The Baltimore Orioles selected Ike Irish this evening out of Auburn University with the 19th pick in the MLB draft. At first glance it’s a curious pick – Irish is a catcher, and the Birds already have Adley Rutschman. But at second glance, he’s also an outfielder.
Irish is a career .350 hitter at Auburn, which boasts the likes of Frank Thomas and perhaps the greatest pure athlete in my lifetime, Bo Jackson. (Also Charles Barkley of the NBA.) Not to mention Orioles’ hall of Famer Gregg Olson. He also has a career .987 fielding percentage.
Irish is a catcher by trade, but he also plays right field. I suspect he won’t be catching in the farm system anytime soon with the logjam the Orioles have at that position. But time will tell. Either way, Irish is the team’s first pick.
Birdland Crush 