Orioles top prospects impressive in their first bits of spring training action

The Orioles offense showed up on Sunday afternoon in their second spring training affair of the year. The O's traveled to Clearwater to take on the Phillies and emerged with a win, and more importantly saw a number of their young prospects show up ready to play.

It was the first appearance of the young season for both Coby Mayo and Samuel Basallo, the pair of whom are set to lead the Orioles organization into 2025 and beyond. While both players are more likely than not going to start the year at Triple-A, both should earn the opportunity to get reps in Baltimore at some point this year.

Mayo, of course, debuted in 2024 but his performance was lackluster and left much to be desired. In particular, his plate discipline was exceptionally poor as he struck out in nearly 50% of his plate appearances in the big leagues.

Orioles top prospects Coby Mayo and Samuel Basallo look sharp in their 2025 spring debuts

However, in his first taste of action this spring Mayo delivered, going 1-3 with 2 RBI. The hit was a sharply hit single up the middle that came in the bottom of the first. Mayo came to the plate with men on second and third and two outs, and he came through big, driving in both Terrin Vavra and Colton Cowser to give the Orioles an early lead.

It'll be interesting to see how Brandon Hyde utilizes Mayo during spring games. He got the start at DH today but has primarily played third base in the minors. With the left side of the Orioles infield set, the opportunities for Mayo will likely come either at first base or as a utility guy. He's not a great defender anywhere but if he can find a way to get the bat to translate to the majors, the O's will have to find a way to get him into the lineup somewhere.

In addition to Mayo, Samuel Basallo got his first spring start as well. Basallo spent the first five innings of this afternoon's matchup behind the plate, catching for the trio of Cade Povich, Rodolfo Martinez, and Brandon Young.

Young and Povich had great outings in their own right, and Basallo had some shine of his own. He looked good defensively and had one successful challenge where he was able to turn a pitch that was called a ball into a strike. Basallo had a nice day at the plate as well, going 1-3 while making solid contact on a few pitches.

It's possible that neither of Mayo nor Basallo will be critical to the success of the Orioles in 2025, but both are expected to be big parts of this team's future. Mayo should get his opportunity before Basallo does but when we get to the point where both of these guys are major league regulars, it'll be exciting.