Ryan Mountcastle

AL East Notes: Rays, Mullins, Mountcastle, Romano

By Nick Deeds | July 16, 2023 at 8:33am CDT

While the Rays are typically known for making careful, calculated moves in order to maximize long-term success, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times discussed yesterday the possibility of Tampa making a splash in the trade market prior to the trade deadline on August 1 by pursuing two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani, on whom the Angels are expected to consider offers.

Such a move would be a major departure from the club’s typical model, though president of baseball operations Erik Neander and his front office have shown a willingness to be more aggressive in recent years. Trading promising right-hander Joe Ryan for Nelson Cruz ahead of the 2021 trade deadline, extending Wander Franco on an 11-year deal that offseason, and pursuing Freddie Freeman in free agency are all signs from the relatively recent past that the Rays could be willing to take bigger swings in their pursuit of a World Series championship, and there’s no acquisition that would move the needle more than Ohtani.

While the club certainly has the pieces necessary to swing a deal for Ohtani between a farm system that ranks 8th in the majors per Fangraphs and a deep group of position players at the big league level, Topkin cautions that the Rays are highly unlikely to enter a bidding war for Ohtani as the club wouldn’t be able to retain the superstar in free agency. Between that unwillingness to beat out other potential suitors like the Yankees and Dodgers for Ohtani and the considerable chance that the Angels don’t move him at all, as they’re currently sitting just one game under .500 and five games back of a Wild Card berth, Ohtani in a Rays uniform certainly seems unlikely.

More from around the AL East…

Orioles center fielder Cedric Mullins exited yesterday’s game with right quad tightness, as noted by MASN’s Roch Kubatko. Mullins is currently considered day-to-day, and the club will check in with him today to determine the severity of the injury. Manager Brandon Hyde expressed optimism following yesterday’s game, telling reporters (including Kubatko) that the club is “hoping we caught a break there.” Fortunately for the Orioles, they boast a deep group of position players that can help cover for Mullins in the event he misses time, though properly replacing a strong defensive center fielder with a 123 wRC+ is easier said than done.
Sticking with the Orioles, the club has been taking things slowly with first baseman Ryan Mountcastle as he returns from a month on the injured list due to vertigo. While Mountcastle has looked good in limited time since coming off the IL, with a single and a double in five trips to the plate, Kubatko notes that his ability to reclaim a full-time role has been further complicated by the emergence of Ryan O’Hearn as a legitimate starting option. In 156 plate appearances this season, O’Hearn has slashed an impressive .310/.359/.528 with a wRC+ of 143, albeit in a strictly platoon role. Though Mountcastle currently seems poised to see most of his starts come against southpaws, Hyde indicated that setup may not be permanent, telling reporters that he’s “sure” Mountcastle will get some starts against same-handed pitching and that “we’ll see how the second half goes.”
Blue Jays closer Jordan Romano exited the All-Star game last week due to lower back tightness and has since undergone an MRI, as relayed by SportsCentre’s Scott Mitchell. Manager John Schneider told reporters, including Mitchell, that the imaging came back clean and Romano is currently considered day-to-day. Romano has established himself as one of the league’s best closers over the past four seasons, pitching to a 2.21 ERA (190 ERA+) and a 3.01 FIP while racking up 87 saves. In the event the right-hander is unavailable, Erik Swanson and Yimi Garcia appear to be the most likely candidates to handle the ninth.

AL East Notes: Mountcastle, Yankees, Ryu

By Nick Deeds | July 9, 2023 at 11:33am CDT

The Orioles welcomed first baseman Ryan Mountcastle back from the injured list this morning, per a team announcement. 2023 has been a difficult season for Mountcastle, as the slugger slashed just .227/.264/.421 in 261 plate appearances before heading to the injured list with vertigo in mid-June.

Mountcastle spoke to reporters, including Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Banner, about his struggles with vertigo and how it impacted his hitting. He explained that he dealt with waves of dizziness that made baseball appear to be the size of a pea while he was in the batters’ box prior to going onto the IL, and that while he’s felt better in recent days, there’s no way of knowing whether the issues with crop up again in the future. For now Mountcastle figures to join the club’s outfield and DH mix alongside the likes of Ryan O’Hearn, Aaron Hicks, and Anthony Santander.

