Samuel Basallo
Samuel Alexander Basallo Mendez
- Bats Left, Throws Right
- Height 6' 4", Weight 180 lb.
Biographical Information[edit]
The Baltimore Orioles signed Samuel Basallo as an international amateur free agent out of the Dominican Republic on January 15, 2021. the young catcher began his professional career that same year with the DSL Orioles 1, where he hit .239 in 41 games. In 2022, he oved to the U.S. to play for the FCL Orioles, hitting .279 in 43 games.
His first season of full-season ball came in 2023, when he was with three different teams. He started off with the Delmarva Shorebirds of the Carolina League, where he hit .299 in 83 games. He was then promoted to the Aberdeen IronBirds of the South Atlantic League, where he hit .333 in 27 games and was the league's Player of the Month for September. He then finished the season with 4 games for the Bowie BaySox of the Eastern League, where he went 7 for 15 (.467). Taken all together, his slash line was .313/.402/.551 in 114 games, with 20 homers and 86 RBIs. After the season, he was named the Player of the Year in the Carolina League, was a post-season All-Star in the leagues, and was also named the circuit's top prospect.
In 2024, he started off with Bowie, picking up where he left off the year before by hitting .289 in 106 games and being named to play in the 2024 Futures Game. He got another late-season promotion, this one taking him to the Norfolk Tides of the International League, where he hit .222 in 21 games. Overall, he batted .278/.341/.449 in 127 games, with 68 runs, 19 homers and 65 RBIs.
He started the 2025 season with Norfolk, where he hit .270 in 76 games, with 23 homers and 67 RBIs. There may still have been some questions about his defensive play, but it was clear that his bat was ready for the Show, and with the Orioles having an unexpected down year, there was no reason to keep Samuel on the farm any longer. On August 17th, he made his major league debut starting at DH and batting sixth against the Houston Astros, one day after another top Orioles prospect, Dylan Beavers, had made his own debut in the outfield. He went 1 for 4 with 2 RBIs and a hit-by-pitch and would have hit his first big league homer had the Astros' RF, Jesus Sanchez, not robbed him by leaping high next to the fence and snatching a ball that was destined to leave the ballpark in the 7th inning. Baltimore still won the game handily, 12-0. Only a few days after his debut, on August 22nd, the Orioles announced that they had signed him to a contract extension covering eight seasons and worth $67 million. He hit his first big league homer on August 30th, making him the youngest catcher in franchise history (also covering the St. Louis Browns) to go deep. He was one full year younger than the previous holder of that mark, Les Moss. The blast came off Tristan Beck in an 11-1 win over the San Francisco Giants. Like his putative first homer, this one was also almost the victim of a robbery, as it tipped off the glove of Giants LF Heliot Ramos before going over the wall at Oracle Park.
Notable Achievements[edit]
- 2023 Player of the Year Carolina League Delmarva Shorebirds
Further Reading[edit]
- Jonathan Mayo: "What to expect from O's top prospect Basallo in big leagues", mlb.com, August 17, 2025. [1]
- Henry Schulman: "Basallo's first HR another milestone in whirlwind month for O's", mlb.com, August 31, 2025. [2]
We're Social...for Statheads
Every Sports Reference Social Media Account
Site Last Updated:
Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction?
Subscribe to our Free Email Newsletter
Subscribe to Stathead Baseball: Get your first month FREE
Your All-Access Ticket to the Baseball Reference Database
Do you have a sports website? Or write about sports? We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. Find out more.