Author Archives: Domenic Vadala

Welcome to Birdland Crush! Yes folks, for the record it's a spin off of the popular summer beverage native to the Mid-Atlantic Region - "orange crush." Nevertheless, I've been covering Orioles' baseball since 2009 in some capacity, and it's basically the greatest gig of all time so far as I'm concerned! But for those who aren't familiar with my work or bio, I'm familiar with pretty much every sport out there. But baseball is king - we all know that. So my hope is that you come back and check in after every Orioles' game, and throughout the off-season. I'm always on duty!

Baltimore Orioles 2026 Season Review: Trust “old school” going forward

The Baltimore Orioles had playoff aspirations in 2026. Opening Day dawned a bright one, and the Birds delivered – a 2-1 win over Minnesota. They took two-of-three that weekend, at least cementing that they would be in the fight until the end.

The Birds held serve through April. But cracks appeared. They had already lost Jordan Westburg for the season. They also lost Ryan Mountcastle – as it turned out, for the season. Not to mention numerous pitchers – both relievers and starters. Injuries plagued this team, as it had in 2025. On top of that, the likes of Gunnar Henderson and Jackson Holliday (who also started the season on the IL), struggled out of the gate. And ended up struggling most of the year.

The story of the 2026 Orioles will forever be complicated. At times they looked outstanding. At times they looked lost. There were certainly bright spots, such as Coby Mayo, Brandon Young, and Christian Encarnacion-Strand. But of course, MVO Pete Alonso belongs in a league of his own.

When the Orioles signed Alonso last off season, I said they added 30 homers and 100 RBI to the lineup. Try 43 homers and 113 RBI. Not to mention, he played a gold glove caliber first base. The one knock on Alonso had been his glove. At least this year, he was as sure-handed as they came.

The Orioles at times infernally bound themselves to Sabre metrics. Maybe that isn’t bad on the surface, but too much of anything is too much. Anytime they came up against someone who was willing to think slightly outside the box, they all but couldn’t function. Teams would bunt guys into scoring position, while the O’s waited to hit home runs.

They became too tied to spin rate on pitches, and hitting the ball hard at bat. As MASN analyst and former Oriole Ben McDonald said, it doesn’t matter how hard you throw ball four. That’s very true. Similarly, it doesn’t matter how hard you hit the ball if it finds a fielder’s mitt.

The over-reliance on analytics perhaps manifested themselves the most in an unsung situation at the end of the season. On September 18th against Milwaukee, manager Craig Alberbaz lifted Colton Cowser, a lefty. He pinch hit Rece Hinds, who in fact was a righty. The computer said the situation called for a righty – which in theory was true at the time. But Hinds was hitting .177 on the year at the time. Go figure, when you lift a the big league hitter for a AA guy, you have a good chance to record an out.

At the end of the day, the O’s were officially eliminated from playoff contention after playing their 159th game. Many will argue that they were well out of it by well before then, but officially they made it that far. So yes, in it until the end.

2026 also saw the O’s trade Adley Rutschman to Boston – within the division. Perhaps also a function of analytics. On paper they got a great deal. But the computer can’t decipher how poor of a decision it is to trade within one’s division. Trading within the division is a huge risk. And one which isn’t worth taking.

Moving forward, the Orioles CAN WIN with the current mix of core players. But the organization needs to re-dedicate itself to perhaps backing off the use of Sabre metrics just a bit. There’s a place for it in the game, but the extreme to which many teams (including the Orioles) take it is too much. Why was the American League so tight in 2026? Could it be because many teams were calling games on autopilot by virtue of Artificial Intelligence? If

everyone is using the same program or the same ideas, it’s the guy who’s using feel for the game as opposed to just letting the computer handle it who’s going to win. In short, matching up (righty/righty, lefty/lefty) IS the correct thing to do in many situations late in games. But not just any righty (or lefty) will do. Would you pinch hit for Babe Ruth if the situation called for a right-handed hitter?

The computer would. Old school is always better. Old school and tradition…that’s all part of The Oriole Way. Learn from the past or be doomed to repeat it. Take it or leave it.

Baltimore Orioles rained out on the last day

Perhaps it’s fitting that the Baltimore Orioles only played 161 games this year. That and the fact that an outside factor (weather) was the story of the final series. Game two on Saturday was “pre-rained out,” so the teams played a doubleheader on Friday. And yesterday’s game was of course rained out – all of this due to the massive Nor’Easter hitting the east coast.

The O’s did win four more games than they did in 2025. Many people will argue that’s negligible improvement and they’d be correct. But on paper it’s improvement. You have to hang your hat somewhere.

