The Orioles will be without first baseman Ryan Mountcastle for 8-12 weeks after imaging revealed a Grade 2 strain of his right hamstring, interim manager Tony Mansolino told reporters (including MLB.com’s Jake Rill). Baltimore placed him on the 10-day injured list and recalled Coby Mayo last week. Mountcastle’s injury is significant enough that he’ll eventually be moved to the 60-day IL when the team needs to create a 40-man roster spot.
A Grade 2 strain is viewed of “moderate” severity and involves a partial muscle tear. It’s the biggest blow in what has been a frustrating season for the 28-year-old infielder. Mountcastle has hit .246/.280/.348 with only two home runs across 200 plate appearances. Those would be career-worst numbers across the board. Mountcastle has been a slightly better than average hitter for most of his five-year MLB career. Last season’s .271/.308/.425 showing is more representative of his overall body of work.
This very likely takes him off the board as a trade candidate. Even a return at the short end of the timeline would be after the July 31 deadline. Injured players can be traded, but Baltimore would be hard-pressed to find interest between the rough first couple months and the extended absence. Mountcastle is playing on a $6.787MM salary and will surpass the five-year service threshold. He’ll be eligible for arbitration once more next winter, but a projected $7MM+ sum figures to make him a non-tender candidate. That’d be particularly true if the recovery carries towards the back end of the timeline and keeps him out into September.
Ryan O’Hearn has outperformed Mountcastle this season and had already taken the first base job. Mayo has been playing regularly between first base and designated hitter for the past week. The O’s activated Ramón Laureano from the injured list this afternoon. He’s in tonight at DH against A’s lefty JP Sears. Baltimore should also welcome Jordan Westburg and Gary Sánchez back relatively soon. Both players are on rehab stints at Triple-A Norfolk.
Will he even get a guaranteed MLB deal next year?
Free agency has been unkind to first baseman the last few years. There’s a genuine chance that it’s not only a minor league deal, but one very late in the off-season
He’s not a free agent until after next season.
He will be non-tendered this offseason.
He will not be non-tendered. There is probably less than a 10% chance of such a thing happening.
With an estimated arbitration number of around $7 million he will almost certainly be non-tenured.
Andrew Vaughn will also be a righty 1B non-tendered.
Why do you think they will pay him $7 million? They won’t. Baltimore needs the roster to evolve. Keeping mediocrity around does nothing for Baltimore.
I’m not saying that they 100% bring him back. As it stands now, it seems to all be contingent upon how well Mayo plays in his absence and how a number of other roster decisions play out. His defense and RH bat is needed to balance the lineup and I can see them being willing to ride his streaks here and there as long as he continues being good with the glove and if they don’t find another RH bat to replace his. How does his recovery go? What will they do with the rotation needs in the offseason – make trades to find a front of the rotation arm to pair with Bradish and Greyson? How will they play up to the deadline and if they are sellers how does that reshuffle the roster? There are too many variables to make the blanket statement that he will be non tendered.
@Fan
I mostly agree with what you’re saying in that I think there’s too many moving (or soon to be missing) parts to judge it clearly from today. I will admit that I think there’s a good chance he does gets non-tendered…but I think him rebuilding value for something like a sign-and-trade is also a significant possibility..
My read is that the O’s are really hoping that Mayo grabs the reigns here. That’s far from a guarantee though (dude is only 23 in his defense). I think we could end up in a situation a few months from now where either or both happen of A.) Mayo continues to struggle and gets sent back down to AAA but with a much more developed improvement plan (think Cowser or Holliday after their first run in the bigs) and B.) O’Hearn continues to rake and the O’s have to trade him while he’s at peak value despite their hope to extend him.
I think the O’s hope that their first base mix in 2026 and beyond is made up of Mayo + O’Hearn but I’m curious if they’ll have to cash in and trade O’Hearn while he’s hot and then hope Mounty can come back to either rebuild value for a trade or at least justify the contract tender.
If BAL doesn’t bring him back, I could see a team like the Marlins or Athletics bringing him in for one year, hoping he hits well so they could trade him. Either that or he signs in Japan or South Korea.
Perhaps not from the Orioles, although it’s too early to predict with certainty, but he will have major league offers from multiple teams.
