Baltimore Orioles ‘Biggest One-Hit Wonder’ Remains Everyday Player for Squad

The biggest one-hit wonder in recent history for the Baltimore Orioles still contributes to the team now.

Sep 10, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Baltimore Orioles center fielder Cedric Mullins (31) celebrates after hitting a two run home run during the third inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. / Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images

Finding outfielders who can succeed at Camden Yards is a tall task for the Baltimore Orioles.

Given the sheer size of their outfield, they need players who can cover a lot of ground. The cavernous size of left field puts a lot of pressure on whoever is in the corner and center field to limit extra-base hits to the best of their ability.

Luckily for the Orioles, they have two players who possess center field range. In left, rookie Colton Cowser has been excellent. Next to him has been the steady Cedric Mullins, who remains a solid contributor.

This season, he is getting the job done in every facet of the game. He has been excellent defensively with an Outs Above Average of 4, a strong number.

At the plate he has hit 17 home runs, the second most in a single season, with 29 stolen bases, which is only five short of his career best.

However, his overall production has slipped a bit. His slash line of .228/.301/.403 would all be lows since he moved into the starting lineup in 2021.

That season, the bar was set incredibly high by Mullins. He made his only All-Star game to this point, finishing with a slash line of .291/.360/.518 with 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases.

That kind of production hasn’t been replicated since. That is why he has been selected as the biggest one-hit wonder for Baltimore in recent history.

“The first one was certainly an out-of-nowhere thing in its own right. He came into the year with only seven home runs to show for his first 115 games with the Orioles. At his hottest, he matched that total in just a 12-game stretch during the 2021 campaign.

The evidence was always there that Mullins' power output in 2021 was unsustainable, most notably in the sense that his hard-hit rate was only in the 39th percentile. That rate has since regressed even further, now sitting in the 16th percentile in 2024,” wrote Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report.

A 30-30 season is incredibly impressive and Mullins deserves credit for how productive he was in 2021. He is a top-10 center fielder in baseball based on WAR this season, but that campaign certainly looks to be a flash in the pan.

It will be interesting to see what the future holds for the North Carolina native. He was involved in trade rumors ahead of the deadline and has one more year of arbitration before hitting free agency in 2026 at 32 years old.