Orioles must decide if Mayo is 2026 1st baseman

The Orioles’ prospective infield for 2026 looks nearly set. Gunnar Henderson will start at shortstop, Jackson Holliday at second base, and Jordan Westburg at third.

First base isn’t settled. Will Coby Mayo be the primary first baseman? Will he platoon, or will it be someone else?

Still to be decided within the next eight days is whether first baseman Ryan Mountcastle will be with the Orioles next season. Mountcastle is in his final year of arbitration eligibility and, according to MLBTradeRumors.com, he’s projected to make $7.8 million next season.

The Orioles have until 8 p.m. on November 18^th to decide whether to offer him a 2026 contract.

Mountcastle played in only 89 games in 2025, hitting .250 with seven home runs and 35 RBIs and a .653 OPS. He missed more than two months with a right hamstring injury, and the Orioles aren’t going to offer the 28-year-old an extension.

After returning on August 8^th, Mountcastle started only seven games at first base, none after September 15^th.

The 6-foot-4, 23-year-old Mayo got his most extensive major league experience in 2025, and after Ryan O’Hearn was traded to San Diego on July 31^st, he played regularly.

For the season, Mayo hit .217 with a .687 OPS, 11 home runs and 28 RBIs.

August was a tough month. Mayo hit only .136 with a .470 OPS, three home runs and six RBIs.

September was his best month. He hit .301 with a .941 OPS, five home runs and eight RBIs.

The transition from minor league star to the major leagues has been difficult. In two short stints in 2024, Mayo was just 4-for-41 (.098) with 22 strikeouts.

After he began the season back at Triple-A Norfolk, which he termed a “lose-lose” situation, Mayo was up for four games in early May and was 1-for-12 but returned on May 31^st after Mountcastle was put on the injured list after a successful steal of home.

Mayo slowly adjusted to playing in the majors, but playing time was sporadic in June and July. He hit .253 with four home runs and nine RBIs and a .767 OPS against left-handers, but only .199 with seven homers and 19 RBIs with a .648 OPS.

As long as Adley Rutschman is healthy and productive, he’ll be the regular catcher with the left-handed hitting Samuel Basallo filling in and likely playing first base.

Rutschman was on the injured list for almost all the time Basallo was in the major leagues, and he did most of the catching. Basallo played only two games at first base and was 1-for-7.

The Orioles have lots of needs — starting pitching, a reconstructed bullpen, a stronger outfield, and improvement from their young core players. Adding another first baseman seems low on the priority list.

Mayo has exceptional power, but he needs to reduce his strikeouts. In August, he struck out 36 times in 88 at-bats and followed that with 24 strikeouts in 73 at-bats.

New hitting coach Dustin Lind will try to help.

With the team out of playoff contention, they were able to give Mayo plenty of at-bats, and that experience was invaluable.

The Orioles decided Mayo would concentrate on first base, and he didn’t play third base, his natural spot, after May 6^th.

Mayo worked hard with senior advisor John Mabry, a longtime major league first baseman before games and became more comfortable there. In 517 chances, Mayo made just one error, on August 23^rd.

Cy Young Award drought continues

No Oriole pitcher has won the Cy Young Award since 1980, when Steve Stone won a team-record 25 games.

Trevor Rogers received one fifth-place vote from Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com. Detroit left-hander Tarik Skubal won his second straight AL Cy Young Award, and Pittsburgh’s Paul Skenes was a unanimous choice for the NL Cy Young Award in only his second season.

It’s the third consecutive season an Oriole has gotten Cy Young votes. In 2024, Corbin Burnes finished fifth, and Kyle Bradish was fourth in 2023.

Since Stone’s win, every other American League team but Texas has had a Cy Young winner.

From 1969-1979, the Orioles won it five times. Jim Palmer has three Cy Young awards (1973, 1975, 1976). Mike Cuellar (1969) and Mike Flanagan (1979) also won it.

Call for questions: I answer Orioles questions most weekdays. Please send yours to: Rich@BaltimoreBaseball.com.