Baltimore Orioles first baseman Ryan Mountcastle is not in the starting nine on Saturday afternoon when the Orioles continue a series against the Cincinnati Reds. Mountcastle has been in the starting lineup in each of the past seven contests. During this stretch, he has held a modest .167/.200/.333 line. He will get a chance to recover and will likely rejoin the lineup on Sunday. Instead, the Orioles will give Ryan O'Hearn the starting nod at first base. He will bat in the cleanup spot. Mountcastle has held an overall .242/.227/.339 slash line. However, he has generated an elite 55.3 percent hard-hit, which suggests he should see positive regression. O'Hearn is not worth targeting in DFS this afternoon as he will face Cincinnati ace, Hunter Greene.
Baltimore Orioles first baseman Ryan Mountcastle hit his first home run of the season on Sunday afternoon in Baltimore. His solo shot in the second inning gave the Orioles a 2-1 lead at the time, but the O's ultimately lost 7-6 in extra innings to split the rain-shortened two-game series with the Blue Jays. Mountcastle finished the day 2-for-4 and is hitting .271 in his first 15 games, matching his batting average from last season. This was his first home run of the season, and he now has four RBI to go with eight runs scored and a .300 wOBA. His barrel rate and hard-hit rate are up this year, per Statcast, and that could result in positive regression as the season continues if he keeps hitting the ball so well. Next up for Mountcastle and the Orioles is a three-game home series against the Guardians, which begins Tuesday after a scheduled off-day Monday.
Baltimore Orioles first baseman Ryan Mountcastle is out of the lineup on Tuesday against the Diamondbacks. Instead, Ryan O'Hearn will man first base while Adley Rutschman shifts to DH. This is likely just a breather for the slugger, who has played in each of Baltimore's last eight games. On the season, he is batting .324 with a .359 OBP but has yet to hit his first long ball of the season. He'll be looking to improve on the 13 he hit last year, now that the left field fence has been moved in at Camden Yards.
Baltimore Orioles first baseman Ryan Mountcastle put together a strong day at the plate during Sunday's game against the Kansas City Royals. This offense wasn't able to do much, but Mountcastle was still able to have a successful game. He went 3-for-4 at the plate with a triple and a run scored in what ended up being a 4-1 loss. Mountcastle has been red-hot as he's 5-for-9 over his last two games. The O's are loaded with talented hitters, so it's unclear if Mountcastle will really be an everyday player anymore. However, the O's can't bench him if he continues to hit like he has early in the season. Mountcastle isn't a must-have fantasy player, but he certainly has opened some eyes with his performances lately.
Ryan Mountcastle Sitting In Series Finale Against Boston
Baltimore Orioles first baseman Ryan Mountcastle will receive a day of rest in Thursday's series finale against the visiting division-rival Boston Red Sox at Camden Yards. The left-handed-hitting Ryan O'Hearn will start at first base and bat cleanup for the O's versus right-hander Tanner Houck. Mountcastle has started five of the team's first seven games in the early going and has gone 5-for-20 at the plate with a double, RBI, three runs scored, one walk and four strikeouts in 21 plate appearances. O'Hearn is much better against right-handed pitchers and is swinging a hot bat early on, going 6-for-15 with two doubles and two runs scored in four games played. He's worth taking a serious look at for DFS contests on a small Thursday slate against Houck, who he's hit .375 against with a solo home run in eight career at-bats.
Ryan Mountcastle, Tyler O'Neill Sitting On Saturday
Baltimore Orioles first baseman Ryan Mountcastle and outfielder Tyler O'Neill will not play on Saturday against the Toronto Blue Jays. Both players were in the starting lineup for their first two contests. Instead, Ryan O'Hearn will cover first base and bat third, and Heston Kjerstad will cover right field and bat sixth. Mountcastle has gone 1-for-9 with a double over his first two games. O'Neill has enjoyed an impressive start to his Baltimore tenure as he has gone 3-for-6 with a long ball and four RBI. O'Hearn enjoyed great success against right-handers last summer as he posted a .264/.338/.439 slash line with 15 home runs. Kjerstad has flashed elite upside at times at Triple-A but has yet to see it translate to the big leagues. O'Hearn is worth a look in DFS, but Kjerstad carries more risk given his lack of consistent production.
According to Pat Ragazzo of Sports Illustrated, the New York Mets have shown interest in acquiring Baltimore Orioles first baseman Ryan Mountcastle. Owner Steve Cohen has noted that negotiations with Pete Alonso have hit a standstill, and the team has begun to pivot to other options. Earlier in the offseason, they acquired Jesse Winker to potentially fill a spot in the lineup. In addition, the team has been linked to Detroit Tigers first baseman Spencer Torkelson. Mountcastle is a much more proven major league bat than Torkelson. Last season, Mountcastle posted a .271/.308/.425 line with 13 home runs. However, before the modifications in left field of Camden Yards, Mountcastle had 20+ HR upside and hit a career-best 33 HRs in 2021. Mountcastle generated strong underlying metrics in 2024, which suggest he could still provide high upside power production. For now, fantasy managers should expect Mark Vientos to be the favorite to play first base in Queens.
Baltimore Orioles first baseman Ryan Mountcastle is not in the team's starting lineup for Thursday's series finale at Yankee Stadium against the New York Yankees. With Mountcastle starting on the bench, the left-handed-hitting Ryan O'Hearn will play first base and bat sixth against Yankees right-hander Gerrit Cole. Mountcastle just returned from the injured list on Tuesday due to a wrist injury and has gone 2-for-7 with an RBI and two strikeouts in his first two games back. The Orioles are easing him in ahead of the postseason and will give him a day off against one of the most dominant pitchers in the game. O'Hearn won't be too popular in DFS against Cole. In his 17 career at-bats against him, O'Hearn has hit .118 with a .471 OPS, one home run and two RBI. O'Hearn has been hot of late, going 8-for-21 (.381) with three doubles and two RBI since Sept. 17.
The Baltimore Orioles reinstated infielder Ryan Mountcastle (wrist) from the 10-day injured list on Tuesday and optioned outfielder/designated hitter Eloy Jimenez to Triple-A Norfolk in a corresponding move. The O's haven't released their lineup for Tuesday's contest against the division-rival New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium, but it wouldn't be a surprise if Mountcastle is eased back into the fold as he returns from a left-wrist sprain that has kept him out for the past month. Before his injury, though, the 27-year-old right-handed hitter was the team's primary first baseman. Mountcastle's power has been down again this year, and he was in a 3-for-22 slump at the plate before his injury. In addition to that, he had six strikeouts in 11 minor-league rehab at-bats before his return on Tuesday. It could take him a while to get back in a groove at the plate.
Ryan Mountcastle Starting Rehab Assignment On Friday
Baltimore Orioles first baseman Ryan Mountcastle (wrist) is starting a minor-league rehab assignment with Triple-A Norfolk on Friday, according to the team. Mountcastle will remain with Norfolk through Sunday when the minor-league season ends. After that, the 27-year-old right-handed hitter will most likely rejoin the big-league roster next week. Mountcastle has been out almost a month with a left-wrist sprain, so it wouldn't be a surprise if Baltimore looked to ease him back into regular duties in the final month of the 2024 regular season before postseason play begins in early October. His return will surely be a boost for the O's offense heading into the playoffs, but Mountcastle's wrist sprain also won't help his cause to boost his power to close out the season. The former 36th overall pick in 2015 has only 13 bombs in 2024, 61 RBI and 53 runs scored in 452 at-bats.
Ryan Mountcastle
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Orioles
