Top Orioles Hitting Prospect Must Improve in Key Area to Return to Majors

The push to get Baltimore Orioles prospect Coby Mayo in the Majors to stay may be overlooking one key issue he must address.

May 4, 2025; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles third baseman Coby Mayo (16) throws out Kansas City Royals right fielder Hunter Renfroe (16) (not pictured) after fielding a ground ball during the eighth inning at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. / Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Cody Mayo is back in the minor leagues after a short stint with the Baltimore Orioles. When he returns may depend on a key part of his game.

Earlier this week Baseball America released its updated Top 100 prospects and Mayo was on the list at No. 39. The only Orioles prospect ahead of him was catcher/first baseman Samuel Basallo, who was No. 19. Outfielder Heston Kjerstad finally graduated from the rankings after he racked up more than 130 MLB at-bats.

Mayo is probably not going to graduate from the rankings soon. He was called up earlier this week to the Orioles, only to be returned to Triple-A Norfolk after they activated outfielder Tyler O’Neill.

The talk this offseason around Mayo was either finding him a roster spot or using him as a trade chip. But his prospect status dropped from No. 27 to No. 39, one of the steepest drops of any Top 100 prospect in the publication’s first update of the season.

Why did Coby Mayo’s Prospect Ranking Drop?

Mayo has been one of the organization’s top prospects for some time and he has been a Top 100 prospect for more than a year. While he’s been a top offensive performer in the minors, that hasn’t yet translated to the Majors. In 53 career at-bats he is hitting less than .100.

But the organization is sold on his offense. So are other teams angling to get him included in a trade. But his prospect ranking dropped from preseason to May. Why?

It’s his defense, according to Baseball America’s editors.

Mayo committed two throwing errors in his third game back with Baltimore. But he’s struggled defensively at Norfolk, as Baseball America points out. He was charged with five errors in 13 games at third base before the promotion. For his minor-league career at third base his fielding percentage is .912. That won’t cut it long-term.

This may be the single biggest thing holding Mayo back from long-term Major League play in Baltimore. He first must show that he can get his bat going. Once he does that, it’s a matter of whether his defense has caught up.

If he can’t fix his glove, perhaps his baseball future is at designated hitter because he can certainly rake with the best of them.

Last year Baseball America named him the Baltimore Orioles prospect of the year.

In 93 games in the minors, he slashed .293/.372/.592/.964 with 25 home runs and 73 RBI. He spent four of those games with High-A Aberdeen on a rehab assignment.

His slash so far at Norfolk this year? It’s .245/.344/.509 with six home runs and 22 RBI.

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