3:27pm: The Orioles have officially announced Mayo’s promotion. As noted by Kubatko, Urias was in fact placed on the 10-day injured list with what the Orioles have termed a “mild” hamstring strain. Manager Brandon Hyde told reporters (including Kubatko) that the club expects Urias’s trip to the IL to be a short one, and then he’ll resume a running progression after resting for a couple of days.
1:00pm: The Orioles are bringing infield prospect Coby Mayo back up to the majors. Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reported that Mayo was on his way to join the team. Matt Weyrich of The Baltimore Sun confirmed that Mayo would indeed be recalled to the active roster.
Mayo, 23, is one of the best prospects in baseball but he has struggled to find playing time in a crowded Baltimore infield. He made his major league debut last year but was optioned back to the minors multiple times and only got 46 plate appearances over 17 games.
He came into camp this year with a shot at earning an Opening Day job but was optioned to the minors in mid-March. Mayo is only really a viable option at the corners. Ryan Mountcastle and Ryan O’Hearn have been sharing first base and the designated hitter spot.
Shortstop Gunnar Henderson started the season on the IL but the club decided to go with a rotation of Jordan Westburg, Jackson Holliday, Jorge Mateo and Ramón Urías to cover the three infield spots to the left of first base. Henderson was off the IL after missing just seven games. That left Westburg and Urías sharing third while Holliday and Mateo shared second.
Though Mayo expressed some frustration with getting optioned, he has continued mashing in the minors. He already has six home runs and has been drawing walks at a 12.6% pace. He has a .252/.346/.523 line and 130 wRC+ for the year. Dating back to the start of 2023, he has 1,147 minor league plate appearances with a .287/.390/.570 line and 149 wRC+.
Though he has been doing everything in his power to push for a promotion, the O’s seemed content to wait. Yesterday, general manager Mike Elias spoke on the situation, per Jake Rill of MLB.com. “He’s going to be a big part of this team,” Elias said, though he added that Mayo needed the “right opportunity” or the “right pathway”.
It seems that injuries have finally created that pathway. Westburg landed on the 10-day injured list earlier this week due to a left hamstring strain. Urías was scratched from last night’s game due to right hamstring tightness, leaving Emmanuel Rivera to play third base. With Mayo’s reported recall, perhaps Urías will land on the injured list. Presumably, Mayo will take over at the regular third baseman, with Rivera serving a bench role.
Perhaps that means this will only be a brief promotion. Mayo only hit .098/.196/.098 in his debut last year. If he struggles again this time, he could end up optioned back to Norfolk when Westburg and Urías get healthy, though it’s also possible that he hits enough to stick around. Mountcastle is having an awful year, so perhaps there’s a scenario where his playing time goes to Mayo even with Westburg and Urías on the roster.
Time will tell how that plays out, which will impact Mayo’s future contractual status. He came into this year with 43 days of major league service time, putting him 129 shy of the one-year mark. There are still 148 days remaining in the regular season, meaning Mayo can get over the one-year line if he’s up the rest of the way. That would put him on track to qualify for arbitration after 2027 and free agency after 2030. However, getting optioned back down to the minors later in the year could prevent him from getting over the one-year line and could push those timelines.
Photo courtesy of Nathan Ray Seebeck, Imagn Images
Can’t hold the Mayo!
Oh so close. If they could have waited two more days, they could have called him up on Cinco de Mayo.
Or bought an L and get a Colby and mayo sandwich!
Same owner as Putumayo
Yes, Colby Jack’s sister, Gladys Mayo!
Commission bye bye-o!
You do realize the Mayo part is all month long?
@mets tres de mayo doesn’t hit the same. Just like Hellmann’s is better than best foods.
Hellmans is best foods. So, Mets is right, because hellmans is the month of may in your comment.
My autism beat your autism.
@titus. I was agreeing with him. So my reading comprehension beats yours. Yes it was bought out by the same company, but its different.
Maybe now we’ll have an offense!
Doubtful.
I was shocked looking at some of those current OPS numbers from the O’s infield.
Yeah…..
But they’re gonna be real good in 2-3 years….at which time the excellent young pitchers will be kicking it in as well.
Maybe, maybe not. Rutschman looked like he was going to be an MVP candidate when he came up, then MLB figured out how to pitch to him.
Orioles Amazing Mayo
This Mayo may not be a good move.
Hold the Mayo.
Mayo can go bad easily
I heard after consulting with Samuel the Os had a trade in place to reacquire Austin Hays but when he went on the IL for the 78th time he recommended Mayo be recalled
Why would the Reds trade Hays?
I identify as an mlb insider and my sources are telling me that the dodgers are going to be champions on the script for 2025
Yeah, Hays has only looked good so far because he’s playing half his games in Cincinnati’s great hitters’ park.
baseball99 & Hammerin’ Hank;
Darn. You kids got me.
Like stats?
The man’s hitting .365 / .431 / .712 with a 1.143 OPS and 208 OPS+.
