Mateo signed with the New York Yankees as an international free agent on January 28,2012,receiving a $250,000 signing bonus.[1] He made his professional debut that season for the Dominican Summer League Yankees 2 and batted .255 with one home run and eight RBI in 14 games. Mateo played for the Dominican Summer League Yankees 1 in 2013,compiling a .287 batting average with seven home runs and 26 RBI in 64 games;he played for the rookie-level Gulf Coast League Yankees in 2014,[2][3] slashing .276/.354/.397 in 15 games. In 2015,while playing for the Charleston RiverDogs and the Tampa Yankees,Mateo posted a combined .278 batting average with two home runs,11 triples,40 RBI,and 82 stolen bases across 117 total appearances between both affiliates.[4] He was named Florida State League Player of the Week for the week of July 17.[5]
Mateo was ranked by Baseball America as the top Yankees minor league prospect ahead of Gary Sánchez and Aaron Judge prior to the 2016 campaign.[6] He also received a non-roster invitation to spring training.[7] He spent the season back with Tampa,where he was a Mid-Season All-Star[5] and was named to appear in the All-Star Futures Game.[8] However,on July 6,2016,Mateo was suspended for two weeks due to violating the team's code of conduct policy,and could not participate in the Futures Game.[9] He reportedly expressed his displeasure to Yankees executives about not being promoted to Double-A Trenton.[10] Mateo finished 2016 with a .254 batting average,eight home runs,36 stolen bases,and 47 RBI.[11] He spent time at second base following the arrival of Gleyber Torres.[12] The Yankees added Mateo to their 40-man roster after the season.[13] Mateo began 2017 with Tampa and was promoted to the Trenton Thunder in late June. He was a Mid-Season All-Star and Eastern League Player of the Week for the week of July 2.[5]
Oakland Athletics
On July 31,2017,the Yankees traded Mateo,along with Dustin Fowler and James Kaprielian to the Oakland Athletics,in exchange for Sonny Gray.[14] Oakland assigned him to the Double-A Midland RockHounds,and he finished the season there. In 129 total games split between Tampa,Trenton,and Midland,he batted .267 in 532 at-bats with 12 home runs,18 triples,57 RBI,and 52 stolen bases.[15]
In January 2018,Mateo was named the 64th best prospect in baseball.[16] In April,Baseball America named him as having the best speed of all minor league players,ahead of Phillies outfielder Roman Quinn.[17] That season,playing for the Triple-A Nashville Sounds,he hit .230/.280/.353 in 470 at-bats with three home runs,16 triples,45 RBI,and 25 stolen bases while being caught 10 times.[18]
Mateo opened the 2019 season with the Triple-A Las Vegas Aviators.[19] Mateo was named to the 2019 All-Star Futures Game.[20] In 2019 he led the minor league in triples,with 14.[21] Mateo was included in the Athletics' 60-man player pool prior to the start of the 2020 season.[22]
San Diego Padres
On June 30,2020,the Athletics traded Mateo to the San Diego Padres in exchange for Junior Pérez.[23] Following the trade,he was considered San Diego's 13th best prospect.[24] He was activated and started his first career game as the left fielder on August 13. On August 27,in the second game of a doubleheaders against the Seattle Mariners,Mateo recorded his first MLB hit on a ground rule double.[25] He hit just .185/.269/.454 in 22 games in the big leagues that year.
On August 5,2021,Mateo was claimed off of waivers by the Baltimore Orioles.[28] In 2021,he batted .247/.293/.376 with four home runs,14 RBI,and 10 stolen bases in 89 games between the Padres and Orioles. He was shut down for the season in mid-September after experiencing right lumbar inflammation.[29]
In 2022,Mateo started the year on the Orioles' Opening Day roster at shortstop.[30] He finished the season batting .221/.267/.379 with 13 home runs,50 RBI,and 35 stolen bases in 494 at-bats. Mateo led the major leagues with the most stolen bases in the regular season of 2022,trailed by teammate Cedric Mullins by one.[31] Mateo won the Fielding Bible Award as the best defensive shortstop in MLB for the 2022 season,making him the first Oriole to win the award at that position.[32]
Mateo with the Orioles in 2023
Mateo achieved a 1.062 OPS through April of the 2023 season,but he lost playing time to Gunnar Henderson in 2023 after hitting just .105/.128/.132 through 11 games in May.[33][34] He concluded the regular season with 32 stolen bases and .217 batting average and .617 OPS,having more success batting against left-handed pitching.[35] Following injuries to both centerfielders Mullins and Aaron Hicks,Mateo made his Orioles centerfield debut on August 5.[36] He joined the team in the postseason 2023 ALDS against the Texas Rangers[37] and went 4-for-4 in Game 2,becoming just the 6th player in MLB history to get four hits while batting ninth.[38] After the season,Mateo agreed to a $2.7 million contract to avoid arbitration.[39]
Mateo began the 2024 campaign with Baltimore,and hit .229/.267/.401 with five home runs,18 RBI,and 13 stolen bases across 68 games. In a July 23 game against the Miami Marlins,Mateo departed with an injury after colliding with Gunnar Henderson while trying to field a ground ball.[40] After the injury was diagnosed as a left elbow subluxation,[41] Mateo was transferred to the 60–day injured list on July 30.[42] His season officially ended on August 28 when he underwent left elbowulnar collateral ligament reconstruction.[43]
In the offseason,Mateo agreed to a $3.55 million contract to avoid arbitration that added a club option for the 2026 season.[44] He returned from injury in time to make the Orioles' Opening Day roster in 2025. On April 20,2025,Mateo made his positional player pitching debut in the 8th inning of a game against the Cincinnati Reds,allowing a grand slam to Noelvi Marte to contribute to the Orioles' 24-2 loss.[45] In 31 games to begin the year,he batted .180/.231/.279 with one home run,three RBI,and 14 stolen bases. On June 10,Mateo was placed on the injured list due to left elbow inflammation.[46] On July 1,while still on the IL,it was announced that Mateo had suffered a hamstring strain and would miss 8-to-10 weeks as a result;[47] he was transferred to the 60-day injured list on July 6.[48] Mateo was activated from the injured list on September 2.[49] He finished the season with a .177/.217/.266 batting line,one home run,three RBI,and 15 stolen bases. On November 3,the Orioles declined Mateo's club option,making him a free agent.[50]
Atlanta Braves
On January 19,2026,Mateo signed a one-year,$1 million contract with the Atlanta Braves.[51][52]
↑Wright, Alex (April 7, 2019). "Aviators ready to take flight on new endeavors". unlvfreepress.com. The Scarlet & Gray Free Press. Archived from the original on June 29, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
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