Orioles 2010 System Leaders: OPS

The following are the Orioles organization leaders in strikeouts for the 2010 season, with a minimum of 100 plate appearances:

A few notes about this list:

• Obviously the only major leaguer on it was Luke Scott, who was 3rd at .896. It says a lot about your offense when no other player at the MLB level cracked the top 10.
• Tyler Townsend was #1, which is unsuprising; the guy absolutely rakes when he can stay on the field... he just needs to stay healthy and play a full season, and the counting stats will match his already impressive rate stats.
• David Anderson (#2) went undrafted out of Costal Carolina in 2009, so he obviously isn't a big prospect. But he is a big guy (6'6", 230 lbs), and has posted a .272/.396/.482 line (and .878 OPS) during his first two pro seasons in the low minors.
• #4 Tyler Kolodny is a 3rd baseman who strikes out a lot and has had a hard time maintaining his batting average, but also has significant power potential. The former 16th round pick (2007) posted a .251/.365/.525 line at Low A in 2010.
• Jacob Julius (#5) is already 24 years old, and an organizational-type guy; a 1st baseman who only produced OPS levels in the high .600s in '08 and '09. 2010 was a breakout year (of a sort) for him.
• #6 Joe Mahoney was the O's 2010 minor league player of the year; I've written about him a bunch on this blog. His supporters point to his huge frame, power potential, a .300+ batting average last year, and his stolen base totals... his detractors note that he'll be 24 this year, still hasn't played a full year at Double A, and doesn't walk enough.
• Joel Guzman (#7) finally realized that he'd burned through his prospect currency years ago in the Dodger's organization, and even a 33 HR 2010 at Double-A Bowie wasn't going to get him a real shot at major league playing time. He took the money and signed to play in Japan; we might see him again if he produces overseas, as he certainly has the potential.
• #8 Mychal Givens and #9 Ryan Adams are the only middle infielders on this list, and two of the team's top position player prospects. Givens might end up at second base because of Manny Machado; the organization doesn't like Adam's defense at either 2B or 3B, so who the heck knows what his ultimate destination might be.
• #10 Ronnie Welty is my favorite sleeper prospect; the 2008 20th round draftee has produced solid numbers at every level through High-A Frederick, and will probably open the year at Bowie. Critic say he's too much of a tweener - not enough power to play a corner spot, not enough speed and range to play center - but his minor league line is solid: .291/.360/.445. If there's a major problem with his game, it's the strikeouts: 159 last year in only 130 games.