Basallo makes strong impression with long home runs, solid catching

SARASOTA—Samuel Basallo has been impressing people throughout spring training. The 20-year-old Basallo, who is the Orioles’ top prospect and the 13^th highest in baseball, according to MLB Pipeline, has turned heads with his long home runs and his excellence behind the plate.

Manager Brandon Hyde, a former catcher who’s not a slight man, is taken with the 6-foot-4 catcher’s maturity.

“I like the way he walks around like a big leaguer at 20 years old,” Hyde said. “He’s not overly impressed. The moment’s not too big for him. It reminds me of what a major league player looks like at 20. Those guys just are built a little bit differently. They feel like they should be here. Just a matter of time.”

Basallo won’t turn 21 until August 13^th. By that time, he could be in the big leagues. He’ll begin the season at Triple-A Norfolk, learning more about catching and maybe playing some first base. Basallo has played a few innings at first this spring, though most of his work has been behind the plate.

Félix Bautista, whom Basallo caught on Monday night in Bradenton, is 6-8, 4 inches taller than his catcher.

“A big target,” Bautista said after pitching to him.

Monday night was memorable because it was Bautista’s third rehab appearance since having Tommy John surgery in October 2023 and for Basallo’s mammoth home run, which was conservatively measured at 403 feet but seemed longer, much longer.

It was Basallo’s second long shot of the spring. On February 27^th, he hit one over the center-field scoreboard in Sarasota.

“I thought [Monday’s] was farther, but when I saw the stats on it, I guess it wasn’t, but I did think I hit it harder than the other one,” Basallo said through a translator. Statcast had it at 111.3 mph.

Basallo was 0-for-1 and was hit by a pitch in Tuesday’s game. He’s hitting .278 with the two homers, eight RBIs and a 1.022 OPS.

Basallo is happy with how his first true major league experience is going. Last year, he was restricted to occasional designated hitter appearances because of an elbow injury though he did play in the Spring Breakout game against Pittsburgh Pirates prospects. On Saturday night, he’ll play in his second one when Orioles prospects play Yankees prospects in Sarasota.

“I feel really good, honestly,” Basallo said. “I thank God for this experience, and I feel like I’ve been able to grow in a lot of ways and really grow in understanding the game.”

Basallo enjoyed working with Bautista, who allowed two runs on three hits on Monday night, and called two cutters, the first time Bautista has thrown them in a game.

“He looks really good. I know it’s only been two or three outings after maybe not pitching for maybe two years, but he looks really good out there,” Basallo said. “His split looks really good, slider’s working really well. Even his fastball, thought it’s not at that velocity he can reach, he’s working his way up to it. Overall, he’s doing pretty well right now.”

The cutter could make Bautista even more effective.

“I think it’s going to be a big help for him,” Basallo said. “I think we only called it two times last night, but it looked really good, and him having three secondary pitches instead of two now is going to be a big help for him going forward.”

It’s a sign of progress that Basallo’s catching and knowledge of pitching is being dissected this spring instead of just his hitting.

“I’ve been impressed with his catching,” Hyde said. “He’s got a really good arm; That’s only going to get better from an accuracy standpoint the more he’s back there.”

Basallo recently sat for most of a game with Robinson Chirinos, the first-year bench coach who was a major league catcher for 11 years, including 2022 with the Orioles. He’s earning respect from veteran pitchers, including 41-year-old Charlie Morton.

“I think when I catch those guys, it’s a lot easier,” Basallo said. “The way they’re able to command their pitches just makes it a lot easier for me back there. Knowing what they want to do, that they have that command makes it a big difference.”

It’s unusual for a major league pitcher to be more than twice his catcher’s age, but that’s the case with Morton and Basallo.

“I didn’t really put a whole lot of thought into it from an age standpoint except there’s one guy on the mound who has a lot of experience and one who doesn’t have any,” Hyde said. “I think that’s fun for Charlie, and fun for Sammy. I love the way Charlie is. He’s a true veteran. He’s really helpful for others, and he’s all about the team and wants us to be good and puts his best foot forward to help out everyone else. Sammy’s trying to take it all in. He’s really confident, especially at the plate. He’s really confident.”

Basallo should be a big leaguer in 2025. He just doesn’t know when.

“I’m not really sure. I leave that up to God and the organization,” he said. “I think it’s ultimately their decision. I’m more focused on the day-to-day work and continue to focus in on that. I leave that up for them to decide. Whenever that time comes, I’ll be ready.”

Call for questions: I answer Orioles questions most weekdays. Please send yours to: Rich@BaltimoreBaseball.com.