One of the offseason’s biggest questions has been answered.
Who will be the first Orioles infield prospect called up to the majors in 2023? Answer: Joey Ortiz.
The Orioles on Thursday morning promoted Ortiz, the club’s No. 7 prospect according to Baseball America, and optioned utilityman Terrin Vavra to Triple-A Norfolk. Ortiz was at a mall with Norfolk teammates Wednesday when Tides manager Buck Britton called him to say he was heading to the majors. The next day, he was in the lineup for the Orioles’ series opener against the Detroit Tigers, batting ninth against left-hander Joey Wentz and playing second base. He said his girlfriend and parents will be in attendance at Comerica Park.
Ortiz, the Orioles’ fourth-round draft pick in 2019, began the season as one of three prominent infield prospects in Norfolk alongside Jordan Westburg and Connor Norby, ranked Nos. 5 and 6, respectively, in Baltimore’s top-ranked farm system. All three were ranked in Baseball America’s offseason top 100 list. But Ortiz was the only one on Baltimore’s 40-man roster, and so as the Orioles sought to add another right-handed bat before a four-game series that will see them face left-handed starters in the first three games, Ortiz was the choice.
“I feel like the competition’s important because we make each other better,” Ortiz said. “It’s definitely fun to compete with each other, but I feel like we always want each other to play well. Luckily, I got the call.”
Ortiz, who turns 25 in July, is the oldest among the organization’s stockpile of infield prospects, and he’s also considered the best defensively. While 189 of his 232 starts in the minors have come at shortstop, Ortiz can also play second and third base. In February, Orioles executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias called Ortiz a “defensive wizard kind of shortstop.”
“He’s got a chance to be a special defender,” Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said Thursday. “The way his hands work, the way his feet work, how he can play defense with an amazing amount of confidence, that’s exciting, and he’s got a big-time range. It’s fun to watch him, the way he’s come along the last couple of years, and we’re excited to watch him.”
In 16 games with the Tides this season, Ortiz hit .359 with five doubles, two triples and eight RBIs. Vavra was hitting .231 in his limited time and played four positions as the Orioles’ utilityman.
With the Orioles set to face three left-handed starting pitchers over the next three days in Detroit, Ortiz gives them another right-handed option rather than the left-handed Vavra. He also provides insurance behind infielders Jorge Mateo, who has dealt with hip discomfort, and Gunnar Henderson, who reopened scrapes on his right throwing hand in Wednesday’s win over the Boston Red Sox but stayed in the game. Hyde said the hand was “fine,” though Henderson, a left-handed hitter, was not in Thursday’s lineup against Wentz.
Sending down Vavra, who made seven of his eight starts in the outfield with one at designated hitter, is also a sign of the Orioles’ belief outfielder Austin Hays will return soon from a bruised right middle finger suffered on a bunt attempt Tuesday. Hays said he’s available to run but remains a couple of days away from being able to grip a bat.
“Terrin will be back,” Hyde said. “Vav does cover us in a lot of spots. … He just didn’t get the at-bats, and as much as I don’t want to lose him, I think it’s important he goes down and gets some consistent at-bats here for a little while because he’s not an older veteran player. You want to see guys not just get stale on the bench up here. But we think really highly of him, and I loved his approach.”
Ortiz’s glove is his best tool, but he improved at the plate in 2022 after a midseason adjustment to his hand placement. After hitting .241 with an anemic .267 slugging percentage in Aberdeen in 2019, Ortiz broke out offensively in 2021 with an .801 OPS between High-A and Double-A. But a torn labrum ended his campaign, and the start to his 2022 season was rocky as he returned from surgery.
In Bowie, Ortiz was hitting .206 with just four home runs and 56 strikeouts in 64 games through June. Over the back half of the season, though, the prospect crushed the ball in his next 47 Double-A contests, slashing .355/.425/.634 with 11 home runs.
“The bat has come a long way,” Hyde said.
Shortly before Henderson was called up to the major leagues in late August, Ortiz was promoted to Triple-A. He didn’t slow down in Norfolk, hitting .346 with four home runs, two triples and seven doubles in 26 games. Overall, he slashed .351/.396/.542 in 42 Triple-A games, showing he can be more than only a strong defender.
“I feel like I always got something to prove,” Ortiz said. “Now, I’m at a new level, and I gotta hit here.”
The Orioles added Ortiz to their 40-man roster this offseason to protect him from being selected in the Rule 5 draft. He spent the first three and a half weeks of spring training in big league camp, posting an .857 OPS in six games before a ground ball to the head during practice put him in concussion protocol.
Norby, a second baseman who led all Orioles minor leaguers with 29 homers in 2022, was sent down this spring at the same time as Ortiz. The 22-year-old opened last season in High-A and eventually reached Triple-A. He’s a career .275 minor league hitter with a .485 slugging percentage.
Westburg, however, is the infield prospect with the most experience in Triple-A. The 24-year-old also spent all of spring training in major league camp, impressing with his versatility, consistency and performance with a .306 batting average and .878 OPS in 57 plate appearances. Westburg, who has significant experience playing second, third and shortstop, is a career .277 hitter in the minors. In 107 Triple-A games over the last two seasons, Westburg has an .886 OPS.
They might get their own opportunities soon, and it’s unclear how long Ortiz’s will last. Asked whether Ortiz will remain in the majors now that he’s reached them, Hyde said it was a “wait and see” situation.
“We’re trying to win games, and so we’re gonna try to get the best roster we can, short term, long term,” Hyde said. “We feel like Joey’s going to be able to possibly help us this series, and then we’ll go from there.”
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