The Best From the Nest: The 2010 Orioles Minor League All-Star Team

For as little wealth as the Orioles offered at the big league level this season, they made up for it with a plethora of minor league stars, and since these are the guys who are going to help lead the O's out of the AL East basement, it's time to get to know the baby Birds.

This All-Star team is full of all sorts of players: early and late-round picks, can't miss guys and total shots in the dark, as well as the young and the old.

Without further ado, I give you the 2010 Orioles Minor League All-Star team.

Catcher: Caleb Joseph, Bowie

It's hard to imagine being the best catching prospect in a system in a year that you hit .235 and notched an on-base percentage barely over .300, but that's what Joseph did, and thanks to Baltimore's empty cupboard at the position, Joseph is clearly the best the O's have to offer.

The season wasn't a total fail for the 24-year-old backstop. He did swat 11 home runs, one off of his career mark set last year, and he drove in 51 runs, good for fifth on the team. He managed to draw nearly 10 more walks in roughly the same number of at-bats, and cut down on his strikeouts (albeit only by one). 

His average did suffer a significant drop (from .284 in 2009 to .235) but considering all the other skills Joseph offers, I'm sure the O's would consider that a fair trade-off.

And by other skills, I'm referring to his excellent arm, technique from behind the plate and ability to work with the entire pitching staff, and squeeze results out of them. After getting to catch the organizations finest star last year (Brian Matusz), Joseph helped this year's top arm, Zach Britton, to an excellent season, as well as helping manage a bounce-back year from Chorye Spoone, as well as fantastic campaigns for bullpen guys Pedro Beato, Pat Egan, and Jose Diaz.

There is no obstacle in Joseph's path, so he should get the bump to Triple-A next season, and the O's are already trying to gauge his talent by sending him to this Arizona Fall League this year. There's a good chance he could see a big-league call-up late next season.

First Base: Joe Mahoney, Frederick/Bowie

Mahoney had a good case for the best season by a first baseman, even before his promotion to Double-A Bowie.

Then the hulking masher spent 52 glorious games at Bowie, and turned himself into a legit prospect. For the season, Mahoney hit .307, including .319 at Double-A. His 18 home runs were tied for fourth in the system, and his 78 RBI topped his career high by nearly 20. 

Mahoney shouldn't have been a total surprise, after all, he set career records for home runs and RBI at Richmond, but it took him a few years to make the transition to hitting with wood bats, but now that he has, it looks like the sky is the limit.

In addition to his nearly .500 slugging percentage, Mahoney flashed some serious speed for a big guy. He finished with 13 swipes in 17 attempts, which is nothing compared to his 29 steals last season, but the O's would be happy if he could just continue to harness his plus-plus raw power.

Second Base: Ryan Adams, Bowie

Joining Caleb Joseph in the Arizona Fall League will be Ryan Adams, who had one of the best seasons of any Oriole infielder in quite some time.

Adams finished the season on a tear, rapping 43 doubles, hitting 15 home runs and driving in nearly 70 runs, all while maintaining an average around .300. Adams had a chance at 50 doubles, something unheard of for a single season, but he could only muster one two-bagger in his last 10 games. 

Still, 43 doubles in one year is impressive, especially for a 23-year-old in his first Double-A season. 

The one knock on Adams has always been his defense, and while his 25 errors this year, mostly at second-base, are quite appalling, he has made some significant progress. And as a former third-baseman he has plenty of arm. His defense will take some fine-tuning, but even as an average defender, he could be Brian Roberts-lite.

Adams should also make the jump to Triple-A next season, helping form a nucleus that should improve the Norfolk club greatly, while challenging for a bit part next September.

Shortstop: Robert Andino, Norfolk

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SARASOTA, FL - FEBRUARY 27: Robert Andino #12 of the Baltimore Orioles poses for a photo during Spring Training Media Photo Day at Ed Smith Stadium on February 27, 2010 in Sarasota, Florida. (Photo by Nick Laham/Getty Images)

Andino may be one of the biggest beneficiaries of the Buck Showalter regime in Baltimore.

Word has it that Buck has been quite enamored with Andino's play this season, as well as his ability to play multiple positions. Truth be told, the 26-year-old could be looking to lock up one of the team's bench spots as early as the end of this season.

And with the season he had for Triple-A Norfolk, Andino has certainly put his best foot forward. His .264 average wasn't awe-inspiring, but his 13 home runs and 76 RBI were, especially for a guy who is more of a slap hitter with some decent speed. He swiped 16 bases for Norfolk, but wowed the club with his power and ability to drive in runs. Andino actually led the squad in RBI, not to mention base hits, doubles, triples and runs scored.

