Orioles Slugging First Baseman Gets Awful Hamstring Injury Timeline

The Baltimore Orioles were hoping for better news when it came to first baseman Ryan Mountcastle.

Instead, it couldn’t have been much worse.

Baltimore interim manager Tony Mansolino told reporters on Friday that Mountcastle would miss anywhere from 8-12 weeks with a right hamstring strain that has been diagnosed as a Grade 2.

MLB.com was among the outlets reporting the diagnosis.

Mountcastle has been out of the lineup since he suffered the injury on May 30. He underwent an MRI and a battery of additional tests to get to the diagnosis.

What Ryan Mountcastle’s Injury Means for Orioles

Baltimore loses a source of power by losing Mountcastle. In 52 games he slashed .246/.280/.348 with a .628 OPS. He only has two home runs and 15 RBI this season. But, in years past he has hit at least 20 home runs twice in a season. That includes his career-best 33 home runs in 2021.

With a Grade 2 hamstring injury, Mountcastle will be shut down for a while. It’s described as a partial tear of the hamstring. A strain usually indicates no tear. A Grade 3 is the worst diagnosis and usually indicates a complete tear of the hamstring.

“We love Mounty, he’s a huge piece of this for us,” Mansolino said to reporters on Friday. “He’ll be back at some point, whenever we get him. It’s incredibly disappointing. I feel for him, the group feels for him, but we’ve got to move forward. We’ve got some good players here that will step up and pick up the slack.”

The two players most likely to pick up that slack will be Coby Mayo and Ryan O’Hearn, who have been splitting the starts in his absence.

The moment is particularly important for Mayo, who is the No. 2 prospect in the organization. Baltimore has been trying to find ways to insert him into the lineup. His bat, to this point, hasn’t supported more playing time.

In eight games this season he’s slashed .120/.185/.120 with an RBI. At some point, the O’s will have to commit or trade him to cash in on his value as one of Baltimore’s top prospects.

O’Hearn, on the other hand, is having a fantastic season, slashing .324/.410/.516 with nine home runs and 23 RBI. Given his power and slug, he’s more likely to get more starts there if Mayo’s bat does not come around.

The Orioles will need one of them to produce. Mountcastle won’t be back until at least August.