Jorge

Mateo

Holliday has been seeing the ball well of late, hitting .268 (11-for-41) with one homer and one steal over his last 15 games. It’ll be veteran Jorge Mateo getting an opportunity to face Kansas City left-hander Kris Bubic.

Mateo led off the third inning with a single off of Skubal, swiped second base and took third on a ground ball before being stranded there. He then led off the fifth inning with a single off of the star southpaw, again pilfered second, and again the O’s were unable to cash him in. With the two-hit effort, the 29-year-old speedster is now hitting .136/.136/.182 with zero homers, zero RBI and five stolen bases in 22 plate appearances on the season.

The 21-year-old phenom will get a breather with tough left-hander MacKenzie Gore toeing the slab for the Nationals. Jorge Mateo will start in his place at second base and will bat ninth for the O’s on Thursday. Holliday is off to a slow start overall at the plate this season, slashing just .234/.300/.375 with a pair of homers, eight RBI, one stolen base and a 17/6 K/BB ratio in his first 70 plate appearances.

Mateo gets his first start of the year after coming in as a replacement for Thursday’s opener. The 29-year-old dealt with an elbow injury this spring, but is obviously feeling better. Jackson Holliday slides back to second base, and Ramon Urias will open the contest on the bench.

Mateo is seeing his first action since undergoing Tommy John surgery. While Orioles manager Brandon Hyde had previously ruled out the 29-year-old infielder for Opening Day, it’s clear that Mateo is making good progress. His availability in the first week of the regular season will depend on how much he can play over the rest of spring training. Either way, Mateo seems to have progressed enough that he’ll debut in April at the latest.

Mateo had done a “full slate” of defensive drills on Monday and progressed to batting practice on the field on Tuesday. Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said Mateo was “progressing extremely well,” and Mateo is still holding out hope that he can be ready for Opening Day. He will need to get in spring training games soon if there is any hope of that happening.

A few weeks ago, the Orioles reported that Mateo would be limited in camp, but there had been hope he would be ready to start the season. That no longer appears to be the case. With Mateo likely starting the year on the IL, that will give Ramon Laureano and Ramon Urias an even better chance to win bench spots out of spring training.

Mateo is doubtful for the start of next season as he continues to recover from UCL surgery on his non-throwing elbow. The versatile 29-year-old figures to split time at several infield spots next year behind starters Gunnar Henderson, Jordan Westburg and Jackson Holliday.

Elias previously stated last month that Mateo would be ready for the outset of spring training following UCL surgery on his non-throwing elbow. However, there’s been no implication that the speedster is dealing with any sort of setback. Barring an unexpected development, fantasy managers should anticipate Mateo being ready for Opening Day. He’s slated to occupy a versatile utility role for Baltimore next season.

This was a procedural move as each player had to be activated from the injured list today and placed on the 40-man roster. Bautista, Mateo, and Wells should be full-go for the start of the season with Bautista again being the closer for the Orioles, which could make him a great value in fantasy leagues.