More from around the AL East…

The Yankees received a pair of positive injury updates today regarding their pitching staff. Right-hander Jonathan Loaisiga threw off a mound for the first time since going on the IL back in April, as manager Aaron Boone told reporters (including Max Goodman of NJ Advance Media). Meanwhile, left-hander Nestor Cortes threw a 20-pitch live bullpen session today, as relayed by MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch. Both Boone and Cortes indicated the session went well, with Cortes adding that his next bullpen session will take place this coming Thursday. While Loaisiga has thrown just 3 1/3 innings this season and Cortes has struggled with a 5.16 ERA across 11 starts this season, the return of both players before season’s end would surely provide a boost to the Yankees, given their past successes.
Blue Jays left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu is poised to take the mound for Toronto’s Single-A affiliate in Dunedin today, per an announcement by the minor league club. Ryu, 36, is rehabbing after undergoing Tommy John surgery last season and, per MLB.com, was sitting 87-88 with his fastball during his previous rehab outing in the Florida Complex League. That velocity isn’t far from where he’s expected to be at the big league level, and MLB.com indicates that Ryu could return “within the month” after building up to take on a starter’s workload. Ryu’s return could help shore up Toronto’s rotation depth down the stretch, an area that GM Ross Atkins highlighted as a focus ahead of the trade deadline on August 1.

Orioles Select Mark Kolozsvary, Place Ryan Mountcastle On Injured List

By Anthony Franco | June 13, 2023 at 6:04pm CDT

The Orioles announced a last-minute move before tonight’s matchup with the Blue Jays. Catcher Mark Kolozsvary has been selected onto the big league roster while first baseman Ryan Mountcastle is headed to the 10-day injured list, retroactive to June 10, due to vertigo. In order to clear a 40-man roster spot, Baltimore designated minor league righty Noah Denoyer for assignment.

Kolozsvary is in position to make his O’s debut. Baltimore claimed him off waivers from the Reds at the start of the offseason. A few weeks later, they successfully passed him through waivers to keep him in the organization. He’s made 20 appearances for their top affiliate in Norfolk, hitting .162/.250/.265 with 26 strikeouts and five walks.

The 27-year-old backstop has never been much of an offensive threat. He’s a career .171/.283/.290 hitter at the Triple-A level. His glove secured him a 10-game MLB audition with Cincinnati last season. It’ll similarly land him at least a brief look in Baltimore behind Adley Rutschman and James McCann.

Mountcastle hasn’t played since August 8 because of an illness. Teams can backdate an IL placement for a maximum of three days. The O’s have decided to give the righty-swinging infielder at least another week to sort through vertigo symptoms that have apparently been plaguing him. It has been a tough season for Mountcastle, who carries a career-worst .227/.264/.421 batting line through 261 trips to the plate. Ryan O’Hearn and Josh Lester have gotten first base looks in his absence recently.

Denoyer landed a 40-man roster spot early last offseason. The 6’5″ hurler would otherwise have been eligible for the Rule 5 draft. He’d been coming off a 2.89 ERA showing across three minor league levels and the O’s were evidently concerned another team would take a shot on him as an MLB middle reliever.

His results have backed up this season, his first full year in Norfolk. Denoyer has tallied 30 1/3 innings across 14 outings (four starts), typically working 2-3 frame stints. He’s managed a 5.04 ERA. That’s largely a reflection of a massive spike in free passes. After walking just 6.1% of opponents last season, he has walked over 15% of batters faced this year. Denoyer’s 23.3% strikeout percentage and 48.8% ground-ball rate are still solid, but the newfound control issues pushed him off the roster.

Baltimore will trade him or put him on waivers within the next week. He’s in his first of three option years, so any team that takes a shot on him could keep him in the upper minors for the foreseeable future if they’re willing to put him on the 40-man.

AL East Notes: Montas, Rizzo, Kirk, Mountcastle, Red Sox

By Mark Polishuk | September 17, 2022 at 5:10pm CDT

Frankie Montas is going to undergo an MRI after feeling some discomfort in his right shoulder during yesterday’s game. Montas told the New York Post’s Jon Heyman and other reporters that he is “feeling optimistic about” the injury and “I don’t think it’s anything crazy,” yet naturally any type of shoulder issue is a potential problem, especially this late in the season. Montas also missed time with shoulder soreness back in July when he was still a member of the Athletics, as he went 18 days (including the All-Star break) between starts while resting up.