They can also hang their hat on the fact that they only played two meaningless games at the end – both on Friday. They would have played a third yesterday, but again it was rained out. It wasn’t until after game 159 that they were eliminated from playoff contention.

That’s that. The players and coaches will now scatter as they always do at the end of the season. You always say hope springs eternal as you look to next year. But even that is very much in flux given the labor situation. It could be awhile before we can say that.

Baltimore Orioles win big to begin twin bill

The Baltimore Orioles were eliminated by the ChiSox during the offseason. This in the playoff race. The was commemorated of course by the Birds playing a twin bill due to weather in New York tomorrow – at Yankee Stadium. Trevor Rogers only went four innings in his final start of the season, but was dominant. Rogers’ line: 4.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 4 K.

While the O’s wanted more out of this season, keep in mind that it wasn’t until they had played 159 games that it happened. So there’s that.

Pete Alonso continued his torrid pace, which won him the 2026 MVO award. His two-run homer in the second gave the O’s a 2-0 lead. Two innings later Christian Franklin’s RBI-single with the bases loaded extended the lead to 3-0.

As I said, the bases were loaded. The bases remained loaded. This meaning that the O’s set themselves up for a big inning. And Dylan Beavers delivered – his first big league grand slam later in the inning ballooned the lead to 7-0.

New York would get on the board in their half of the fourth with an RBI-single by Rosario. But the O’s weren’t going to let this one get away. To add insult to injury for New York, Jeremiah Jackson added a solo homer to extend the lead to 8-1 in the sixth. The kicker? It was an inside-the-park homer.

For what it’s worth, that was the second inside-the-park homer the Orioles have hit this year. Also the second one they’ve hit in September. The first of course was a few weeks ago – also in New York (against the Mets).

Pete Alonso came back with another home run, this one a solo shot in the seventh. It was a mammoth shot, normally seen off the bat of a guy named Judge at Yankee Stadium. Gunnar Henderson added an RBI-single in the eighth, and NY would tack one on in the ninth. And the O’s took the first game of the doubleheader, 10-2.

As I said, the teams are playing two today due to tomorrow’s game being “pre-rained out” due to the Nor’Easter on the east coast. So…let’s play two!

The series continues in just a few moments at Yankee Stadium. Brandon Young gets the start for the O’s, and New York is yet to announce a starter. The game will begin momentarily.

Baltimore Orioles sweep Toronto off the base paths

After the Baltimore Orioles won the first game of a twin bill against Toronto this afternoon, Trey Gibson rightfully went seven innings. The scorecard doesn’t indicate that, but he went almost seven innings. And looked outstanding in the process. Gibson’s line: 6.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 7 K.

Christian Encarnacion-Strand’s two-RBI single in the first inning set the tone and gave the O’s a 2-0 lead. He later scored on Colton Cowser’s RBI-double, extending the lead to 3-0. Encarnacion-Strand would come back in the fourth for an encore, and his solo homer put the O’s in the lead at 4-0.

The start of the night however was Trey Gibson. He picked up where Oriole pitching left off in the first game, and dealt a death blow to Toronto. Again, he rightfully should have pitched at least seven innings. He did make it back into the dugout after what he thought was the third out in the seventh…

…but apparently that doesn’t mean much. Toronto manager John Schneider has a way of rubbing other teams the wrong way. And in a move that made no sense save for rattling a division rival, he shot his shot. After what we thought was the end of the inning, John Schneider issued a challenge.

The final out appeared to be a 4-1 putout by Jeremiah Jackson. However Schneider challenged the play, suggesting that Jackson’s foot was in the outfield grass when the ball was hit. Which under new MLB rules over the course of the past few seasons (banning shifts), is illegal. After review the umpire overturned the call, and awarded the hitter (Keys) first base on an error.

Gibson walked the next hitter, and was pulled. It’s tough settling back in the dugout, thinking you’re out of the inning, only to have to go back out there. Gibson deserved better. Needless to say, that was an oddity.

Whether or not Jackson’s shoe was actually grazing the first strands of outfield grass, is another story. I say that Schneider has a way of rubbing other teams wrong because that was sort of a gamesmanship move, in a moment where it meant nothing for his team. That due to the fact that by virtue of his team losing to the Orioles in the first game, they had already been eliminated from the postseason play.

Yennier Cano got the O’s out of the inning, so there’s that. They also brought on Felix Bautista in the ninth, and while he surrendered a two-run homer, he closed out his first game at home since last summer. Hopefully a foreshadowing moment going into next year.

