Camden Futures Prospect Weekly: Bateman's Dominant Week, Figueroa's Double-A Power Surge
By Avery Brooks ·
Camden Futures Prospect Weekly covers the last 7 days of action for the Orioles farm system.
Boston Bateman's Best Outing of the Year
Boston Bateman (A+, LHP, Rank: 22) posted the most dominant individual pitching line in the system this week: four innings, one hit, zero runs, one walk, and seven strikeouts against 14 batters faced. He generated 11 swinging misses on 70 pitches and threw 38 for strikes, a 54 percent rate that sits above his 48.3 percent season mark. The outing was short by starter standards, but the quality was not. Over his last 30 days at High-A Frederick, Bateman has been nearly untouchable, pitching to a 0.00 ERA across 14.1 innings with 25 strikeouts and a 38.7 percent whiff rate. That stretch has brought the season ERA down to 3.46 through 83.1 innings, with a 32.1 percent strikeout rate against batters faced.
The stuff behind those numbers is legitimately multi-pitch. The four-seamer sits 94 to 98 with carry from the high slot, the curveball grades at 60 with sharp two-plane break and sits around 80 mph, and the slider at 84 gives him a second breaking look to attack both sides of the plate. The command, graded at 45, is the primary variable that impacts Bateman's good outings versus his rough ones, and his 12.7 percent walk rate on the season reflects how real that limitation is. A #4 starter projection is the current ceiling, with a power bullpen fallback built around the fastball-curveball combination if he cannot repeat well enough to face lineups multiple times. But what he has been doing over the past month suggests the delivery is in a particularly good groove right now, and for a 20-year-old, that recent-form difference from a bumpy full-season ERA is worth paying attention to.
Victor Figueroa Is Hitting With Authority at Double-A
Victor Figueroa (AA, 1B, Rank: 21) went 8-for-23 with three doubles, a home run, and three RBI in his most productive week since reaching Chesapeake. The power-first first baseman has been a compelling bat-to-watch story in the system since his promotion: he is a 60-grade power tool in a body that has already cleared 26 home runs combined this season, with 22 of those coming at High-A Frederick and 4 more in 27 games at Double-A. The combined slash line of .273/.345/.542 through 447 plate appearances gives him a legitimate offensive profile for a 22-year-old first baseman, even as the 31.1 percent strikeout rate continues to loom as the ceiling constraint.
Last season, Figueroa posted a .284/.398/.503 line across Low-A and High-A with a 22.1 percent strikeout rate. The jump to a 31 percent mark at High-A and Double-A this year is the development the scouting report flagged as the primary risk: pitch recognition against elite breaking balls at advanced levels. Over his last 30 days at Chesapeake, he is slashing .265/.330/.422 with 3 home runs, and the contact rate has dipped to 63 percent, which tracks with what happens when upper-level arms start spinning quality secondary stuff. The positional limitation is real too. He is a pure first baseman, slow underway, with no defensive versatility to speak of. The second-division regular projection fits. If the strikeout rate stabilizes closer to his 2025 levels, the power output is good enough to matter in a lineup. This week offered a solid reminder of what his ceiling looks like when he is barreling the ball.
Quick Hits
- Enddy Azocar (A+, OF, Rank: 27) · drove in 3 on 5 hits this week, including a double and triple, across 17 plate appearances. The production fits a remarkable recent run: over his last 30 days at High-A Frederick, he is slashing .356/.398/.622 with 4 home runs and 21 RBI, a contact rate that has climbed to 80.1 percent. The combined season line of .299/.352/.549 with 21 home runs and 34 doubles across three levels is a significant step forward from last year's .232/.302/.355 showing. He is a 55-grade bat speed threat with a 45 hit tool and real chase tendencies, but right now the 19-year-old is the most productive position player in the Frederick lineup.
- Aron Estrada (AA, 2B, Rank: 18) · went 6-for-23 with a home run, five walks, and 2 RBI in a patient week at Chesapeake. The walk total was notable given his aggressive approach: Estrada swings at a 52.7 percent clip, well above the MiLB average, yet drew five free passes against Double-A arms. His last 30 days at the level include 7 home runs and 16 RBI, with a .573 slugging percentage that looks nothing like the 45 power grade on his card. The 23 home runs in 466 plate appearances already more than doubles his prior career best of 10, and the swing-and-miss has held at a reasonable 17.6 percent strikeout rate. He is a 50 hit tool with an everyday second base projection, and the power development this year has pushed that ceiling upward.
- Vance Honeycutt (AA, OF, Rank: 35) · delivered 5 hits, 2 doubles, a triple, a home run, and 4 RBI in 24 plate appearances in his first sustained Double-A action. Honeycutt was promoted to Chesapeake on August 16 and the bat has responded: over his last 13 games at that level he is slashing .279/.380/.581 with 2 home runs and a 20 percent strikeout rate, a dramatic improvement from the 42.8 percent mark he posted in 257 plate appearances at High-A Frederick earlier this season. The 70-grade speed and 65-grade center-field defense were never the issue; the hit tool and swing-and-miss have always been the question. These early results at Double-A do not resolve that question, but they are the right kind of early results.
