Baltimore Orioles Allow Three Homers In 8-5 Loss To Texas Rangers

It was not a pristine night for Baltimore Orioles pitching. Neither in terms of performance, nor on the injury front. The team gave up a season-high 13 hits, and the Texas Rangers were 3-for-9 with runners in scoring position as Baltimore was sent to its second straight loss. Speaking of losses, Starting Pitcher Zach Eflin left in the fourth inning because of elbow discomfort. He had 7 strikeouts in 3.2 innings.

There were good signs offensively. Prized free-agent acquisition Pete Alonso (2-for-4) finally connected on his first home run of the season and is batting over .300 in the nascent season. Taylor Ward racked up four of the Orioles’ nine hits and added 2 RBI. But a comeback attempt in the ninth was foiled, leaving the team with a second straight addition to the loss column.

Zach Eflin Cruising Before Injury; Orioles Staff Could Be In Trouble

Eflin had plus stuff tonight for the O’s. The former Tampa Bay Ray was delivering a beautiful blend of sinkers, changeups, and breaking balls in his 2026 and Baltimore debut against Rangers batters. During a 1-2-3 first inning, Eflin induced a lineout from Brandon Nimmo and two strikeouts of Wyatt Langford (sinker) and Corey Seager (changeup).

In the next inning, Joc Pederson walked with one out and Danny Jansen cracked a base hit off a hanging sinker. However, that was sandwiched in between swinging Ks by Jake Burger and Josh Smith, and an inning-ending groundout by Evan Carter. Unfortunately, the third wasn’t too clean, though the damage was quick and minimal.

Eflin threw a sinker to Ezequiel Duran to start the sequence. Duran fouled off the offering, appearing to have the timing down on the pitch. Despite this, Eflin offered another sinker in a similar part of the strike zone, and this time the No. 9 batter drove the baseball to the left field seats for a 1-0 lead. This would prove to be the only blow that he was dealt on the night.

Eflin ended the inning for the Orioles with two more strikeouts and a groundout. His last frame began with fanning Pederson again and forcing a flyout from Josh Smith, both via changeups. After allowing a double to Jansen and issuing a walk to Carter, Eflin felt something was wrong with his right arm. Ultimately, the Orioles were left no choice but to remove him from the game.

What ensued after might have portended what is to come for Baltimore’s pitching unit minus Eflin. The team gave up seven more runs, which included another two dingers. All but Pederson (0-for-4) in the Rangers lineup had a hit, and four batters collected at least two hits.

Ward, Alonso Shine In Defeat

Ward was one of the free agents that the Orioles signed, who was supposed to provide an immediate spark to the offense. The left fielder is coming off a career year in 2025 with the Angels and stands to produce even more at Camden Yards. But entering tonight’s game, Ward was hitting a paltry .133 (2-for-15) without registering a home run or a run driven in. He was able to flip the script with a 4-for-5 performance out of the leadoff spot.

Everything said about Ward can be applied to Alonso as well. The first baseman also had not registered a dinger or a ribbie, but the ex-New York Met was able to change both. In the bottom half of the fourth inning with a 1-1 count, the Orioles first baseman swung and lifted a 96.5 MPH sinker from Jacob deGrom 400 feet to center field to tie the game 1-1. Both Ward and Alonso will need to contribute more consistently moving forward.

Quick Tidbit On the Game

-Jacob deGrom’s home run allowed to Pete Alonso was his first in a season debut since 2023 against the Phillies.