The Orioles have plenty of issues, but the most interesting question sitting underneath the wreckage is what they do with three young hitters who still feel unfinished.
Dylan Beavers, Jackson Holliday and Coby Mayo all look like players with everyday upside. None of them has turned that promise into a locked-in role, and each has spent this season flashing enough to keep the conversation alive without ever fully taking over.
Mayo is the loudest case. He’s built a reputation as a lefty masher, and the numbers back it up in a big way: a .323/.384/.752 line against southpaws and an OPS+ of 110 overall.
Only five of his 21 home runs have come against right-handed pitching, though, and that split is still the strange part of his profile. He didn’t show anything close to that kind of divide in the minors, which is why he still feels like a hitter who can grow into the rest of the strike zone with time.
The production against lefties probably won’t stay quite that extreme, but the power and a 110 OPS+ look like something the Orioles can live with.
Baltimore gave Mayo a real runway when Jordan Westburg went down. The club could have patched third base with a defense-first option, but instead it let Mayo work through the growing pains.
The early returns on the glove were rough, yet the Orioles stuck with him long enough for him to reward that patience. Even now, he sits as the strongest of the three defensively, though that bar is low: Beavers entered last night’s game with a -7 Fielding Run Value, Holliday was at -4, and Mayo was the “best” of the group at -2 FRV.
Holliday’s season has had its own uneven path. He missed the start of the year after having his hamate bone removed, and the power has not fully returned in the way players often hope after that procedure. He has only seven home runs in 92 games, and outside of a blazing July, he’s had trouble sustaining any real rhythm.
Beavers has gone through the most unusual path of the three. The Orioles held him back last summer until the deadline for PPI players had passed, a move that suggested real belief in his ceiling. He hasn’t matched that kind of expectation, but he has continued to get on base, and his 101 OPS+ still gives him a respectable offensive foundation despite a season interrupted by an oblique strain that cost him well over a month.
The common thread is obvious: all three need everyday reps. Mayo got an early chance and worked his way into the middle of the order.
Holliday was slow out of the gate before catching fire in July, then an injury to Blaze Alexander opened the door for him to become an everyday player and eventually land at the top of the lineup. Beavers, meanwhile, slid into a timeshare with a shaky outfield group, even though he still looks like a long-term option.
That leaves Baltimore with a bigger offseason question than just sorting out a lost year. The early Mike Elias seasons were rough, but the path was clear: develop talent and let young players run.
The last two seasons have been different, with the Orioles trying and failing to build a winner while also staring at a 2027 target. So where do these three fit when that next push starts?
They’re not going anywhere. Holliday is a former No. 1 pick and should have the benefit of a healthy offseason plus another year of guidance from his father.
Mayo has the raw power to matter, but the real question is whether the Orioles can unlock more damage against right-handed pitching. Beavers still has to be sorted out too: starter, or extra outfielder?
The last week has been ugly, and Pete Alonso has been great, but there has been plenty of brutal baseball around him. Beavers, Holliday and Mayo haven’t been the reason for the mess.
Still, they’re all leaving this season with a lot still sitting on the table. The Orioles now have to figure out how much more can come out of them.
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That sort of sorting-out period tends to come with hard choices, especially for a club balancing playoff hopes against contract realities and roster flexibility. Baltimores ownership stance and the possibility of labor uncertainty only add another layer to the equation, making the next stretch less about filling out a lineup card and more about deciding which names still belong in the teams future plans. [Read more 🡒]
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Orioles Infield Depth Suddenly Matters More Than Fans Wanted
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Jackson, signed to a minor league deal in November 2024, has not yet appeared in the majors for Baltimore, but his ability to handle multiple positions makes him a useful insurance piece. For a team already trying to keep its everyday alignment intact, the move is a reminder that depth can become a daily concern fast when the middle of the diamond starts to thin out. [Read more 🡒]