3:27pm: The Orioles have formally introduced Mayo’s promotion. As famous by Kubatko, Urias was in reality positioned on the 10-day injured record with what the Orioles have termed a “gentle” hamstring pressure. Supervisor Brandon Hyde advised reporters (together with Kubatko) that the membership expects Urias’s journey to the IL to be a brief one, after which he’ll resume a operating development after resting for a few days.
1:00pm: The Orioles are bringing infield prospect Coby Mayo again as much as the majors. Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reported that Mayo was on his strategy to be part of the workforce. Matt Weyrich of The Baltimore Solar confirmed that Mayo would certainly be recalled to the lively roster.
Mayo, 23, is likely one of the finest prospects in baseball however he has struggled to search out enjoying time in a crowded Baltimore infield. He made his main league debut final 12 months however was optioned again to the minors a number of instances and solely acquired 46 plate appearances over 17 video games.
He got here into camp this 12 months with a shot at incomes an Opening Day job however was optioned to the minors in mid-March. Mayo is simply actually a viable choice on the corners. Ryan Mountcastle and Ryan O’Hearn have been sharing first base and the designated hitter spot.
Shortstop Gunnar Henderson began the season on the IL however the membership determined to go together with a rotation of Jordan Westburg, Jackson Holliday, Jorge Mateo and Ramón Urías to cowl the three infield spots to the left of first base. Henderson was off the IL after lacking simply seven video games. That left Westburg and Urías sharing third whereas Holliday and Mateo shared second.
Although Mayo expressed some frustration with getting optioned, he has continued mashing within the minors. He already has six house runs and has been drawing walks at a 12.6% tempo. He has a .252/.346/.523 line and 130 wRC+ for the 12 months. Courting again to the beginning of 2023, he has 1,147 minor league plate appearances with a .287/.390/.570 line and 149 wRC+.
Although he has been doing every thing in his energy to push for a promotion, the O’s appeared content material to attend. Yesterday, normal supervisor Mike Elias spoke on the state of affairs, per Jake Rill of MLB.com. “He’s going to be an enormous a part of this workforce,” Elias mentioned, although he added that Mayo wanted the “proper alternative” or the “proper pathway”.
Plainly accidents have lastly created that pathway. Westburg landed on the 10-day injured record earlier this week on account of a left hamstring pressure. Urías was scratched from final evening’s sport on account of proper hamstring tightness, leaving Emmanuel Rivera to play third base. With Mayo’s reported recall, maybe Urías will land on the injured record. Presumably, Mayo will take over on the common third baseman, with Rivera serving a bench position.
Maybe meaning it will solely be a quick promotion. Mayo solely hit .098/.196/.098 in his debut final 12 months. If he struggles once more this time, he might find yourself optioned again to Norfolk when Westburg and Urías get wholesome, although it’s additionally potential that he hits sufficient to stay round. Mountcastle is having an terrible 12 months, so maybe there’s a situation the place his enjoying time goes to Mayo even with Westburg and Urías on the roster.
Time will inform how that performs out, which is able to affect Mayo’s future contractual standing. He got here into this 12 months with 43 days of main league service time, placing him 129 shy of the one-year mark. There are nonetheless 148 days remaining within the common season, which means Mayo can recover from the one-year line if he’s up the remainder of the best way. That may put him on monitor to qualify for arbitration after 2027 and free company after 2030. Nevertheless, getting optioned again all the way down to the minors later within the 12 months might stop him from getting over the one-year line and will push these timelines.
Photograph courtesy of Nathan Ray Seebeck, Imagn Photos
