Good morning, Camden Chatters.
Good news: the Orioles do, indeed, love their mothers. They made it a happy Mother’s Day with a 2-1 win over the Athletics that averted a three-game sweep. While the O’s offense again didn’t inspire much confidence, they delivered one of their best-pitched games of the season, holding their opponent to one run for just the third time in 2026. They even made a legitimately good defensive play — who knew it was possible? — with Leody Taveras and Samuel Basallo joining forces to cut down the potential tying run at the plate in the seventh. Check out Mark Brown’s recap of the much-needed victory.
With the win, the Orioles (18-23) have climbed out of the basement of the AL East, pulling a half-game ahead of the Red Sox (17-23). It’s wild to think that the O’s, as horrific as they’ve looked this year, still have a better record than three AL teams and are within a game and a half of six others. The American League is well and truly dreadful so far. Only three of the 15 teams have winning records. Three! The Yankees and Rays have been great, the Athletics have been good, and everyone else is .500 or worse. At this rate it’s going to be hard to scrounge up six legitimate AL teams to make the playoffs. In that sense, the Orioles’ hopes of remaining relevant in 2026 are far from over.
Still, it stands to reason that the entire league isn’t going to stay bad for four more months. A few teams will stabilize and will separate themselves from the pack. In all likelihood, all six AL playoff teams will finish the year with a winning record. So the Orioles are going to have to do some real work if they want to be part of that group. Moseying around mediocrity isn’t going to cut it in the long run.
These next three games against the Yankees are going to be an enormous test. Frankly, we’re all kind of expecting the Yanks to mop the floor with the Birds like they did last weekend in New York, when the O’s were humiliated in all four games, getting outscored 39-10. And that may well happen again. But if the Orioles can show some semblance of fight and urgency, and maybe steal a game or two in this series, perhaps the outlook for the rest of 2026 won’t look so bleak.
We can only hope this matchup against the Yankees goes better than the last, or the Orioles’ escape from the AL East cellar will prove to be short-lived.
Has Rutschman returned to his All-Star form? | MAILBAG – BaltimoreBaseball.com
Alternate headline: “Is Adley so back?” I think we all know the answer, friends.
Orioles’ Anthony Nunez pulls off gender reveal for brother after relief outing – The Baltimore Sun
This is a pretty cool way to do a gender reveal. Way better than those people who, like, set off fireworks and accidentally start a forest fire or something.
Orioles trying Jackson Holliday at third base during Sunday rehab start – The Baltimore Banner
Translation: Coby Mayo might want to start packing his bags for Norfolk.
Better safe than sorry! Albernaz dons mask, glove in dugout – MLB.com
I feel like the O’s have been so terrible that we haven’t gotten to see much of Alby’s personality, so it’s good to see that the manager is trying to keep things loose. Whether it will make any kind of difference is another question.
Gunnar Henderson: “I’ve been pretty terrible for about a month now” – Steve Melewski
Yes, Gunnar. We’ve noticed.
Orioles birthdays and history
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! Four ex-Orioles were born on this day, most notably the late right-hander Milt Pappas (b. 1939, d. 2016). Pappas pitched in the majors for 17 years and won 209 games, and he spent the half of his career in Baltimore, where he was a two-time All-Star and a steady presence in the Orioles’ rotation for nearly a decade. But he’s best known for being the main piece of the three-player package sent to the Reds for Frank Robinson, which turned into the best trade in Orioles history.
Other former Orioles with May 11 birthdays are right-handers Kerry Ligtenberg (55) and Mark Huismann (68) and outfielder Trenidad Hubbard (62).
On this day last year, the Orioles beat the Angels in Los Angeles, 7-3. Zach Eflin pitched five solid innings, Gunnar Henderson bashed a two-run homer, and #9 hitter Maverick Handley drove in two runs without a hit thanks to a sac fly and a squeeze bunt. It was the 421st — and final — win of Brandon Hyde’s Orioles managerial career. The O’s followed with four straight losses and Hyde was fired later that week.
Random Orioles game of the day
On May 11, 1999, the Orioles suffered an 11-6 loss in Cleveland. An early 2-0 O’s lead evaporated when Cleveland scored six runs in the fourth, with the first six batters of the inning all reaching base against Sidney Ponson, capped by a Richie Sexson three-run homer. Ponson was tagged for eight runs in 4.2 innings and wasted an 11-hit effort by the O’s offense. Cleveland starter Bartolo Colón, in the third season of his eventual 21-year career, earned the win.
