The Baltimore Orioles called up their top organizational prospect, catcher Samuel Basallo, in late August, just days before September roster expansions. The move came as the team seemed to be out of the American League East division race and teetering on the edge of full elimination. Essentially, the team is looking to give their best prospect some reps before the 2026 season and identify areas of strength and weakness.
Basallo‘s first 15 games have been important in identifying his batting zone, his overall mechanics, and even his fielding. What’s being shown so far is a player with incredible bat speed, but in need of work in his decision-making at the plate. Nevertheless, Basallo is shaping up to be a key player either behind the plate or at first base for a long time.
SAMUEL BASALLO SMASHES A WALK-OFF TANK ? pic.twitter.com/tCVhxahc9r
— MLB (@MLB) September 6, 2025
Samuel Basallo’s Zone Displays Holes
While 60 plate appearances might be a small sample size, it’s enough to give an understanding of his hitting philosophy. Across the zone, the 21-year-old is hitting the ball very well with exit velocities over 90 miles an hour. It follows the pattern that when he puts the bat on the ball, it goes far.
BAL – Samuel Basallo Solo HR (1)
Distance: 376 ft
EV: 103 mph
LA: 27°
80.6 mph curveball (SFG – RHP Tristan Beck)
Would be out in 11/30 MLB parks
BAL (5) @ SFG (1)
4th#Birdland pic.twitter.com/9KUaGIytAu
— MLB Home Runs
(@MLBHRs_) August 31, 2025
There are two areas of his zone that Basallo should work on in 2026. The first is the low-center part of the strike zone. He’s seen 17 total pitches there, but whiffed 33% and struck out 60% of the time there. That bleeds into the inner lower corner and just outside the zone. Pitchers are getting him on balls down and inside the zone.
The second area is the upper half-center part of the zone. One thing that is consistent in both areas is a high launch angle, both over 30 degrees. The good news on that is he’s not striking out at all, placing the bat in the right area. He just needs to learn to keep off the pitches that sink under the zone to really excel in getting on base.
Otherwise, Basallo’s zone looks solid for a rookie player. He’s making good decisions elsewhere and is getting results where he should. Smoothing his consistency out and laying off outside pitches will really help his numbers.
Offspeed is His Achilles Heel
Basallo crushes fastballs, evidenced by his .276 batting average and .517 slugging percentage against the pitch. He has a plus-three run value against fastballs, only whiffing 24% of the time. Even against sinkers, he hits well with a .286 average and .429 slugging percentage.
When going against pitches with more movement and less speed, that’s where he struggles. In 43 pitches, his average against sliders decreases to .143, and his whiff rate climbs to 46%. With changeups, it decreases to .091, but his contact brings the expected average to .233. Other pitches haven’t been thrown frequently enough to make a solid determination, but it’s clear he’s having issues with those offspeed pitches.
There is a foundation to build on, with Basallo’s breaking ball exit velocity topping 90 mph. On offspeed pitches, his exit velocity goes down to 75, suggesting an issue getting even with the pitch. What’s unique is that his launch angle registers around 37 degrees, suggesting he may be overcompensating a bit on their movement.
At the same time, his overall whiff rate is 25.8%, still below league average but good for a 21-year-old. Plus, his bat speed would rank in the 90th percentile or better if it qualified. His stance is very open, however, registering 25 degrees outside of an equal stance. It would be interesting to see how he does with a more closed stance towards the center.
Main Photo Credit: Erik Williams-Imagn Images
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