Bring up Mayo already!!

[Just Regular]

What we maybe could use around here for about one month is a pothole.

Whether it is Mayo or later Holliday, the 2023 Evan Carter timeline might be something one of them experience.

Through 9.6.2023, the Rangers were starting Travis Jankowski or Robbie Grossman most days, their Ramon Urias equivalents.

Adolis Garcia had a small injury, Carter got a 10-day tryout, showed he was better, crushed the Orioles 3 weeks later, and was in a dogpile another 3 weeks after that.

I suppose for the short short term Kjerstad is the rookie they are working with.     You could still do Mayo/Holliday July 28 and August 30 to get each ~125-250 plate appearances.     Even more oxygen if Kjerstad or Cowser on another team in 5 weeks.

Looking at the Rangers September lineups, they also started Jonah Heim 25 of the final 27 games, in case by then this season using Adley as DH is less attractive because you have Mayo as a DH option.

[eddie83]

25 minutes ago, Rbiggs2525 said:

Hays, Mullins and Cowser all have options.

Hays is playing well. Mullins plays CF. Cowser has a good glove. 
 

On a team with a good offense why would you play a kid at a postion he struggles at with the glove?

[OriolesMagic83]

After hearing about his arm so much, we could definitely use him in the pen.

[RZNJ]

56 minutes ago, eddie83 said:

And bWAR he has been 1.8 and 0.5 the last two years after 3.8 in 22. 
 

Playing Mayo is not going to sabotage the season. I don’t get why you would lose an asset to unnecessarily. 
 

The team is 2.0 games out of 1st. 

I never said to just release Urias.  If he has value we should be able to get something.   I don't look at it like losing an asset.  I look at it as using an asset that is not being used and has more potential to replace an asset that is very ordinary and not going to get much better.  In fact, he's probably going to stay the same or get worse.

2 games out of first.  Don't care.  It's not because of Urias.

[eddie83]

47 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

Ok, let’s play the what if game.

These are your current IFers, not including first base only guys:

Holliday, Mayo, Westburg, Urias, Mateo, Henderson and Norby.

If Urias is gone, you still have 3 players capable of playing third, 4 players capable of playing second and 4 players capable of playing SS,

And of that group, 2 players who have played OF and others who have at least taken fly balls and have the arm and athleticism to potential play there in emergency situations.

In other words, I think the team has plenty of contingency plans.

As for the comment about being worried about the upside of Mayo…I tend to want my best players on the team when I’m trying to win a WS. 

Is he your best 3rd baseman? His future isn’t there. This isn’t a team with no offense. Manny got hurt in August of 14. DeAza was aquired at the August deadline which no longer exists to help offset. 
 

If Holliday was up here raking maybe Urias is already gone. Norby isn’t a glove. Mateo is a solid defender but his bat is the reason I assume we are having this conversation. 
 

If the Orioles had called up Mayo instead of Kjerstad I could have lived with that. This conversation is about him playing 3rd and losing a player in the process. 

[RZNJ]

1 hour ago, eddie83 said:

You don’t know how Norby is in LF but want to lose Hays to find out?

Hays is below average,  so yes.  I feel more strongly about the Mayo for Urias move.  Norby for Hays , not as much.

[Sports Guy]

27 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

The thing is, Elias hates to lose useful players and the only other person that would go would be Urias. I want to see Kjerstad get everyday PAs in LF and Cowser needs to play everyday and learn how to hit offspeed pitches. He may not see the same quality as the ones in the major leagues, but he has options and he's a 4th/5th outfielder if Kjerstad is here to get everyday PAs. 

I said it earlier in the season but this team is going to the playoffs barring some rash of injuries or something very odd.

The rest of this season should be about putting the best team on the field as possible come October. 
 

I get what you are saying about Elias and I certainly don’t disagree but at some point, he has to look at what is happening and what is best and if that means losing some of his previous depth at the expense of being more talented and better, he needs to do it.

[eddie83]

7 minutes ago, RZNJ said:

I never said to just release Urias.  If he has value we should be able to get something.   I don't look at it like losing an asset.  I look at it as using an asset that is not being used and has more potential to replace an asset that is very ordinary and not going to get much better.  In fact, he's probably going to stay the same or get worse.

2 games out of first.  Don't care.  It's not because of Urias.

We lead the league in offense yet we need Mayo to play a spot where his glove is an issue? 
 

Unless Holliday is a bust where do you think Mayo is going to play? It’s not 3rd. 

[Sports Guy]

2 minutes ago, eddie83 said:

Is he your best 3rd baseman? His future isn’t there. This isn’t a team with no offense. Manny got hurt in August of 14. DeAza was aquired at the August deadline which no longer exists to help offset. 
 

If Holliday was up here raking maybe Urias is already gone. Norby isn’t a glove. Mateo is a solid defender but his bat is the reason I assume we are having this conversation. 
 

If the Orioles had called up Mayo instead of Kjerstad I could have lived with that. This conversation is about him playing 3rd and losing a player in the process. 

No, he’s not our best third baseman. That guy is playing SS.

However, that doesn’t mean he’s not a good enough third baseman and with his offense, that plays.

