What a difference a day makes. After two games of a frustrating lack of offense and problems with the starting pitching, the Orioles came into Wednesday afternoon looking to avoid a sweep by the Rangers with #1 starter Trevor Rogers on the mound. Even with the challenge of Texas pitcher Nathan Eovaldi awaiting them, the hitters were able to break out, Rogers continued to pitch well, and the team came away with an 8-3 victory to even up their record at 3-3 for the season.
The early games of the 2026
season have not done a lot to dispel any concerns that carried over from last year, when the team was often unable to shake off setbacks within a single game or from a game-to-game basis. Fighting to avoid this sweep is another point towards thinking maybe these guys are different. They will still have challenges to overcome, such as Zach Eflin’s injury from Tuesday, the impact of which is still not totally known on the roster. Just, maybe they’re capable of overcoming the challenges sometimes.
One thing that always helps on the road to victory is when the bottom of the order can deliver. It was the 6-9 batters in the order who opened up the scoring against Eovaldi in the game’s early innings. Consecutive one-out singles by Colton Cowser and Leody Taveras put men on the corners in the bottom of the second. The #9 batter, Jeremiah Jackson, succeeded at his job of putting the ball in play productively, delivering a deep fly ball that handily scored Cowser from first base. Taylor Ward continued Tuesday’s explosion by adding an RBI double, giving the O’s a 2-0 lead heading into the third inning.
The bottom of the third saw Pete Alonso lead off the inning with a walk. He was still on first base two outs later, then came some bottom of the order contribution again. Dylan Beavers hit a single and Cowser drew a walk to load the bases. The light-hitting Taveras was able to capitalize with a double off the wall in right field, plating two more runs.
This 4-0 lead proved to be all that the Orioles would need to win the game, not that you could have known it at the time. Texas got Rogers on the ropes a bit in the top of the fourth, scraping together four singles in a row after Rogers had gotten two outs. This brought two runs home, cutting the deficit in half. The fourth inning also saw Rogers throw over 30 pitches in that one frame.
Rogers was able to keep the game from spiraling and add another two more innings on top of that, finishing the day with two earned runs allowed over six innings. It’s only disappointing if you were expecting him to carry last year’s 1.81 ERA or better all season.
The Orioles offense also proved to be capable of adding on further runs after scoring some early in the game. The inability to do this year ago was another frustrating feature of that season. None of that on Wednesday. After a quiet bottom of the fourth, Samuel Basallo announced his presence with authority. Leading off the bottom of the fifth, the Orioles catcher was heaved a middle-middle mistake and he did not miss.
There was a satisfying crack of the bat, a majestic flight path apparent even before the camera cut away to show the ball in flight, and by the time the ball landed in front of the batter’s eye beyond center field, it had traveled a Statcast-estimated 437 feet. That’s the good stuff.
After Eovaldo walked the next batter, Coby Mayo, he got the hook from the game. Texas brought in reliever Tyler Alexander, who allowed the inherited runner to score plus one more of his own as, again, the bottom of the order helped get things done. The Orioles even scored two runs over the remainder of the inning after laying down a tactically-unsound sacrifice bunt, which is how you really know things were going in their favor in the game. Jackson and Ward cashed in with an RBI apiece as the Orioles lead grew to 7-2.
With a safe-seeming lead and three innings left to cover, the Orioles turned to Albert Suárez to get them the rest of the way. The 36-year-old Suárez rejoined the team as the player called up when Eflin landed on the injured list. He needed to be called back up after not making the roster following spring training. Suárez’s objective for the game was to make sure the Orioles would not need to use any of their other pitchers.
Although there was some traffic on the bases in the seventh and Corey Seager led off the top of the eighth with a solo homer, Suárez proved up to the task that he was asked to do. He notched a classic three-inning save, allowing the one run on the solo shot over his three innings. The bullpen gets a day to rest, so hopefully it will be at full strength when the series against the Pirates opens on Friday.
Former Orioles minor leaguer Carter Baumler, who’s now with the Rangers as a Rule 5 pick, pitched two innings for Texas. He gave up a solo home run to Beavers across his two innings. Maybe he’ll pitch badly enough that he’s offered back to the Orioles. Maybe it won’t matter all that much whether he’s offered back or not.
The game wrapped up on an amusing note that’s only possible in this era of Automated Ball/Strike challenges. Suárez tossed a 1-2 pitch to Evan Carter that looked to be in the strike zone yet was called a ball. Basallo, behind the plate, tapped his helmet immediately, initiating a challenge. The replay came back and showed a clear strike in the zone, reversing the ball and ending the game on a third strike looking instead. In all, the Orioles made three challenges and won each of them.
The team will be back in action in Pittsburgh on Friday. The game is the Pirates home opener, so there’s a weird 4:12 scheduled start time. Kyle Bradish and Mitch Keller are the currently-scheduled starting pitchers.
As this game has ended in an Orioles victory, it is time to proclaim a Most Birdland Player for the game. Who is your pick for the player who made the most unlikely and/or fun contribution to the O’s winning the game? Nominate your choice in the comments below.
