Orioles surprise fans with top prospect demotion in final week

On Saturday afternoon the Orioles announced that they have optioned infielder Coby Mayo back to Triple-A Norfolk and recalled outfield prospect Daniel Johnson. After an incredible minor league season, Mayo has struggled to find his footing in the majors and this demotion unfortunately feels warranted from the O's perspective.

To this point, Mayo has hit just .098/.196/.098 in 46 major league plate appearances. He's drawn a handful of walks but has also struck out nearly 48% of the time, which just isn't going to cut it. His -7 wRC+ puts him at 107% worse than league average at the plate in his limited time in Baltimore and with the Orioles still working to clinch a postseason berth, they can't afford to take a zero in the lineup each night.

The Triple-A Tides' season is essentially over, meaning that Mayo won't get much in the way of playing time over the next week but he'll still be eligible to join the Orioles' postseason roster if Mike Elias wants to put him on it. It feels like a long shot with Ramon Urias and Jordan Westburg expected to return in short order but it's still possible.

Coby Mayo's struggles have forced the Orioles to option him back to Triple-A

In Mayo's stead, the Orioles have selected the contract of an unheralded outfield prospect in Daniel Johnson. The left hander is already 29 and has been in professional ball since 2016, but he's seen just 94 major league plate appearances in his career.

Johnson was signed to a minor league deal by the Orioles this offseason and has spent the entire year at Triple-A Norfolk. He's been solid there, putting up a .259/.320/.448 slash line with 21 homers and 17 steals. His plate discipline hasn't been great but his counting stats suggest that he could be a positive contributor for the Orioles over the final week.

With the good news about Cedric Mullins' injury status, it's unclear how much playing time Johnson will see over the next week. Mullins suffered a neck injury on Thursday night and was held out of Friday's game with the Tigers. However, the Orioles have him back in the lineup and starting in center field for tonight's game, suggesting that he's fully cleared.

Johnson might see a couple plate appearances in the next week but we wouldn't expect him to get regular starts and his chances at making the postseason roster are slim.