The AL is keeping the Orioles in contention, but the fun hasn't returned to Baltimore

Henderson was mostly talking about his personal hitting slump, but he could just as easily have been addressing the funk the Orioles have been in as a team for over two years now.

Baltimore won the AL East in 2023, and on June 20 of the following year the Orioles were 24 games over .500 after scoring 17 runs in a game at Yankee Stadium. It's not an exaggeration to say that at that moment, the young Orioles might've been the most fun team in baseball, and with a loaded farm system, the organization seemed stocked with talent and trade chips that would keep Baltimore among the World Series contenders for a while.

And then, inexplicably and almost instantly, everything changed. The Orioles played sub-.500 baseball the rest of that season and failed to win a playoff game. Last year they finished with 75 wins. This season they're 39-47 entering Tuesday night's game against the White Sox.

“This is really tough. There’s other teams trying to win too, and it’s a zero-sum thing, and you’re going to come out on the short end of the stick,” team president Mike Elias said Saturday. “I don’t like that we’re in year two of that, and that’s not right, but I very much believe that we’re going to get back on our feet here in the second half.”

Since then, the Orioles have lost three straight.

A mediocre American League means Baltimore is very much within striking distance of a wild card, but if anything the defeats have become even more maddening of late.

On June 19, the Orioles lost 6-5 to the Dodgers. A throw home from right field failed to prevent the tying run — and got past the catcher, allowing the winning run to score too.

Last Wednesday, Baltimore was an out from victory against the Angels, but on a routine grounder to second, first baseman Pete Alonso was slow covering first, leaving the pitcher to try and receive the throw. The ball bounced away, enabling the tying run to score and the batter to go all the way to third. He then scored on an infield hit to win it.

With fan patience already thin, the Orioles were sloppy again in an 8-2 loss to the White Sox on Monday night.

“We have not been playing our best baseball, and the fans that are there, they're paying their hard-earned money to watch us play and win, and play good baseball, competitive baseball," manager Craig Albernaz said. “They have every right to boo. Our job for us is to go out there and give the city and the fans something they can stand behind and have pride in."

Pitching woes

So how did Baltimore win 101 games in 2023, and where did that team disappear to?

One thing those Orioles had was a pitching staff that exceeded expectations. Grayson Rodriguez — the one top prospect Baltimore has produced on the mound in recent years — was impressive down the stretch. Kyle Bradish and Tyler Wells were dependable and Dean Kremer wasn't bad either. The bullpen was anchored by 6-foot-8 Félix Bautista.

After that season, the Orioles acquired a true ace in a trade for Corbin Burnes, who they had in 2024 before he became a free agent. Since then, despite claims that they were trying, they haven't brought in a pitcher of that status.

Rodriguez missed the whole 2025 season and was traded. Bradish made 14 starts total across 2024 and 2025 and Wells made seven. Kremer has made only two this season.

Shane Baz arrived in a trade before this season — the Orioles even signed him to a $68 million, five-year contract — but he's had a middling year so far with a 4.19 ERA.

Bautista missed all of 2024, pitched 34 2/3 innings last year and then needed surgery to repair a torn rotator cuff and torn labrum.

Baltimore's offense ranks 12th in the major leagues in runs per game, but the Orioles are 22nd in ERA and their defense isn't helping them much either.

Backsliding cornerstones

That's not to say the offense is blameless. In 2023, Henderson and catcher Adley Rutschman looked like they'd be MVP candidates for years to come. Then Rutschman hit .220 last year and Henderson is at .224 this season.

Top prospect Jackson Holliday, who debuted in the majors in 2024, now has nearly 1,000 plate appearances and a career average of .227. Third baseman Jordan Westburg played only 85 games last year and is going to miss the whole 2026 season because of Tommy John surgery.

Adding Pete Alonso and Taylor Ward before this season has helped, but the Orioles are not the offensive powerhouse they once showed signs of becoming.

Looking forward

There's enough time for Baltimore's 2026 to turn around. If more close games start going their way, the Orioles could be a factor down the stretch.

However, Rutschman can become a free agent after next season, and Henderson another year later. There was an expectation that there would be plenty of winning before Baltimore's top players hit the open market, but now Orioles fans face the possibility that this era could eventually end with a whimper.

Elias said Baltimore still hopes to be a buyer at the trade deadline, but it's hard to promise that at this point. And with Albernaz in his first season, much of the fan ire is now directed at the front office instead.

“I always feel a lot of pressure in this position,” Elias said. "You worry about your job in this business, so absolutely. But I think we have a really good chance to do what we want to do, and we're all working very hard and we're very optimistic about it."

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb