Michael Ohlman finished quite a bit higher in the community voting at #24. Bccran began voting early on for Ohlman, tabbing him at #17 in fact, over the likes of Daniel Poncedeleon and Allen Cordoba. Bccran justified his early vote by pointing out that Ohlman was the lone catcher on the Texas League Post-Season All-Star team, a worthy accomplishment for the former Orioles farmhand.
Desmetlax12 mentioned that he likes having a catcher that can hit, even if he ends up being a back-up. Desmetlax12 thought it would be nice to have some offense from the position on Yadier Molina’s off days in the future. Wileycard noted that Ohlman has the bat to progress to the majors, not to mention the physical frame to hit there. - Jeremy Byrd
Derek Shore (34): Ohlman joined the Cardinals as a waiver acquisition last spring from the Baltimore Orioles after a down offensive and defensive 2014 with their Double-A club. In 2015, the backstop rebounded nicely and landed as The Cardinal Nation's 30th prospect with a .273/.356/.418 line as the Springfield Cardinals regular catcher. He finished out his first season with his new organization by appearing the Arizona Fall League in a part-time role.
Among catchers, Ohlman not only led the Texas League but the Cardinals system as a whole with 12 dingers and 69 RBI - displaying the power potential and run-producing bat that got him a large bonus as an 11th round pick by the Orioles. At that, he hit for a solid average and made marked improvements as a thrower and receiver behind the dish. That was a blessing in disguise as scouts differed on his potential this fall.
Ohlman was placed in a perfect opportunity to learn and grow. His manager Dann Bilardello and hitting coach Erik Pappas are both former big-league catchers, and they both liked the improvements in his game since April.
"He (Ohlman) had a tremendous year at the plate, worked hard from spring training, and he has just carried it through," said Pappas. "Mike does well waiting for his pitch; he is very patient. That is the difference between him and last year when I talked about his struggles last year. Between Dann (Bilardello) and myself, he is very open to suggestions."
“He has gotten a lot better," said Bilardello in late August. "He is receiving the ball so much better now. He has put some work into it. Fortunately or unfortunately - you could ask him – he has two ex-catchers that played in the big leagues (as coaches – Bilardello and Erik Pappas). Sometimes that is a blessing or a curse. We have been hard on him at times, but it is a good hard. We want to work with Mike on his game-calling, being a leader on the field, and all those types of things need to come into play.
“I have thought his throwing so far has been one of his biggest improvements over the course of the year. When I saw him in spring training, he had a little bit of a long arm, now he has shortened it up and is throwing the ball pretty well. When you see that, plus he has been swinging the bat good, good for him, good for the organization, and we will see how far that takes him.”
From a scouting point of view, the biggest knock on him is his size. As one scout said: "Some see tall catchers with the same eyes as they see short pitchers." As a result of his 6-foot-5 height, getting down and blocking, his durability, nimbleness, and ability to make a consistent, compact throw to cut down runners are red flags. In the box, scouts don't see enough in him consistently to be regular, but more likely a good back-up with a good arm and pop. Although one scout said he can be a journeyman type at best unless he has a dynamite spring in 2016.