One wave of prospects has hit the Orioles recently and the next one is working its way up
The prospects are here and more are coming. MASN’s Steve Melewski reported separately on a couple of prospect promotions in the middle of Sunday’s demolition of the Twins: First, Coby Mayo to Triple-A Norfolk, and second, Jackson Holliday to Double-A Bowie. Fist pumps and words that you can’t say on the legacy big three television networks are appropriate responses.
Along with Mayo, pitching prospect Chayce McDermott, acquired in last year’s trade that sent Trey Mancini to the Astros, is moving up to Norfolk.
Mayo and Holliday have been largely demolishing the levels they have been facing for a while. Mayo went 0-3 in a rain-shortened game on Sunday, so he closes out his Bowie tenure from this season with this batting line in 78 games: .307/.424/.603. That included 17 home runs, one roughly every 17 at-bats.
Holliday, fresh off an appearance in Saturday’s All-Star Futures Game and almost as freshly minted by some publications as the #1 prospect in all of baseball, will be going to a different part of Maryland when he gets back from his All-Star break. This will be his third stop at a Maryland affiliate just in 2023. Holliday’s Aberdeen batting line over 57 games: .314/.452/.488. Even as his bat cooled in June, he still walked in 19% of his plate appearances for the month.
The 6’3” righty McDermott has appeared in 16 games for the Baysox so far this season. He’s struck out 88 batters in 68.1 innings this year, with stuff that’s been close to unhittable (5.5 hits per nine innings) but frequently not in the strike zone (5.8 walks per nine innings). According to MLB Pipeline, he’s the #17 prospect in the Orioles system. It’s going to be nice if the O’s can get some starting pitching depth coming up from the farm.
This is all pretty exciting stuff considering the big league team is already tied with the Rays in the loss column. Mayo and Holliday continuing their ascents towards Baltimore helps keep that exciting feeling coming for 2024 and beyond. Oh yeah, and the next great Orioles prospect could be drafted in a few hours. What a day.