Steve On Baseball Podcast

The offseason is here for the Orioles, but the Steve on Baseball podcast continues on, games or no games. Sometimes the offseason speculation provides more interesting topics to discuss and today we got into several of them. My guest is Matt Weyrich, one of the Baltimore Sun’s beat writers. Matt joined the Sun in January of 2024 and just completed his second season on the beat. He is a 2019 James...

This was not the first time Roch Kubatko and I were on air or any broadcast format together. Not hardly. But it was the first time he came on as a guest on my podcast! About time! And yes it was like old times as we discussed many O’s topics, including going back to how it was around the club when Brandon Hyde was fired in May. We discussed how things have gone with Tony Mansolino as interim skipp...

Now that we are a couple of months out since the July MLB Draft where the Orioles had a whopping seven picks that first night, I wanted to check in with MLBPipeline.com’s and MLB.com’s senior writer Jim Callis. For many years Jim has been a go-to guy for me and many others, such as MLB Network, for his knowledge and insights on the draft. Jim and his colleagues do a great job at the top of the dra...

BOWIE, Md. - Fresh off the presses, or at least off the digital recorder, check out a podcast taped just yesterday at Bowie’s Prince George’s Stadium. My guest is the manager of the O’s Double-A Chesapeake Baysox affiliate, Roberto Mercado. Mercado is in his fourth season with the Orioles. He managed High-A Aberdeen in 2022 and 2023 and Double-A Chesapeake (formerly Bowie) in 2023 and 2024. Throug...

The latest episode of the Steve on Baseball podcast provided me the great chance to both talk about the current-day Orioles and take a few spins down memory lane as well. Shorstop Mike Bordick, signed twice by the Orioles as a free agent, is my guest and we had a great and wide-ranging conversation. Bordick played 14 years in the majors for the O’s, A’s, Mets and Jays. In 2002 he set a major leagu...

SALISBURY, Md. - Collin Woody can relate to his players with the O’s Low-A affiliate the Delmarva Shorebirds. He was once a Shorebirds player himself, for 115 games in 2017. An O’s 38th-round draft pick in 2016, Woody, who just turned 31, is in his second season as the manager at Delmarva. He played in 228 games on the O’s farm from 2016-2018. He spent a couple of seasons coaching in the Florida C...

A very timely guest today on the Steve on Baseball podcast as I interview JJ Cooper, the editor-in-chief of Baseball America. He was a guest earlier and returns for the podcast being released today. Earlier this week, in the most recent update to the BA top 100 prospects list, four Orioles were ranked. Samuel Basallo was No. 7, Nate George No. 81, Dylan Beavers No. 83 and pitcher Esteban Mejia at...

As you know we keep you up to date on the O’s farm on this Substack and today on the podcast I interview Trey Gibson, right-handed starting pitcher of the Double-A Chesapeake Baysox. He began the year at High-A Aberdeen and while his ERA was 5.12, his strikeouts per nine innings was a ridiculous 15.59. He was showing dominance and a promotion to Double-A would soon come. This year between the two...

It’s another solo podcast Birdland. We will resume interviewing guests next week, so check back for that. But today I check in briefly on the dismal Cleveland series that has the Orioles now 13 games below the .500 mark. The team has lost seven of its past eight games. I also provided my take on which O’s players might be most likely to be traded and mentioned why I believe that is the case. Later...

The 2025 MLB Draft is in the books. The Orioles made 24 selections over two days of the draft on Sunday and Monday. Their first pick, No. 19 overall, was Auburn catcher/outfielder Ike Irish and their final pick in round 20 was right-handed pitcher Connor Gehr of Meridian Community College. The O’s selected 13 pitchers and 11 position players among their 24 picks. They drafted eight right-handers a...

A great guest today for the podcast as I interview Keith Law, who has been with The Athletic as senior baseball writer since January of 2020. Law spent many years writing and working for ESPN and its various outlets from 2006-2019. Before that he worked in the front office of the Toronto Blue Jays after impressing then general manager J.P. Ricciardi during the 2002 Winter Meetings. He hired Law fo...

