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Johnson, Mullins earn organizational awards

Orioles announce award winners for player development and scouting
Cedric Mullins has been named the Brooks Robinson Minor League Player of the Year. (Scott Sears/Norfolk Tides)
September 14, 2018

The Orioles have named outfielder Cedric Mullins as the Brooks Robinson Minor League Player of the Year, while Tides manager Ron Johnson has been named the winner of the Cal Ripken, Sr. Player Development Award.

The Orioles have named outfielder Cedric Mullins as the Brooks Robinson Minor League Player of the Year, while Tides manager Ron Johnson has been named the winner of the Cal Ripken, Sr. Player Development Award.

Mullins played in 109 games between Double-A Bowie and Triple-A Norfolk. Over 49 games with Bowie, he batted .313/.362/.512 (63-for-201) with 12 doubles, five triples, six home runs, 36 runs, and 28 RBI. He led the Baysox in hitting and was named the Eastern League Player of the Week for the week ending May 27. Mullins was ranked as the Orioles number nine prospect in Baseball America's Midseason prospect rankings. He was promoted to Triple-A Norfolk on June 1 and played in 60 games for the Tides, batting .269/.333/.438 (65-for-242) with 17 doubles, three triples, six home runs, 41 runs, 19 RBI, and 12 stolen bases.
Mullins was selected by the Orioles in the 13th round of the 2015 First-Year Player Draft. He made his Major League debut on August 10, 2018 vs. Boston. He became the first player in Orioles history to record three hits in their Major League debut. He recorded five doubles in his first nine games, becoming the first Orioles player to do so since 2002. Over 29 games with the Orioles this season, Mullins has batted .240/.319/.394 (25-for-104) with seven doubles, three home runs, 17 runs scored, and six RBI.
Norfolk Manager Ron Johnson has been named the winner of the Cal Ripken, Sr. Player Development Award, named for the late Orioles coach and manager who is widely regarded as the architect of "The Oriole Way." Each year, a minor league staff member who exemplifies Ripken's qualities as an instructor is recognized with the award. Johnson helped develop and send off 12 former Tides players to make their Major League debuts this season, part of the group of 14 total Orioles players to make their debuts this season, tied for the most in team history (1955). This is Johnson's second Cal Ripken, Sr. Award, also taking home the honors in 2015. Johnson just completed his seventh season with the Tides and eclipsed the 1,000-game mark as manager of Norfolk in the third to last game of the season. He began his professional baseball coaching career in 1986 with the Kanas City Royals organization. He managed his first team, Class A-Advanced Baseball City in the Florida State League in 1992. He was the Red Sox first base coach from 2010-11, before returning to managing in 2012 with Norfolk where he has spent his last seven seasons.