BALTIMORE -- Ryan Mountcastle sustained a bit of a freak injury on April 11, when he fractured a bone in his left foot while running from first to second base on a double. Now, there's been "some more tough luck" for the 29-year-old first baseman, as Orioles president of baseball operations Mike Elias put it Friday afternoon.
On Tuesday, Mountcastle was preparing to play the first game of a rehab assignment for Triple-A Norfolk when he pulled an oblique muscle. An MRI revealed a "pretty significant" strain, per Elias, who added Mountcastle will miss at least a couple of months.
With the calendar turning to August on Saturday, it's becoming less likely Mountcastle will play again in 2026.
"It’s really unfortunate for Ryan to get all the way through a foot rehab, be ready to go out and start playing and then have, right as he’s starting, another significant injury," Elias said. "So unfortunately, we can’t expect him back anytime soon. We’ll get him back as soon as we’re able to, and hopefully, that’s in 2026. But it’s a tough restart for Ryan."
Mountcastle played only eight games for Baltimore this season before being placed on the injured list, going 4-for-14 (.286) with one double and one RBI. He was limited to 89 games during the 2025 campaign due to a right hamstring strain that sidelined him from May 31-Aug. 8 last year.
The O's signed slugging first baseman Pete Alonso to a five-year, $155 million contract this past December, but they still thought Mountcastle could be a fit on their roster as another right-handed-hitting option at designated hitter and first base. It could have become challenging to find playing time for the seven-year MLB veteran, but he got hurt a little more than two weeks into the season, so it never became an issue.
Mountcastle avoided arbitration with the Orioles last offseason by agreeing to a $6.787 million contract for the 2026 season that added a $7.5 million team option for '27. If that does not get picked up, then it's possible he has played his final game for the organization.
Selected by Baltimore with the No. 36 overall pick in the 2015 MLB Draft, Mountcastle played 660 games for the club from 2020-26. His peak came from 2021-24, when he hit .260 with 86 home runs and a .759 OPS over 528 contests while also showing tremendous improvement on defense at first base.