Orioles catching prospect Samuel Basallo continues to inch closer to the major leagues after opening the spring as high as No. 3 in well-regarded top-100 prospect lists.
A native of the Dominican Republic, Basallo signed with the Orioles for $1.3 million as an international free agent in 2021. Since then, he has worked his way up the minor league ladder from the Dominican Summer League to Triple-A Norfolk.
Basallo, 20, began the 2025 season with the Tides. He has a career .284/.362/.478 minor league slash line with 53 home runs entering play on May 1. Basallo missed several weeks earlier this season with a left hamstring injury before returning to action April 25.
PressBox spoke with several observers about Basallo’s major league readiness, the challenges the catcher will soon face and more.
Baseball America Editor-In-Chief JJ Cooper
On when Basallo will be ready for the major leagues
As told to Glenn Clark Radio
If he was somewhere other than the Orioles, I think he actually has a pretty good chance to catch. I’m not saying it’s a slam dunk by any stretch of the imagination, but if he was on a team that didn’t have a clear long-term catcher, there’d be a lot of incentive to say, “We’re going to work with him, we’re going to keep working with him.” If it means we delay his arrival — because he’s really young — to get him further refined at catcher, we’re going to do it.
I don’t see where the Orioles would have that incentive to be like, “Hey, we need to hold him back in the minors for another year and a half if that’s the difference between him being a below-average defensive catcher and an average defensive catcher or a fringe-average defensive catcher.” In the case of the Orioles, if his bat’s ready, it’s going to be probably more advantageous to say, “He’s an every-now-and-then catcher who can play first base or in the outfield and DH. Oh, we’re going to get his bat into the lineup.” That part is going to be ready, barring injuries, very possibly at some point in 2025. But if you said is he going to be ready to be an everyday catcher, that’s probably not going to be ready in 2025.
Former Mets and Orioles GM Jim Duquette
On identifying high-end talent internationally
As told to Luke Jackson
There’s a portfolio approach that I always tried and a lot of teams still do. Spread your money out to as many as you can of the money that you have available because you don’t know who’s going to hit and in particular you don’t know who’s going to end up being impactful.
If Basallo were a draft pick here in the States, he’s a top-10 pick. Top-10 picks in the sport these days are worth about $40 million even though you’re paying them $8 million, $9 million. That’s what kind of value they bring to an organization. That’s what Basallo is to the O’s right now. He’s basically a top-10 pick [who they signed for $1.3 million].
Do they come with a level of risk? Absolutely. Did somebody do a terrific job of evaluating and projecting him? Yes. Could they have predicted he’d be this good? No. No one in the sport would be able to figure that part out. Jackson Merrill out of Severna Park, nobody was that smart to realize he was going to be the type of player that he is. Nobody’s that smart to say, “Gunnar Henderson’s going to be on the cover of ‘MLB The Show.’” If they say they did, they’re lying.
Former Orioles Manager Brandon Hyde
On his impressions of Basallo during spring training
As told to reporters
I like the way he walks around like a big leaguer at 20 years old. He’s not overly impressed. The moment’s not too big for him. He reminds me of what a major league player looks like at 20, honestly. Those guys are just built a little bit differently where they feel like they should be here and it’s just a matter of time. That’s how he’s handling his business every day.
I don’t need a translator with him. He understands everything. He speaks well. He’s handled everything so well. He’s learning a lot from the catching side, working really well with [catching instructor Tim Cossins and bench coach Robinson Chirinos during spring training]. Robbie’s talking to him between innings. [Cossins and Basallo are] working every single morning catching-wise. I’ve been impressed with his catching. He’s got a really good arm that’s only going to get better from an accuracy standpoint the more he’s back there.
Robbie’s not that far removed from being behind the plate. That recent experience is extremely helpful. They talk every inning. There was a game [this spring] where Sammy wasn’t scheduled to play at all. They just sat next to each other for the first six or seven innings, just eyes and ears a little bit with Robbie explaining some stuff to him and Sammy bouncing questions back. I got to listen to it a little bit. That was a good moment.
