Two Ike Irish Swings Tell the Story of His Arizona Fall League

Ike Irish finishes a left-handed swing with his name and No. 10 visible.

Two Ike Irish swings in Arizona ended with a run crossing home plate. The first barely left the ground. The second sent a center fielder after the ball and carried Irish all the way to third. For Orioles fans who have seen Baltimore’s No. 5 prospect on a list but have yet to watch him hit, the two plays make a good place to start.

On Sunday, November 8th, Irish came up for the American League with two outs in the third inning of the Fall Stars Game. The count was 2–2. Watch the Fall Stars single and look at where the ball first hits the ground. MLB tracked an 81.2 mph slider coming in and a ball moving just 65 mph off the bat. Irish got it up the middle, and a run scored before the defense could end the inning.

A Different Route to Center

Two days later, Irish got an 84.4 mph changeup against Salt River. This time he drove the ball into the air toward center fielder Jared Thomas. Ty Harvey scored, and Irish reached third for his first triple of the fall. Fans can watch the triple alongside the single and see how little the two hits have in common beyond the run each produced.

The At-Bats He Almost Missed

Irish tore the meniscus in his left knee sliding into second base in July. Surgery cut short a minor league season in which he had already hit 16 home runs and stolen 20 bases. The Arizona assignment gave the left-handed hitter competitive at-bats again before winter.

There is a larger sample behind those two swings. MLB Pipeline’s profile puts Irish at 13 walks against 12 strikeouts through 18 games with Peoria. For a hitter coming back from surgery, the chance to see that many pitches again may prove as valuable as either highlight. Find more Baltimore coverage at PowerPage Sports.