193 replies to this topic

[CantonJester]

Mateo has some real under the hood changes so far. Maybe he reverts back but it feels different. I also take some issue with calling him just "servicable" last year.

 

His OBP was significantly below replacement level. His defense was good, and hell yeah he's a threat on the basepaths. 

 

If Mateo can keep his OBP north of .350, he enters rarified air given his speed. .330? He's among the better players in the sport. 

 

It's still SSS, but man his contributions at the plate have been eye-popping so far (MLB ranked 13th for hard hit% at 47.4%). 

[BSLChrisStoner]

Balt Sun: How a ‘unique’ toe tap unlocked Jorge Mateo’s swing and turned the Orioles’ speedster into a valuable slugger

[SonicAttack]

Mateo's batting improvement is a huge positive development for him and the O's. If he is able to keep sustain his new batting prowess, he will be a top 20 MLB player.  He def has the speed and defense, and now that his power is showing as well as the plate discipline - the sky's the limit for him. Great job Jorge!

[Mackus]

Worse than a pitcher in May.  293 OPS in 68 PA.  

 

Basically flipped a switch as soon as the calendar changed, as he was hot the final week of April.  Barring a hot finish to the month, it's going to be by far his worst offensive month as an Oriole.  503 last June is the current low point, but this is an entire new level of ineptitude.  

 

He was so hot in April that the overall numbers are still good given what else he can bring to the table.  But not being able to limit the lows after his hot start is very disappointing and adds tons of uncertainty about what to expect from him over the coming months.

[TwentyThirtyFive]

Hes been a bit better of late. Or it feels like it anyway. The glove is good and the speed helps too. For me hes just a plug and play. He will be a play. If they want to figure out a new direction for '24 thats fine too. It still will not surprise me if he is the guy until Holliday is ready. I think Henderson is locked in at 3b and isnt moving to SS. Westburg is already moving around in AAA including OF. Hes not a longterm SS. Ortiz has a chance for sure. Thats the realistic guy they could turn to if they trade Mateo. I still think Id bet on him being the 2b next year though

[Mackus]

Hes been a bit better of late. Or it feels like it anyway. The glove is good and the speed helps too. For me hes just a plug and play. He will be a play. If they want to figure out a new direction for '24 thats fine too. It still will not surprise me if he is the guy until Holliday is ready. I think Henderson is locked in at 3b and isnt moving to SS. Westburg is already moving around in AAA including OF. Hes not a longterm SS. Ortiz has a chance for sure. Thats the realistic guy they could turn to if they trade Mateo. I still think Id bet on him being the 2b next year though

 

A hit and 2 walks in NY, so I suppose that's technically a bit better given the zero he was providing previously.  2/32 and 6/46 leading into this series, so 1/6 with a couple walks is trending up as sad as it is to say.

 

He's not a plug and play if this continues.  I doubt it will, but I now do think that he might be more in the 550-600 range the rest of the year and that's not definitely plug and play either even with his great defense.  He's gotta play decently to fight off Urias, Ortiz and Westburg pushing for time, its not like we don't have real alternatives if he can't hit at least passably well (I'd estimate approaching 650 as his target to stay as an everyday asset).

[TwentyThirtyFive]

The only real alternative at SS is Ortiz. He wont be .550 bad but if he has a really bad June I guess you consider Ortiz.

[NewMarketSean]

He's my favorite player but it's impossible to say he deserves the starting job if he doesn't improve immediately.

 

I think he's a streaky player, and will do this over the course of his career, but this cold streak is so bad I can understand not wanting to give him the time to get hot again.

 

At least his defense is elite.

[Mackus]

Ortiz and Henderson are both real options for SS if needed.  I doubt Westburg is, but others are more optimistic about his defense.  Urias and Frazier are not.  If Mateo is sub-550, then the alternatives become the better choice.  Gotta see him get out of this slump and see how well he can hit moving forward.  He's spent nearly all the good will he earned in April.  If he'd had just a normal, 500ish, bad month, that'd be a lot less concerning to me.  Still he's not toast yet and he'll have a chance to bounce back and reclaim a lock on the position for the remainder of the year.

[TwentyThirtyFive]

They shouldnt and wont move Gunnar off of 3b at this point. Not with Ortiz around. And not with him settling in at 3b. Hes easily the 3rd option at this point. This is why the leash is longer than most think with Mateo. I say this as a huge Ortiz fan btw. Defensively hes very good but honestly for the rest of the year Ill easily still bet on Mateos offense over his. Not because I think Joey cant be a competent offensive player. I just expect Mateo to at least be what he was last year offensively.

[Mackus]

They should and will if Mateo continues to hit like Daniel Cabrera and they don't think Ortiz is ready for a larger role for whatever reason.  Ortiz being the primary backup plan would be the ideal plan, but Henderson is in the mix and capable.  So again, if their hand is forced as it would be if Mateo continues his implosion, there are multiple reasonable alternatives already in-house.  We're not doomed to simply carry Mateo if he's hitting 175/225/275.

[ivanbalt]

Just to pile on, getting picked off at second with two outs last nights was pretty bad.

[TwentyThirtyFive]

Gunnar at SS is a last resort. Mateo only had 250 or so ABs in '21 but he had an 83 wRC+ in those ABs. 82 last year. At 93 through 2 months this year. I just dont get this fear that hes gonna be worse than what hes been since coming here. Even 80 is fine.

[Mackus]

Low 80s OPS+ is probably enough to keep him in the role unless Ortiz takes it from him.  But another few weeks like May so far and we're definitely into last resort territory with Mateo. 

 

He's under 300 OPS this month, which is a long ass ways away from 80 OPS+.  That's an outlook-altering level of bad, similar to how dramatically good his April was.  I have no idea what to actually expect from him in June, but being so bad that he gets booted has been added to the list of possibilities given how bad his May has been.