As this is being written, the Orioles are still mathematically alive for the postseason. This albeit the odds are long. Assuming they don’t make it, there will be many moments on which we’ll look back and blame. One of them being that afternoon in Toronto when the game went wayward due to a Toronto runner going way out of the base path.

For what it’s worth, MLB acknowledged that was a bad call. In layman’s terms, the Orioles got hosed. That’s one of many things which stand out. And it’s one of many things which will have aided in the Orioles being home in October. Because keep in mind that (assuming they’re eliminated at some point) they will have missed the playoffs due to so many loses on the margins. Including that one.

So perhaps it’s fitting that it was the Orioles who eliminated Toronto from the postseason chase. As part of a series sweep. While people are perhaps justly critical of the Orioles this year, it goes without saying that they aren’t the team who was a hair away from a World Series title last year, and couldn’t make the playoffs in 2026.

Baltimore Orioles: Petr Alonso’s 40th homer lifts the O’s

Shane Baz had a rough start to last night’s game against Toronto. To begin with, the game had a 45-minute rain delay before it got going. That seemed to get to Baz at first. But end of the day, he gave the Orioles a quality start. Baz’s line: 6.2 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 2 K.

Small things have had a way of snowballing on this Orioles team this year. And we saw it again in the first at-bat of the game. Baz walked Bateman on a pitch timer violation. We know that nothing good ever happens after a walk. But you never want to issue a free walk because of your own temporal negligence,

After Baz walked a second hitter, Lukes’ RBI-single gave Toronto a 1-0 lead. That leadoff walk on a pitch timer violation bit the Orioles. Before the inning ended Springer would add an RBI-single, and Keys a sac fly-RBI. It appeared not to be the Orioles’ night.

Again, seemingly small things have snowballed on this team all year. Could Toronto have put up three had Baz gotten Bateman out? Absolutely. But the fact is that set a certain tone, and it came as a result of a lack of attention to detail.

But Baz stabilized himself – and quick. Those were the only three runs that he surrendered in the game. At one point he retired twelve straight hitters. Needless to say, something shifted.

The Orioles luckily weren’t about to let a pitch timer violation on the first at-bat beat them on this night. Gunnar Henderson smacked a solo home run in the fourth to get the Birds on the board. Two innings later he did it again – a solo homer, that is. Henderson, who of course has had a down year, made a huge impact in last night’s game.

However he was still overshadowed. Which is sad and unfair, but it wasn’t his night. Overall, it was the Orioles’ night. But if there was one individual who stood out, ironically it wasn’t Henderson.

With the Orioles still trailing 3-2 in the last of the eighth, Christian Franklin drew a pinch-hit leadoff walk. With two outs later in the inning, Pete Alonso stepped to the plate. And he sent a shot deep into the Baltimore night. His two-run home run gave the Orioles a 4-3 lead. Which turned into a 4-3 win.

It was Alonso’s 40th home run of the season. $: also hit it on his son Teddy’s first birthday. When the Orioles signed Alonso I remarked that they added 30 homers and 100 RBI to their lineup…try 40 homers. And with five games to go in the season, Alonso sits at 108 RBI.

Obviously assuming that the O’s don’t go to the postseason, it remains a footnote in a sense. But it should give fans hope going into the future. To say that Alonso’s a gamer is an understatement. Needless to say, he’s been worth every penny.

The series continues this evening at Camden Yards. Chris Bassitt gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Toronto’s Max Scherzer. Game time is set for just after 6:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Shut out twice and swept away

Brandon Young was only the most recent hard-luck loser for the Baltimore Orioles last night. You can’t win games if you don’t score runs. And for the second consecutive game against Milwaukee last night, the O’s didn’t. Young’s line: 6.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 9 K.

You can strikeout as many people as you want, but if your offense can’t put runs up you have no chance. Keep in mind, this is an offense which has been without Jordan Westburg all year. They also lost Jackson Holliday to injury last week for the rest of the season. The only sure thing in the lineup all season has been Pete Alonso, but one guy can’t do it all,

Pratt’s RBI-single in the second gave Milwaukee a 1-0 lead. Two innings later on the fourth Contreras’ solo home run extended that lead to 2-0. Pratt struck again in the seventh with an RBI-single once again, closing the scoring in the Orioles’ 3-0 loss.

That last run was charged to Felix Bautista. Yes…THAT Felix Bautista. He made his season debut last night, and his first appearance since July 20th of last year.

It’s great to see him back on the field. That part goes without saying. However I do question whether or not he should have been out there. With the Orioles’ playoff hopes waning daily, is it worth throwing him out there where he could re-injure himself again? As I said though, good for him for making it back.

