The Orioles’ lineup card has become a little more interesting than usual lately, and Craig Albernaz is the one putting it under the microscope.
That wasn’t the plan, of course. Managers don’t generally set out to turn the top of the order into a talking point. But when Pete Alonso and Tyler O’Neill end up in spots they’ve barely touched before, people notice.
Alonso, who had played in 1,129 major league games before Friday night at Tropicana Field, was in the leadoff spot for the first time in his career. He has spent most of his time in familiar territory - 659 games hitting cleanup and 262 batting third - but Albernaz dropped him into the two-hole again last night for the 154th time in his career.
The reasoning was pretty straightforward. The Rays opened with left-hander Steven Matz on Friday, and he was out after one inning.
Albernaz liked the early matchup, and with Taylor Ward traded, he also wanted Alonso up as often as possible. Alonso leads the club in on-base percentage and just about everything else offensively.
O’Neill’s turn was even more unusual. Last night was his 724th game, and for the first time, he led off. He had not hit higher than fourth this season, though in his career he’s now batted in every spot in the order, including ninth three times.
There was at least some evidence before that experiment. In five career games in which he was inserted into the leadoff spot, O’Neill had gone 3-for-4 with a double, two homers and a walk.
That’s not the same as starting there, but it was enough to mention. He finished last night 1-for-5 with a run-scoring single in the 10th inning.
According to STATS, the Orioles have now had players make their first career leadoff start in back-to-back games only three times: Floyd Rayford and Glenn Gulliver on July 27-28, 1982; Steve Pearce and Jonathan Schoop on Aug. 28-29, 2016; and now this stretch.
Albernaz has already used eight different leadoff hitters in his first season managing the Orioles. Ward led the group with 66 starts, followed by Gunnar Henderson with 42, Dylan Beavers with nine, Adley Rutschman with two, and Alonso, O’Neill, Coby Mayo and Christian Franklin with one each.
For a while, Ward and Henderson had the job to themselves until Rutschman batted first as the designated hitter on July 9 against the Cubs.
The number of leadoff hitters used in a season has climbed high before. The franchise record is 11, reached in 1955, 1959 and 2018, according to STATS. That 2018 team, the one that started the teardown at the trade deadline, had Trey Mancini leading off 51 times, Cedric Mullins 37 times, Tim Beckham 29, Jonathan Villar 13, Jace Peterson nine, Joey Rickard seven, Craig Gentry five, Chris Davis five, Colby Rasmus three, Corban Joseph two and Schoop once.
That list comes with its own odd little corners. Davis hit leadoff in the first five games because Buck Showalter was trying to wake up the slugger’s bat and the roster didn’t have many more obvious on-base options.
Rasmus quit on July 3 after telling Showalter before a game in Philadelphia. And yes, the “Joseph” on the list was Corban Joseph, not catcher Caleb Joseph; Corban appeared in 14 games that season and hit first on June 15 and 17 against the Marlins.
Mullins’ 37-start run began on Aug. 17 in Cleveland, one week after his major league debut.
The Orioles used 10 leadoff hitters in 2025 when Brandon Hyde and interim manager Tony Mansolino were sharing the job, with Jackson Holliday topping the list at 113 starts. Mullins had 18 before being traded to the Mets and signing with the Rays.
Westburg got seven, but he’ll miss the entire season after ligament-reconstructive surgery in his right elbow. Mountcastle had one, though he’s spent most of the year on the injured list with a fractured left foot and strained oblique.
Laureano also had one before the Orioles sent him to the Padres.
Last year, the Orioles had only six leadoff hitters: Henderson with 119 games, Colton Cowser with 24, Austin Slater with 10, Westburg with six, Rutschman with two and Holliday with one.
The franchise has seen this movie before in bigger seasons, too. The 1983 World Series club used six leadoff hitters, matching the number from 2014, when the Orioles reached the American League Championship Series.
The 1979 World Series team used five, and the 1970 champions used Dave May once. The 1969 American League pennant winners had four: Don Buford, Mark Belanger, Chico Salmon and Merv Rettenmund.
And the first Baltimore championship team in 1966 had six, led by Luis Aparicio’s 141 starts.
As for 2014, the six were Nick Markakis, Alejandro De Aza, Jemile Weeks, David Lough, Alexi Casilla and Jimmy Paredes.
There was another item worth noting from Friday night in St. Petersburg: Henderson’s two-run homer came on an 0-2 pitch. Before that swing, he was 5-for-53 in 0-2 counts this season, and his last home run had come on Aug. 9, 2025 against the Athletics.
The Orioles also extended a walk streak that began on April 6. They drew a walk in their 113th straight game Friday to break the single-season franchise record of 112 set from June 3-Oct. 1, 1995, and they kept it going last night. They had previously walked in 172 consecutive games from July 2, 2024-July 12, 2025.
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Orioles Fans Are Split On Gunnar Henderson For One Painful Reason
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The Orioles still seem to be in wait-and-see mode with Henderson, hoping the bat and overall performance rebound before the concern hardens into something bigger. For a player who has been central to the clubs future plans, the current uncertainty is what makes this such a painful conversation for the fan base, especially with no immediate signs yet that the slump has turned the corner. [Read more 🡒]