His minor league success hasn't necessarily translated to the big leagues, but he got off to a pretty good start during his most recent call-up, and if he finishes strong this year, Andino could end up filling the shortstop role next year if Cesar Izturis heads out of town.

Third Base: Joel Guzman, Bowie

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LAKELAND, FL - MARCH 05: Pitcher Joel Guzman #56 of the Wshington Nationals watches the action during a spring training game against the Detroit Tigers at Joker Marchant Stadium on March 5, 2009 in Lakeland, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images

Guzman is pretty much the easiest selection for this team, after crushing 33 homers, driving in nearly 100 runs, and maintaining a .279 average.

Once upon a time, Guzman was a top prospect in the Dodgers system, and while his shine has diminished a bit over the past few years, Baltimore seems like the perfect organization for him. He has serious power, and the O's lack that seriously.

Unfortunately, that might not be enough to keep the 25-year-old wearing orange and black. The O's have Josh Bell penciled in as their starting third-baseman for 2011, and will have to figure out what to do with fellow third-basemen Brandon Waring, Scott Moore, not to mention former first-round pick Billy Rowell.

Outfield: Ronnie Welty, Frederick

Long compared to Houston's Hunter Pence, Ronnie Welty is finally starting to produce at a level comparable to the big leaguer.

And if Joe Mahoney wins the award for most surprising, then Welty takes home the hardware for most consistent. During his breakout year, the 22-year-old Welty drove in at least 10 runs every month, finishing the season with a career high 82.

He hit at least three home runs in four of the five months that he played more than six games in, and also set a career mark in long-balls with 18. His average each month never dipped below .253, and surprising, despite his awful 159 strikeouts, he was able to maintain a .279 average for the season.

Welty was solid all-around, playing great defense (only five errors), showing some pop (32 doubles in addition to his 18 homers), and showing good speed on the bases (11-for-15 on steals).

If Welty can cut down on his strikeouts, he is athletic enough with a quick enough bat to be a big league regular.

Outfield: Xavier Avery, Frederick/Bowie

While Avery's numbers haven't blown anyone away, when you take into account that he's still only 20-years-old (one year younger than Billy Rowell), he's one of the best performers for his age.

He's already succeeded in making it all the way to Double-A in just his second full professional season. Meanwhile, Rowell just finished up his third season at Frederick, and somehow Avery still put up the better numbers.

Numbers in the form of a .271 average, 31 doubles, six triples, seven homers, 66 RBI, and 38 steals.

Avery was considered a very raw prospect heading into his first full season in 2009, and the O's even considered sending him back to short-season ball to get more experience, but decided to toss him to the wolves. Fortunately, Avery thrived, and despite his limited experience, and very raw plate discipline (130 strikeouts in 554 at-bats), he's already on the very of hitting Triple-A before his 22nd birthday.

Avery has now put together back-to-back 30-plus steal campaigns, and there's little doubt he could do the same in the Majors, but the real key for Avery will be to get on-base on a consistent basis. If he can do that, he could be a major top-of-the-order threat.

Outfield: Brian Conley, Delmarva/Frederick

It's pretty easy to single out Avery and Welty as the top outfielders in the system. Identifying a third candidate is a bit more tricky, but in honor of local guys everywhere, I'm going to choose a candidate who is more than worthy, Delmarva's Brian Conley.

Conley started the season on a major tear, getting on-base at a ridiculous pace, and keeping himself in the top 10 in OBP for the majority of the season. Before a late-season promotion to Frederick, Conley was hitting .270 with 16 doubles, five triples, six homers, 29 RBI, 52 runs scored, and 20 steals.

And his most impressive number was his 70 walks in 98 games, exactly the same as his number of strikeouts.

He didn't excel quite as much upon his promotion, but he continued to show his ability as an overall solid player, who plays the game hard.

Conley is a local product, from Towson, Maryland, where he played his college ball, so if the O's could squeeze some good years out of the 24-year-old, it could make for a great success story. Unfortunately, Conley is already 24-years-old, and next season will be his first above Low-A ball.

Starting Pitcher: Zach Britton, Bowie/Norfolk

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ANAHEIM, CA - JULY 11: U.S. Futures All-Star Zach Britton #12 of the Baltimore Orioles throws a pitch during the 2010 XM All-Star Futures Game at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on July 11, 2010 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)

There's no denying that Britton was by far the best pitching prospect the organization had to offer in 2010. In fact, he was consistently rated as one of baseball's top prospects by Baseball America and ESPN's Keith Law and Jason Grey.

A couple of things are responsible for Britton's meteoric rise. First, is his improved velocity. Britton used to throw his fastball in the low 90s, but over the past year, he has cranked it up into the mid 90s, and he topped out at around 96mph at the Future's Game, where he pitched a scoreless inning.