The O’s were swept in the final two games of the Milwaukee series. Again as I said, you can’t win without scoring. That will always remain a fact. With the loss Friday, Milwaukee swept them. At least on Friday they scored.

The O’s now welcome Toronto to town for the first of three tonight at Camden Yards. Shane Baz gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Toronto’s Trey Yesavage. Game time is set for just after 6:30 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Defense has to matter

Cade Povich had a semi-strong outing for the Baltimore Orioles last night. Albeit a short one – he threw one bad pitch. Povich’s line: 3.2 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 3 K.

Povich surrendered a three-run homer to Chourio in the second. The ball barely made it over the wall, but it made it over. But the O’s pounced in the last of the third. They put the first two runners on, and Pete Alonzo smacked a three-run home run to tie the game.

Povich was lifted after only 71 pitches, Admittedly that’s high for only being in the fourth inning. But it was that sort of game; Milwaukee (and the Orioles) fouled off pitch after pitch. Other than the homer, Povich sort of moved along in the game.

He was entering his third time through the order. The numbers indicate that Povich starts to lose it there. So he was removed.

In fairness, the bullpen was strong. It was also rested after an off day yesterday. It was also a de facto postseason game, and you could argue that Craig Albernaz managed it from that perspective. My personal opinion is that Povich is a serviceable starter. That’s an opinion which stems from feel for the game. But if you’re that bound to sabre metrics and convinced a starter can’t go through the order three times, he shouldn’t be a starter.

The Orioles held serve for the most part. However starting in the seventh, the algorithm chimed in again. With two outs and a runner on second, Craig Albernaz pinch hit Rece Hinds for Colton Cowser – to face the lefty Hall, I get it – the probability of a righty hitting a lefty is greater. I’m not sure I would have sent up a righty hitting .177.

That may seem like one at-bat. But predictably Hinds recorded an out. Hall found a way to get the righty out. Hinds of course took Cowser’s spot in center. Cowser, whose defense is obviously strong. (Remember him climbing the wall in Denver a few weeks ago?!)

Milwaukee had a runner on first in the ninth, with one out. Contreras split the defenders and sent a double into the gap in left center. Hinds appeared to flub the ball off the wall, which allowed the run to score, giving Milwaukee a 4-3 lead in the ninth.

On top of that, it’s also fair to question the rout Hinds took to the ball. Contreras was credited with an RBI-double, but if not for the flub of the ball it’s fair to question whether the run scores if the ball is fielded cleanly. Feel for the game tells me that defense matters. The computer seemed to indicate it didn’t matter as much as getting a righty – any righty – into the game.

Yeljch’s RBI-single later in the inning seemed to seal the deal. However the Birds battled back, and in fairness they used situational hitting to perfection to do it. They put two runners in scoring position in the last of the ninth, and Samuel Basallo and Christian Encarnacion-Strand tacked on sac fly-RBI. That tied the game at five and we went to extra’s.

However Frelick’s run-scoring single in the tenth gave Milwaukee a 6-5 lead. The O’s went quietly in the bottom of the inning, and Milwaukee went onto victory. The O’s fought, but came up short.

It’s fine to use sabre metrics. You have to on some level. But in some cases you have to question what the computer model is telling you. Does it make sense to lift a regular player and a good defender for what amounts to a AAA player hitting .177? On paper though of course is did in the moment, because the situation called for a righty – any righty. But the game isn’t played on paper. It’s not played by computers. It’s played in context,

The series continues this afternoon at Camden Yards. Trevor Rogers gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Milwaukee’s Robert Gasser. Game time is set for just after 4 PM.

Baltimore Orioles complete the sweep in Queens

The Baltimore Orioles did something last night at Citi Field which has been tough to do. They swept a team – at their place. Chris Bassitt turned in one of his better pitching performances, leading the way for the O’s. Bassitt’s line: 6.2 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 6 K.

Of course, Pete Alonso was the guy to get things going. He hit the ninth pitch of the game out of the ballpark giving the O’s a 1-0 lead. When things are falling for you, sometimes that’s all you need. For the record, the O’s needed slightly more than that. But not much.

One inning later the rout was on. Jeremiah Jackson smacked a two-run home run. In theory that should have been enough. But Christian Encarnacion-Strand added a two-run shot one inning later in the third. That was followed by a solo homer by Samuel Basallo. And the O’s led 6-0.

Bassitt would allow a run in the fourth when he issued a walk to Young, and then balked him to second. Young would then score on an RBI-single by Semien. However Bassitt immediately induced a groundout in the wake of that, ending the inning.

