Welcome to the final O’s Prospect of the Week article of the 2026 season.
This past week, we saw the season end for the Delmarva Shorebirds, the Frederick Keys become Second-Half Champions and plenty of other things worth talking about.
Let’s discuss about all of these happenings in the final edition of O’s Prospects of the Week for 2026.
Triple-A Norfolk: José Barrero – INF / Codi Heuer – RHP
José Barrero looks more and more like the Norfolk MVP as the season soon comes to a close.
Barrero played in five games this week and slashed .438/.571/.625 with a 1.196 OPS. He collected seven hits, including one home run, drove in four RBIs and stole two bases.
Barrero has been at the top of the Norfolk lineup all year. He has the second-highest OPS among qualified players at .720. He is also third in hits (84), fourth in doubles (12), leads the team with a career-high 22 home runs and ranks second in RBIs (56).
On the pitching side of things, right-hander Codi Heuer was looking like his 2020 self.
Heuer pitched in two games this week and threw 2.2 innings of shutout baseball. He allowed just two hits, walked one and struck out four batters.
Since Heuer was traded to the Orioles by the Milwaukee Brewers at the trade deadline, he has not allowed an earned run in 12.2 innings with the Tides. He has allowed just seven hits, walked two batters, struck out 12 and is holding opposing hitters to a .163 batting average.
Double-A Chesapeake: Vance Honeycutt – OF / Anthony Eyanson – RHP
Vance Honeycutt looked like the first-round pick we have been waiting to see this past week.
Honeycutt slashed .409/.458/.818 with a team-high 1.276 OPS and led the team with nine hits, including three doubles and two home runs, while driving in five RBIs. He also stole three bases and walked twice.
The Baltimore Battery’s No. 30 prospect is having a career-year in just his second full season. The 23-year-old has posted career-highs in average (.214), OBP (.315), slugging (.420), OPS (.735), doubles (16), home runs (13), RBIs (42) and stolen bases (38). Honeycutt might have finally turned a corner since joining the Baysox, as he currently has a 1.092 OPS in 16 games.
The more we talk about the Prospects of the Week, the more we see prospects who were received from the Adley Rutschman trade with the Boston Red Sox.
Right-hander Anthony Eyanson had yet another phenomenal start on the mound for Chesapeake, tossing six innings of one-run baseball this past week. He allowed four hits, walked no one and struck out eight.
Eyanson might just be the future ace of the Orioles. Since being traded over, The Battery’s No. 3 overall prospect has made five starts, averaging around five innings per game, with a 2.00 ERA during that time. The 21-year-old has 40 strikeouts, which is only 20 fewer than his time in Double-A with the Red Sox despite pitching 21 fewer innings.
High-A Frederick: DJ Layton – UTIL / Evan Yates – RHP
After having his worst month of the year, DJ Layton turned things around and smacked the cover off the baseball this past week.
Layton, 20, slashed .450/.542/.700 with a 1.242 OPS and led Frederick with nine hits, led the South Atlantic League with five doubles and knocked in six RBIs.
Drafted in the sixth round just two years ago, Layton has really turned into one of the more underrated prospects in the O’s system. The Battery’s 21st-ranked prospect has a .797 OPS, is batting .250 and has a .400 on-base percentage, collecting 97 hits, 92 walks, 25 doubles and 55 RBIs.
Despite showing struggles in Double-A with the Baysox, Evan Yates pitched a phenomenal game with the Keys this week.
Yates pitched five shutout innings, giving up just two hits, walking one and striking out eight.
The 23-year-old righty is having a down year compared to his 2025 season. He has posted a 4.73 ERA in 116 innings of work, giving up 107 hits and 61 earned runs while walking a career-high 49 and striking out 103.
Low-A Delmarva: Eric Booth Jr. – OF / Collin McKinney – RHP
Eric Booth Jr. led the Shorebirds with 11 hits this week, including two doubles, and knocked in three RBIs. He also posted a .440/.517/.520 slash line with a team-high 1.037 OPS.
Booth’s first half of a pro season has been up and down. After a very rough August, where he had fewer hits in 12 games than he did in this series, it seems The Battery’s No. 9 overall prospect has started to turn things around offensively.
Booth Jr. is now hitting .284 with a .718 OPS. The 18-year-old is just starting his professional career, and it is exciting to see what type of player he will become over the next few seasons.
On the pitching side, we have a new name to talk about on the Shorebirds.
Collin McKinney pitched three shutout innings in his only start this week, as the 22-year-old gave up just two hits, three walks and struck out three.
McKinney is brand new to the Orioles system, having made just three starts with the team. Since being drafted in the ninth round this year, the former Arizona Wildcat has pitched 7.2 innings of shutout baseball while striking out 10 batters.
We want to thank you for following along with our O’s Prospects of the Week articles all season long. We enjoy showcasing the talent coming up throughout the farm system each week and can’t wait to bring this series back once again in 2027.
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