The Baltimore Orioles have spent much of this season fighting disappointment, and there’s no way to dress that up. The team hasn’t come close to matching the expectations that followed it into the year, and with its MLB postseason odds fading, the 2026 campaign has been a rough one overall.
But buried inside all that frustration is a clear bright spot, and it starts with Pete Alonso.
The offseason pickup has become the Orioles’ biggest success story, and ESPN’s Bradford Doolittle pointed to Alonso as the club’s top win of the year. That matters now, but it may matter even more down the road, because Baltimore didn’t just get a productive bat - it locked one in.
“Inking Pete Alonso to a five-year, $155 million free-agent contract was a bold move for the Orioles," Doolittle writes. "Alonso's first season in Baltimore has been an unqualified success, simply because the Polar Bear keeps putting up the same numbers he always has.”
That’s the heart of it. There was plenty of concern when Baltimore committed $155 million to a player the New York Mets were willing to let go, but the early returns have made the Orioles look sharp.
Alonso has delivered 4.1 bWAR, 35 home runs, a .268 average, 151 hits and 100 RBIs, which leads the AL. His .859 OPS fits right in with his career standard, and that kind of steady production has made the transition from seven seasons in New York to Baltimore look seamless.
For a team that has had so many issues this year, Alonso has been the kind of anchor that changes the conversation. The season as a whole has been underwhelming, but the Orioles do have one obvious reason to feel good about where they’re headed: they’ve got one of the game’s best right-handed power hitters under contract for the next four years.
There are still other parts of the roster that need to do more. But if the Orioles are looking for a success story they can build on, Alonso has already given them one.
In Other News...
Rubenstein Is Pushing A Camden Yards Plan Orioles Fans Need To Watch
David Rubenstein has quietly put Camden Yards back into the center of a bigger Baltimore conversation. The Orioles owner has re-engaged efforts to redevelop the area around the ballpark, including the B&O Warehouse and the adjacent parking lot controlled by the state, as part of a broader push to give the downtown footprint a more ambitious future.
The club holds exclusive negotiation rights for that land through the end of next year under its lease, which gives the Orioles a real window to shape what comes next. Rubenstein has also teamed with Seregh, a real estate firm focused on sports entertainment districts, signaling that this is being treated as a multiyear redevelopment effort rather than a quick fix, and it is one fans around Camden Yards will want to keep an eye on. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Face One Costly Offseason Mistake The Mets Already Made
The Orioles win over the Mets on Thursday did more than keep Baltimore moving in the right direction, it also ended New Yorks season and offered a reminder of how quickly an aggressive offseason can go wrong. The Mets spent heavily and shuffled their roster in hopes of turning momentum into October baseball, only to wind up on the outside looking in, which makes their path a useful cautionary tale for a Baltimore club that will soon have to decide how bold it wants to be.
For the Orioles, the bigger question is less about chasing headlines than avoiding the kind of missteps that leave a team paying for yesterdays urgency. Retaining Trevor Rogers looms as one of the more important decisions on the board, especially with the pending free-agent class offering limited star power, and Baltimore has to weigh whether its next move should be a splash or a more measured bet on keeping the right pieces in place. [Read more 🡒]
Orioles Roll Out A Lineup Twist Fans Will Notice Tonight
The Orioles lineup card for the second game of their series at Citi Field brought a few notable wrinkles, with Rece Hinds slotted into the leadoff spot and Shane Baz getting the start on the mound. It is the kind of move that can reshape the feel of a game before the first pitch, especially for a club still sorting out how it wants to piece together the top of the order and the rotation in the stretch run.
Baltimore also added another layer to its long view by confirming that eight players will head to the Arizona Fall League with the Peoria Javelinas, including recent first-round picks Vance Honeycutt and Ike Irish. The AFL remains one of the organizations key development stops, and it will give the Orioles another chance to evaluate some of their youngest talent in a competitive setting before the winter really settles in. [Read more 🡒]