As the Orioles’ minor league affiliates get back into action following the All-Star break, let’s check in on the players on Camden Chat’s composite Top 20 prospects list from March. Which preseason prospects have delivered on the hype, and which have tailed off?
#1 – C Samuel Basallo
#2 – OF Dylan Beavers
Basallo MLB stats: .241/.305/.450, 110 OPS+, 16 HR in 86 games
Beavers MLB stats: .245/.329/.367, 96 OPS+, 2 HR in 46 games
Last season, Orioles GM Mike Elias purposefully held Basallo and Beavers in the minors for a few extra weeks so that
they would remain rookie-eligible this year, all part of a strategy to try to earn the O’s an extra PPI draft pick if either wins the AL Rookie of the Year Award. The gambit is almost certainly not going to pay off, not in a world where Kevin McGonigle exists. Still, Basallo has impressed in his rookie campaign, flashing a powerful, quick-as-lightning bat while playing better defense than expected behind the dish. Beavers has been much less of a factor, missing more than a month with a right oblique strain and struggling to find a groove at the plate. They’re no longer prospects, but both their major league journeys have just begun.
Prospect status: Graduated
#3 – OF Nate George
Minor league stats: .293/.372/.366, 1 HR, 15 SB in 20 games (High-A)
George was the high-octane, breakout O’s prospect of the 2025 season after posting an .896 OPS and 50 steals across three levels, so it’s a real bummer that we’ve barely gotten to see him this year. He played only 20 games and has since been on the shelf with what Elias described as “a medical condition that’s nothing to do with athletics or baseball.” There’s no timetable on his return.
Prospect status: In a holding pattern
#4 – OF Ike Irish
Minor league stats: .279/.383/.511, 15 HR, 19 SB in 74 games (High-A)
It had been a couple of years since the O’s got a breakout season from a first-round draft pick, but Irish, the 19th overall pick in 2025, seems to be ending that drought. He’s put up outstanding all-around numbers for Frederick in his first full pro season and could be in line for a Double-A promotion soon. But Irish, who was drafted as a catcher, seems to have abandoned that position. He hasn’t played a single inning behind the plate this season, playing 40 games in the outfield and 23 at first base.
Prospect status: Rising
#5 – RHP Trey Gibson
Minor league stats: 2-5, 3.43 ERA, 1.476 WHIP in 10 starts (Triple-A)
MLB stats: 1-3, 7.86 ERA, 1.909 WHIP in 8 games/7 starts
Gibson, the Orioles’ top-ranked pitching prospect entering 2026, always figured to make his MLB debut sometime this season, but pitching injuries forced the O’s to bring him to the majors perhaps earlier than they would’ve liked. He didn’t look ready at all, largely getting blasted by big league hitters, but he’s mostly been fine for Norfolk. Perhaps he’ll follow a similar path to Brandon Young, who got torched in his rookie season last year and is now one of the Orioles’ best pitchers.
Prospect status: Falling slightly
#6 – SS Wehiwa Aloy
Minor league stats: .293/.366/.485, 13 HR, 10 SB in 78 games (High-A)
The #31 pick from last year’s draft has formed a dynamic tandem with Ike Irish for the Keys, helping to lead the O’s High-A affiliate to a first-half division title. Aloy brings plenty of power and speed and a shiny .851 OPS, but he’s got an Achilles heel: he strikes out a ton. So far he has whiffed in 26.5% of his plate appearances. That’s an even higher K rate than Colton Cowser, the poster child for hapless strikeouts, had in his minor league career. So far it hasn’t held Aloy back, but he’ll need to make more contact at higher levels if he’s going to develop into a capable major league hitter.
Prospect status: Staying the course
#7 – OF Enrique Bradfield Jr.
Minor league stats: .256/.343/.344, 3 HR, 24 SB in 52 games (Triple-A/High-A/Low-A)
When the O’s made Bradfield their first round pick in 2023, they knew that his speed and defense were big league caliber, and they hoped the bat would follow. Three years later, they’re still waiting. A .661 OPS at Norfolk has done little to inspire confidence that Bradfield can be an everyday player in the bigs. Nobody’s expecting him to be a homer-hitting slugger, but so far he’s not even hitting doubles, with just five in 212 PAs this year. He’s still almost certain to play a major league role at some point, as a defensive specialist and pinch-runner at the very least, but he’s running out of time to prove he can be more than a bench guy.
Prospect status: Falling
#8 – RHP Esteban Mejia
Minor league stats: 0-5, 8.08 ERA, 2.220 WHIP in 15 starts (Low-A)
Yikes. I’ll try to cut Mejia some slack because he only turned 19 a month before the season began, but his performance at Delmarva has been an unmitigated disaster. His control problems, which had always been a bit of a concern for the hard-throwing righty, have reached an unplayable level. He’s issued 57 walks in 42.1 innings (12.1 BB/9), along with four HBPs and 18 wild pitches. Growing pains were to be expected for a guy who’s three years young for the level, but these have been particularly painful.
Prospect status: Plummeting
#9 – LHP Luis De León
Minor league stats: 4-6, 4.58 ERA, 1.420 WHIP in 18 starts (Double-A)
De León’s talent remains tantalizing — evidenced by his 11.0 K/9 this season, nearly matching his career 11.3 rate — but he’s never really had the results to match up with his high-90s lefty heat. As with many other O’s pitching prospects, walks are a problem; he’s averaging 4.9 free passes per nine. De León, at 23, still has time to develop, but he’s Rule 5 eligible after the season and the Orioles will have to make a decision about whether he’s worth protecting.