There there’s the problem that he plays good D, does situational hitting, runs the bases well, and is a team leader on a club that’s 18-15 and getting better.
Here’s a stat, and I like Hays, he’s been on the IL 4 times since being traded July 26th of last year. You once made a comment the Orioles have been doomed since trading him. You’re a clown
Be great if he hits. I fear his trade value will sink tremendously if he struggles again.
Yep. Let that current roster sink or swim on their own. Dust needs to settle in Baltimore. Don’t bring a Mayo level prospect in to it in this moment. Not fair to him.
It’s very fair to him. He has nothing left to accomplish in AAA.
The Orioles aren’t trading any of their young players. They will sink or swim with them. He probably won’t hit though.
They traded Kyle Stowers, he is hitting .320/.391/.500 with Miami.
Put him in the lineuo and dont take him out for a month. See how hes doing then. Enough with this in and out of the lineup. Too much overmanaging and tinkering. Kjerstad, cowser, mayo, holiday, henderson, westburg are the future of the orioles. Everyone else should get rotated in and around them.
The problem is you dont play for the future if you are a win now team. This is why teams trade prospects who don’t have a place to play and don’t hit the ground running.
Yeah he probably could’ve gotten them some good pitching this winter
Yes Garret Crochet comes to mind. And not only did they miss out on him their division rival Red Sox went and got him.
They’re a win-now team because of their core of good-to-great young players, like Gunnar, Cowser, Westburg, and Rutschman. Every prospect isn’t going to hit the ground running. That doesn’t mean you give them away for peanuts like they did with Norby.
Obviously traded Norby and more for a bum like Rogers was dumb. If they got Luzardo instead of Rogers it wouldn’t look dumb right now.
Mayo is i believe the 13th rsted prospect on MLB.com. He had and still has a lot of value.
“They’re a win-now team because of their core of good-to-great young players, like Gunnar, Cowser, Westburg, and Rutschman.”
Hammerin’ Hank;
A “win-now” team?
How does a team do that when just about every ML broadcaster I hear points out that the O’s lack pitching and – as one broadcaster said last night (not doing the game but giving the O’s score during another game) – “there’s little to be found”.
A team has to develop their own pitchers. Pitching is the name of the game. It’s the key to winning and being a sustainable contender.
Do you realize that this administration is in the 6th year of the rebuild (most rebuilds fail)? The 2 most successful tear-it-down-build-it-up rebuilds over the past 15 or so years were the Astros and Cubs. Both teams were league championship contenders after 5 years. The Cubs didn’t continue for long because they couldn’t develop their own pitching, then ran out of prospects to trade for good pitchers as well as money for FA pitchers. The Astros developed their own pitching and became a dynasty.
This O’s administration took over after the 2018 season. They have a few good pitchers, a lot that keep getting injured, and most that (to be charitable) are inconsistent.
A team can’t “win-now” when they don’t have a lot of above-average, healthy pitchers on their roster.
Their rotation is in such dire straits that it’s impossible to see them making the playoffs this year. They need more than one or two decent SPs.
Everyone points at the pitching, which is fair. But lets say they traded mayo and kerstadt for both crochett. They are still in last place because the offense has developed either.
Everyone pointed out that the os are a win now team. The fact is they arent yet. Their core lineup fell off the face of the earth in the second half of last year and havent recovered. Fans want them to be win now, but the development hasnt caught up to the expectation yet. And i blame the coaching. Gm could do better yes, but the team isnt in position where a prospect for a star trade is going to put them over the top.
Marlins seem happy w the trade
“The Astros developed their own pitching”
The Astros signed an actually good version of Morton as a free agent after the 2016 season, traded for Verlander in August 2017, traded for Cole after the 2017 season, and traded for Osuna after the 2017 season. They signed Miley as a FA for 2019. They traded for Greinke in July 2019. They developed only Kuechel , McCullers, and Valdez.
This would be like the Orioles actually developing maybe Bradish and Rodriguez or Kremer and having them stay healthy and good, but obtaining/keeping Burnes, Fried, Pivetta, Crochet and Luzardo. A lot different from what the 2025 squad looks like.
Id rather see Gunnar at 3rd and Mateo at SS. Gunnar will do better when instincts take over and the Os were a much better team with Mateo playing short and batting 9th.
Holliday playing short is a better idea imo. He’s a natural shortstop.
Gunnar isnt going back to 3rd until he gets into his 30s
Also that would become a logjam at 3rd with him and westburg and mayo all competing on top of Holliday at 2nd
First piece of business for the new manager, if Elias lets him, is moving Gunnar off of SS.
Mateo isn’t good enough to be an everyday player.
LOL
He was the year they won 101 games.
Samuel – he’s currently hitting .143 with FIVE ERRORS. Despite only playing about 1/3 of the innings.
MATEO NEEDS A DFA
Mateo was pretty good enough in 22 and 23. Give him regular reps and he is fine. That said; neither he or Gunnar are the long term answer at SS. And for that matter, not much down on the farm, either.
