Is It Time For Baltimore Orioles To Call Up This Elite Prospect?

The Baltimore Orioles have given many of their top prospects a chance in the MLB, but never one of their best ones who continues to prove that he's ready for the next step.

Mar 16, 2024; Sarasota, Florida, USA; Baltimore Orioles infielder Coby Mayo (86) / Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports

Coming out of their day off on Monday, the Baltimore Orioles are feeling good about themselves following a sweep of the Cincinnati Reds after beating the New York Yankees in a four-game set the series prior.

They're hoping they can keep things rolling when they head to face their regional foe Washington Nationals.

What was dominant for the Orioles during this stretch was their pitching staff.

In seven games, against the Yankees and Reds, they put up an incredible 1.14 ERA after throwing two shutouts and never allowing their opponent to score more than two runs in a game.

That was much needed for Baltimore as their offense finally looked mortal when not factoring in the two contests where they scored seven and 11 runs. During this stretch without the two offensive explosions, they averaged 2.2 runs per game instead of the 4.14 that those contests provided.

Of course, things can't just be conveniently extrapolated out, but this is just to point out that, while the Orioles certainly have one of the best offenses in Major League Baseball, there are still things this team can improve upon.

What might be of help is finally calling up their No. 3 prospect Coby Mayo.

While other top prospects in their pipeline have been given an opportunity in the MLB, the 22-year-old has yet to make his debut despite putting up impressive numbers during his time with their Triple-A affiliate.

The issue for Mayo is the organization still views him as someone they need to worry about defensively at third base.

They've routinely said his bat is ahead of his glove and don't seem comfortable moving on from Ramon Urias, despite the slash line of .196/.226/.294 with just one homer, three extra-base hits, and three RBI that the veteran has put up this season.

If they do decide to call up Mayo there wouldn't be many changes needed to their defensive alignment as Gunnar Henderson would stay at shortstop and Jordan Westburg at second base.

But, as their star prospect sits with a slash line of .309/.370/.633 with 11 homers and 32 RBI through 33 games, it's going to become harder and harder to deny him a Major League opportunity.