An injury would only continue what has been a difficult beginning to Montas’ tenure in the Bronx. The Yankees acquired Montas in one of the most notable pre-deadline trades, yet the right-hander has posted a 6.35 ERA over eight starts and 39 2/3 innings in the pinstripes. Even if the MRI reveals nothing severe, the Yankees could opt to skip Montas for a turn in the rotation, or perhaps even place him on the 15-day injured list in order to get him fully recovered and perhaps on track in general heading into the postseason.

Injured List Placements: Naylor, Wendle, Mountcastle

By Darragh McDonald | May 14, 2022 at 8:38am CDT

Catching up on some recent injury news…

The Guardians made a handful of roster moves on Friday, with Josh Naylor going onto the COVID-related injury list, per Mandy Bell of MLB.com. Headed in the other direction was Yu Chang, who landed on the COVID IL a month ago. The club also recalled Richie Palacios and optioned Kirk McCarty. On Wednesday, the Guardians had their game against the White Sox postponed after multiple positive tests among their coaching staff. The next day, seven staff members were placed in COVID protocol in relation to this outbreak. It seems that this has extended to Naylor, though it’s unclear if he has been shelved due to a positive test, showing symptoms or contact tracing. The first baseman/outfielder has been excellent so far this year, hitting .347/.377/.611 for a wRC+ of 191 through 20 games. With Naylor absent last night, the club slid Owen Miller from second to first and used Andres Gimenez and Amed Rosario up the middle.
The Marlins placed Joey Wendle on the 10-day injured list yesterday with a right hamstring strain, retroactive to May 12, per their transactions tracker at MLB.com. In a corresponding move, Brian Anderson was activated off the COVID IL. The 40-man roster had a couple of vacancies and is now at 39, though Jon Berti and Richard Bleier remain on the COVID list and will need roster spots when they return. Losing Wendle is certainly a hit for the Marlins, as he has started this season hot. Through 25 games, he’s hitting .304/.368/.456, 140 wRC+. He’s also added four steals and good defense to accumulate 1.2 wins above replacement already, according to FanGraphs. However, it’s possible that the return of Anderson can make it close to a wash, as he was hitting .262/.385/.385 before landing on the IL, producing a wRC+ of 131.
The Orioles announced yesterday that first baseman Ryan Mountcastle was placed on the 10-day injured list with a left wrist forearm strain, retroactive to May 11. Jorge Lopez returned from the bereavement list in a corresponding move. Mountcastle’s production is down a few ticks relative to last year, but still above league average. In 2021, he hit .255/.309/.487 for a wRC+ of 111. This year, he’s moved to .268/.299/.402, wRC+ of 104. He seems to be taking a more contact-oriented approach, at least in this small sample of 28 games. His swing percentage is up on pitches inside and outside the zone, but his contact rates have also gone up in both cases. As a result, his walk and strikeout rates are both down relative to previous years. That’s led to a drop in slugging, though that’s also been a trend across the league so far this year. With Mountcastle out, Trey Mancini and Tyler Nevin will likely cover first base for him.

Orioles Place Ryan Mountcastle On IL, Recall Alexander Wells

By Darragh McDonald | August 8, 2021 at 11:10am CDT

Ryan Mountcastle has been placed on the 7-day concussion IL, per Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. Alexander Wells was recalled to take his spot on the roster. Mountcastle was removed from Friday’s game after being tagged on the helmet by Wander Franco and dealing with concussion-like symptoms. The team also announced that Domingo Leyba has cleared outright waivers and accepted an assignment to Triple-A.

Mountcastle has gotten his career off to a great start. Since debuting last year, he’s had 539 plate appearances, producing a slash line of .282/.308/.481, for a wRC+ of 119. The Orioles’ lineup will surely miss his bat. But there’s no reason to rush him back into action since the club is well out of contention with the worst record in the American League.

For Wells, he is continuing to live the life of the up-and-down optionable reliever. This is his third time being recalled from the minors this year. In 17 2/3 innings, he has an ERA of 7.64 with a strikeout rate of 16.1%.

Leyba has struggled at the MLB level this year in a small sample size. Though his Triple-A numbers are much better. The 25-year-old infielder will now try to work his way back into another shot at the show.

