Orioles MiLB Transactions Update (Coby Mayo): March 24
- Grant DeVivo
- Mar 24
- 4 min read
The Orioles' final roster cuts, plus my take on Coby Mayo's demotion
*Cover Photo Credit: Ulysses Munoz, The Baltimore Banner
Within the last week, the Orioles have begun to finalize their Opening Day roster, which should be near complete by now. As this process intensifies, more roster cuts occur and players receive news of their whereabouts to start the 2025 season.
Here are the list of roster cuts the Orioles have made within the last week heading into the end of Spring Training.
Demotions
The following players have been optioned to Triple-A Norfolk to begin the season.
LHP Luis Gonzalez
IF Coby Mayo
RHP Kade Strowd
RHP Brandon Young
Ok, so I know you are going to want to hear my thoughts on Coby Mayo. Let's not waste anytime and get right to it.
First, let's analyze what occured after he got sent to Norfolk. His demotion, which occured on March 18, came with some mixed opinions from both fans and Mayo, himself. These were his comments following his demotion.
“It definitely is difficult. It obviously sucks because you feel like you’ve proven everything you’ve needed to. Sometimes it doesn’t feel like it’s quite enough. Obviously, you go back there and if you have success it’s ‘Oh, he’s supposed to have success because he’s already proven it,’ and if he doesn’t have success it’s ‘Oh, well, obviously he’s fallen off.’ It’s kind of a lose-lose going to Norfolk.
The next day, Mayo released this statement.
"The comments I made yesterday to the media after being optioned were by no means directed to the Orioles Organization or the Norfolk Tides. I will be the first to tell you I didn't do enough this spring to break camp with the big league team. I was frustrated in the moment and things were taken out of context. As a competitor, this has lit a fire in me and I will make sure I work even harder to get back to the big leagues and help the team win games as soon as possible. I will never settle for anything less than the best version of myself."
It is understandably a frustrating scenario for the promising corner infielder who MLB Pipeline has as the Orioles' No. 2 prospect. Who knows if he is frustrated with the way things have panned out or with himself and his performance this spring; only he knows that himself. Regardless, the chain of events during the course of this Spring Training have not helped Mayo in anyway.
First, the Orioles' infield remains loaded beyond belief with Jordan Westburg, Ryan Mountcastle, and Ryan O'Hearn taking up the corner infield spots where Mayo would traditionally play. Even squeezing in as a designated hitter seems difficult, as many of those at-bats are expected to be given to a mix of guys including Heston Kjerstad and Adley Rutschman (when he needs a break from catching).
Second, Mayo's performance in Spring Training did not help his cause either. He went 8-for-42 (.190) with just 3 RBI, a .501 OPS, and 13 strikeouts. He chased a lot of pitches and seemed overly antsy in the batter's box.
I know that there are mixed feelings about all of this. Some people are disappointed in Mayo's comments while some are supportive of him. Some want to see him traded for the benefit of his future career, which obviously cannot happen out of no where. The Orioles need the right superstar in return.
From how I see it, what this situation appears to be is that the Orioles simply do not have any room for Mayo on the Opening Day roster. However, they still need to give him everyday at-bats somewhere so that when he does get the call back to the big leagues, he has not lost a beat. If that means that he needs ABs in Triple-A, then so be it.
The ceiling is very high for Mayo, and the potential that he carries in his bat is tremendous. He just hasn't had enough big league at-bats to prove it yet. This situation is an example of the growing pains and the growing phase of a young player transitioning from top prospect into MLB stalwart, which Mayo can certainly become in due time. He has dominated Minor League pitching with a career MiLB .921 OPS and 82 home runs in just under three-and-a-half Minor League seasons. When his next opportunity comes, the work and the patience will have paid off.
Even amidst the controversy and all of the mixed opinions surrounding Mayo's demotion, as well as the Orioles' crowded roster, this nothing more than just the growing pains of a top prospect making the next jump past prospect status into the big leagues. In many cases similar like this (Chris Tillman, Colton Cowser), patience pays off.
Released
Yesterday, the Orioles announced that Minor League right-handed reliever Noah Denoyer had been released from the organization.
Denoyer, 27, was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Orioles in August 2019 after having pitched at San Joaquin Delta College in Stockton, California. For a while, he seemed to be on pace to one day suite up for the Orioles. From 2021 to 2022, he posted ERAs south of 2.90 and amassed 180 strikeouts over 140-plus innings of work. He posted a 0.794 WHIP in 51.2 innings for the Baysox in 2022.
Denoyer found himself on the Orioles' top prospect charts to begin 2023. After struggling to a 6.31 ERA with Norfolk, he went under the knife for Tommy John surgery that September and missed all of 2024. By the time he could get back to the mound, the Orioles organization had bolstered their pitching depth. There was simply no room anymore for Denoyer, hence his release.
Best wishes to Noah as he pursues another opportunity elsewhere!
Injured List
The following Minor Leaguers have been placed on the IL by their respective affiliates.
Delmarva Shorebirds: RHP Randy Berituege (60-Day), RHP Kiefer Lord (60-Day), RHP Trey Nordmann (Full Season), RHP Alex Ramos (60-Day),
Chesapeake Baysox: RHP Bradley Brehmer (full season), RHP Kyle Virbitsky (60-Day)
Lord underwent Tommy John surgery recently and will most likely miss all of the 2025 season.
No reasons have been given for any of the other injuries. Regardless, they will need a while to recover before they take the field again.
Best wishes to them in their recoveries!
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