No one played more first base for the Orioles in 2025 than Coby Mayo. He had his ups and downs, but his best month as a big leaguer came in September, where he hit .301/.393/.548 with five home runs. After some extended struggles, it seemed like the former top prospect may have been turning a corner in his development. He was poised to be the everyday first baseman for a 2026 Orioles team looking to bounce back.
But that won’t be happening. In fact, Mayo may not play a single inning of first base
for the Orioles in the upcoming season, even if he is on the roster.
The team signed Pete Alonso to a five-year, $155 million contract back in December, and they just avoided arbitration with Ryan Mountcastle by giving him a one-year deal with a team option for 2027. Both of them would seem to be ahead of Mayo on the depth chart. Then you have the catching duo of Adley Rutschman and Samuel Basallo. It has long been speculated that either one of them could play a little first base if the matchups made sense.
So, where does Mayo fit?
You could (pretty easily) make the argument that he doesn’t fit at all. The team has built a roster that squeezes the former top prospect out of playing time altogether.
Mayo’s other position, third base, is manned by Jordan Westburg. While health has been an issue for Westburg, he has been the engine of the lineup when on the field, making the all-star team in 2024 and playing Gold Glove-caliber defense at the hot corner. It’s tough to see Mayo unseating him at the position.
Some prospect evaluators have long viewed Mayo as a future right fielder, based on his strong throwing arm, big power at the plate, and likelihood of outgrowing the infield. But he has not played the position in any meaningful way as a pro, and the corner outfield spots on the Orioles roster are already full if they plan to give significant playing time to all of Taylor Ward, Dylan Beavers, and Tyler O’Neill. Teaching Mayo a new position and elevating him up the depth chart in one spring feels like a big lift.
Having more quality players than positions is not a bad thing. Orioles’ President of Baseball Operations Mike Elias has made it clear that he wants to (almost intentionally) build redundancies into the roster for the season ahead. Injuries crushed the 2025 Orioles, and it seems like Elias has taken steps to avoid that happening again in 2026. So in that context, it could make perfect sense to keep Mayo around and let him step in here and there at various positions.
Maybe that is why the Orioles do not (as of this writing) have an obvious utility player on their roster. Rather than plugging one guy into various positions throughout the week, they could instead rove multiple players around the field, get regular off days for everyone, and ensure no one sits the bench for too long. It’s an intriguing idea that bucks traditional roster building a bit.
That said, it’s hard to not connect the dots between what the Orioles still need/want (a frontline starter) and the excess value that Mayo provides to the roster. A trade where Mayo is the centerpiece makes a whole lot of sense, and would probably provide more value to the 2026 Orioles than whatever statistical contribution he is set up to make in what would seem to be a reduced playing role.
What we don’t know is the types of trades that are out there to be had. At the very top of the market, the Brewers have made Freddy Peralta available, and it seems like the Tigers would move Tarik Skubal if enticed. But there doesn’t seem to be much else out there, which likely pushes the already-high asking price of that duo to the moon. That alone could be why the Orioles have continued to be connected to free agents Framber Valdez and Ranger Suárez instead of pursuing a pricey swap with another team.
But it’s important to not get too myopic about 2026. While it feels like a “World Series or bust” type of campaign, the Orioles will need to exist beyond the upcoming season. Even if Mayo has a smaller role in ‘26, he could be crucial in ‘27, ‘28, etc. Ward is a free agent at years end. A poor season for O’Neill could push the Orioles to dump him next winter. If Mayo is going to be a right fielder, he would step right into the role next year. Mountcastle’s team option might not get picked up. Basallo could become the everyday catcher while Rutschman is traded. Suddenly, Mayo becomes a player that bounces between DH, right field, and first base as an everyday player.
Surely Elias has thought about that scenario as well. And as much as he needs the Orioles to win in the season ahead, he won’t want to go all in on a single season either. If he, and the organization at large, still believe in Mayo’s ability, it probably makes more sense to go into the season with the 24-year-old on their roster. That gives them even more time to gather data on him, the team, and the pitching market.
Pitchers will be available during the season. It might be expensive, and there might be more competition for those arms, but it can be found. Undoing a trade of Mayo is impossible. And in an offseason where the club has already traded away intriguing young talent, given up a draft pick, and spent more than they have in years, Elias could be inclined to get just a bit conservative with a player that not so long ago was viewed as a premier power-hitting prospect.