Second, is Britton's developing changeup, which he learned from fellow super-prospect Brian Matusz last season. Matusz is considered a master of the changeup, and he showed Britton a new grip for it, which has given him another plus pitch to combine with his plus slider.

Even with his improved changeup and his deadly slider, Britton's bread-and-butter is still his sinker. He consistently had one of the best groundball rates in all of the minors, and in Double-A, he was nearly unhittable, holding batters to a .231 mark.

He was stingy with the long-ball all-season long, surrendering only seven all year, and he managed to keep his walk-rate at a respectable number, while striking out 124 batters in 153.1 innings, a new career high.

This year, for the first time, Britton even had a decent win-loss record (10-7) to go with his combined 2.70 ERA.

After a solid showing in 12 Triple-A starts (3-4 2.98 ERA 56-to-23 K-BB) Britton should get a shot to crack the O's starting rotation in spring training.

Starting Pitcher: Richard Zagone, Frederick/Bowie

Back at Missouri, Zagone was known as a crafty lefty. And while he had success during his first stint in the minors, most assumed he would eventually hit that brick wall that separates career minor leaguers from future big leaguers.

Well, it's been three years now, and Zagone is still looking pretty good.

The 23-year-old left-hander began the season with Frederick, where he pitched nearly as well as Britton, posting a 5-6 record with a 3.20 ERA in 15 starts. Not necessarily known as a strikeout pitcher, Zagone struck out 54 in 78.2 innings.

From there, Zagone moved on to Bowie, where he pitched decently, but not as well as with Frederick. 

His 5-5 record was enough to make him one of three Oriole farm-hands to post 10 wins. His ERA took a hit at Bowie, but he still finished the season with a decent 3.77 number. And even though it's hard to believe, Zagone pitched more innings (155.1) than Britton or any other minor leaguer in the system.

While Zagone won't blow anyone away with his high 80s velocity or dazzle them with his slightly above-average secondary pitches, he still may be able to carve out a niche in the organization. Especially if he continues to perform well above his skill level.

Starting Pitcher: Chorye Spoone, Bowie

Granted, Spoone didn't have the most electric season, but the fact that he was able to make it back to the mound after missing nearly two years due to arm troubles more than earns him a spot on this list.

Granted, Spoone didn't pitch terrible in his return either. He salvaged what looked like a terrible season when his ERA sat well above 5.00 back in May. He strung together two solid months and sandwiched them around a terrific June in which he looked like the old Spoone.

On the season, he finished with a 7-6 record, a 4.02 ERA and 88 strikeouts in 132.0 innings. True to his erratic form, he also posted 79 walks, one of the worst numbers in the minors. But for a guy returning from serious arm injury, we'll give him a pass.

More importantly, Spoone made it through the 2010 season healthy, for the most part. He was able to make at least three starts every month, including six in both May and June, and his 132 innings are just 20 off his career number of 152, set in his breakout 2007 season.

Nobody knows if Spoone will make good on the promise he showed in 2007, when he emerged as one of the Orioles best pitching prospects, but a strong, healthy, respectable 2010 season at least puts him back on the map.

Starting Pitcher: Oliver Drake, Frederick

Drake had a very up-and-down season, but when he was on his game, he was fantastic.

His August 13th game against Winston-Salem was a perfect example. He gave up two home runs and allowed three runs, but managed to gut his way through seven innings, striking out 11 while walking only one batter. He didn't get the win, but he kept the Keys in the game, and he didn't pick up the loss.

On the season, Drake's numbers look pretty average. He went 6-6 and posted a 4.36 ERA. He gave up a pretty awful 19 homers in 128 innings, but he had a 100-to-37 strikeout-to-walk number.

During June and August, Drake was particularly good, pitching well over 35 innings in each month, while posting at least 29 strikeouts. 

Unfortunately, Drake's season came to an abrupt, atrocious end, when he lasted only two-thirds of an inning in Frederick's wild game one win in their first playoff game since 2007. Drake surrendered only three hits, but was shelled for eight runs, and somehow managed to walk eight batters, while retiring only two.

Drake should get the bump up to Bowie next season.

Starting Pitcher: Robert Bundy, Delmarva

Bundy wasn't a highly touted pick in the eighth-round back in 2008, but ask the organization, and they'll tell you that they viewed Bundy as high as a third-rounder, and at one point even considered him a first-round talent.

Bundy is only 20-years-old, and as such, you would have to agree that his first full-season went pretty well. He made 18 starts, pitched in 10 other games in relief, and posted some solid numbers. His 4-6 record wasn't really a good gauge of the kind of season he had. He posted a 3.65 ERA, but if you get rid of his first month (six games, eight earned runs), he posted a number closer to 3.20 as a starter.

