Zac Lowther is a left-handed pitcher that many fans had watched develop into what looked like a top notch starter for the coming years in Birdland.
Drafted by the Orioles in the second round as the 74th pick in the draft, the hopes were high for the big left-hander out of Xavier.
Moving quickly through the minors, Lowther would make strides that promised hope for the future. He led the Eastern League in strikeouts and finished second in ERA in 2019.
Relying on a fastball that sat in the low 90’s, Lowther used deception in his delivery and countered with three adequate off-speed pitches.
Unfortunately for Lowther, who was the Orioles’ No. 25 prospect so far this season, he could not find success in the majors. Across 10 appearances last season, Lowther would go 1-3, and his ERA was 6.67.
Across 29.2 innings, Lowther would strike out 30 batters, and opponents would bat .298 against him, making it difficult for him to find any footing in the bigs.
To make matters worse, Lowther would go 0-6 in the minors in 2021, pitching to a 5.49 ERA and making his season one to forget.
Things didn’t fair any better this season, as he lasted only 5.1 innings in the bigs with an 8.44 ERA. Sent down to get more work, Lowther would pitch to a 10.03 ERA, leading to him being designated for assignment earlier this afternoon.
Lowther will finish his O’s farm system career at 24-24 with a 3.26 ERA across 400.1 innings in the minors. For the Orioles, he would finish 1-3 across 11 games with a 6.94 ERA.
The Orioles made another move today, claiming infielder Jonathan Araúz off waivers from the Boston Red Sox and sending him to Triple-A Norfolk.
Originally drafted by the Phillies, Araúz would be traded to the Astros in a deal that included Ken Giles, Mark Appel and future Orioles pitcher Thomas Eshelman.
Araúz once again would be on the move when the Red Sox claimed him in the Rule 5 Draft.
Over the course of three seasons for the Red Sox, the 23-year-old Araúz has batted .204 in 59 games, with four homers and 18 RBIs. He has a career .979 fielding percentage playing every infield position, except first base.
Through his minor league career, Araúz has batted .240 across 498 games, with 30 homers and 186 RBIs. He has also stolen 21 bases and has a fielding percentage of .958.
We would like to wish Zac Lowther luck on his career moving forward and welcome Jonathan Araúz to Birdland.
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