Changes in the Baltimore Orioles’ scouting strategy could change the player make-up of the major league team in coming years. More non-American players are entering the Orioles’ minor league affiliate teams and moving their way toward the majors.
Capital News Service’s analysis of the Orioles and minor league affiliate teams’ 2023 rosters shows that the organization is overwhelmingly made up of American-born players. Only the Orioles lowest-level affiliate — the low-A Delmarva Shorebirds — does not have the same American and college-experienced team make-up.
Staff changes in the Orioles front office and a new scouting strategy led to this sudden uptick in non-American players on Orioles’ affiliate teams.
Under former General Manager Dan Duquette, the Orioles didn’t prioritize international scouting. This strategy was due to concerns over limited regulation of the international market and a focus on spending money on the major league team, rather than minor league affiliates, according to Jon Meoli, Orioles columnist for The Baltimore Banner.
This changed when Mike Elias took over as general manager in November 2018. According to data analyzed by CNS, the Orioles began to build an international scouting program that led to higher numbers of non-American players in the organization.
“We’re going to build an elite talent pipeline that’s going to extend from the lowest rung of our minor league ladder … all the way up to triple-A and onto the major league roster here in Baltimore,” Elias said in a November 2018 press conference when he was introduced as the new general manager.
Elias hired Koby Perez as the international scouting director in January 2019 to lead the international program.
“We have found the right person to spearhead the Orioles’ new international presence. [Perez’s] experience, connections and reputation built across a fast-rising career in multiple successful organizations will immediately elevate our capabilities in this critical market,” Elias said in a statement released on Twitter when Perez was hired. “We will continue to augment our operation until the Baltimore Orioles are leaders in recruiting and developing international players.”
With this new strategy, the number of players from outside the U.S. on the Delmarva Shorebirds has significantly increased since 2019.
The Shorebirds were made up of 72% American players in 2019. Just 28% of the team was not American-born, with the largest subgroup being Dominicans at 14%. Other players on the 2019 roster hailed from Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Colombia, Bermuda and Italy.
This year, the Shorebirds are made up of 67% non-American players. Nearly half of the team is from the Dominican Republic while only 33% is American. Venezuela, Colombia, Panama and Taiwan are also represented on the team.
While diversity has greatly increased on the Orioles low-A team over the last few years, the higher level affiliate teams are still majority American.
The high-A Aberdeen Ironbirds are the second most diverse team in the organization, but are 76% American-born, much higher than the Shorebirds. The double-A Bowie Baysox and triple-A Norfolk Tides are 86% and 85% American, respectively, in line with the Orioles 86% American 40-man roster. (Note: The Orioles’ 40-man roster includes several Tides players. These players are included in the statistics for both teams.)
Elias and Perez’s goal to bring international talent to the Orioles is starting to be reflected in the Shorebirds 2023 roster and could appear on the Orioles major league team in coming years. In the meantime, the organization is continuing to dedicate resources to its international scouting program, according to MLB.com.
In October 2021, the Orioles broke ground on a new Dominican Academy for players in the Dominican Summer League. The 22.5-acre complex is expected to open this year.
“International scouting and player development are critical to the future success of the Orioles and baseball as a whole,” Elias said at the groundbreaking. “We have made tremendous strides over the last couple of years in establishing our international presence and revamping our baseball operations infrastructure and this project may be the most momentous step yet.”