- Anthony Eyanson (AA, RHP, Rank: 1) · took a short outing by line score, getting through 3.2 innings on 85 pitches against 18 batters, but punched out 8 with 20 swinging misses and allowed zero runs on 3 hits and 3 walks. The stuff was clearly sharp even without length. Over his last 30 days at Chesapeake, Eyanson carries a 2.21 ERA with 32 strikeouts in 20.1 innings and a 41.8 percent whiff rate. The combined season ERA sits at 1.51 across 89.1 innings at three levels, with a 36.8 percent strikeout rate. A 94-to-98 four-seamer paired with a competitive slider and growing changeup makes the #3 starter projection feel conservative right now.
- Thomas Sosa (AA, OF, Rank: 70) · collected 6 hits in 19 plate appearances with a homer and 3 RBI, including a clutch two-run single in extras against Richmond. Over his last 30 days at Double-A he is hitting at a .292/.393/.444 clip with a 13.1 percent walk rate, his most productive stretch of a season that carries a .238 average. The 27 percent strikeout rate on the season remains the central concern for a 40 hit tool, but the athleticism, 60-grade arm, and emerging pop give him a real corner outfield profile if the contact improves.
- Caden Hunter (AA, LHP, Rank: 31) · struck out 8 over five innings of one-run ball, allowing 5 hits and 2 walks while generating 18 swinging misses on 90 pitches. His season strikeout rate of 36.5 percent across all levels is the headline: 138 punch outs in 94 innings combined between Low-A, High-A, and Double-A, with a 2.01 ERA. The 45 command grade is the obstacle, and his recent 30-day ERA of 4.91 at Chesapeake reflects that the Double-A adjustment has not been seamless. Still, a 55 fastball and 55 changeup give him two legitimate weapons, and the #4 starter projection has real upside if the breaking ball tightens.
- Sebastian Gongora (AA, LHP, Rank: 64) · tossed 6 innings, allowing 2 earned runs on 5 hits with zero walks and 5 strikeouts. The walk-free outing is the most encouraging part of a week for a pitcher whose 45 command grade is the key limiting factor. Over his last 30 days at Chesapeake, the ERA has dropped to 2.35 with a 0.96 WHIP across 23 innings, the best sustained stretch of his Double-A season. The season ERA of 3.64 through 116.1 innings represents legitimate back-end starter progress for a 25-year-old lefty who struggled to a 5.00 ERA at the same level a year ago.
- Braylon Whitaker (A+, OF, Rank: 73) · went 5-for-18 with a double, triple, and 3 RBI while drawing 4 walks and striking out zero times in 18 plate appearances. The zero-strikeout week is no accident: his contact rate of 82.8 percent and swing rate of 35.3 percent make him one of the more selective hitters in the system, and his 15.4 percent walk rate on the season backs that up. The 30 power grade is the profile's hard ceiling, and there is not much home run juice here, but if he keeps getting on base and running at his current clip of 30 stolen bases in 410 plate appearances, there is a bench-outfielder floor to work with.
- Kyson Witherspoon (A+, RHP, Rank: 7) · was placed on the 7-day injured list on August 26 with a right shoulder impingement. His last appearance came on August 21, and he had been pitching well in a three-start Frederick stint: 14.1 innings, a 1.26 ERA, and 20 strikeouts. The timing is unfortunate for a 20-year-old who had shown genuine momentum after a bumpy full season at Greenville, where the ERA sat at 4.78 across 75.1 innings. The shoulder diagnosis makes the near-term timeline uncertain.
- Jaiden Lo Re (A+, SS, Rank: 30) · received his first promotion to Frederick after posting a .325/.439/.443 line with 16 stolen bases across 247 plate appearances at Delmarva. In his first 21 plate appearances at High-A he went 3-for-17 with a homer and 2 stolen bases. The .354/.421/.462 line in his brief Florida Complex League cameo and the patient approach at Low-A make him a legitimate on-base profile to track, even if the early High-A sample has been rocky.
- Michael Forret (AAA, RHP, Rank: 6) · went five innings, allowing 2 earned runs on 2 hits with 4 walks and 6 strikeouts while generating 17 swinging misses on 94 pitches. The walk total is the wrinkle on an otherwise solid start. Forret's Norfolk numbers have been a step back from what he showed in Double-A with Tampa Bay: a 6.41 ERA in 19.2 innings with the Tides compared to a 2.15 ERA in 54.1 innings at Montgomery. The 55 command grade and 60 changeup are still the calling cards, and he projects as a #4 starter, but the Triple-A adjustment since arriving in the organization has been uneven.
- Payton Eeles (AAA, 2B, Rank: 38) · went 4-for-16 with a homer and 3 RBI in 16 plate appearances at Norfolk. His season line at Triple-A is .292/.416/.348 through 197 plate appearances, a combination of strong on-base skills and almost no power that fits a 55 hit tool and 30 power grade. The 16.2 percent walk rate at Norfolk is the most bankable part of the profile. At 26, with an up-down projection, he needs the bat to translate quickly against big-league arms.