No reason to sit Ohearn right now anyhow. Clears up the pending logjam some too
And maybe some ABs for Mayo who looks a bit better since coming up. A loss defensively but this will help the offense
@tuck
Personal anecdote but I’ve seen Mayo play first in AAA a few times this year and have seen hopeful signs of progress with the defense as the year has gone on. The last time I saw him he made a really nice play goi.ng up the line to catch a wayward throw but was still able to get a nice tag on the runner for the out. Was a really good “instinct” type play. I know I’m going a bit “Trouble with the Curve” on you trust me…but you can tell dude is a natural athlete (and he;s sneaky fast too especially for a first baseman).
I’m hopeful he can follow a Mountcastle-like arc and show steady improvement year over year as he gets more reps and settles in to 1B as his primary position.
They should offer OHearn a 2 yr deal. Not entirely sure how he revived his career after KC but he’s mashing.
Always sad to see players like Mountcastle and Wade get their service time in, establish themselves as legit mlber’s only to have their initial walk year go to s**t.
Mounty is legit mediocre. He has virtually zero value. See Dom Smith. That’s where Mountcastle is headed.
Obviously Mansolino has gotten the Os to relax and play better – but some of his early in game and lineup decisions have been a bit perplexing.
Another head scratcher by Orioles GM Mike Elias.
Elias has been great at drafting and rebuilding the Orioles into a contender.
But, Elias’s trades, free agent signings etc.
have not panned out as well.
Ryan Mountcastle had great value in a trade in the winter offseason.
Not understanding what Mike Elias’s plan was with Mountcastle.
He could have traded Mountcastle in a blockbuster to reinforce the Orioles rotation and bullpen.
The Orioles have Coby Mayo, Basallo and other position players who could have stepped up to take over jobs if a few Orioles had been traded to fortify other areas of their team.
As it is, I don’t see the Orioles extending their core players yet.
If Mountcastle was not going to be extended, then why wait so long to trade him for top market value?!
The end resulting gamble was the worst case scenario where one of the Orioles best players and best value in a trade to bring back the young players that could have helped the Orioles win now is now injured and his value has tanked.?!
And, the pitching staff has been decimated by injuries and lack of depth?!
What is the plan in Baltimore?!
How did the Kyle Bradish trade work out? How about Povich and Cano for Jorge Lopez? Seems like he did pretty well on the Corbin Burnes trade… Ryan O’Hearn looks like a pretty solid get… what about the Eflin trade? Sugano looks like a steal of a signing. It blows my mind how people like you cherry pick but forget about all the good trades/signings, should probably find something else to pay attention to because baseball probably ain’t for you
Cue the Violins.
Still not a valid answer.
The Orioles have not been aggressive and creative enough
especially in building their starting rotation.
The Burnes trade worked for and helped both ballclubs
But, by not pairing Burnes with another top of the rotation starter, the Orioles blew a golden opportunity to make the World Series and maybe even win it when Burnes was with the Orioles.
Instead many of their rotation and bullpen “upgrades”: were marginal veterans who don’t move the needle much and were not enough to get the team out of the first round of the playoffs..
In the meantime, the Orioles have watched all their competitors in the AL East get much better and surpass them in the standings?!
Like every team, the Orioles have made some good and bad deals.
It is obvious that the Orioles have assets that could have been used in trades to fortify their rotation in the offseason,
But, Elias has dropped the ball on some deals that he could have made like trading Ryan Mount castle @ peak value.
No excuses.
The Orioles have a pipeline of talent and had stockpiled a bushel full of draft picks so they could have afforded to make more starting pitching deals that would have improved the team greatly,
And why waste Heston Kjerstad’s trade value?!
Either get him going fulltime on the major league ballclub or trade him @ :peak value” for young, controllable starting pitching.
The player is now 26 years old and the longer the Orioles hold onto him and don’t play him fulltime the lower his trade value goes.
Povich: the jury is still out on him.
He is still young with a 5+ ERA..
It would be nice if he works out for the Birds.
But, it has not happened yet.
Or maybe you are just happen with accepting mediocrity and playing for the Wild Card and 1 and out of the playoffs in the years that the Orioles even make the playoffs?!
@0000
so… many…. words.
A grandfather would have sat in his ball-watchin’ chair, called him ‘Ryan Bumphovel’, and chuckled softly in self-amusement.
He considered dubbing ‘Sticky Manly’ for Mickey Stanley as his crowning lifetime achievement.
Papa didn’t get out much.