The second half opened with the best stretch of baseball the O’s have played all season and ended with them walking off the field at Camden Yards having lost two extra-inning games in three days. The Birds swept Houston to push their winning streak to seven, then dropped two out of three to a red-hot Red Sox team. After their entire catching depth chart evaporated inside of 72 hours they dropped two of three at home to the Braves in heartbreaking fashion. The 5-4 stretch leaves them two and a half back of a playoff spot, and with a lot of questions to answer as the trade deadline rapidly approaches.
The starting pitching gave the Orioles a real chance almost every night. Baltimore’s starters combined for a 2.72 ERA across 53 innings during the nine games. That should have been enough for more than five wins. Instead, shaky defense, an unsettled bullpen and repeated failures with runners in scoring position turned several winnable games into losses. The Orioles showed that they are good enough to remain in the race. They also showed why they remain below .500.
The Orioles opened the second half with a 3-2 win Friday night. Dean Kremer allowed two runs over four innings, leaving the bullpen to cover five. The relievers managed to do it, with Cam Sanders escaping a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the seventh and earning his first major league win. Taylor Ward provided the decisive swing, following an Adley Rutschman double with a two-run homer in the eighth. Tyler Wells closed out the ninth for the save.
Saturday took 11 innings and produced a 4-2 win. Trevor Rogers was excellent again, allowing one run on seven hits over 6.1 innings with a season-high eight strikeouts. Dylan Beavers doubled home Alonso in the fourth then Houston tied it in the seventh on Nick Allen’s squeeze bunt against Rico Garcia. Jeremiah Jackson dropped a sacrifice bunt in the 10th to score Leody Taveras, but Alvarez answered with a tying double and the Astros loaded the bases with nobody out. Tyler O’Neill ended the threat by throwing Allen out at the plate on Jose Altuve’s shallow fly, and LaMonte Wade Jr. was thrown out trying to bunt for a hit. In the 11th, O’Neill’s infield single scored Gunnar Henderson and Taveras singled home Ward. Sanders retired the side in order for his first career save.
The Orioles announced Kyle Bradish’s five-year, $90 million extension covering 2027 through 2031 during the game.
The sweep came Sunday behind Brandon Young, who allowed one run on five hits over seven innings with seven strikeouts in a 5-2 win. Henderson singled home Jackson Holliday in the third, Taveras delivered a two-out, two-run single later in the frame, and Mayo added a solo shot off Bryan King in the sixth. However, the seventh straight win came with a significant cost, as Samuel Basallo exited after one at-bat with right shoulder discomfort, with Rutschman already scratched with a wrist issue sustained on a swing two nights earlier.
The seven-game winning streak ended Monday in a 6-5 loss that provided a reminder of how little margin for error this team possesses. Shane Baz deserved better, allowing four runs, only two earned, with six strikeouts in six innings. O’Neill doubled home Henderson in the first before Boston tied it on a sacrifice fly in the second. The third inning then unraveled when Jackson’s throwing error at second put Ceddanne Rafaela aboard, Wilyer Abreu doubled him in and Henderson threw wildly toward home.
Christian Encarnacion-Strand homered leading off the fifth, and the O’s built a 4-3 lead in the sixth on four singles, with Jackson and Encarnacion-Strand driving in O’Neill and Taveras. Baz then made his own errant throw on Abreu’s soft single, the Orioles’ third error, and Willson Contreras doubled home the tying run. Ward doubled and the O’s took a 5-4 lead in the seventh, but Boston tied it in the bottom of the inning then took the lead on a Caleb Durbin solo homer off Wells in the eighth.
Tuesday’s game was postponed, setting up a Wednesday doubleheader. The first game went poorly almost immediately. Kremer surrendered four runs in the opening inning and eventually allowed six over six innings in a 6-3 loss. Encarnacion-Strand homered again, but the Orioles never seriously threatened after falling behind early. The victory extended Boston’s winning streak to 15 games.
Kyle Bradish ended that streak in the nightcap. Making his first start since agreeing to a five-year contract extension, Bradish held Boston to one run over six innings while allowing four hits and one walk. The offense gave him four runs in the first, highlighted by a two-run single from Beavers, and the bullpen handled the final three innings without incident in a 5-1 win.
Rogers gave the Orioles another excellent start Friday, allowing two runs over seven innings while striking out six. Encarnacion-Strand drove in two runs with a second-inning double, and Baltimore carried a 3-2 lead into the eighth.
