Craig Albernaz has spent enough time around Stephen Vogt to know the rhythm by now. The Orioles manager and the Guardians skipper were together in Cleveland in 2024, with Albernaz serving as Vogt’s bench coach and then associate manager the next year. Now they’re on opposite dugouts, and this week’s meetings come with a little extra bite because Baltimore is trying to claw its way into the final Wild Card spot.
The Orioles’ six-game losing streak has left them four games back, which makes every game against Cleveland feel a lot bigger. Albernaz didn’t try to dress it up when asked about facing his old boss.
“It’s fun,” he said.
“This is it, this is what it’s all about,” he said. “Cleveland’s always in it.
For us, we always want to be in it and we are in it. And yeah, it’s gonna be a fun series.
I know what they’re playing for, they know what we’re playing for. We know what type of teams we have on both sides, and that’s why you have to go out and play the game.
And for us, we’ve talked about it. It’s gonna be fun going out there, competing, because ultimately this series is a big series for both teams and that’s something you can ask for is the pure competition aspect of it.”
Baltimore also got a mix of injury updates, and the news on Tyler O’Neill is trending the wrong way. His shoulder has not bounced back the way he hoped after he strained his rotator cuff on Aug. 26 while making a diving catch in right field, and Albernaz said it’s becoming more likely O’Neill is finished for the year.
“He’s not taking his time, but it’s a lot for him right now, especially with it being the right shoulder,” Albernaz said. “He’s out there moving around, keeping his body fresh. He’s in the training room to try to get that shoulder going, so it’s gonna be how our medical staff and T.O. feel like that’s progressing.”
Closer Ryan Helsley has moved a step forward in his recovery from a second elbow injury. He has finished bullpen sessions and is expected to throw live batting practice Tuesday or Wednesday. A return is still possible if he gets through a rehab assignment.
Félix Bautista is still working back with Triple-A Norfolk, and the Orioles are keeping the timeline loose.
“Like I said with Félix, we’re just listening with him and see where he’s at,” Albernaz said. “There’s no pressure for us. We want to make sure that we’re doing right by him.”
Ryan Mountcastle and Keegan Akin are in Baltimore this week, though both will head back to the Sarasota complex while the club travels to Toronto. They even have lockers in the clubhouse, and Albernaz said having them around the team matters.
“It’s great to have them here to kind of get them out of Florida and get them around the guys,” Albernaz said.
Mountcastle was originally lined up for his first rehab game with Norfolk after breaking his right foot, but that plan changed when he suffered a severe oblique tear during a workout. He remains on the 60-day injured list, has started swinging a bat, and probably won’t play again this season. The Orioles hold a $7.5 million club option for 2027.
Akin had ligament-reconstructive surgery on his left elbow and will become a free agent after the season.
There was also movement on the position-player side. Luis Robert Jr. has already gone to Florida after being placed on the 10-day injured list yesterday with a left hamstring strain.
Christian Franklin, who is dealing with a left hand injury, is also rehabbing in Sarasota. Their returns, Albernaz said, “are going to be TBD,” Albernaz said.
There was a little production note tucked into the numbers, too: per STATS, the Orioles are the only American League club and one of three teams in the majors with three players slugging .500 or better since the break in a minimum 100 plate appearances. Pete Alonso is at .539, Coby Mayo at .532 and Christian Encarnacion-Strand at .500.
Trevor Rogers has also been on a run at home, stringing together quality starts in each of his last six outings there. That’s the longest Orioles streak since Corbin Burnes put together nine straight in 2024.
And Baltimore has handled the AL Central well overall, going 17-11 against the division. That would stand as the club’s fourth-best record against any division.
In Other News...
Orioles Late-Season Injury Picture Just Got More Complicated
The Orioles spent part of their series against the Guardians sorting through a late-season injury picture that keeps shifting around the edges. Keegan Akin and Ryan Mountcastle are both with the club, giving Baltimore at least a couple of familiar faces back in the mix, while the team also laid out where several others stand in their recoveries as the calendar keeps moving toward the finish.
Mountcastle will not play again this season because of an oblique injury, a reminder of how much attrition has worn on the roster, and the rehab updates do not bring a simple wave of reinforcements just yet. Luis Robert Jr. and Christian Franklin are working in Sarasota, Flix Bautista is at Triple-A Norfolk on assignment, and Kyle Bradish is being handled carefully after Tommy John surgery, with his workload watched closely as the Orioles keep managing one of the more complicated health charts on the board. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Fans Just Got Another Brutal Reminder About This Rebuild
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Rodriguez, once a first-round pick the Orioles hoped would help anchor the next wave, is now with the Angels after being dealt last winter for outfielder Taylor Ward. His Baltimore exit followed a frustrating run of injuries and uneven performance, which only adds to the sting when ex-Orioles keep popping up in meaningful moments elsewhere. Baltimore did at least stop the bleeding with a win the same day, ending a six-game skid, but the bigger picture for fans remains hard to ignore. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Need An Answer On Blaze Alexander Before This Season Ends
Blaze Alexander has quietly worked his way into the kind of conversation the Orioles have to keep having as the season winds down. After a slow start and a return from injury, he has put together a strong stretch at the plate, hitting .302 over 286 plate appearances and showing the kind of on-base ability that can force a manager to look twice at the lineup card. For a club trying to sort out how its roster fits together, that kind of production from a flexible option matters.
The bigger question now is where Alexander fits if Baltimore wants to give him a more prominent look before the year is over. His ability to handle different spots gives the Orioles some room to experiment, especially as they weigh how the lineup should come together around players like Gunnar Henderson and Coby Mayo. Christian Encarnacion-Strand adds another layer to that same conversation, but Alexander has done enough to make it clear the Orioles need a real answer soon. [Read more 🡒]