has started to pick it up in the past few series, including a home run off Gerrit Cole last night. I have hope for Gunnar Henderson, despite his poor batting average (.192) he is still getting on base at a respectable rate (.331) which is promising. He is another one on the team that needs to cut back on the strikeouts as he has almost reached fifty strikeouts this season.

Grade: C+

Left Field: Austin Hays

This is my vote for the most improved Oriole this season. He is batting .311 with an OPS of .853, which is a great improvement from last year where his numbers were .250 and .719. He has really changed his approach and has become a solid hitter. He also plays a pretty solid left field. 

Grade: A

Center Field: Cedric Mullins

While Adley may be the face of the team, I will always love Mullins for being the shining light in the darkness that was the rebuilding Orioles. This year Cedric has continued to show everyone why he is one of the best centerfielders in baseball. He has been on fire recently, hitting a home run last night and hitting for the cycle against the Pirates. He has 7 homers, 38 RBI, and an OPS of .876 which is first among starters. He also has numerous web gems this year.

Grade: A+

Right Field: Anthony Santander

Here is another player that started the season off slowly, but has come around recently. He found his power swing for 8 home runs this year, including a mammoth grand slam against the Braves earlier this month. He is on pace for another solid year.

Grade: A-

Starting Rotation

This is probably the weakest part of the team. Although starters have been better recently, overall they have been shaky at best. Tyler Wells has been really good, Kyle Gibson has been solid, Dean Kremer has been very good as of late, Bradish has been unreliable, and Grayson Rodriguez has been less than advertised. Now I don't want to completely bash the guys as they have all been very good at times, they just need to find their consistency. This is especially true for Grayson Rodriguez who, at times, has looked like an ace and has also looked like a guy throwing BP. Also, it cannot be understated how good Tyler Wells has been. He has an ERA under 3 and a WHIP under 1. He has easily been the team's best pitcher.

Grade: B 

Bullpen

I saved the best for last. Similarly to the 2014 team, the bullpen has been the strength of this team. Felix Bautista has continued his dominance from last season despite his splitter not looking as good as it did at times. Danny Coloumbe has been a great pickup. Baker and Baumann have both been good. Hell, Austin Voth has even started to pick it up again. But, the true star has been Yennier Cano. He has let up 1 run, 7 hits, and 0 walks this season!!! What?! He has been incredible. Also, the K-pose is amazing

Grade: A+

 

This team has been a delight to watch and I cannot wait as the playoff and division race heats up this summer. Gonna be a fun one!

Overall Team Grade: A+ 

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