Former Campbell Baseball Player Cedric Mullins Honored by Orioles
BUIES CREEK, N.C. — After working his way through the Baltimore Orioles minor league system and later making his MLB debut in August, former Campbell center fielder Cedric Mullins was named the 2018 Brooks Robinson Minor League Player of the Year, as announced by the Orioles last Friday.
Mullins was honored in a pregame ceremony prior to Baltimore's game Saturday night against the Chicago White Sox.
The 403rd pick of the 2015 MLB Draft, Mullins split time this year between Double-A Bowie and Triple-A Norfolk, playing in 109 games and hitting .289 (128-for-443) with 29 doubles, 12 home runs, 21 stolen bases and 47 RBIs.
With the Norfolk Tides, he hit safely in 15 consecutive games from June 27 to July 15, which was the longest hitting streak by a Tides player this season. Over that stretch, Mullins batted .379 (25-for-66) with six doubles and a pair of triples and home runs.
On August 10, Mullins became the 10th Fighting Camel to reach the MLB and the first position player to receive the call in program history. He started in centerfield, batted ninth, and had a 3-for-4 outing in his debut, becoming the first player in Orioles history to record three hits in an MLB debut.
Mullins made the jump to the top of the lineup on August 17 and then, a day later, he hit his first MLB home run. He became the first position player in Campbell history to hit a home run at the Major League level. Pitchers Gaylord Perry, Jim Perry and Rube Melton are the other former Campbell players to hit a Big League long ball.
A transfer from Louisburg College, Mullins led the 2015 Fighting Camels with a .340 clip and 59 runs scored. He also tacked on 34 extra base hits, sprinkling in 23 doubles, seven triples and four home runs. Mullins received Second Team Atlantic All-Region honors by the American Baseball Coaches Association and was selected Second Team All-Big South.
Campbell baseball is coming off its third appearance in the NCAA Tournament as the Camels swept the Big South regular season and tournament titles for the first time in program history. The Camels had eight all-conference honorees, the most since 2013, and racked up a program-record 21 wins in conference play.