He struck out 91 batters in 116 innings, doing a good job to show that he isn't just a strikeout pitcher. He held batters to a .238 average and on August 16th pitched a complete game, five-hitter in which he struck out five and walked none, symbolic of the kind of all-around pitcher he is becoming.

The O's might do well to consider another method of keeping Bundy's innings down, as he struggled mightily as a reliever this year. Perhaps they could just shut him down come August of next season, when he will more than likely be a member of the Frederick Keys rotation.

Relief Pitcher: Pedro Beato, Bowie

If last year was the year of Eddie Gamboa, then the 2010 campaign should be celebrated in honor of Pedro Beato.

The converted starting pitcher, who was a highly touted supplemental pick back in 2006, Beato has taken quite well to pitching out of the pen. His 2.11 ERA was one of the best combined ERAs of any reliever in the system, and his 50-to-19 K-BB number was quite impressive.

And he became even more valuable to the franchise when the allowed him to take over closing duties full-time. He posted 16 saves for the Baysox, and didn't manage to blow one that would have led to a loss. 

His win-loss record was spotless at 4-0 and he only surrendered four homers all season, while holding opposing batters to a .225 average.

Beato has the size (6-6 and 230 pounds) and the repertoire befitting a late-inning reliever, and the O's would be wise to keep an eye on him for next season.

Relief Pitcher: Brandon Cooney, Frederick/Bowie

Domination, the name is Brandon Cooney.

No pitcher got off to a more dominating start in 2010 than Cooney, who began the year with a 0.55 ERA, a 2-0 record, six saves and 19 strikeouts in just 16 innings for Frederick.

That dominating stretch, combined with his stellar 2009 campaign, allowed the O's the luxury to bump him up to Bowie, where after a lengthy adjustment period, Cooney came to dominate as well. 

The big right-hander used a fantastic 10-game stretch at the end of the year, during which he allowed only one run and struck out 13 in 12 innings, to finish with a respectable 3-2, 3.40 line during his 35 games in Double-A.

He posted solid strikeout numbers, but his walk rate inflated and cost him at least a run on his ERA.

To me, and many others, Cooney is still the O's closer of the future, although Beato is bearing down on him fast.

Relief Pitcher: Brett Jacobson, Frederick

Jacobson was the catch the O's nabbed in the Aubrey Huff to Detroit trade last season, and it looks like the O's are going to end up getting the better end of the deal on that one.

All Jacobson did this year was post a 8-1 record, a 2.79 ERA, and 67 strikeouts in 71 innings. Twice he pitched a whole month with an ERA under 1.51, and he managed to keep his walk total to a respectable 24.

Like Beato and Cooney, Jacobson features prototypical size for a late-inning reliever, and all three should arrive around the same time in Baltimore, giving the O's one of the biggest, heaviest, most intimidating bullpens in the Majors.

Relief Pitcher: Armando Gabino, Norfolk

Gabino is one of many players who exploded onto the scene this year. He's already 27-years-old and hasn't been able to establish any sort of success at the big-league level, but he put on a show at Triple-A Norfolk this season.

Pitching mostly out of the pen or occasionally as an emergency starter, Gabino posted a 7-0 record, a 2.45 ERA and 77 strikeouts in 88 innings.

He was at his best pitching in long-relief, and especially during the months of May and July. In seven May outings, he pitched to a 1.61 ERA, striking out 24 batters in 22 innings. In July, he was even better, posting a 3-0 record, a 1.23 ERA, one save, and 19 strikeouts (to only four walks) in 22 innings.

Gabino finally got the call to Baltimore in August, and got shelled, although he could be in consideration for a bullpen spot in spring training. He will almost certainly get an invite.

Relief Pitcher: Jose Diaz, Frederick/Bowie

Talk about a guy you wouldn't want to encounter in a dark alley...or at a hot dog stand.

Jose Diaz stand six-foot-four and weighs in at an astonishing 300 pounds. In fact, the local Frederick paper checked him as closer to 325 pounds.

Whatever, the weight, Diaz was virtually unhittable in his first season with the O's. His 1.92 ERA topped all relievers, and his 4-0 record and 16 saves made him one of the most valuable pitchers in the system. His 58 strikeouts in 51.2 innings didn't hurt either.

I'm not quite sure about what kind of future Diaz has with the O's. He is already 26-years-old, and he's well over 300 pounds, so you have to worry about his body breaking down (a la Sidney Ponson or Chris Britton), but I have a feeling the O's will hold onto him as long as he keeps pitching like he did in 2010.