Orioles Promote Ryan Mountcastle, Place Chris Davis On 10-Day IL

By Steve Adams | August 21, 2020 at 1:57pm CDT

1:57pm: The Orioles have formally announced Mountcastle’s promotion. In a corresponding move, Chris Davis was placed on the 10-day IL due to patellar tendinitis in his left knee.

11:40am: The Orioles are calling up top prospect Ryan Mountcastle for his MLB debut, as first reported by Jason La Canfora of 105.7 The Fan (Twitter link). The 23-year-old slugger was the No. 36 overall pick in the 2015 draft. He’s already on the 40-man roster, so they’ll only need to clear space on the 28-man roster to accommodate him (although the corresponding move could still include a 40-man subtraction, of course).

Mountcastle has ranked among the organization’s best prospects since the time he was drafted out of high school. He has at times ranked among the game’s 100 best prospects according to outlets like Baseball America, MLB.com, Baseball Prospectus, etc. — and he’s currently just on the outside of FanGraphs’ Top 100, sitting at No. 111.

Questions persist about just where on the field Mountcastle will play. He was drafted as a shortstop but has slid down the defensive spectrum — first moving to third base and then spending time at first base and in left field last year in Triple-A. There are far fewer questions, though, about the slugger’s promising bat. Mountcastle followed up 2018’s .297/.341/.464 slash (121 wRC+) in a pitcher-friendly Double-A setting with a .312/.344/.527 slash (117 wRC+) in Triple-A last year. He doesn’t walk much but also doesn’t strike out at an alarming rate and has never batted worse than .281 in a full professional season.

It’s possible that Mountcastle will supplant the struggling Dwight Smith Jr. as the team’s primary left fielder. Smith has posted a woeful .222/.306/.365 batting line in 72 plate appearances this year and wasn’t much better in 2019 when he hit .241/.297/.412. Given that Smith himself has graded out as a poor defender in left, there may not be a dip in glovework at all, and Mountcastle is a clear part of the organization’s future (which cannot be said of Smith).

Mountcastle could also be worked into the corner infield and designated hitter mix, but regardless of the position listed next to his name on the lineup card, it would behoove the Orioles to get him regular at-bats through season’s end. The hope is that Mountcastle will be a fixture in the lineup for years to come, and now that we’ve passed the point where he’d qualify as a Super Two or reach free agency after “only” six years instead of seven, there’s little reason for the O’s to keep him down at the alternate training site. Assuming Mountcastle is in the big leagues to stay, he’d be controllable through 2026 and arbitration-eligible after the 2023 season.

It is, of course, also worth noting that the O’s are just a game below .500 after a surprising start to the season. They’ve dropped five straight and are currently on the outside looking in on the playoff picture, but slotting Mountcastle into the lineup can’t hurt their odds of making a Cinderella run at this year’s expanded playoff format.

Orioles Add Ryan Mountcastle, Mason Williams To Player Pool

By Steve Adams | July 8, 2020 at 3:18pm CDT

The Orioles have added top prospect Ryan Mountcastle and outfielder Mason Williams to their 60-man player pool, manager Brandon Hyde revealed to reporters at Summer Camp today (Twitter link via MLB.com’s Joe Trezza). That pair of additions brings the team’s total to 47 players.

Mountcastle, 23, was the No. 36 pick in the draft by the Orioles back in 2015 and has rated among the organization’s best prospects ever since. Questions persist about just where on the field Mountcastle will play — he was a shortstop in high school but has since played third base, left field and first base — but his bat is generally very well regarded. Mountcastle followed up 2018’s .297/.341/.464 slash (121 wRC+) in a pitcher-friendly Double-A setting with a .312/.344/.527 slash (117 wRC+) in Triple-A last year. He doesn’t walk much but also doesn’t strike out at an alarming rate and has never batted worse than .281 in a full professional season.

Wherever Mountcastle settles in defensively, he’s viewed as a potential long-term piece who could fit into the middle of the team’s lineup. Given last year’s solid showing in Triple-A and the lack of a minor league season in 2020, it’ll be a surprise if Mountcastle doesn’t log significant at-bats with the Orioles.

