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