C Yards Jeff;
As an O’s fan, your ace-in-the-hole is that the new owner wants to win. Now.
What I wrote a few days ago was shocking. In time it will be recognized as an honest evacuation.
Teams are built up-the-middle to support the pitching, because pitching is what wins. Finding corner infielders and outfielders is the easy part.
You’re an insightful and great O’s fan. They have a lot of good young players – unfortunately most play the same positions. Something will change after this season, and it will happen because the owner will become more active….hopefully not too active.
Samuel. Up-the-middle, indeed. And they don’t have it.
Can he pitch?
big question, if urias is going on the IL, is the defense. Mayo is fringy at 3B and that’s putting it kindly. I could see Rivera staying in the mix at that position
Cue the Mountcastle to Red Sox rumors
They’re not trading him to a division rival.
Who cares? He’s already past his prime and they need to move on from him.
Yeah, he’s a quality major league player.
O’s need to move on from him.
Actually, you can. He’s nothing special.` BA finished 19th in OPS at 1st last year. 17th in 2023. 21st so far this year.
I don’t think they can get much for him, but if they did trade him and started Mayo at 1st (not a fan of him either), I don’t think they will lose much.
That’s where the kids come into play.
The O’s front office is a joke. They had all those prospects and signed no one to a long term deal. Now their roster consists of expiring contracts, arb elig’s and prospects with exposed flaws.
“Time will tell how that plays out, which will impact Mayo’s future contractual status. He came into this year with 43 days of major league service time, putting him 129 shy of the one-year mark. There are still 148 days remaining in the regular season, meaning Mayo can get over the one-year line if he’s up the rest of the way. That would put him on track to qualify for arbitration after 2027 and free agency after 2030.”
Mayo could qualify for salary arbitration after 2027 as a Super Two even if he doesn’t get over the one-year line at the end of this year.. He has 43 days of Major League service, so he would only need around 87 days of service in 2025 to finish the year with .130 MLS, which would give him a very good chance of being a Super Two after 2027 based on the Super Two cutoffs over the past 10 years.
You’d’ve thought Mountcastle is veteran enough to avoid mucking up his career like this by keeping the door open for Mayo.
He’s just not that good. He’s already peaked. It’s time for Mayo to get a real shot.
Hopefully it’s not too serious for Westburg and and Urias. I understand why Baltimore is holding their prospects but they need to be better at extracting value from the Jorge Mateo, Ramon Urias, Cedric Mullins, Ohearn and Mountcastle types. Especially since this team needs pitching so badly. If they are in last place by the deadline, they should be looking for controllable arms. Elias is a great scout but needs to build the system a little more because prospects bust at high rates. Trading 2 top 100 for Trevor Rogers isn’t helping either
Amazing how Elias squanders his prospects’ value, letting them molder in the minors while he brings in washed up veterans instead.
Yeah, he’s good at that.
Samuel not gonna like this. Mayo worst prospect ever. No fundamentals and can’t field the position. Can’t bunt. Who cares if he hits some home runs? That’s not what wins you games.
As I mentioned above, I am not a fan. This is his 3rd time thru AAA and he is still on pace for 150 Ks per 600 ABs. That’s not doom-worthy, but it limits his ceiling.
But I’d still trade Mountie and start Mayo at 1st.
Joe;
If the young man can’t catch a ball at 3B; do you really want him taking pick-off throws from the pitcher and throws from the
infielders?
It’s an out of touch narrative and fallacy that 1B is an easy position to play. It’s not. Baseball people from Branch Rickey to Ron Washington knew that. And it’s much harder on a RH thrower….
The 3B takes smashes from RH batters pulling the ball. So? The 1B gets them from LH batters. The 3B can play off the bag and 10-12 feet behind the bag for a RH power hitter. He crouches and looks into the plate before the pitch is made. With a runner on first, the 1B has to stay anchored to the bag to hold the runner on…then when the pitch is made jump off the bag and ready himself for a batted ball….again….in line with the bag, he can’t play behind it for a power hitter. Both players also have to charge in for bunts and topped balls. But the 1B handles the ball more than any player other then the P and C, and is the cut-off man for balls hit down the RF line.
1B is the most underrated defensive position on a hard-ball baseball team. Most of the better baseball people know it. In your case, they would never consider playing a guy like Rafael Devers there (am not speaking for the Sox FO).
1-Mayo has 547 total innings at 1st. If they aren’t going to play him there, why waste the developmental time.
2-And if Mayo can’t play 1st, then it is time to move on from him. He’s not playing anywhere else.
Should’ve traded him for Cease in the offseason.
Expect another roster move soon.
Now that they have MAYO
There is no need for
MIRACLEWHIP !!
Good thing they brought up Mayo. With their pitching they’re always playing ketchup. Now let’s all relish the moment.
Rather have “Cool hwhip”
Coby starts out .000. Uh oh for the Ohs.