Former Orioles Catcher Caleb Joseph
On the challenges of catching in Baltimore
As told to Luke Jackson
For some reason, I have this snapshot of an instance during the season in a game. I can’t remember who it was against. It was either July or August, one of those blazing hot day games. It was about the sixth or seventh inning. I had gone through three different jerseys and two pairs of pants. I was in the little tunnel where you go in the clubhouse [below the dugout], that little area where the bat rack is. They had a massive fan blowing. My chair was sitting right next to that fan. The clubhouse attendants had a cooler of water and Gatorade sitting right next to me. There was at least six water bottles and at least six Gatorade bottles that were empty sitting next to me. I remember my feet being so wet that I felt like I had been in the shower for three hours. You can feel your feet getting pruney, that was the feeling I had with my feet.
I remember looking out to the field being in a bit of a daze, like I really don’t know exactly where I am right now. I had [an ammonia towel] over my neck, which is supposed to really help out, which it did. I remember like it was yesterday all of those factors sitting in that chair thinking, “I might not be able to finish this game. I think I might pass out. It’s possible that I fall over and pass out.” I had never felt that in my life before, never, not once. I don’t know what happened. I just kept going. It was one of those feelings that when the game was over, you didn’t shower and go straight to bed. You showered and laid down, but you almost felt sick to your stomach. You couldn’t go to sleep. I can’t move, I can’t sleep because I feel like I’m sick now. It was an odd feeling, but that’s what Baltimore can do.
Former Major League Catcher Erik Kratz
On the differences between catching in Triple-A and the big leagues
As told to Luke Jackson
The organization truly does not care about winning [in the minor leagues]. Do they want to win? Absolutely. In the big leagues, they do everything it takes to win. You have to catch and call a game to win the game. It’s not just the catching position, but it’s exemplified in the catching position — [some organizations] forget, “Oh yeah, these guys haven’t really done what it takes to win a game.”
That’s why I think the catching position, if you’re a young guy, have them go play winter ball. Have them go play in that environment because it’s all about winning. It might be the first time that these dudes get an opportunity to say, “Oh yeah, I want to go win. That sounds awesome. Let’s do that.” You call a game differently. You pitch around guys.
You learn that stuff in a winning environment, so that’s the biggest thing is winning. How do you call a game to win? How do you be OK with walking a guy or getting hurt on your second pitch because it’s going to help you later in the game to be able to win the game?
The Athletic Senior Baseball Writer Keith Law
On how the Orioles can eventually juggle playing time for Basallo and Adley Rutschman
As told to Glenn Clark Radio
[Basallo is] very young. He hasn’t played a full season at Triple-A. He’s a catcher. That is a whole, full-time job on top of being a hitter. Moving up to Triple-A, learning to catch better-quality stuff, learning to work with the challenge system that they have in Triple-A. It’s stupid that we have it there and not in the majors, but it’s going to come to the majors at some point. There’s a lot to do.
You would say to Basallo, “You’re going to spend most of this year in Norfolk. You’re probably going to debut this year if you’re healthy and you produce.” But it’s 2026 where you’re trying to figure out, “What’s the plan for him and Rutschman?” Is it a job share? Are they catcher and DH together? There’s a lot of ways that can go. Of course, you have to see if both guys are still healthy [late in the season].
If in the abstract Adley Rutschman doesn’t exist — plays for the Pirates or whatever — Sammy Basallo is your catcher of the future. Basallo is not as good of a catcher as Rutschman. Rutschman’s a tremendous catcher. Basallo can really throw. He is absolutely capable of catching … but the bat is also special enough that if he is 40 games catching, 100-odd games at DH or first base, fine. The bat’s going to play there, too. •
Photos Courtesy of the Baltimore Orioles
Originally published April 16, 2025. Updated May 1, 2025 and Aug. 19, 2025