When Dan Duquette arrived on the scene in Baltimore he said he wanted to rebuild this organization from the ground-up. Sweet! We’ve been a losing for the last 15 years what’s five more while you turn this thing around. I can wait…

But seriously it’s been a long time coming for the Orioles as a franchise and a fan base. So as an Orioles fan I have no problem with Duquette coming in and starting over. Let’s be honest this is a broken franchise. One of the most storied franchises in baseball has now become a punch line for a terrible Jay Leno joke.

Luckily, for Duquette I don’t think he’ll have any problem rebuilding the farm system with top-notch talent. This team is going to be drafting in the top five for at least the next three years. It appears in this case the losing has its benefits. So why the immediate future looks bleak not all is lost.

There is hope on the horizon. That hope comes in the form of Manny Machado and Dylan Bundy. Machado and Bundy rank 6th and 10th respectively on MLB 2012 Top 100 Prospects. While the rest of the farm system needs some retooling these two guys offer a glimpse of what can be in Baltimore.

Manny Machado

In Machado the Orioles have a shortstop that fits the physical mold of Cal Ripken Jr. However, some analysts believe that he may actually outgrow shortstop but that’s a problem the Orioles can deal with down the road. For now he’s a solid all-around shortstop whose 4.56 range factor (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Range_factor) would have ranked him 5th in the majors in 2011. Expect Machado to see time in both Single-A Frederick and Double-A Bowie. As for when we can expect Machado in the Majors? I would say the earliest would be late 2013 unless he absolutely goes on a tear this year. While I know that’s depressing to a lot of Orioles fans out there remember that Machado doesn’t even turn 20 till July 6th. Orioles’ fans will get plenty of time to witness Machado run the infield for years to come.

Dylan Bundy

The 4th pick in the 2011 draft Dylan Bundy was believed by many scouts to have the most upside of any player taken in that draft. When you see him pitch you can understand why, Bundy is a four-pitch star that will be the face of the Orioles rotation for some time to come (stop me if you’ve heard this one already). He features a plus fastball (triple digits plus), a curve and slider that scouts have described as outstanding, and completes his arsenal with a change-up. Similar to Machado, Bundy won’t turn 20 till November. This means that his arrival in the majors is at least 2 years away.

2011 Owasso Baseball Prospect Dylan Bundy from jhwphotography on Vimeo.

Unlike most other sports the success of drafted players in baseball is a wait and see game. Most prospects will spend three to four years in the minors before getting their chance in the majors. With most prospects never even getting that chance. Every year more top prospects fail then achieve some level of success. The jury is still out on young pitchers such as Arrieta (26), Matusz (25), and Britton (24). If the Orioles hit on two of them they will be set for a while once Bundy joins the rotation. Of course that last statement is a big “if”. The way things have gone recently with the Orioles I wouldn’t be shocked if none of those three hit, but I have to have hope. Without hope you have nothing. Frankly, as an Orioles fan hope is all I have…