Prospect status: Falling slightly
#10 – LHP Boston Bateman
Minor league stats: 4-3, 4.10 ERA, 1.382 WHIP in 17 games/14 starts (High-A)
Bateman, the prize of last July’s Ryan O’Hearn/Ramon Laureano trade with the Padres, has been a bit erratic in his first full year in the organization. The 6-foot-8 lefty posted a brilliant 0.89 ERA in May but has a 5.48 mark in all other months. He’s striking out lots of batters (11.8 K/9) but also walking a lot (4.8 BB/9). He left his most recent start with left triceps tightness that hopefully isn’t a precursor to a more serious injury.
Prospect status: Staying the course
#11 – RHP Nestor German
Minor league stats: 5-3, 3.94 ERA, 1.248 WHIP in 19 games/17 starts (Triple-A)
If I’d posted this a month ago, I would’ve said that German hadn’t distinguished himself at Norfolk, but he has since rattled off a stretch of three brilliant outings in which he’s allowed just one run in 18 innings. While he doesn’t have the kind of eye-popping stuff that other O’s prospects do, he’s one of the few who hasn’t been tormented by walks. German is presenting himself as a viable option the next time the Orioles need to dip into the minors for a starter.
Prospect status: Rising
#12 – RHP Braxton Bragg
Minor league stats: N/A (injured)
A year ago, Bragg opened eyes with his 1.68 ERA and 11.7 K/9 rate before the dreaded elbow soreness sentenced him to Tommy John surgery at the end of July. He’s not expected to return to the mound until next season.
Prospect status: In a holding pattern
#13 – IF Aron Estrada
Minor league stats: .272/.312/.462, 14 HR in 78 games (Double-A)
Estrada has done nothing but hit for his entire professional career, so it was disappointing when he began this season in a deep freeze for Chesapeake, batting .213 with a .624 OPS in April. But he has since turned his season around, thanks to an .860 OPS in May and .883 in June, and putting up solid numbers as a 21-year-old in Double-A.
Prospect status: Staying the course
#14 – LHP Joseph Dzierwa
Minor league stats: 7-2, 2.39 ERA, 0.908 WHIP in 18 games/16 starts (High-A/Double-A)
It’s safe to say that Dzierwa will not be the Orioles’ #14 prospect the next time these lists are updated. No prospect has boosted his status more than the 22-year-old lefty, who has dominated opposing hitters at two stops in his first professional season. He doesn’t put runners on base, he doesn’t give up homers, and he has five strikeouts for every walk. He’s real good, you guys. Dzierwa should be on the fast-track for a promotion to Triple-A soon and, if all continues to go well, the Orioles by next year.
Prospect status: Skyrocketing
#15 – RHP Juaron Watts-Brown
Minor league stats: 2-7, 4.79 ERA, 1.241 WHIP in 16 starts (Double-A/High-A)
Watts-Brown hasn’t replicated the success he had last year after he joined the organization in the Seranthony Domínguez trade. His 2026 numbers are boosted by his three-start rehab stint at High-A, a level he’s already mastered, but for Double-A Chesapeake he has struggled to a 5.83 ERA. He’s still striking out a lot of batters (11.6 K/9), at least.
Prospect status: Falling
#16 – RHP Levi Wells
Minor league stats: 2-3, 4.50 ERA, 1.361 WHIP in 8 starts (Triple-A)
Wells is one of a trio of ranked starting pitching prospects who began the season in Norfolk’s rotation, but he’s fallen behind Gibson and German on the depth chart due to a hip injury he suffered in May. Wells underwent core-muscle surgery to correct the issue and it’s unclear when he’ll return. He’s Rule 5 eligible after the season.
Prospect status: Falling slightly
#17 – OF Jordan Sanchez
Minor league stats: .237/.307/.395, 6 HR in 49 games (Low-A)
The Cuban outfielder earned his prospect stock by tearing up opposing pitchers in short-season ball in 2024 and 2025, but his first year for a full-season affiliate has not gone well, with just a .701 OPS for the Shorebirds.
Prospect status: Falling
#18 – OF Thomas Sosa
Minor league stats: .227/.296/.402, 10 HR in 75 games (Double-A)
Sosa is a 21-year-old lefty swinger with intriguing power potential, but a .296 OBP — and 79 strikeouts to 25 walks — isn’t going to get him on the fast track to the majors anytime soon. As with other prospects, it’s important to remember his age. He’s younger than the average Double-A player by almost three years, so his development is by no means finished.
Prospect status: Falling
#19 – RHP JT Quinn
Minor league stats: 3-2, 4.12 ERA, 1.208 WHIP in 18 games/17 starts (High-A)
Quinn, like Joseph Dzierwa, was a second-round pick in last year’s draft, selected 11 picks later than the southpaw. And while he hasn’t broken out to the extent that Dzierwa has, Quinn is putting together a solid season for Frederick. The Athletic’s Keith Law praised his aggressiveness and his breaking-ball repertoire and pegged him as a possible mid-rotation starter.
Prospect status: Rising
#20 – RHP Anthony Nunez
Minor league stats: 0-1, 7.50 ERA, 1.667 WHIP in 5 games (Triple-A)
MLB stats: 2-2, 4.81 ERA, 1.271 WHIP, 3 SV in 35 games
Nunez, acquired in last year’s Cedric Mullins trade, was a surprise inclusion in the Orioles’ Opening Day bullpen and excelled early, pitching himself into a setup role. But the league starting catching up to him in late April and he was eventually demoted to lower-leverage roles and then to the minors. He’s back with the Birds for now but isn’t one of Craig Albernaz’s most trusted options. Relief pitching can be a fickle business.
Prospect status: Graduated
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Which prospects have most impressed you, Camden Chatters? And which have been the biggest disappointments? Let us know in the comments.
