Although the Orioles’ 2024 season didn’t turn out as planned, there are still a lot of advantages for the team going forward.

They expect the important players that graduated to remain a part of their young core for many years to come.

It’s normal for the farm system to suffer when you graduate the top baseball prospect and other key players; in fact,

that’s exactly what teams want as they rebuild.

Samuel Basallo, a highly-touted talent whose defensive future is questionable but whose power and contact skills are undeniable,

is the focal point of the Orioles’ current lineup.

Basallo is positioned to become the next great graduate, in the mould of Heston Kjerstad and Jackson Holliday.

Baltimore’s pipeline is still well-stocked despite the graduations, partly because of its incursions into Latin America,

which have strengthened organisational depth.

The Orioles need to improve their pitching situation,

and this depth may be key to obtaining pitching reinforcements through trades.

The Orioles will also be bolstered by bats like Coby Mayo, who will provide them even more offensive potency.

The O’s appear ready to build on their success this year and, ideally,

make a deeper postseason push the following season with this talent on the horizon.

     ABOUT OUR TOP 20 LISTS

Prospects Live is pleased to start releasing its yearly offseason system reports,

under the direction of Director of Scouting Rhys White and his evaluation staff.

The team puts together each organisation using input from the industry,

our live looks, footage, and accessible data.

We think that by making this effort, we are able to give you, the reader, the greatest picture we have of the organization’s possibilities.

The Overall Future Potential (OFP)

scale was utilised in the construction of this ranking.

Although there isn’t a perfect formula for valuing or evaluating prospects,

we think this strategy is the finest one available. This list of prospects has been ranked using the reliable 20-80 scouting scale.

The highest tool and OFP grade on the scale, an 80, is only given to players or tools that are MVP calibre.

A 20 is set aside, on the other hand, for non-prospects (NPs).

An OFP of 50 is in the centre, meaning that our assessors believe this guy will be an average major league player in the future.

The majority of players on each ranking are in the 45s and 40s, which are below the 50 OFP tier.

These players have specialised roles, including utility players and platoon hitters.

Apart from the tool grades and OFP, each potential will have a ‘Risk’ attached to it.

We use this to better express to you, the reader, whether a grade is more aggressive or conservative in character.

The assessment staff has put a lot of effort into applying the risk and grade components to better show how each prospect fits within their unique system and the larger baseball ecosystem.

The top 5 players in the system are listed below, along with a detailed report on the system’s top prospect.

As soon as they are released, the complete rankings and scouting reports for each of the top 20 prospects on each team will be accessible on our Patreon at the 55-tier ($5).

We plan to release more stuff on Patreon as well.

1. Samuel Basallo, C/1B

DOB: 8/13/2004, HT: 6-3, WT: 180, H/T: L/R, Acquired: 2021 IFA

Highest Level: AAA, ETA: 2025, Rule V: 2025

OFP: 60

Hit: 55, Power: 70, Field: 40, Throw: 60, Run: 40

Risk: High

Scouting Report: Basallo is a large, physically commanding player who possesses some discernible mass, particularly in his upper body.

He also has lengthy levers.

As he gets older and fills out, he has room to gain additional muscle, especially in his lower body.

His ability to play at the bat, where his offensive potential is most evident, is his most notable quality.

In his setup, Basallo uses a small leg kick. His hips and lower body produce a powerful rotational force that results in steady forceful contact.

He has the skill to manipulate barrels and change his bat path in response to pitches in all parts of the strike zone,

making him a potential 60-grade hitter when he reaches adulthood.

He occasionally passes up pitches that are on the edge, demonstrating discipline by not

His propensity to drive the ball out of the park as a middle-of-the-order hitter is suggested by his ability to hit for both contact and power.

Basallo is a catcher on defence right now, but his clumsy and stiff actions will probably make him lose his spot behind the plate in the pros.

He’s not as fluid as a big-league backstop should be. It’s more likely that he’ll move to first base, where his bat would dominate.

He might go to a corner outfield position given his strong arm.

Basallo might produce 80–90% of Yordan Alvarez’s attacking output, which is still not quite on the same level.

At that point, his defensive home will not be very important.

His worth will be mostly connected to

Fantasy Spin: Ask me about the ‘pants’ tale if you don’t think Samuel Basallo takes baseball seriously.

Basallo has demonstrated that he is an excellent hitter with his remarkable rise through the minor league ranks and prospect status.

He is calm,

methodical,

and analytical,

and he routinely makes solid,

significant contact while stealing a few bases thanks to his high game awareness and basepath acumen.

As a ball player, Basallo passes the “eye test” with flying colours.

Beyond our limited human comprehension, however,

PLive+ also thinks highly of Basallo, giving him the second-best PL+ score of any player in 2024 with a score of 163.

He is projected to have a slash line of.294/.362/.510 with 26 home runs and 9 stolen bases,

while also averaging 19% strikeout and 9% walk rates over the course of his career.

Though his position has never really mattered with Basallo—he’s the kind of player you build around,

not an auxiliary component you mix and match—we will probably lose him from the catchers.

In the meanwhile, Basallo is a consensus top-five prospect in the game and, more importantly, a

2. Coby Mayo, 3B

3. Enrique Bradfield, OF

4. Vance Honeycutt, OF

5.Dylan Beavers, OF