BALTIMORE–What happened? The Orioles prevented being swept in a four-game series on Sunday. The Houston Astros won the first three games of the series, but behind timely hitting by Gunnar Henderson and another steady start by Trevor Rogers, the Orioles beat the Astros, 3-2, before 19,746 at Camden Yards.
The Orioles haven’t been swept in a four-game series since August 16th-19th, 2021 at Tampa Bay.
Henderson hit his 16th home run, which leads the team, in the first inning against Spencer Arrighetti (1-5). The Orioles (60-70) scored only one run despite four hits.
After Samuel Basallo’s single with two outs in the first, Arrighetti, retired 15 straight until Henderson singled with two outs in the sixth. Henderson stole second and third, and scored on Ryan Mountcastle’s opposite-field single to right. Mountcastle extended his hitting streak to 10 games.
Henderson has 19 stolen bases.
“You look out on that field. Of the eight players out on the field, it’s not the 2025 Opening Day Orioles. It’s probably more of the 2025 Opening Day Norfolk Tides in a lot of ways,” interim manager Tony Mansolino said.
“For Gunnar to kind of be in the middle of the whole thing today and get us going after two tough days where we kind of shot ourselves in the foot, the last two games defensively. We scored some runs. We gave up more than we scored, unfortunately. The last two nights were more about just bad defensive plays. We’ve got to play clean. Gunnar gets us going right there. Gets the big hit, made some defensive plays, proud of him.”
Luis Vázquez hit his first major league home run in the seventh. He’s the 22nd Oriole to homer this year, equaling the club record.
Rogers (7-2) allowed one run on five hits in seven innings, walking three and striking out nine, a season high. His ERA fell to 1.40, the lowest in franchise history through the first 13 starts of a season.
“Just kind of watching him, it wasn’t quite the same,” Mansolino said. “Super gritty and he shows that even on days that he doesn’t have his best stuff, he’s able to navigate seven innings, one run, playoff team, veteran team.”
Houston (72-59) scored a run in the third on Jeremy Peña’s RBI single.
“I just had to tip my cap to those guys,” Rogers said. “They were pretty solid in their approach, and they made me work for it. Just glad to get out of those tough jams. A couple things went my way today, and I was just happy to keep my team in the ballgame.”
Rico Garcia allowed three singles in the eighth and was relieved by Keegan Akin, who allowed Victor Caratini’s sacrifice fly.
Akin retired the last five batters, striking out the side in the ninth for his third save. Mansolino has said that without Félix Bautista, the Orioles don’t have a closer, and the Orioles really need that five-out save.
“I’m used to multiples, so this is kind of the first year I’ve really kind of knocked it down to one inning or a third or two-thirds like that,” Akin said. “I’m honestly a little bit more comfortable kind of going one-plus type stuff, but it’s definitely not as easy as Félix [Bautista] makes it look. But I’ll try my best.”
Can Vázquez be a factor in 2026? With Jordan Westburg out because of a sprained ankle, Vázquez is getting a chance to play, and because Jackson Holliday was given a day off, he got his first start at second base.
Vázquez knows the importance of these next five weeks.
“Very important. I think it’s important to receive these opportunities, to show what I’m capable of doing, making the most of them and set myself up going forward in the future,” he said through a team translator.
“He’s an interesting player. It’s a premium defender,” Mansolino said. “He’s got to learn how to hit the big leagues. It’s not that easy. We’re seeing a lot of young guys doing it. He was once a huge prospect in Chicago and he’s here and we see why he had that status in a lot of ways, and there just hasn’t been a lot of opportunity here because he’s an infielder and you got three really good infielders. So, we like him. It was a nice swing for him. Helped us win the game.”
What does it mean? Rogers continues to show that he could be a down-ballot Cy Young Award candidate with an impressive performance on a day when he didn’t have his best stuff.
What’s the stat of the day? The Orioles finished play against the American League West this season with a 17-14 record.
What’s the word? “Just a lot of intent. He wasn’t cruising. He looked like he turned it up a couple notches right there. It’s a five-out save in a pretty big spot when he came in.”–Mansolino on Akin.
What’s going on in the minor leagues TT Bowens homered in Triple-A Norfolk’s 6-4 win over Charlotte.
Double-A Chesapeake was held to three hits in its 5-1 loss to Richmond. Tavian Josenberger homered.
Sebastian Gongora allowed two hits and one unearned run in six innings as High-A Aberdeen beat Brooklyn, 3-1.
What’s next? The Orioles host the Boston Red Sox in a four-game series beginning Monday. Tomoyuki Sugano (10-5, 3.97) will start for the Orioles. Boston hasn’t named its starter.
Call for questions: Most weekdays, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles question. Please send yours to: Rich@BaltimoreBaseball.com