Orioles’ Alonso on rough start: ‘I wish I could have been better’; Baz allows 3 runs in 6-3 loss to Giants

BALTIMORE- What happened? In his last seven games, Pete Alonso is 2-for-28. The Orioles’ new first baseman, who signed a five-year, $155 million contract last December, knows he’s going to start hitting, but he had another frustrating game on Friday night.

Alonso was hitless in three at-bats and walked in the Orioles’ 6-3 loss to the San Francisco Giants before 32,294 at Camden Yards. Catcher Adley Rutschman produced two doubles and three hits, and Alonso followed those hits with two strikeouts and a grounder to second — each at-bat ending an inning.

“It’s frustrating. I’m sure it is for everybody else,” Alonso said. “I wish I could have been better, not just tonight, but many nights before.

“There’s a lot of work going in behind the scenes, so at gametime I can show up and perform. I could say, ‘Yeah, it’s a long season, it’s coming.’ But yeah, it stinks, first couple weeks, not performing up to my standards.

“You can work hard, you can try, but that’s not why I’m here. I’m here to win. And I expect more out of myself, and I know other people do as well. So it’s frustrating. But yeah, the best is obviously going to come. It’s frustrating, for sure. Wish I could perform better. But yeah, working hard, doing the best I can, but that’s not good enough. And I will be better.”

Teammates offer encouragement. They know how important Alonso is to the team’s success. In his first 13 games with the Orioles, the 31-year-old is hitting .176 with a home run and three RBIs.

“He’s prepared,” manager Craig Albernaz said. “I would say with Pete it’s — I wouldn’t say thinking too much is the right frame to put it in. But I think with any hitter, when they’re in a good spot, they kind of just see ball, hit ball, and just be an athlete in there.

“It looks like he’s trying to handle too much as far as the prep in his approach, which is not always a bad thing, but also it’s like he’s kind of searching a little bit on that end. It’s not his swing. It’s just more of the pitches to hit and what he’s taking and then what he’s swinging at.”

What happened to Baz? Oriole starter Shane Baz, who signed a five-year, $68 million contract extension last month, allowed three runs on nine hits in five innings, throwing 99 pitches.

Willy Adames homered with two outs in the third. Heliot Ramos’ RBI single and Adames’ run-scoring double in the fourth gave the Giants a 3-0 lead.

“Just that one inning. I was a little bit predictable with my stuff,” Baz said. “They were trying to get their swings off early in the count.  Just being really aggressive. Just wasn’t really making quality pitches to a few guys and just kind of got away from the fastball, I think a little too much.”

Albernaz saw signs that Baz was struggling.

“He had trouble with the four-seam command,” he said. “Put him in some bad counts. Curveball, too. Didn’t really have the feel for the curveball he usually has.

“A lot of spikes in the dirt, noncompetitive. But one thing, the cutter, it was the best we’ve seen it and you can tell that they were starting to make the adjustment to it and kind of sitting on it, because that was the only pitch you could kind of get in the strike zone competitively. He had some success early with it and it looked like they were just sitting on it.”

What’s wrong with the offense? In the Orioles’ sweep of the White Sox, they scored 11 runs. In their three losses in Pittsburgh, they scored eight. They had only one run in the first eight innings on Friday, an RBI double by Leody Taveras. Gunnar Henderson hit a two-run home run with two outs in the ninth, his third in the last four games.

Taylor Ward followed Henderson’s home run with his 10^th double in his last nine games.

“I don’t think there’s any added pressure or anything like that,” designated hitter Samuel Basallo said through a team translator.

“I think we’ve been hitting the ball hard, and sometimes when you do that, it just finds guys. I feel like we’ve been hitting them at good angles, as well, it’s just one of those stretches right now. I think any team goes through that, any guy goes through that. But again, I have all the confidence in this group that towards the end of season and at the end of season, we’ll be one of the best groups at it. I know those hits and those homers will come in bunches.”

Will Alonso get out of his slump soon? “I just need to execute better, I need to be more consistent,” he said. “I need to do a better job of controlling the strike zone, and when they come in the strike zone, I need to do a better job of putting it hard in play. Again, there’s a couple good at-bats, a couple good swings.

“But yeah, tonight obviously, I only had one good at-bat when the game was already out of hand. I wish I had better at-bats over the course leading up to that point. But for me, this is not my standard. Results-wise, yeah, it’s unacceptable for me, and I will be better. I know that.

“It’s not fun. And I know, for me, if I’m not producing in big spots with guys on base, it’s not good for the team. I will be better. I feel bad. A lot of people believe in me, and I believe in myself, but I’m not delivering results. I will. I just haven’t. But I will.”

What does it mean? Since 2019, Alonso has 265 home runs, a track record that indicates success will come soon.

“He’s been exactly the same guy,” said the 21-year-old Basallo. “It’s frustrating, and it’s part of baseball sometimes, but everybody goes through that sometimes, even the best players in the game, which I believe he is one of the best players in the game. It’s just a matter of days until he gets it going here soon, and at the end of the season, we’ll be looking at him as one of the best players.”

What’s the word? “Even during the road trip, felt like I was hitting the ball hard with no results. But again, no one’s gonna go back and just be like, ‘Wow, it’s a good swing but that’s a lineout.’ No, people expect to win and I need to do a better job of being more consistent at-bat to at-bat, pitch to pitch. That’s simple.” –Alonso on his slump.

What’s the stat of the day? 17. Alonso and Henderson are tied for the club lead with 17 strikeouts.

What’s going on in the minor leagues? Enrique Bradfield Jr. hit a two-run home run and drove in all four runs for Triple-A Norfolk in their 4-2 win over Jacksonville.

Luis De León allowed two earned runs on three hits in five innings as Double-A Chesapeake beat Erie, 11-6.

Third baseman Carter Young hit a three-run home run and designated Aron Estrada homered.

Joseph Dzierwa pitched seven strong innings while designated hitter Victor Figueroa hit a two-run home run as High-A Frederick beat Winston Salem, 3-2.

Augusta beat Single-A Delmarva, 7-3.

What’s next? Chris Bassitt (0-2, 14.21) will start against Logan Webb (1-1, 5.00) on Saturday night at 7:15. The game will be shown exclusively on FOX.

Call for questions: Most weekdays, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles question. Please send yours to: Rich,@BaltimoreBaseball.com