Brandon Snyder, 2005 Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects #BDP94

Sometime in the next few days, the Orioles' #1 draft pick from 2005 should make his major league debut. Brandon Snyder won't have nearly the hype of Matt Wieters, Josh Bell, Brian Matusz, Chris Tillman, Jake Arrieta, or Nolan Reimold. (That's a lot of prospects, huh?) Snyder was drafted as a catcher out of high school, and was switched to first base during his six-season minor league apprenticeship. He didn't get to AA until last year, but it was worth the wait - he batted .343 with a .421 on-base percentage and .597 slugging in 58 games at Bowie before being bumped up to AAA Norfolk. While the Tides' Harbor Park is known for being tough on hitters, Brandon still didn't inspire any confidence with a .248/.316/.355 line in AAA last year and a .257/.324/.407 mark in 2010. He's not seen as having enough power to be an everyday first baseman in the majors (he topped out at 13 HR in 2008), but there's no harm in giving the guy a look.

I'll say this...I am happy for Brandon Snyder and I certainly have higher expectations for him than for Billy Rowell, who was drafted #1 a year after him and is still in Frederick. Eesh.