Ortiz is the 321st former Northwoods League player to debut in MLB
Rochester, Minn. – Former Willmar Stinger Joey Ortiz made his Major League debut for the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday, April 27, 2023. Ortiz is the 321st former Northwoods League player to reach the Major League level.
Ortiz, who played collegiately at New Mexico State University, played for the Stingers in 2018. He was drafted in the 4th round of the 2019 MLB draft.
In 2018 with the Stingers, Ortiz played in 34 games and hit .282 with six doubles and 14 RBI. He stole five bases and scored 20 times.
Ortiz started his professional career in 2019 with the Aberdeen IronBirds of the Short-Season A New York-Penn League. Over 56 games he hit .241 with one home run, 23 runs scored and 17 RBI.
In 2021 Ortiz started the season in Aberdeen and then was promoted, after 19 games, to the Bowie Baysox of the AA Northeast League. For the season he played in 35 games between the two clubs and hit .265 with four home runs, two triples and nine doubles. He drove in 17, stole four bases and scored 25 times.
Ortiz started the 2022 season with Bowie. After playing in 111 games, he was sent to the Norfolk Tides of the AAA International League. Over 137 games he hit .284 with 19 home runs, 35 doubles and six triples. He stole eight bases, walked 50 times, and had 91 runs scored.
Prior to his call-up to the Orioles, Ortiz had played in 16 games with Norfolk and was hitting. 359 with five doubles, four triples and eight RBI. In his Major League debut against the Detroit Tigers, Ortiz started the game at second base and went 1-3 at the plate with three RBI.
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The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Now entering its’ 30th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 24 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, over 315 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (NYM), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website at watchnwl.com and on ESPN+. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play.