SARASOTA, Fla. – Where some people see a logjam, Coby Mayo sees a fighting chance.

Seven infielders, six infielders, it doesn’t matter to Mayo. He isn’t expecting to spend his 2025 season riding buses in Triple-A.

“I think I’ve said this last year, I think an opportunity will present itself if you can show out and if I can do what I can do,” Mayo said earlier this week at his clubhouse locker. “Last spring was an example of how I can play in this kind of environment. Just going to look to do the same this year.”

Mayo didn’t break camp with the Orioles but he thumped a few baseballs, hitting .360 with a 1.008 OPS in 23 games. His 11 RBIs were tied with Anthony Santander for third on the club. Jackson Holliday got most of the press when he was cut from the camp roster, but the group also included Mayo, Heston Kjerstad, Kyle Stowers and Connor Norby.

The pitching in the International League was no match for Mayo, who batted .287 with 23 doubles, three triples, 22 home runs, 67 RBIs and a .925 OPS in 89 games. But it was all uphill with the Orioles. And the climb lasted only 17 games.

SARASOTA, Fla. - The due date has arrived for Orioles pitchers and catchers. They’re required to report today unless they have visa issues. There’s usually one in every crowd.

Not that the complex has been empty. Players arrive early, including the ones rehabbing from surgery. Physicals are taken and the back fields are occupied. Tossing a baseball back and forth in the morning feeds the senses.

The media gains access early Thursday. It isn’t like those Fort Lauderdale days when beat writers and columnists stood inside the clubhouse and waited for someone to show up with their bags. They’d usually just phone the manager and say, “I’m here.”

They meant the state of Florida. Guys weren’t in a big hurry to check into the outdated and dilapidated facility.

Beyond some roster competitions this spring, and there don’t appear to be many, is the battle for the Opening Day start. This is assuming that a decision isn’t already made and spring performances could factor into it.

The smiles appear before the response.

Ask a few Orioles hitters for their immediate reactions to news that the club is moving in the left field wall, and their approval can be seen on their faces.

“I mean, I’m not disappointed,” catcher Adley Rutschman said yesterday evening after the Birdland Caravan made a stop at PBR Baltimore.

“It’s definitely nice as a righty, and maybe as a lefty. I think everyone’s excited.”

No one more than first baseman Ryan Mountcastle, who was robbed of 11 home runs over three seasons, per Statcast data, after the Orioles pushed back the wall and raised its height. The new dimensions bring it up at varying distances between nine and 20 feet.

The Orioles weren’t finished with the position player side of their roster.

The club announced today that it signed outfielder Dylan Carlson to a one-year contract. It’s worth $975,000 with a $25,000 bonus if he reaches 200 plate appearances, according to an industry source.

Infielder Jacob Amaya was designated for assignment to create room for Carlson on a full 40-man roster.

Carlson, 26, is a switch-hitter and the 33^rd overall pick of the Cardinals in the 2016 draft. He split last season between St. Louis and Tampa Bay and batted .209/.287/.277 in 96 games.

This was a big drop from the 2021 season when Carlson finished third in National League Rookie of the Year voting. He hit .266/.343/.437 with 31 doubles, four triples, 18 home runs and 65 RBIs in 149 games.