Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Agrees to $2.7M salary for '24
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Mateo signed a one-year, $2.7 million contract with the Orioles on Friday, avoiding arbitration, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports.
Mateo made $2 million in 2023 while slashing .217/.267/.340 with seven homers and 32 steals over 116 games as the O's primary shortstop. He might be more of a utility player in 2024, which will stunt his fantasy value, but the 28-year-old offers good speed and defensive versatility for the reigning AL East champions.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Pair of runs off bench
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Mateo went 0-for-1 with one RBI, two runs scored and two steals in Saturday's 5-2 victory over Boston.
While Mateo didn't start Saturday's game, he managed to make an impact after pinch running for Adley Rutschman in the seventh frame. The shortstop stole two bases and managed to cross home plate twice despite only receiving one at-bat. Mateo is now up to 32 pilfers on the year while slashing .218/.268/.341.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Records 30th steal
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Mateo went 1-for-2 with a walk, a stolen base and a run scored in Wednesday's 5-1 win over the Nationals.
Mateo reached the 30-steal mark for the second year in a row, and he did it with four thefts over his last 10 contests. The shortstop has regularly been in the lineup versus southpaws lately, but he's seen minimal playing time versus righties. For the season, Mateo has a .219/.270/.344 slash line with seven home runs, 33 RBI and 56 runs scored over 112 contests, but he's hit just .180 with one homer since the start of May.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Multi-hit effort in win
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Mateo went 2-for-4 with a double, an RBI and a run scored in Sunday's 5-1 win over the Guardians.
Mateo drove in the second run of the game with an RBI groundout in the second, then doubled and later scored on an Adley Rutschman double in the fourth. Mateo had seven multi-hit efforts over the first month of the season, but Sunday was only his fifth such performance since. Entering Sunday, Mateo had hit only .172 over 233 at-bats since the start of May, though he is now hitting .280 over 25 September at-bats.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Swipes 29th bag
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Mateo went 1-for-1 with a walk and a stolen base in Wednesday's 1-0 loss against St. Louis.
While Mateo's seen limited playing time in the short side of a platoon, he's been productive when on the field, going 6-for-17 (.353) with three steals in his last six games. He's up to 29 stolen bases this season, putting him on pace to top the 30-steal mark for the second consecutive year. Overall, Mateo is slashing .215/.266/.342 with seven homers, 52 runs scored and 32 RBI across 328 plate appearances on the campaign.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Swipes bag, scores run
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Mateo went 1-for-3 with one run scored and one steal in Tuesday's 5-4 victory over the Angels.
Mateo found himself in Tuesday's lineup against southpaw Reid Detmers and registered his 27th stolen base of 2023 after tagging Detmers for a single in the third inning. Though Mateo has almost exclusively played against left-handed pitching of late, he's enjoying a productive stretch, batting 7-for-22 (.318) with a homer and a pair of steals over his last seven games.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Picks up steal
Rotowire
Mateo went 1-for-4 with a double, a stolen base and a run scored in Wednesday's 8-5 win over the Dodgers.
Mateo's shaky hitting over the last couple of months has caught up to him since Jordan Westburg's been in the majors. Wednesday was just Mateo's fifth start in July -- he's become more of a backup infielder than an everyday starter while batting just .176 this month. For the season, the speedster is up to 23 steals, six home runs, 29 RBI, 38 runs scored, 11 doubles and a triple, but his .216/.267/.351 slash line is low by even his standards, and it won't help him get more playing time on a contender.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: On bench again Wednesday
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Mateo is not in the lineup Wednesday against the Yankees, Nathan Ruiz of The Baltimore Sun reports.
Mateo has now started just two of the last seven games, and one of those starts came when Jordan Westburg was banged up. Clearly, Mateo's lengthy slump has led to a role reduction, and it looks to be a significant one.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Logs 22nd steal
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Mateo stole a base as a pinch runner in Saturday's 1-0 loss to the Twins.
Mateo started the game on the bench but ran for Adley Rutschman in the ninth inning with the Orioles down a run. Since Jordan Westburg came up from Triple-A Norfolk, Mateo's seen his playing time dwindle, to the point where Mateo may be stuck in a short-side platoon role. The shortstop didn't help his case to play more, hitting just .196 with six steals in June. He has a .220/.267/.350 slash line with 22 thefts, six home runs, 27 RBI and 37 runs scored over 235 plate appearances this season, though he's cooled off dramatically following a strong April.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Sitting again Saturday
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Mateo isn't in the Orioles' lineup Saturday against the Twins.
Mateo's struggles at the plate appear to be costing him significant playing time, as Saturday marks his third consecutive absence from the starting lineup. Gunnar Henderson will start at shortstop while Jordan Westburg plays third base and Adam Frazier takes second.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Day off Friday
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Mateo is not in the starting lineup Friday against Minnesota, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.
