The Orioles have a new name sitting at the top of their prospect mountain.
MLB Pipeline updated its rankings Thursday night, and Eric Booth Jr. jumped in as Baltimore’s No. 1 prospect. The 18-year-old outfielder, taken by the Orioles with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2026 MLB Draft, also checks in at No. 40 on MLB Pipeline’s overall prospect list.
Booth didn’t wait long to get moving. Even though Baltimore usually doesn’t push high school draftees into an affiliate in the same year they’re selected, he broke that pattern by making his pro debut for Single-A Delmarva on Tuesday. He has hits in each of his first two games, and one of them was an RBI single in his first at-bat for the Shorebirds.
“We like a lot about Booth," Baltimore vice president of domestic scouting Will Robertson said after the Draft. "He has a huge engine, as we call it.
He's super powerful, both running the bases and moving the bat. That leads to impact outcomes, both defensively in center field and offensively with the power-speed combination.
Super young for his class, and has always hit everywhere he's gone.”
Booth is one of four Orioles prospects on MLB Pipeline’s updated Top 100. Right-hander Anthony Eyanson comes in at No. 49, while left-handers Joseph Dzierwa and Caden Hunter land at No. 90 and No. 98, respectively.
Eyanson arrived from the Red Sox in the Adley Rutschman trade on Aug. 3.
Dzierwa and Hunter were both picked in the 2025 Draft, going in the second and sixth rounds.
Hunter’s rise is one of the clearer wins in the system update. The sixth-rounder out of the University of Southern California has moved from Single-A Delmarva to High-A Frederick to Double-A Chesapeake this season and owns a 2.04 ERA across 19 combined outings, 17 of them starts.
He was especially sharp in High-A, where he posted a 1.60 ERA in 10 games, including nine starts. Across his first pro season, he has 128 strikeouts and a 1.02 WHIP over 84 innings.
The other side of the ledger belongs to Esteban Mejia. The right-hander has had a rough 2026, carrying a 9.74 ERA through 18 starts for Single-A Delmarva. The 19-year-old Dominican has battled command problems, piling up 64 walks and a 2.39 WHIP in 44 1/3 innings, even with his high-octane fastball.
After the update, Baltimore’s top group looks like this: Booth at No. 1, Eyanson at No.
2, Dzierwa at No. 3, Hunter at No. 4 and Ike Irish at No.
The Orioles also have several other notable names moving through the system or into the rankings mix: Enddy Azocar at No. 9, Michael Forret at No.
10, Kyson Witherspoon at No. 12, Ty Head at No.
15, Jhomnardo Reyes at No. 24, Harold Rivas at No. 25 and Kevin Roberts Jr. at No.
In Other News...
Former Orioles Catcher Is On The Move Again After Latest Roster Shift
Alex Jacksons latest stop has already reached another roster turn, as Minnesota trimmed its catching group after Ryan Jeffers came off the injured list. Jackson had been brought up while Jeffers was sidelined and wound up appearing in 29 games for the Twins this season, giving the club a longer look at an experienced backup while it waited for its starter to return.
For Orioles followers, the name still carries a familiar edge after Jackson spent last year in Baltimore. Minnesota is now set to move forward with Jeffers and Victor Caratini behind the plate, which leaves Jackson in limbo again as the veteran catcher waits for his next landing spot. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Fans Get An Early Look At A Key Return From The Trade
Kyson Witherspoon is already giving Orioles fans an early look at one of the more intriguing pieces from the Adley Rutschman trade. The right-hander, a first-round pick by Boston in the 2025 draft, has started pitching for High-A Frederick and is beginning the process of settling into a new organization after coming over in the deal that also sent Enddy Azocar, Anthony Eyanson, Carlos Narvez and Harold Rivas to Baltimore.
For now, the Orioles are treating Witherspoon less like a project to overhaul and more like a pitcher to get comfortable. Pitching coach Jordie Henry is focused on helping him acclimate first, rather than rushing into mechanical tweaks, which makes sense given how fresh the move is and how much attention comes with being part of a trade built around a franchise face. The real question for Baltimore is how quickly Witherspoon can turn that early transition into something more permanent in the system. [Read more 🡒]