Dorrian doing good work in Double-A

I just made another check of a few Orioles prospect lists and can't find any mention of Patrick Dorrian. Not a trace.

The casual fan might ask, "Who's Patrick Dorrian?" He's the Double-A Bowie infielder who was the player to be named later in the May 2019 Yefry Ramirez trade with the Pirates. The former Braves 12th round pick in 2014 out of Kingston High School who was released two months later and signed by the Pirates four years later.

Dorrian changed his mind about professional baseball, saying he wasn't ready and enrolling at Herkimer County Community College in New York, where he also was a guard on the basketball team. He wasn't eligible at a Division I school after Herkimer and decided to attend Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla.

As a senior in 2018, he batted .394/.471/.798 with 17 home runs in 49 games and accepted the first offer he received, which came from the Pirates.

Dorrian turns 25 in June. He's turning heads now with four doubles and five home runs in his first eight games with Bowie, including a grand slam on Friday. He was slashing .393/.514/1.071 with 12 RBIs and 10 runs scored before last night, when he was 0-for-2 with a pair of walks.

The five home runs led Double-A baseball.

Dorrian has been playing third base for the Baysox, but can change positions like he does schools and teams, with experience at shortstop, second base and first base.

He's also pitched as an amateur and played one game in center field.

That's Patrick Dorrian. He deserves your attention.

As for Ramirez, he registered a 7.71 ERA and 1.857 WHIP in nine relief appearances with the Pirates in 2019, was signed and released by the Mets in 2020 and joined the Dodgers organization in March. Still trying to get back to the majors.

You'll find Ramirez at Triple-A Oklahoma City, where he's made two starts and allowed nine runs and 10 hits in 8 2/3 innings.

Meanwhile, Triple-A Norfolk outfielder Yusniel Diaz remains day-to-day with an left upper-leg/hip injury. He exited last Sunday's game after a RBI double in the ninth inning.

The Orioles are debating whether to put Diaz on the seven-day injured list. There's less urgency with Triple-A rosters expanded to 33 players. It's reduced only when the Orioles need five for the taxi squad.

Second baseman Jahmai Jones is down with a strained left oblique. The Orioles weren't going to recall him prior to the injury. As I said yesterday, they want him to work on his defense and collect more at-bats in order for the organization to examine the numbers.

The same theory applies to infielder Rylan Bannon, who's primarily a third baseman but also can play second. It would take an emergency for the Orioles to rush him to the majors. The ideal arrangement keeps him in Triple-A until later in the summer, when he might debut.

Position prospects could stream onto the major league roster with Jones, Diaz and Bannon. Only Jones has made it to the bigs, appearing in three games with the Angels last summer.

Also keep an eye on Tyler Nevin, the 38th overall pick of the Rockies in 2015 who came to the Orioles in the Mychal Givens trade. He hit four home runs in his first 10 games with Norfolk.

Nevin has started at first base and in right field, but also can play third.

Stevie Wilkerson is expected to beat all of them to the majors, where he hasn't appeared in a game since Sept. 29, 2019. Any roster adjustments at second base are most likely to involve Wilkerson, who also plays the outfield and expands the versatility of the roster.

A corresponding 40-man roster move would be necessary.