Mateo will get a breather after he went 0-for-4 with a run scored and two walks during the team's series with Cincinnati. Gunnar Henderson will slide over to shortstop while Ramon Urias enters the lineup at third base and bats seventh in the series opener with the Twins.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Posts 21st steal
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Mateo went 1-for-2 with a double, a walk, a stolen base and two runs scored in Sunday's 3-2 win over the Mariners.
Mateo went just 2-for-20 over his previous seven contests since his last steal. His struggles to get on base have minimized his best trait for fantasy managers, which is his ability to run rampant on the basepaths. The shortstop's multi-hit effort lifted his batting average on the year to .224 with 21 thefts, six home runs, 27 RBI and 36 runs scored over 68 contests. Mateo's playing time has already started to slip as the Orioles also try to balance at-bats for Gunnar Henderson and Ramon Urias on the left side of the infield, and that juggling act is set to get trickier with Jordan Westburg coming to the majors Monday.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Out of lineup Saturday
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Mateo is not starting in Saturday's lineup against the Mariners.
The return of Cedric Mullins (groin) has crowded the Baltimore lineup, and Mateo will be the odd man out Saturday. He's gone through a tough stretch at the plate of late, collecting only one hit across his last 16 at-bats. Gunnar Henderson will start at shortstop and Ramon Urias will man the hot corner.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: On bench again Wednesday
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Mateo is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Blue Jays, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
For the second time in three games and the third time in six games, Mateo finds himself on the bench while the Orioles roll out an infield of Josh Lester, Adam Frazier, Gunnar Henderson and Ramon Urias. Mateo still profiles as the Orioles' top option at shortstop for now, but it's clear that he's on a shorter leash after having slashed .152/.186/.179 since the beginning of May following an excellent first month of the season. Joey Ortiz, who was called up Wednesday, might represent Mateo's biggest threat for playing time at the moment, but Jordan Westburg -- who has posted a .966 OPS in 262 plate appearances at Triple-A Norfolk -- could end up taking over as the starting shortstop at some point later this season.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Takes seat against KC
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Mateo is not in the starting lineup for Sunday's finale against Kansas City, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
Mateo has struggled in June to the tune of a .217/.217/.261 slash over eight games, and he went just 1-for-7 over the first two games of the series versus the Royals. Gunnar Henderson is leading off and playing shortstop while Ramon Urias moves to third base while Mateo sits.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Swipes two more bags
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Mateo went 1-for-3 with one RBI and two steals in Friday's victory over the Royals.
Mateo stole second and third base in the second inning of the contest to give him 18 steals on the season, good for fourth in the American League. After a torrid start to the season batting .333 in the month of April, Mateo has cooled down considerably. The 27-year-old hit an atrocious .128 in May with just two extra-base hits, and over his last 30 games has an underwhelming .151/.175/.183 slash line.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Taking seat Thursday
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Mateo is absent from the lineup for Thursday's tilt in Milwaukee, Rich Dubroff of BaltimoreBaseball.com reports.
It's a routine day off for Mateo after he had started each of the previous 14 contests. Gunnar Henderson will play shortstop Thursday.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Notches 16th steal
Rotowire
Mateo went 2-for-4 with a double, a stolen base and a run scored in Sunday's 8-3 win over the Giants.
Mateo picked up his first multi-hit effort since April 27 in this contest. The steal was also his first in seven games, as he's had few opportunities to run after hitting just .128 in May. A strong start to the season has propped up his slash line at .234/.276/.389 for the year. He's at 16 steals, six home runs, 24 RBI and 31 runs scored, and with high-end speed, he should maintain some fantasy interest as long as he's the Orioles' starting shortstop.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Option to play some center field
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Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said Tuesday that Mateo is an option to play some center field while Cedric Mullins (groin) is out, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.
Mateo's defense at shortstop is his best asset right now as he struggles at the plate, so it seems doubtful he'd be used on a regular basis in center field. He does have past experience at the position, although he hasn't played there since 2021.
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Orioles' Jorge Mateo: Swipes 15th bag
Rotowire
Mateo went 1-for-3 with a stolen base in Saturday's 5-3 loss to the Rangers.
The hit was just his third in his last eight starts, a stretch in which Mateo is batting a woeful .103 (3-for-39), but he's still managed to swipe two of his 15 bags on the season despite his infrequent presence on base. The 27-year-old's red-hot April has given way to a .111/.156/.125 May, and Mateo seems like he could lose his starting spot at shortstop at any moment, especially with Jordan Westburg continuing to light it up at Triple-A.
