BALTIMORE -- The Orioles needed to get hot before their 2026 season potentially fell apart before the end of May, just as it did in ‘25. The concern was quickly growing around Baltimore that, somehow, this year could be a repeat showing, despite the injection of talent to the club’s roster that occurred over the offseason.
Don’t look now, but the O’s are hot -- and a resounding sweep of the American League’s top team proved it.
Baltimore beat AL East-leading Tampa Bay (34-19) again on Wednesday night at Camden Yards, riding a five-run first inning to an 11-2 victory in the finale of the three-game series. The O’s won each contest vs. the Rays, who previously swept a three-game set between the two teams at Tropicana Field from May 18-20.
Blaze Alexander (first home run of the season and career-high six RBIs) and Gunnar Henderson (two homers) led the way for the Orioles (26-30), who have won five of six to open their season-long 10-game homestand. Another AL East rival (the Blue Jays) comes to town Thursday to begin a four-game weekend series.
Early offense has been hard to come by for Baltimore this year. That wasn’t the case on Wednesday, as each of the team’s first five hitters came around to score during the first.
Taylor Ward started the bottom of the opening frame with a single, then scored on Henderson’s two-run, left-on-left blast off Rays starter Steven Matz that landed on the right-field flag court.
The O’s then loaded the bases via a walk by Adley Rutschman, a single from Pete Alonso (the 1,000th hit of his MLB career) and a walk by Coby Mayo. Leody Taveras followed with an RBI single, and two batters later, Alexander knocked a two-run single to jumpstart his big night. (He later added a two-run double in the fifth and a two-run homer in the seventh.)
It was the first time the Orioles scored five or more runs in the first inning of a game since May 17, 2024, when they plated five in the opening frame of a 9-2 home win over the Mariners. Prior to Wednesday, Baltimore had scored only 19 first-inning runs over its first 55 games.
The offensive outburst supported right-hander Trey Gibson (the O’s No. 4 prospect per MLB Pipeline), who earned his first big league win in his third career appearance (second start). The 24-year-old was recalled from Triple-A Norfolk for a spot start and tossed 5 2/3 innings of one-run ball during a 100-pitch outing.