Baltimore Orioles International Prospect on No. 1 Prospect Trajectory

A recent international prospect signing of the Baltimore Orioles has the tools to quickly move through their system.

May 5, 2024; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; The Baltimore Orioles logo on the sleeve of designated hitter Gunnar Henderson (2) as he prepares on deck during the seventh inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. / Katie Stratman-Imagn Images

When the Baltimore Orioles were in the teardown process of their rebuild, they did a great job of hitting on prospects early in the draft.

They put an emphasis and focus on positional players and that has led to the Major League roster having an incredible foundation to build off of. 

Catcher Adley Rutschman, shortstop Gunnar Henderson, infielder Jordan Westburg and left fielder Colton Cowser are all established everyday players with impressive resumes already.

There is optimism that infielder Jackson Holliday, the No. 1 prospect in the sport heading into the 2024 campaign, and outfielder Heston Kjerstad are the next youngsters who will emerge as everyday players.

Corner infielder Coby Mayo is going to factor into that mix as well. Knocking on the door of a Big league promotion is catcher/first baseman Samuel Basallo.

That pipeline has dried up a little bit in recent years because of MLB promotions and the team improving on the field. Ready-made prospects aren’t as prominently available later in the first round as they are when drafting near the top.

As a result, the Orioles’ farm system has started to slide down the rankings in 2025 after a stretch of being locked into the No. 1 spot for multiple seasons.

Eventually they will start moving back up the ranks as they have proven their developmental plans work.

Who could be the next player that emerges as a top, can’t miss prospect?

Keep an eye on outfielder Stiven Martinez, whom the writers over at MLB.com believe will be Baltimore’s top prospect in 2027.

An international signing who agreed to a $950,000 deal in January 2024, he was highly sought after during that period. MLB.com had him ranked No. 29 out of the top 50 international prospects, possessing prodigious power.

In the Rookie-level Dominican Summer Leauge last year, that was on display as Martinez recorded 13 extra-base hits in only 133 at-bats.

There is still plenty to work on, as he struck out at an alarming high rate of 30.4%. It wasn’t from a lack of strikezone recognition however, since he did a good job of working counts with an impressive 16.7% walk rate.

His age cannot be understated, either.

Martinez turned 17 years old on Aug. 17, making him one of the younger players participating in the league. A .278/.414/.466 slash line is impressive in general; when considering his youth, it is all the more impressive.

It easy to see why analysts and scouts are so high on his outlook with his strong debut and incredible upside.

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