Get full access to Steve Melewski at steveonbaseball.substack.com/subscribe

On today’s edition of the podcast, I am talking to and about Double-A right-handed pitcher Braxton Bragg. Time to get to better know this pitcher that has been about the best in the O’s farm system this year. Drafted in round eight out of Dallas Baptist in 2023, Bragg spent most of last year at Low-A Delmarva. And now he’s already at Double-A. He began this year at High-A Aberdeen and after three...

Hey Birdland, after a run of several shows with some great guests, especially from the O’s farm system, we dip back into all major league O’s topics today. This is my second solo effort on the Steve on Baseball podcast. The large majority of these shows will feature me plus a guest, but today, you’ve got just me. This podcast includes some of my thoughts up the upcoming trade deadline and the cons...

Back late in the 2018 calender year, when O’s left-hander John Means went to Premiere Pitching Performance facility in St. Louis, he met Forrest Herrmann, who was then Premiere’s director of pitching development. The work Means did at that facility led to his fastball gaining velocity and his changeup developing into a real quality pitch. That work helped Means become an All-Star, an Opening Day s...

A 19th round draft pick of the Chicago White Sox in 2016, Anthony Villa played three years on the White Sox farm. His last season as a player was 2018. Now Villa, age 31, is in his second year as the Orioles’ director, player development. He moved into that position in October of 2023. He is one of the people at the very top of the O’s minor league system. He holds a key management role. He moved...

When you meet Ryan Goll, the manager of the Orioles’ High-A Aberdeen IronBirds affiliate, you could mistake him for a player. He is 28 and looks younger. But he brings that youthful enthusiasm to his job. He would love to be a big league skipper one day and this is a big step in that direction. The University of Minnesota product started with the Orioles during the 2020 season. But Covid hit and t...

JJ Cooper has been with Baseball America since 2002. He’s the leader of a publication that has been an industry leader in covering the minors, majors, the draft and prospects for decades. A leader back in the day and a leader still today. JJ always provides an interesting and well-thought out perspective on the Orioles and their player development system and we’ve had many interviews over many yea...

This is his third year as an O’s beat writer and it surely has not been boring for Jacob Calvin Meyer of the Baltimore Sun. In his first year on the job, the 2023 Orioles won 101 games along with an AL East title. A second playoff year followed. And now JCM has been there to chronicle this mess of an O’s season as well, one that led to manager Brandon Hyde’s firing last weekend. We discussed Hyde’...

Over my years working in baseball I have been lucky to develop a network of friends in the industry, who I often call on for insights, interviews, guidance, prospect ranking opinions, etc. Many I consider good friends - like today’s guest, Jim Callis. Back in the day I got to know Jim and John Manuel when they were an exceptional one-two punch of powerhouse analysts and writing talent for Baseball...

Today, on episode No. 5 of the Steve on Baseball podcast, Steve talks about baseball and interviews no one. It’s a solo effort and we get back to having a guest for next Thursday’s edition. Promise. But hope you take time to listen today. I discuss at the outset a few reasons and areas that could help the Orioles turn around their season. I spent a few minutes doing something I have not done in mu...

A couple of Substack Birdland teammates teamed up today to discuss the Orioles, our various Substacks and much more. Hope you enjoy the conversation with John Eisenberg, long-time columnist formerly for the Baltimore Sun. John’s “Bird Tapes” space on Substack is great, so check that out. Today we discussed the O’s series win over the Yankees, several current topics surrounding the club, the social...

I had a blast talking with my long-time buddy Peter Schmuck. Most O’s fans know him from his days as a writer and for many years columnist for the Baltimore Sun. He is no longer full-time in the business but still pens some columns on occasion for BaltimoreBaseball.com. Between us, we have seven Maryland Sportswriter of the Year awards. Pete has seven, I don’t have any! The Schmucker told some gre...

ABERDEEN, Md. - The most recent Orioles’ top draft pick is outfielder Vance Honeycutt of the University of North Carolina. The club selected him No. 22 overall last summer. Honeycutt brings the O’s organization a nice blend of solid offense and defense. He was the Atlantic Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year in both 2023 and 2024. As a hitter he led the ACC with 28 homers, added 28 steal...

Koby Perez, the Orioles’ vice president of international scouting and operations, was one of the first people Mike Elias hired when he joined the Orioles before the 2019 season. The club needed to build up an international program of young and talented prospects almost from scratch and Perez was the man for the job. Perez has worked in pro ball for the Cardinals, Phillies, then Indians now Guardia...