 

[Rbiggs2525]

3 minutes ago, eddie83 said:

Hays is playing well. Mullins plays CF. Cowser has a good glove. 
 

On a team with a good offense why would you play a kid at a postion he struggles at with the glove?

People are making this way to simplistic thinking Kjerstad is going to play left and Mayo is going to play 3rd. With McCann now out of the LHP automatic start, you can manipulate the lineup keeping them both in the field only 2-3 times a week. Our best lineup tonight is…

Westburg 2B

Adley C

Santander RF

Henderson SS

Mounty 1B

Mayo DH

Hays LF

Urias 3B

Mullins/Cowser CF

 

[wildcard]

47 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

Let's talk about Mayo for a bit. I made most of this post in his minor league thread but feel it's relevant here.

Coby Mayo look ready for major league pitching, but he's got one concern that major league pitchers will attempt to exploit and that's breaking balls. Here's what Mayo has done this year against them.

Now his wOBA (.283) shows he's not dominated by them although it's below average, but his xwOBA (.223) suggests he gets a lot of flairs and soft contact hits which is pretty common across most hitters on breaking balls when you compare the two.

Now the good news is he absolutely murders fastballs.

And he does really well against offspeed (changeups).

 So the challenge he will face at the major league level will be steady diet of breaking balls until he proves to them he can hit them.

Now, Mayo is a smart hitter and if he knows a breaking ball is coming he can mash it, so if they make a mistake, he's going to make them pay, which might mean they'll try to challenge him at times as well.

Ether way, I think his bat is absolutely ready to be a middle of the order hitter with the Orioles.

As for the glove, he's made 3 errors in his last 29 games at 3B and his rocket arm will make some plays that Urias or Westburg will not.

So the question is, who goes if Mayo comes up?

I'd say send Cowser back to AAA and keep Urias as the backup 3B and pinch hitter against left-handers late in games if Mullins is coming up in situation that we'd rather have a right-handed hitter.

I realize Cowser is the backup CF and Hays is no longer fast enough to be out there, but I still think Mateo can back up CF and be fine.

Mayo is going to bring a middle of the order hitter to the lineup. He may have some struggles at times like all rookies, but he also is going to bring a dangerous bat to the lineup that is going to absolutely put fear in opposing pitchers, unlike Urias.

With Mayo on the team, the bench would be pretty full of right-handed hitters with Hays, McCann, Urias and Mateo.

Hays could spell both Kjerstad and Santander on occasion
Mateo could spell Mullins, Gunnar and Westburg
Urias could spell Mayo and be a defensive replacement late in games
McCann is the backup catcher (unfortunately since he looks like a guy at the end of his major league usefulness but that's another thread.

The lineup on most days:

1. Henderson - SS
2. Adley - C
3. Mayo - 3B (yes, I know they won't start him here but he's going to end up here)
4. Santander - RF
5. O'Hearn - DH against righties, Adley against lefties
6. Westburg - 2B
7. Kjerstad - LF
8. Mountcastle -1B
9. Mullins - CF

Kjerstad and O'Hearn could switch depending on who's hot and Mountcastle and Westburg could bat 3B with May down there which is where they will probably start him in the lineup initially.

To me, this is the best team they can put on the field right now.

As for the Holliday question, he's got to get his defense down and honestly, Mayo looks more ready for major league pitching still. 

 

Totally agree.  I am right there with you on this strategy.

[wildcard]

23 minutes ago, Moose Milligan said:

This is hilarious 

Do you even watch the games?   Palmer, Brooks  former teammate, has been comparing Urias defense to Brooks for quiet some time.

[Moose Milligan]

I'd like to see Mayo up and I hope he mashes right away.  I also like @Tony-OH's breakdown of what to do as far as the roster looks like with Mayo up.  If he can mash fastballs and handle changeups, IMO, that's half the battle right there...and if he's smart enough to lay off sliders in the dirt and other breaking balls that are diving out of the zone, that's great, too.

I've been a Urias defender but I'm also well aware that he's expendable.  

[Sports Guy]

1 minute ago, wildcard said:

Do you even watch the games?   Palmer, Brooks  former teammate, has been comparing Urias defense to Brooks for quiet some time.

Palmer says a lot of crazy things at times.  There is zero chance he thinks Urias is on the same level as Brooks. 
 

Just stop.

[Moose Milligan]

Just now, wildcard said:

Do you even watch the games?   Palmer, Brooks  former teammate, has been comparing Urias defense to Brooks for quiet some time.

Yeah, I watch the games.  Palmer can compare him to Brooks all he wants but that's just silly.  Brooks is, by all accounts, the best fielding third baseman that has ever lived.  And one of the best overall defenders ever, at any position.

I really like Urias, I think he gets dumped on a bit unfairly on here...I think his defense was once brilliant, I think it's pretty serviceable now.  I also think he'd probably be a pretty good player for a team that had a hole at third base and he could play there every day....if he got every day at bats and reps in the field, he'd be solid.

But in no way do I think he's in the same breath as Brooks.  Yeah, Brooks wasn't the fastest guy in the world but his reflexes were remarkable.  He was cat-quick.  I don't see Urias in the same light...I think he's pretty sure handed and he has an accurate arm, that's about it.