Taking a look at how former Stanford Cardinal OF did with the Baltimore Orioles

The 2024 season is over for Slater, so let's take a look and see how the former Cardinal fared during his adventurous campaign.

Sep 2, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles outfielder Austin Slater (15) dives back safely on a second inning pickoff attempt against the Chicago White Sox at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Mitch Stringer-Imagn Images / Mitch Stringer-Imagn Images

The Stanford Cardinal have a number of former players that now roam the grass and the dirt in the big leagues, and among that group is outfielder Austin Slater, who ended the year with the Baltimore Orioles. A free agent in November, let’s take a look at the season that former Stanford star put together as he starts to think about his MLB future.

Slater, who began the 2024 season with the San Francisco Giants, was traded to the Cincinnati Reds in July after hitting only .200 with a .575 OPS in 43 games up to that point. He struggled mightily in Cincinnati, going 2-for-18 (.111) with only three RBI in eight games played. Not working out with the Reds, he was traded again on July 30, this time to the Baltimore Orioles.

It was then in Baltimore where Slater really started to find his rhythm, becoming an integral reserve for a team that won 91 games and earned a berth in the AL Wild Card before getting swept at home by the Kansas City Royals in the postseason.

In 33 regular season games for the Orioles, Slater got 69 at-bats where he hit .246 with one home run and six RBI. Playing primarily right field, Slater backed up Anthony Santander while also getting reps in left field and center field as a backup to Colton Cowser and Cedric Mullens, respectively.

The postseason saw Slater play in only one of the team’s two games, where he went 1-for-2 with a strikeout, upping his career postseason numbers to a .429 average, .429 OBP, 1.000 OPS and three career hits. 2024 was only his second ever season appearing in a postseason game, as he previously played in the 2021 NLDS with the Giants, falling in five games to the Dodgers.

Now that his contract is up, it is still unknown whether or not the Orioles will opt to bring him back next year, but with the experience he brings and his track record of strong seasons in years past makes him a valuable addition to any team looking for veteran outfield depth. In his eight year MLB career, Slater has a 102 OPS+, which is slightly above league average, making his a useful bat in the lineup.

Before getting selected in the eighth round of the 2014 draft by the Giants, Slater was a star at Stanford from 2012-2014, finishing his 117 game career with a .300 average, five home runs and 70 RBI, putting together his best season in his junior year when he hit .341 with two home runs and 40 RBI, guiding the Cardinal to a berth in the NCAA Super Regional.