As for Williams, he’s a former top prospect himself, although at 29 years of age, those days are behind him. Williams has seen MLB time in each of the past five seasons but has never found extended playing time or had much success in his fleeting big league auditions. He hit .267/.324/.300 in 11 games with the O’s last year and is a lifetime .286/.325/.382 hitter in the big leagues. That’s a generally respectable line, but Williams has never tallied more than 132 plate appearances in a Major League season. He’s a career .288/.341/.405 hitter in more than 1500 Triple-A plate appearances.

Mid-Atlantic Notes: Orioles, Mountcastle, Diaz, Nationals

By TC Zencka | June 27, 2020 at 11:02am CDT

Keegan Akin, Ryan Mountcastle, Dean Kremer, and Bruce Zimmermann weren’t expected to make the Opening Day roster for the Baltimore Orioles, but with the first baseball of the season on the horizon, the Orioles have the chance to reevaluate, per MASN’s Roch Kubatko. The Orioles will have to balance service time concerns and the fear of rushing youngsters into an uncertain landscape with the stark fact that the game’s highest level is the only level available for competitive play this season. Prospects can continue to work out, either independently or as part of the 60-man extended rosters, but to get game reps, the majors is the only game in town. Mountcastle, coming off a .312/.344/.527 season in Triple-A, could find himself on the major-league roster, even if the Orioles would prefer – in a vacuum – to allow him more development time elsewhere.

Yusniel Diaz presents a similarly interesting case for the O’s, per Kubatko. Like Mountcastle, Diaz was expected to make his ML-debut at some point, but unlike Mountcastle, the Cuban outfielder has yet to appear higher than Double-A. Should they choose a more judicious approach, Baltimore can certainly make do with Anthony Santander, D.J. Stewart, Austin Hays, and Dwight Smith Jr. in the outfield. Still, every decision for the Orioles has to be made with the future in mind, and they’ll have to decide whether exposing someone like Diaz to major league pitching earlier than planned will benefit his long-term development. With Trey Mancini out for the year, there are plenty of at-bats to go around for corner outfield candidates.
Elsewhere in the Mid-Atlantic, if the Nationals can lean on their big four in the rotation as they did in last year’s postseason, everything should be hunky-dory for the champs, per Byron Kerr of MASN. Of course, Manager Davey Martinez put those boys through a grind last October, with Patrick Corbin pushed to the limit as a swingman, and Max Scherzer’s shoulder barely holding up long enough to get through game seven of the World Series in Houston. The long layoff should help Scherzer, Corbin, Stephen Strasburg, and Anibal Sanchez avoid a World Series hangover, but the bullpen looks stronger as well. They’ll get a full season from Daniel Hudson, won’t have to lean as hard on Sean Doolittle, and Will Harris joins the team from Houston to shore up the backend. Doolittle has been one of the more vocal ballplayers during the pandemic, but as of now, no Nats have decided to sit out the season.

Orioles Notes: Mancini, Mountcastle, Hays

By Connor Byrne | March 20, 2020 at 12:58am CDT

Here’s the latest from Baltimore…

Orioles slugger Trey Mancini underwent surgery to remove a malignant tumor from his colon earlier this month. Fortunately, Mancini is recovering nicely. General manager Mike Elias spoke on the matter Thursday (via Jon Meoli of the Baltimore Sun), saying Mancini’s “doing really well” and “his physical condition is great.” That’s certainly welcome news for the Orioles and all of those who follow baseball, though it’s unclear when Mancini will be ready to take the field again.
The Orioles have optioned first baseman Ryan Mountcastle, right-hander David Hess, outfielder Cedric Mullins and utility player Ramon Urias to Triple-A Norfolk, Joe Trezza of MLB.com writes. The most notable player there is Mountcastle, a 2015 first-round pick and current top-100 prospect who ranks as one of the Orioles’ best farmhands. Still just 23 years old, Mountcastle climbed to the Triple-A level for the first time last season and batted .312/.344/.527 with 25 home runs in 553 plate appearances, though that solid production came with below-average strikeout and walk percentages of 23.5 and 4.3, respectively.
Outfielder Austin Hays figures to enter the season as the Orioles’ leadoff hitter, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com writes in a piece focusing on their roster. The 24-year-old Hays has dealt with injuries over the past couple seasons, but he racked up 75 plate appearances in the majors in 2019 and posted tremendous numbers. Hays slashed .309/.373/.574 with four home runs, a .265 ISO and seven walks against 13 strikeouts.

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