Jorge Mateo

[Pushmonkey]

He was the reason for the victory against the Yankees which makes him a hero in my book. 

[Getz]

He's been looking way better at the plate.

[OriolesMagic83]

On 7/19/2022 at 11:42 AM, Sports Guy said:

Contention has zero to do with it. You want to contend next year and these guys getting their feet wet is important.

Adley has been just ok with the bat.  Had they brought him up last year when I felt they should have, Adley would probably be hitting at a far higher level right now.

These guys should be on the team from day 1 next year.  Get them the needed time.  

Adley is getting close to a .750 OPS.  When you consider that he had a terrible first 2+ weeks, he's doing really good.  I would say he's a top 10 offensive catcher easy and then you add in all his plus catcher abilities. 

[Sports Guy]

Just now, OriolesMagic83 said:

Adley is getting close to a .750 OPS.  When you consider that he had a terrible first 2+ weeks, he's doing really good.  I would say he's a top 10 offensive catcher easy and then you add in all his plus catcher abilities. 

I’m pretty sure I said something before that I expected him to be a top 10 C by the end of the year.  I think he already is.  

[yark14]

19 minutes ago, Pushmonkey said:

He was the reason for the victory against the Yankees which makes him a hero in my book. 

Elite speed like his is invaluable.  

[connja]

Mateo hitting .260 in July, and his speed and defense impact the game in ways that aren't always seen in the box score.  

[Sydnor]

1 hour ago, Getz said:

He's been looking way better at the plate.

I have nothing to back this up, but Mateo was hitting fairly well before he collided with Torkelson in May on a foul ball. He seemed pretty shaken up after that play. I felt and still feel like he was playing through something that didn’t impact his defense, but hurt him at the plate. I also think he has made a few changes to his approach. It looks like he’s a little more spread out at the plate now and is letting the ball travel instead of trying to pull everything. He’s a fun player, so I hope he can continue to hit better as he’s done in July.

[RZNJ]

A week or two before the break, Mateo made significant changes to his stance and swing path. Instead of turning on everything he has much better plate coverage now and is waiting longer to commit.  He's got 2 strikeouts in his last 28 PA.   Credit to Mateo who hit rock bottom offensively and saw the need to change.  Credit to the coaches who helped him.  He is not the old Jorge Mateo.  I'm not sure what he's capable of now but he's having professional AB's just about every time up now.  I'm excited to what he can do in the second half.

[OriolesMagic83]

18 minutes ago, RZNJ said:

A week or two before the break, Mateo made significant changes to his stance and swing path. Instead of turning on everything he has much better plate coverage now and is waiting longer to commit.  He's got 2 strikeouts in his last 28 PA.   Credit to Mateo who hit rock bottom offensively and saw the need to change.  Credit to the coaches who helped him.  He is not the old Jorge Mateo.  I'm not sure what he's capable of now but he's having professional AB's just about every time up now.  I'm excited to what he can do in the second half.

Sounds great if the change is real.  Even a .700 OPS from Mateo would be huge w/ his plus defense.

[RZNJ]

1 hour ago, OriolesMagic83 said:

Sounds great if the change is real.  Even a .700 OPS from Mateo would be huge w/ his plus defense.

Mateo has struck out about 30% of the time in his career and this year.  Now, I don't expect it to go down to 7% but even if it were 20% he becomes a much different and probably much more productive hitter.  That's what we're seeing right now. He's so talented and now he's taking pitches he waved at before and hitting pitches he couldn't reach before.

[Bahama O's Fan]

If Mateo and Urias continue with this offensive improvement, how quick are you looking to replace them as starters with the young guys at AAA?

[oriolefan1035]

1 hour ago, Bahama O's Fan said:

If Mateo and Urias continue with this offensive improvement, how quick are you looking to replace them as starters with the young guys at AAA?

I don’t think you can. Urias has been worth 2.7WAR in 63 games now. Had he not missed time, he’d be on a 7WAR pace. I don’t know how long he can maintain that, but you can’t just take that out of the lineup.

 

Mateo has been worth 2.0WAR through 87 games and will be better if the bat maintains the recent uptick in production.

[RZNJ]

Mateo and Urias' improvement creates a great problem.  Both have trade value which is increasing with each week.  I could also see creative ways to keep both and still promote the prospects, whether this year or next.

Urias to 2B.  Henderson to 3B, Westburg to 1B.  Mountcastle to DH or traded.  Vavra or Stowers to LF.

[Sports Guy]

1.052 over the last 15 days.  31 at bats.

[Jagwar]

9 hours ago, Sports Guy said:

I’m pretty sure I said something before that I expected him to be a top 10 C by the end of the year.  I think he already is.  

Who knows... With 48,000 posts, you might have said you expected him to be bottom 10 too.