In 19 games with the Orioles in 2024, outfielder Kyle Stowers hit .306 with four doubles and a home run and was a solid contributor on defense in the limited sample size.
The results were due to an unsustainably high .435 BABIP, but his performance up until the trade deadline was a sign that Stowers may have finally developed into a long-term mainstay for the Orioles team.
How quickly that attitude has changed in the short time the young left-hander has spent in Miami. It’s certainly a small sample size, but it looks like Stowers left his A-game behind in Baltimore.
In 9 games since arriving in Miami, Stowers has a batting average of .071/.161/.071. He has yet to record his first extra-base hit as a Marlin, and in 14 of his 31 at-bats, he has issued just one walk while suffering one strikeout.
Strikeouts have always been a problem for Stowers, even in the minors. He posted a 25% strikeout rate in Triple-A Norfolk this year, but in the minors he usually posted strikeout rates above 30%. Even during his good stretch in Baltimore this year, he posted 35% strikeouts.
In 2022, his hitting discipline looked significantly better, but two years have passed since then and there is ample evidence that his current approach is unsustainable for a major league starter.
Luckily for the Marlins, Stowers has two option years left. He’ll likely get quite a bit of leeway over the next two months, but if we reach mid-September and he’s still not hitting, it seems certain that Stowers will end up back in the minors.
This is a shame for the fans, especially for those of us who had high praise for the young left-hander a few years ago. He was always a promising player and showed a lot of power in the minors. However, things didn’t work out the way we had hoped.
Stowers struggled to find playing time in an outfield full of quality players like Cedric Mullins, Anthony Santander, Austin Hays and Ryan O’Hearn. He earned playing time in 2022 but couldn’t find a rhythm between 2023 and this year.
Fans weren’t too happy when he was traded to Miami along with fellow prospect Connor Norby, but that’s largely because we still have high expectations for Stowers.
However, he has now spent parts of three seasons in the major leagues and has not been able to hold down a full-time position. He will get a chance to earn the job in Miami, but if things continue as they have, it will look like a smart move by Mike Elias to trade the young outfielder while he still has decent value.
