Orioles latest farm system update puts pressure on more than just Jackson Holliday

Baltimore Orioles top prospect Jackson Holliday knows a thing or two about tough starts. Holliday's career started with a 2-for-34 slump, after which he was sent down to Norfolk to work on his swing. Since his recall, Holliday has been among the O's best hitters.

The Orioles and Mike Elias took a similar risk with No. 2 prospect Coby Mayo, who was recently called up and (as of this writing) is 1-for-17 to start his MLB career. Mayo finally recorded his first hit on Wednesday.

“I was never too stressed about the hit,” said Mayo. “But then, it gets to you a little bit and you want it. You want it so bad, because you’re so competitive.”

In the latest MLB Pipeline update, Mayo rose quite a bit, as he's now the No. 10 prospect in all of baseball and second in the Baltimore system. In most organizations, he would be the top prospect, but Mayo has long been overlooked by the likes of Holliday.

For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work on The Baseball Insiders, subscribe to The Moonshot, our weekly MLB newsletter, and join the discord to get the inside scoop between now and the MLB offseason.

Coby Mayo's prospect ranking puts extra pressure on Orioles star

While prospects themselves claim not to pay too much attention to the rankings, a top-10 overall rankings does place a bit of a target on Mayo's back. For a young hitter who was already struggling, it suggests Mayo has to produce some consistent results soon, or he might suffer a similar fate as Holliday and be sent back to Norfolk.

Mayo specifically has struggled to hit breaking balls, and opposing pitchers have taken note, throwing very few fastballs to the 22-year-old.

“They’re going to keep throwing those pitches until you prove you can hit them,” Mayo said. “It’s the best level in the world. There’s no level higher than this, and there’s a reason why they’re here.”

Mayo admitted he took a sight of relief when he was finally able to record that first hit. Hopefully it's the first of many, but he needs to start racking up numbers or else the Orioles will have little choice but to sit him on the bench or send him back to Triple-A. Baltimore is a playoff team, after all, rather than a rebuilding club that can afford to give at-bats to struggling prospects.

The pressure is on, and increased buzz around Mayo isn't helping. Good luck, kid.