The Baltimore Orioles walked into Arlington needing this road series to mean something. They left with a split-sized lifeline after a brutal opening pair and a Sunday explosion that finally looked like a team refusing to disappear.
Baltimore was shut down for most of the first two games against Texas, scoring just two runs through 18 innings before breaking loose for 10 in the finale. It was only the Orioles’ second double-digit scoring game since June 21, and it snapped the mood after two ugly losses that had them staring at another wasted opportunity.
Friday night set the tone in the worst way. The Orioles dropped a 2-1 decision, with their only run coming in the second inning on Coby Mayo’s RBI single to center.
Nathan Eovaldi held them down for the next 3 ⅓ innings before the Rangers’ bullpen finished the job. Baltimore got a strong outing from Shane Baz, who worked eight innings and allowed two runs on three hits while piling up a season-high nine strikeouts.
Even that wasn’t enough. Texas got both of its runs on a two-run homer from Joc Pederson in the sixth, and Baltimore’s last shot at tying the game ended with Leody Taveras being thrown out at home on a one-out double by rookie Christian Franklin.
The call was reviewed, but it stood.
Saturday looked painfully familiar. Kyle Bradish gave Baltimore six innings and allowed two runs, one earned, on five hits, but the offense barely showed up again.
Jackson Holliday provided the only run with a 403-foot solo homer in the first inning, his sixth of 2026 and first since June 28 against the Washington Nationals. The game unraveled late when Corey Seager launched a two-out, three-run homer off Grant Wolfram in the eighth.
That loss also extended a miserable stretch for the Orioles, who had now been held to one run or fewer in three straight games for the first time this season after Thursday’s 4-1 loss to the Los Angeles Angels.
Then Sunday happened.
Baltimore came out swinging and put five runs on the board in the first two innings. Leody Taveras and Dylan Beavers drove in runs in the first, then Colton Cowser and Pete Alonso went deep in the second.
Alonso wasn’t done. He added another two-run blast in the fourth to push the Orioles ahead 7-3, finishing the series 4-for-11 with two homers, four RBIs and a 1.462 OPS.
He’s now batting .250 with an .823 OPS in August.
Tyler O’Neill joined the party in the sixth, crushing a sinker from Jordan Montgomery 425 feet for a two-run homer. O’Neill has four homers since July 27 and is hitting 7-for-21 in that span. Cowser capped the scoring with an RBI walk, his first multi-RBI game since June 21.
The 10-run outburst nudged Baltimore to 57-61, leaving it two games out of a Wild Card spot. Texas sits in sole possession of the AL’s final Wild Card position at 59-59.
Now the Orioles head to Minnesota for the second stop of a three-series road trip. They’ll open against the Twins, who are 58-61, and former Orioles right-hander Dean Kremer will be on the mound in the series opener.
The bigger problem is still staring them in the face: the offense has been wildly inconsistent, and most of the time, flat-out unworkable. In the first two games against Texas, Baltimore went 13-for-64 with 16 strikeouts and 14 runners left on base. The team is averaging 2.6 runs per game in August, and that number drops to 1.6 if Sunday’s 10-run game is removed.
Gunnar Henderson’s slide only adds to the concern. He went 0-for-11 with three strikeouts in Arlington, his first hitless series of the season.
He’s sitting on a .446 OPS in August and a .450 OPS over the last 15 days. After Craig Albernaz batted him leadoff in all three games, the idea now is to move him lower in the order, perhaps to the No. 6 or No. 7 spot, for a stretch.
Pete Alonso, though, has given Baltimore exactly what it hoped for. The 31-year-old reached base five times on Sunday, the first time he has done that since the July 4 win over the Cincinnati Reds. He leads the Orioles with 25 home runs and 75 RBIs, and over the last 15 days he’s posted a .954 OPS with nine RBIs and five walks.
With Henderson stuck and Alonso carrying the lineup, the Orioles are still hanging around. But the margin for error is shrinking fast.
In Other News...
Orioles Suddenly Have Another Catching Problem To Solve
A thin catching group in Baltimore got even thinner at Target Field, where Yohel Pozo had to leave the game after taking a swing to the left hand from Josh Bell. Pozo was down with left index finger pain, adding another layer of concern for an Orioles team already navigating a shortage behind the plate.
Samuel Basallo is still out with right shoulder inflammation, and the Orioles do not have Adley Rutschman available after trading him to Boston following his time on the injured list. Silas Ardoin is on the taxi squad in Minneapolis and looms as the most immediate roster option if Baltimore needs another catcher in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Deadline Return Is Already Fueling A New Roster Debate
The Orioles post-deadline overhaul has already started to show up in box scores and roster chatter, with Baltimore sending out Adley Rutschman, Dean Kremer, Tyler Wells and Taylor Ward and bringing back nine players in a deal that reshaped the organization in one move. Some of the newcomers are already in action for the big club or at affiliate stops, and early returns have given the front office a fresh set of questions about how quickly this group can help.
Carlos Narvez, Anthony Eyanson, Kyson Witherspoon and Enddy Azocar are among the arrivals drawing the most attention, though their first steps in the system have not all landed the same way. For a club trying to balance immediate lineup needs with longer-term upside, the early snapshots from these players are already feeding a new debate about what the Orioles should prioritize next as the deadline dust settles. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Need Samuel Basallo Back For More Than Just Depth
Samuel Basallo has started back up with throwing and hitting drills as he works through right shoulder inflammation, a welcome sign for an Orioles club that has had to adjust to life without Adley Rutschman. The return timeline is still unsettled, but the fact that Basallo is back doing baseball activities at least puts him on the road toward rejoining the mix.
For Baltimore, the intrigue goes beyond simply filling a spot behind the plate. Basallo is viewed as the catcher of the future, and the Orioles need to see him healthy enough to handle the kind of development that comes with being more than a depth piece. His progress matters because the organization is counting on him to become a real part of the next chapter, not just an emergency option when the roster gets thin. [Read more 🡒]