Not that they needed it, but the O’s added an insurance run in the ninth on an RBI-single by Samuel Basallo. With the win, they swept the New York Mets, with the underlying story of course being Pete Alonso. Kudos to everyone for how they handled this – the NY Mets, Alonso, and the fans. It was class all around.

Baltimore Orioles: Mayo on the Polar Bear’s day

Shane Baz lived dangerously for the Baltimore Orioles yesterday evening against the NY Mets at Citi Field. However I don’t think that either he nor the Birds expected him to exit early for the reason that he did. Which could be a huge problem. Baz’s line: 4.0 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 2 K.

Baz loaded the bases with one down in the first. New York took a 1-0 lead on a sac fly-RBI by Young. However in a harbinger of things to come later, the Birds seized the lead right away. Christian Encarnacion-Strand and Jeremiah Jackson each smacked solo home runs in the second, and the O’s led 2-1.

However an RBI-single by Soto in the bottom of the inning would tie the game. One inning later a solo homer by Benge would give New York a 3-2 lead. Baz never really got into a rhythm last night, but whatever rhythm he had ended in the top of the fifth. He took a Bichette come backer smack off of his right elbow. 105 MPH off the bat.

Manager Craig Albernaz immediately came out with the training staff. Baz attempted to throw a pitch, but it sailed to the backstop and he was immediately lifted. Baz said after the game that he hoped to avoid the IL. You have to hope it’s one of those things that looked worse than it was.

Of course many in the crowd came to Citi Field to see Pete Alonso – their former first baseman, who they miss desperately. Alonso also came into Queens with 299 career home runs. So his ninth inning solo homer was huge in the grand scheme of the game, given that it was an equalizer. But…

…it was magically fitting that his 300th homer came in the ballpark and in front of the fans where he played for so many years. The people who still have so much affection for him – and he for them. Moreso than any other sport, sometimes baseball gives us little moments like that which just make sense.

The game went to extra’s, and Gunnar Henderson’s leadoff single put runners at the corners in the tenth – with the ghost runner (Christian Encarnacion-Strand) going to third. Encarnacion-Strand would later score on a wild pitch, giving the Birds a 4-3 lead. However New York tied it in the bottom of the inning when their ghost runner scored on a groundout.

We went to the eleventh, and Dylan Beavers drew a walk to put two runners on. Coby Mayo came to the plate, looking to do damage. Needing to do damage. So he sent a deep fly ball to dead center field. The ball smacked off of a combination of the wall and the fielder’s glove, and trickled out into the field…

…and it just died. It stopped rolling, light years away from any fielder. By the time New York’s entire outfield converged on the ball and got it back in, Coby Mayo had himself a three-run inside-the-park home run.

Needless to say, that was the game. New York would get one back in the bottom of the inning on a run-scoring single by Bichette, but the Mayo homer was the game’s climax. You can’t come back from a moment like that. Call it a side of Mayo for the Polar Bear.

The series concludes tonight at Citi Field. Chris Bassitt gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by New York’s Robert Stock. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: A polar win in Queens

Brandon Young was taxed with starting what was perhaps always going to be the most emotionally charged game of the season for the Baltimore Orioles. Pete Alonso returning as a visitor to play AGAINST the NY Mets was always circled on the calendar. This by both teams. Young’s line: 5.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 5 BB, 6 K.

New York, the NL version of them at least, showed out for Alonso. Honestly, I’ve never seen such an outpouring of love for a returning player. We this all the time – players returning to where they had began their careers and were still well thought of – all the time. Never have I seen such an outpouring of admiration as we saw. From NY Mets’ fans this evening towards Pete Alonso.

And mind you, Alonso sits on 299 career home runs. He didn’t get his 500th HR tonight. But there’s two games left. And odds are it’s on both his and the fans’ radar. Again, I can’t stress enough the class that New York fans showed in the moment. Pete Alonso was truly a beloved player in Queens. And it was on display tonight.

Heston Kjerstad’s RBI-single in the second gave the Birds a 1-0 lead. That lasted until the fourth when Ewing’s solo home run dunked the O’s out of the lead, tying the game at two. (And yes, you see what I did there!) That tied the game, and we played on.

Gunnar Henderson smacked a solo homer in the eighth, which in essence won the game for the Orioles. The Birds continued to record outs on defense, which is exactly what you want in that circumstance. And the O’s went home, 2-1 winners.

The series continues tomorrow at Citi Field. Shane Baz gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by New York’s Shawn Manaea. Game time is set for just after 7 PM.