O’s Free MLB Spot for Wieters

The prospect most impacted by the Ramon Hernandez–Ryan Freel trade was not directly involved in the transaction. By trading Hernandez to the Cincinnati Reds, the Baltimore Orioles all but signaled that top prospect Matt Wieters will be entrusted with the starting gig in 2009.

Currently, the Orioles’ 40-man roster does not even include a catcher with Hernandez traded and 2008 back-up Guillermo Quiroz recently designated for assignment. Wieters, the top catching prospect in all of Major League Baseball, does not have overly big shoes to fill. Hernandez managed a line of just .257/.308/.406 with a wOBA of .310 in 463 at-bats in 2008. Quiroz hit just .187/.259/.269 with a wOBA of .242 in 134 at-bats.

In his first professional season after signing as a first-round draft pick out of Georgia Tech in 2007, Wieters dominated the minor leagues with a .345/.451/.576 line in 229 High-A at-bats. He then carried that hot stick to Double-A where he hit .365/.463/.625 with an ISO of .260 in 208 at-bats. The 22-year-old catcher also showed excellent plate discipline with rates of 15.4 BB% and 13.9 K%. His wOBA at Double-A was .466. The switch-hitter performs well from both sides of the plate and posted lines of .382/.446/.740 against southpaws and .341/.455/.543 against right-handed pitching.

Defensively, Wieters is an excellent handler of pitchers, he is a leader on the field and he threw out 32 percent of those trying to steal against him in Double-A. Unfortunately, at 6’5” and 230 lbs he may outgrow the position. Regardless, Wieters has the potential to be the next big marquee name in Baltimore – somewhere between Nick Markakis and Cal Ripken. There are not many players – let alone catchers – with Wieters’ combination of power, ability to hit for average, understanding of the strike zone, leadership and defensive prowess.

From the Reds’ perspective, this trade provides some insurance in case over-aged rookie Ryan Hanigan is unable to handle the full-time catching role. The 28-year-old performed well in 2008, but he has just 95 career at-bats at the Major League level. The club also has Wilkin Castillo on the 40-man roster, who was acquired last season from the Diamondbacks in the Adam Dunn trade, but he is better as a jack-of-all-trades utility player and third string catcher – and he could also benefit from some more minor league seasoning.