Good morning, Camden Chatters.
If the Orioles are going to sit out October, at least the Yankees can still supply a little postseason entertainment. Last night’s Game 1 in the ALDS was about as ugly as it gets for New York, and it nearly ended with a no-hitter. Rays starter Drew Rasmussen was four outs away from making history before the Yankees finally broke through, and even that moment turned into a disaster.
Austin Wells lined a ball just inside the right-field foul line for New York’s first hit, then tried to turn it into a triple and got thrown out by a mile. That killed what little hope the Yankees had of building a rally, and the Rays held on for a 1-0 win to take the opener.
The rest of the Division Series openers were tight, too. Every game was decided by three runs or fewer.
The White Sox went into Cleveland and shut out the Guardians, 3-0. The Dodgers handled the Braves, 5-3.
And the late game delivered a strange one in Milwaukee, where the Brewers beat the Padres 3-2 after Ty France nearly delivered a go-ahead ninth-inning homer that instead hit the roof of American Family Field and dropped into the glove of left fielder Jackson Chourio.
Today brings a break for the American League, with all four AL clubs getting a non-travel day after just one game. The National League takes center stage, with Padres-Brewers at 4:00 and Braves-Dodgers at 8 ET.
The Yankees won’t be back in action today, so there’s no fresh embarrassment on the schedule. There’s always tomorrow.
Orioles fans also got a little extra fuel from a Baltimore Sun item about Jim Palmer saying manager Craig Albernaz ignored his advice. That’s the kind of story that can make a bad situation feel even worse.
And if you were still mulling the Adley trade that never happened, the reminder here is that the Orioles were close to dealing him to the Yankees instead of the Red Sox. Imagine Austin Wells making those baserunning mistakes in Baltimore.
There was also a roster question floating around about the Orioles having too many third basemen. With Jordan Westburg set to return and Coby Mayo, Christian Encarnacion-Strand, and Blaze Alexander all deserving regular at-bats, it’s at least a real problem - the sort of depth issue every team would take.
On the birthday front, happy birthday to five former Orioles born on this date: Alec Asher, Drew Stubbs, Mark McLemore, Dave C. Johnson, and Don Lenhardt, who was born in 1922 and died in 2014.
Lenhardt was a St. Louis Brown who came over with the franchise to Baltimore in 1954.
And the Orioles have a strong October history on this day, even if the recent results have been rough. They’ve played seven postseason games on this date and won the first four. The last three were losses: Game 3 of the Division Series in 1996 and 1997, plus the 2016 Wild Card Game in Toronto.
The wins are the ones worth remembering. In 1969, Baltimore opened the first-ever AL Championship Series with a 4-3, 12-inning win over the Twins at Memorial Stadium. The Orioles trailed 3-2 in the ninth before Boog Powell tied it with a leadoff homer off Jim Perry, and Paul Blair ended it in the 12th with a bunt single that scored Mark Belanger.
A year later, the O’s beat Minnesota again in the ALCS, this time 11-3 in Game 2. They were clinging to a one-run lead before exploding for seven runs in the ninth, their second straight game with a seven-run inning. Frank Robinson and Davey Johnson each hit two-run homers, and Dave McNally finished the job with a complete game.
In 1971, Baltimore took Game 2 of the ALCS from the Athletics, 5-1, behind a complete-game gem from Mike Cuellar. He outdueled Catfish Hunter, and every Orioles run off Hunter came on a homer: two from Boog Powell, plus solo shots by Brooks Robinson and Elrod Hendricks.
Then in 1979, the Orioles survived the Angels, 9-8, in Game 2 of the ALCS. Baltimore built a 9-1 lead after three innings, then watched Anaheim chip away until the tying and go-ahead runs reached scoring position in the ninth.
Don Stanhouse finally ended it with a bases-loaded groundout. Eddie Murray homered, and Al Bumbry reached base four times.
In Other News...
Orioles Prospect Patrick Reilly Has A Real Shot To Reopen 2027 Debate
Patrick Reilly is headed to the Arizona Fall League starting Oct. 3, and for the Orioles that makes him one of the more interesting arms to watch over the next month. A former top-10 pitching prospect in the organization, Reilly spent most of the 2025 season sidelined by Tommy John surgery before returning in 2026, where his late-season work showed better strikeout ability and improved command in his final outings.
Baltimore will be keeping a close eye on how that progress carries over against AFL competition, because Reilly is trying to turn a promising return into something more durable. For a pitcher whose development has already been interrupted once, this is a chance to make the club think again about his ceiling and whether he can still track toward a major league role in 2027. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Enter Spring With One Defensive Decision Looming
Baltimores season ended at 79-82 and the Orioles are entering spring with a clear priority after another year spent outside the playoff bracket: tighten up the defense. Manager Craig Albernaz has already made it clear that the club needs better execution on that side of the ball, and that message figures to be a constant throughout camp as the Orioles try to turn a middling-to-lower-tier defensive profile into something more dependable.
The biggest question is where the adjustments come from, and the outfield is the likeliest place to watch. Baltimore is expected to spend spring training drilling fundamentals while sorting through roster choices that could improve the run prevention behind the pitching staff, giving this camp a practical edge even before the games start counting. [Read more 🡒]
Jordan Westburg's Return Could Force A Tough Orioles Infield Decision
Jordan Westburg is finally moving back onto the field in a meaningful way, with the Orioles saying he has begun a hitting progression as he works his way back from the oblique strain and Tommy John surgery that wiped out his 2026 season. It is a significant checkpoint for a player Baltimore has missed, and it also starts to sharpen the picture for an infield that could look very different once spring training arrives.
The trick for the Orioles is not simply getting Westburg healthy, but figuring out where he fits when the competition for innings and lineup spots gets crowded. Coby Mayo, Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Blaze Alexander, Jackson Holliday and Jeremiah Jackson all stand in the mix for 2027, which means Westburgs return could force some uncomfortable decisions about both his defensive home and who stays in the everyday plan. [Read more 🡒]