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Baltimore Orioles Claim Outfielder Adam Walker Off Waivers

By Ben Palmer

Nov 7, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Minnesota Twins outfielder Adam Brett Walker II during the Arizona Fall League Fall Stars game at Salt River Fields. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 7, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Minnesota Twins outfielder Adam Brett Walker II during the Arizona Fall League Fall Stars game at Salt River Fields. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Baltimore Orioles have claimed 25-year-old outfielder Adam Walker off of waivers from the Milwaukee Brewers, who had claimed him off waivers from the Minnesota Twins.

The Baltimore Orioles have claimed outfielder Adam Walker off of waivers from the Milwaukee Brewers, as the Orioles continue to shore up their roster and fill in the gaps.

Walker is an interesting prospect, he’s 25-years-old, so in all honesty, he’s not going to be a “prospect” much longer, but he has a skill set that seems to fit Baltimore well. He is a three true outcome hitter who has incredible raw power.

In fact, I would say that Walker’s raw power is as good as any prospect in baseball. His scouting grade (which are on a 20-80 scale, for reference) on his raw power was 65, but at the same time, his scouting grade for contact was just 20.

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To say that Walker strikes out a bit is an understatement. In his time at AAA with the Twins last year, he struck out 38.5% of the time. To really understand how insane that strikeout rate is, Chris Davis lead the majors last year with a 32.9% strikeout rate.

Oddly enough though, Walker does know how to take a walk. His walk rate isn’t amazing, but it’s about average, sitting at 8.3% last year and 9.1% the year before. Essentially, when Walker comes to the plate, he either strikes out, walks, or hits a massive home run, which sounds exactly like every other hitter on the Orioles.

One of the biggest issues with Walker, outside of the strikeout rate, is his defense. He really doesn’t have a natural defensive position. He’s listed as an outfielder, and he’s played left field, but he’s a below-average defender with a below-average arm.

But that’s never stopped the Orioles from throwing a player out there before. As long as he can mash home runs, it seems that the O’s are happy to have him.

The key for Walker is going to be his plate discipline. He’s a proven run producer, there’s no doubt about that, and his power is incredible (and Camden Yards is a nice place for power hitters).

Next: What Can The Orioles Offer For Andrew McCutchen?

If Walker can learn to not swing at everything and be a little more picky with his pitches, he could become a pretty valuable player, because that power can definitely play at a major league level.

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