Baltimore Orioles Top Prospect No. 14: Pedro Florimon Jr.

You have to go back a good long ways to find a guy who made as big a jump from nobody to somebody like Pedro Florimon Jr. did in 2009. For starters, the scrawny shortstop didn't even make the mentionable list in Baseball America's 2009 Prospect Handbook.

He also came into the season coming off a year in which he hit .223 with zero home runs, only 27 walks and nearly 100 strikeouts. And that doesn't even count his 21 errors in 81 games.

And yet, here he is, Pedro Florimon, one of the organization's breakout players of 2009, and Orioles top prospect No. 14.

Pedro Florimon Jr., SS, 22 years old

Florimon was one of the first Dominicans to hit the Orioles system running back in 2006. At 19, he got his first taste of pro ball at Bluefield, where he showcased the tools that made the Orioles go ga-ga for him. In 33 games, Florimon hit .333 for the Baby Birds. He excelled at everything, scoring 23 runs, driving in eight, stealing seven bases. He also tantalized the O's scouts, drawing 28 walks against his 29 strikeouts.

It was enough to earn him a mid-season promotion to Aberdeen, where he performed at a more subdued level, racking up a .248 average and seeing his strikeout numbers go up and his walks go down. In all, it was a very successful season for Florimon who would see the field at full-season Delmarva the next year as a 20-year old.

Florimon took on Delmarva in 2007...and things could not have gone more worse. Over the course of 111 games, he hit a beyond dismal .197. His on-base percentage was even troublesome, at .257. He struck out in just under one-third of his plate appearances. And to make matters worse, he committed a team high 36 errors at shortstop.

Needless to say, Florimon didn't budge, and repeated Low A again the next year in 2008. The results weren't much better (.223 average, 27 walks and 97 strikeouts), but they were an improvement over his 2007 numbers.

That brought Florimon to a crossroads in 2009. Was he the talented, slick-fielding shortstop who hit for a high-average and stole bases, or the strikeout prone, even more error-prone shortstop who looked lost at the plate and in the field?

Pedro Florimon Jr., SS, 22 years old

If 2007 and 2008 were considered supreme disappointments for Florimon, 2009 was the exact opposite. The Orioles bumped him up to Frederick, despite his struggles at Low-A, and hoped for the best. They got it.

Florimon got hot early and for the most part sustained his season long consistency to the tune of a full-season career high .267 average. His 32 doubles were a career high and the same number as the previous two years combined. His nine home runs more than doubled his career number. His 68 RBI and 76 runs scored also topped career marks. He still managed to use his speed to steal 15 bases.

Most important, Florimon went to work on his most troublesome issue: strikeouts. After striking out in 29 percent of his plate appearances in 2007 and a whopping 36 percent in 2008, Florimon brought that number back down to a more respectable 24.8 percent. More importantly, it was the first time since 2006 that his batting average was higher than his strikeout average.

Pedro Florimon Jr., SS, 22 years old

In fact, the Orioles were so impressed with Florimon that when his season ended they gave him the bump up to Bowie, where he's likely to start the 2010 season.

When the 2009 MLB draft rolled around, many scouts and experts cited the Orioles lack of depth at the shortstop position as a serious need to be addresses. Many tabbed USC's Grant Green as a likely addition. And, yet the Orioles instead went with pitcher Matt Hobgood. I can only hope that Florimon's productive 2009 season played into that.

In Florimon, the Orioles have a player of roughly the same age as Green, but one with more playing experience in pro ball. They also have a player who is a better fielder and has more raw potential to reach a higher ceiling. And if the power that Florimon showed this season is any indication (and 32 doubles and nine home runs is a good indicator) he could have more untapped power in his game.

Florimon is still going to have the best chance to succeed if he plays to his strengths. He has as much range as anyone in the system at the position and his arm strength is quite impressive, some say "major league ready." All he needs to do is smooth out his delivery a little, and get better at making the simple throws (i.e. improving his footwork).

His speed running the bases could be quite an asset too, though as his body fills out he could lose an extra step. He may even wind up as the future third baseman of the Orioles. But for right now, Florimon is the best in-house option that the Orioles have at shortstop.