Rico Garcia surrendered a game-tying homer to Drake Baldwin, and the Orioles left the bases loaded in the ninth. Then a Jackson Holliday throwing error allowed Atlanta to take the lead in the 10th before Matt Olson hit a three-run homer off Kittredge. The Orioles rallied behind a sacrifice fly and Encarnacion-Strand’s two-run homer, but the comeback ended one run short in a 7-6 loss.
Young again provided the answer Saturday. He limited Atlanta to one run over 6.1 innings with six strikeouts. Encarnacion-Strand drove in a run, Gunnar Henderson homered and Baltimore carried another one-run lead into the eighth.
For the second straight night, Garcia surrendered a game-tying homer, this time to Ozzie Albies. Holliday doubled in the ninth, however, and Beavers brought him home with a walk-off single for a 3-2 victory. It was Beavers’ third career walk-off hit.
Sunday’s rubber game was a 3-2 loss in 11 innings and a genuinely painful one. Baz allowed two runs, one earned, over 4.1 innings, and Reynaldo López kept the Orioles off the board for 5.2.
Dominic Smith drove in both Atlanta runs with singles. Alonso homered in the eighth for his 22nd, Holliday brought in the tying run in the ninth, and Wells escaped a two-on, nobody-out jam in the 10th. Baltimore then loaded the bases with nobody out in the bottom of the inning and did not score, as Henderson lined into a double play at first and Ward popped out. Riley doubled home the winner off Kittredge in the 11th. The Orioles finished 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position and left 12 on base.
Losing a series because the opponent played better is one thing. Losing after loading the bases with nobody out in the 10th, is something else. The Orioles had multiple chances to win the game and did not execute.
Player of the Week
There were multiple candidates here. Christian Encarnacion-Strand has been the story of the homestand, hitting .370 with a 1.141 OPS, three homers and nine RBI in his first stretch with the club, and his nine RBIs in his first six games set a franchise record, surpassing the previous mark of eight shared by Ramón Hernández and Rafael Palmeiro. Dylan Beavers hit .321 with a .406 on-base percentage and produced the walk-off single Saturday plus the two-run single that keyed the first inning against Boston. Trevor Rogers continued his strong stretch, going 13.1 innings across two starts with three runs and 14 strikeouts against one walk.
However, the award goes to Brandon Young. He made two starts, threw 13.1 innings, allowed two earned runs and struck out 13 against three walks for a 1.35 ERA in the stretch. He shut down the Astros for seven innings to complete the sweep, then out-pitched Bryce Elder in a game the Orioles could not afford to lose, holding the best offense in the National League East scoreless into the sixth. His season ERA is down to 3.13, the best mark in the rotation, and Baltimore is 14-3 in his starts. Young has provided an unexpected steady presence in the rotation this year (more on that below).
Down on the Farm
Heston Kjerstad has started to make his case at Norfolk, hitting .314 with three homers, 10 RBI and a .951 OPS this week. The at-bats have looked more organized than they did in June, and with the big league outfield mix unsettled he remains the most obvious internal answer if Baltimore needs a bat. Creed Willems picked up where he left off before the hamstring injury, slashing .310/.344/.552 with two homers and seven RBI. Enrique Bradfield Jr. hit .290 with five steals and a .389 on-base percentage, though the lack of extra-base contact remains the same story it has been all year. Jud Fabian managed just five hits in 23 at-bats but drew six walks. On the mound, Nestor German was the steadiest arm, working 11.1 innings with a 2.38 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP, while Cade Povich posted a 2.70 mark across 10 innings and Trey Gibson turned in eight innings of three-run ball. Trace Bright was the outlier, giving up 10 earned in 8.2 innings.
Down at AA Chesapeake, Brandon Butterworth hit .355 with four homers, seven RBI and a 1.195 OPS, and Tavian Josenberger matched him with three homers and seven walks for a 1.162 OPS. Thomas Sosa added three homers and six RBI, and Aron Estrada kept his contact profile intact with a .323 average on the week.
Luis De León was the best pitcher on the farm this week, throwing 11 innings with a 1.64 ERA and 14 strikeouts against three walks. Juaron Watts-Brown struck out 11 in 10.1 innings with a single walk. Both De León and Watts-Brown earned a promotion to AAA in the process. Joseph Dzierwa also worked nine innings of three-run ball. Patrick Reilly also returned to the Eastern League rotation for the first time since April 2025, his comeback from Tommy John surgery finally reaching Double-A.
Question of the Week
This week’s question—what changed for Brandon Young and whether it is sustainable—is covered in the full feature analysis: Brandon Young’s Breakout Is Real. His ERA Probably Isn’t.