The Orioles spent Tuesday night trying to make a point, and they made it loud enough at Camden Yards.
After a Deadline that sent Dean Kremer to the Twins, president of baseball operations Mike Elias was adamant that Baltimore was not waving off 2025. He said as much on the MASN broadcast during the series opener against the Angels, and the message carried into the clubhouse before first pitch.
“We are not rebuilding the team,” Elias said. “We have a very strong, competitive team out on the field right now with a ton of talent at the big league level and a very full Minor League system again. So, we’re ready to jump back in the fight."
Hours earlier, Elias and manager Craig Albernaz had met with the team to talk through the post-Deadline fallout. Pete Alonso said the tone was clear.
“The message he said is, ‘Still believe in you guys, you guys are still a great team,’” Alonso relayed later. “‘The expectation is still to go to the playoffs and still go on a run.’”
Baltimore answered with a 3-1 win, and Alonso was right in the middle of it. He delivered the big swing in the third inning, a two-run single that put the Orioles in front for good after they loaded the bases with nobody out. That was the difference on a night when the offense never truly broke loose, but did enough.
Cade Povich did the rest. Recalled from Triple-A Norfolk to cover Kremer’s rotation spot, he gave Baltimore six scoreless innings and steadied everything behind him. It was the kind of fill-in start a club needs when the calendar turns and the roster starts to change.
The Orioles entered the day at 55-58, still 2 1/2 games out of the third American League Wild Card spot. With the postseason race bunched up, Albernaz kept calling Tuesday the start of a “50-game sprint,” and the club opened it with something close to exactly what it needed.
Baltimore didn’t do much against Angels right-hander Grayson Rodriguez, who was facing his former team for the first time since being traded to Los Angeles last Nov. 19. The 26-year-old, once Baltimore’s 2018 first-round Draft pick and a former top prospect, turned in a season-high seven strong innings.
But the Orioles found their opening in the third, and Alonso made it count. Povich then held the line, delivering six or more scoreless innings for the third time in his 43-game MLB career, and the first time since he blanked the White Sox for 7 1/3 innings on Sept. 3, 2024.
It was a clean, necessary start to whatever comes next in Baltimore.
In Other News...
Pete Alonso Sent A Message Orioles Fans Needed To Hear
Pete Alonsos comments offered a small measure of reassurance for Orioles fans trying to process a jarring deadline stretch. After Baltimore sent Adley Rutschman to the Boston Red Sox, Alonso spoke to the media and said president of baseball operations Mike Elias addressed the club following the flurry of trades, trying to steady a roster that has been reshaped in a hurry. It was the kind of message a team in transition needs, especially with the Orioles sitting fourth in the AL East and trying to stay attached to the race.
The bigger question now is whether that belief holds up on the field. Baltimore has been moved into a far different spot than it was expected to occupy at this stage, and the margin for error in the Wild Card chase is getting thinner by the day. Elias may still see a path to October, but the Orioles have to prove there is enough left in the room to make that vision matter. [Read more 🡒]
Adley Rutschman Trade Hit Orioles Fans Even Harder Than Expected
The Orioles decision to trade Adley Rutschman to the Red Sox landed with all the force you would expect from moving a franchise centerpiece, but the personal detail makes it sting a little more. Rutschman was Baltimores No. 1 overall pick in 2019 and became one of the defining players of the clubs rise, appearing in 572 games and collecting three All-Star nods along with a Silver Slugger award in 2023.
What makes the moment stand out even more is how ordinary it began, with Rutschman spending time away from the ballpark alongside former Orioles teammates Colston Cowser, Ryan Mountcastle and Gunnar Henderson. For a player who had spent years as one of the faces of the organization, the timing underscored just how abruptly the next chapter began, and why this move resonated so deeply with Baltimore fans. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Catcher Shakeup Could Force A Bigger Samuel Basallo Role
The Orioles are among the clubs still sorting out the ripple effects from the trade deadline, and one of the bigger questions in Baltimore is how the catcher situation will look going forward. After adding pieces and shifting roles around the roster, the team now has to balance its lineup and defensive alignment while keeping the rest of the club steady during the transition.
Samuel Basallo is one of the names that comes into sharper focus in that mix, especially with the Orioles needing to cover more ground behind the plate than they did before the deadline. Even as the roster settles in around the new additions, Baltimores next move at catcher will be worth watching because it could determine how quickly Basallos role expands and how central he becomes to the teams plans. [Read more 🡒]