The Orioles got exactly what they needed from Trevor Rogers and still walked away empty-handed.
Baltimore wasted a seven-inning gem from Rogers, left the bases loaded in the ninth, then unraveled in the 10th and dropped the series opener to the Braves, 7-6, on Friday night in Baltimore.
Rogers was sharp from the jump and mostly in control all night. He allowed two runs in the fourth, but otherwise kept Atlanta quiet, pounding the zone and never issuing a walk.
He threw 88 pitches, 72 for strikes, and finished with six strikeouts while allowing six hits. His fastball was up a bit, sitting at 94.3 mph compared with his season average of 93.5, and the Braves had a hard time handling him, whiffing on 31% of their swings while he drew a 62% chase rate.
The outing continued a dramatic turnaround for the left-hander. On May 24, his ERA sat at a season-worst 6.96 after a rough start against the Tigers.
Since then, it has fallen fast. After Friday, it was down to 4.17, and his July ERA is 1.04.
The 2025 version of Rogers has fully arrived in 2026.
Baltimore did some early damage against Grant Holmes, but not enough to make the most of the traffic it created. The Orioles put runners on base in four of the five innings Holmes worked and turned that into three runs.
The first big swing came in the second. Leody Taveras drew a two-out walk, Jackson Holliday singled to right, and Christian Encarnacion-Strand followed with a two-run double into the left-field corner after a seven-pitch battle that included four foul balls. That made it 2-0 Orioles.
They added another in the fourth after Atlanta scored twice in the top half. Taylor Ward opened with a single, Colton Cowser walked, Taveras laid down a sacrifice bunt, and Holliday lifted a sacrifice fly to bring Ward home. It wasn’t flashy, but it got the job done.
Then the game started slipping away.
Rico Garcia took over for Rogers in the eighth and immediately gave up a solo homer to Drake Baldwin, tying it at 3-3 and wiping out Rogers’ chance at the win.
Baltimore still had a shot to finish it in regulation. In the ninth, the Orioles loaded the bases with two outs after Gunnar Henderson was intentionally walked in front of Ward.
Ward worked the count full against Elieser Hernández, then hit a 102 mph grounder straight at Austin Riley. The third baseman bobbled it briefly but recovered in time to throw Ward out and strand everyone.
The 10th was where things really fell apart.
With the Manfred runner on second, Joey Bart singled to put runners on the corners. Jim Jarvis followed with a grounder to the right side that Holliday fielded with a diving stop, but his throw to Henderson at second sailed into left field. That error let a run score and moved the other two runners into scoring position.
Andrew Kittredge nearly escaped the mess, striking out Baldwin and Ozzie Albies. But Craig Albernaz chose to pitch to Matt Olson instead of putting him on to face Michael Harris II, and Olson made the decision hurt. He crushed a 416-foot, three-run homer to right, turning a tight game into a 7-3 Braves lead.
Baltimore made one last push in its half of the 10th. Tyler O’Neill singled to move the Manfred runner to third, and after two outs Encarnacion-Strand launched his third major league homer of the season to cut it to 7-6.
The tying run came to the plate, but the bench was empty, forcing Sam Huff into the spot. He struck out on a slider in the middle of the plate, and that ended it.
Encarnacion-Strand and Rogers were the bright spots. Rogers looks like an ace again, which gives the Orioles either a dependable arm for the stretch run or a trade chip with real value.
Encarnacion-Strand, meanwhile, is forcing his way into the everyday third-base conversation. Baltimore needs offense, and he’s providing it.
The rest of the night was harder to stomach. The Orioles went 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position and left 10 on base.
That kind of night usually doesn’t end well, and it’s become a recurring problem. The current catching situation, with Adley Rutschman and Samuel Basallo both on the IL, isn’t helping.
Holliday’s error was costly, and the bullpen wasn’t sharp enough either, with Garcia and some blame to Kittredge. If Mike Elias and company decide to buy at the deadline, that relief group will need attention.
The two teams meet again Saturday night in Baltimore. Brandon Young (8-2, 3.25 ERA) will start for the Orioles against Bryce Elder (6-6, 4.06 ERA) for Atlanta. First pitch is set for 7:05 from Camden Yards.
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