Could Basallo be O's next 20-year-old star?

This story was excerpted from Jake Rill's Orioles Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Most 20-year-old baseball players aren’t yet in the Major Leagues, or even close to getting there. But the Orioles had somebody that young reach the bigs in 2024, when Jackson Holliday (MLB Pipeline’s No. 1 overall prospect entering last year) debuted on April 10.

Perhaps Baltimore could soon have a second 20-year-old debut in as many years.

Samuel Basallo (MLB Pipeline’s No. 13 overall prospect) is almost on the big league doorstep. The backstop reached Triple-A Norfolk for the first time last August, and he’s expected to return to that level to open the 2025 season.

General manager Mike Elias isn’t ready to set a firm timetable for Basallo’s arrival, but he acknowledged earlier this week at O’s Spring Training camp that players positioned at the highest level of the Minors are often only one call away.

“He’s doing exceptionally well in terms of his timeline as a prospect and the age that he’s at and his development,” Elias said. “He just got to Triple-A. He’s still learning a lot. We’re still working on his approach at the plate. He’s still learning how to be a Major League catcher. All of those things are going great.

“I don’t think he’s at the point yet where you want to start talking about timelines. But when you’re in Triple-A, and if you’re doing well in Triple-A, that’s your timeline right there.”

Basallo, a native of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, realizes how close he is to becoming the Orioles’ first international signee of the Elias era to get to the Majors, and that’s the top objective for him entering the year.

“Of course,” Basallo said via team interpreter Brandon Quinones. “Knowing it’s within reach and being able to possibly accomplish one of my dreams, one of my goals -- that’s very exciting.”

First, however, Basallo must return to Norfolk and take another step forward. He put up big numbers last season at Double-A Bowie, where he hit .289 with 22 doubles, 16 home runs and 55 RBIs in 106 games. But he struggled in a smaller sample at Triple-A, slashing .222/.267/.370 with three doubles, three homers and 10 RBIs in 21 games.

There were positives beyond the numbers, though, as Basallo faced tougher competition.

“Maybe it didn’t go exactly how I wanted it to go,” Basallo said. “Pitchers attack you with what they do well in Triple-A. So I think, overall, it was a great learning experience.”

This year’s Spring Training will be that as well. Basallo is in big league camp for the second time. However, he was a limited participant last year because of a stress fracture in his right elbow that limited him to four at-bats over three Grapefruit League games and prevented him from catching until late April.

Manager Brandon Hyde quickly named Basallo among the young players he’s most eager to get a closer look at this spring. And it hasn’t taken long for the skipper to be wowed by the loud batting practice sessions taken by Basallo on the backfields at the Ed Smith Stadium complex.

“It’s impressive how the ball comes off his bat,” Hyde said.

Basallo has been surrounded by experienced catchers during drills. He’s working alongside two-time All-Star Adley Rutschman and new backup Gary Sánchez, a 10-year MLB veteran. There’s also first-year bench coach Robinson Chirinos, a former big league backstop who played the final season of his 11-year MLB career with the O’s in 2022.

Chirinos and Basallo were in communication even before they were in Sarasota together.

“It’s been a lot more of personal conversations. Nothing too technical yet. It has to do more with mentality and things like that,” Basallo said. “But I’m sure we’ll get into defensive conversations and different conversations at some point about baseball.”

“Everybody knows around here [that] he’s a talented player, and I think he’s going to be an impact player in this organization soon,” Chirinos said. “We’re excited. He’s close.”

Rutschman and Sánchez should have plenty of knowledge to pass along, too, that will help Basallo as he makes his push for the Majors in 2025.

“I think it will be a great experience getting to work with them and learn from them each and every day,” Basallo said. “I’m very excited to get out there and pick their brains and see what they have for me.”