An early look back on the discouraging 2026 Orioles season

With any possibility of the Orioles playing beyond this weekend gone, it soon will be time to think about the offseason and plans for 2027.

First, there are three games against the Yankees remaining on the schedule, and the Orioles would like to win all of them to finish at .500.

In 2015, the Orioles won their final five games of the season to finish at .500. They’d have to win their final six games this time.

Saturday’s forecast in New York was so bad that the Yankees and Orioles moved up Saturday night’s game and will play a doubleheader on Friday beginning at 4:05 p.m. Despite an unfavorable forecast for Sunday, they’ll try to play game No. 162 then.

The Orioles team that ends the season will differ markedly from the one that began play on March 26^th. Only eight players from that Opening Day roster played continuously with the team: first baseman Pete Alonso, shortstop Gunnar Henderson, third baseman Coby Mayo, outfielders Colton Cowser and Leody Taveras, starter Shane Baz and reliever Rico Garcia.

They used 60 players this season, down 10 from their franchise record in 2025, and while this year will be remembered as one of the most disappointing in club history, there were some positives.

Alonso’s 41 home runs are the ninth most in team history. Mayo showed that he can be a legitimate power threat and there was some hidden talent in the bullpen.

So much went wrong, underperformances by Henderson and Jackson Holliday, who’s awaiting left wrist surgery early next week. There was the second-half slump from Samuel Basallo, whose season was ended by a concussion on Monday night.

After a season marred by injuries, Cowser proved to be a durable and skilled centerfielder. His game-saving catch in Colorado on August 31^st catapulted the team to a .500 record. The Orioles lost their next six.

Cowser showed some signs of offensive promise this season, but he needs to play and hit against left-handers consistently.

There were plenty of injuries. Besides Basallo and Holliday, the team never had Jordan Westburg on the field. He says his May Tommy John surgery will enable him to be ready for spring training, whenever that is.

Ryan Mountcastle played just eight games. His broken foot and subsequent oblique injury continued a troubled recent history.

Tyler O’Neill’s season was healthier, but he still played in only 85 games. His diving catch, which saved a game on August 22^nd, cost him the last five weeks of the season due to a right shoulder injury.

The starting pitchers were generally healthy. Shane Baz, Kyle Bradish, Trevor Rogers and Brandon Young each made at least 27 starts, though Bradish ends the season on the injured list with a sports hernia.

Zach Eflin’s season ended in the fourth inning of his first start. Like Westburg, he needed Tommy John surgery.

While Alonso delivered in the first year of his five-year, $155 million contract, closer Ryan Helsley was healthy enough to pitch in just 17 games.

Félix Bautista came back from rotator cuff and labrum surgery. He’s pitched in two games.

While Bautista and Helsley were out, the Orioles had some creditable performances from their bullpen.

Garcia is third among AL relievers with 75 appearances, sixth most in team history.

The Orioles thought enough of Yennier Cano to reward him with a two-year extension that buys up his remaining arbitration years. They also extended Baz and Bradish.

Some of the other relievers who’ve been impressive were left-hander Josh Walker, whose 21 straight scoreless relief outings are the most on the team since Zack Britton had 25 in his wonderful 2016 season, and right-hander Alex Hoppe, who’s been quietly effective in his 17 relief outings.

The team’s No. 7 prospect, Luis De León, also showed great promise in his eight relief outings. Still to be determined is whether he’d be best as a starter or a reliever.

This season may best remembered for the shocking trade deadline day when the cornerstone of the rebuild, Adley Rutschman, was traded to the Boston Red Sox for four highly ranked prospects.

Others traded were outfielder Taylor Ward, whose power mysteriously disappeared, and longtime favorite Tyler Wells.

The Orioles got Hoppe from Seattle for Ward, and Wells’ departure to Tampa Bay left a gaping hole in the bullpen that enabled De Léon, Hoppe and Walker to emerge.

Longtime starter Dean Kremer was traded to Minnesota just ahead of the deadline.

Without Rutschman and Basallo, the Orioles close the season with Carlos Narváez, who was included in the big trade, and Yohel Pozo behind the plate.

Others on the roster for the final series include infielder José Barrero, and outfielders Christian Franklin and Rece Hinds.

Westburg’s injury allowed Blaze Alexander to show he was a quality major league utility player as well as an energetic clubhouse force. Like Basallo, whose left shoulder cost him a month, Alexander didn’t play much in the second half.

Alexander broke his left hand when he was hit by a pitch just before the All-Star break and after he returned, his back acted up, and he went to the injured list again.

The Orioles had the player with the longest name in baseball history, Christian Encarnacion-Strand, to replace Alexander, and he’s had a strong second half.

There’s much more to review, and there’ll be plenty of time to do that. Most fans are eager to put this discouraging season behind them and think about how the team can do better in 2027.

Call for questions: I answer Orioles questions most weekdays. Please send yours to: Rich@BaltimoreBaseball.com