Apr 20, 2026; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Baltimore Orioles relief pitcher Cameron Foster (65) celebrates with catcher Samuel Basallo (29) after the win over the Kansas City Royals in the twelfth inning at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images Good morning, Camden Chatters.You know, over the course of a six-month season, you’ll see every kind of baseball game. Sometimes you’ll see a heavyweight clash between two tenacious clubs, battling with every fiber of their being as they put on a clinic of intense, well-played baseball.And then other times you’ll see what can only be described as a frenetic slap fight between two mediocre opponents, each apparently trying to give the game away but neither one willing to take it.You can probably guess which of these descriptions applies to last night’s ridiculous Orioles vs.
Royals contest. Somehow, some way, the O’s ended up with a 7-5, 12-inning win in a game that they trailed 1-0 with two outs in the ninth. For 8.2 innings, it was shaping up to be one of the Birds’ most embarrassing losses, one in which they managed a single hit — from the second batter of the game, no less — before the O’s offense vanished for eight innings.
Gunnar Henderson got picked off twice. Kyle Bradish allowed 13 baserunners in 5.1 innings to a terrible Royals offense and somehow only one run, owing to the aforementioned terrible Royals offense.In the end, Samuel Basallo saved the day with the game-tying, two-out, two-strike hit in the ninth and the go-ahead RBI single in the 12th, and Leody Taveras added the cherry on top with his first career grand slam. And still the Orioles almost blew a five-run lead in the bottom of the 12th.
That was the game in a nutshell. An O’s victory both thrilling and maddening, equal parts exciting and exasperating. Against any other team it probably wouldn’t have been a win, but the Orioles took full advantage of the worst team in the AL.
Mark Brown recapped all the ridiculous action.I’m not going to go so far as to say that this is a win that will give the Orioles some momentum, because all of their season-long warts were on full display for most of it. Their problems aren’t exactly fixed. Still, it was nice to see Basallo’s bat start to come around and unexpected 2026 stalwarts like Taveras, Rico Garcia, and Anthony Nunez continue to contribute.
The O’s need their star players to return to form, but in the meantime they’ve had lesser-known players keeping them afloat so far.What the Orioles did last night sure wasn’t the way you’d script it, and it’s not a sustainable way to win. But let’s take the victories now and sort the rest out later.LinksUpdates on Holliday, Hiraldo and other injured Orioles – School of RochA bunch of injured Orioles appear close to returning, but we probably won’t see Yaramil Hiraldo again this season. My apologies to all the Yaramil Hiraldo stans out there.Has Jeremiah Jackson solidified his place on the Orioles? | MAILBAG – BaltimoreBaseball.comBy being basically the best hitter on the team?
I should think so!Kyle Goon: Jeremiah Jackson’s fiery start for the Orioles merits a serious look at his long-term lineup spot – The Baltimore BannerWhat he said. Jeremiah has been a great story for a 2026 Orioles team sorely lacking in them.Orioles birthdays and historyIs today your birthday? Happy birthday!
And happy birthday to an Orioles Hall of Famer and the 1973 AL Rookie of the Year, Al Bumbry. “The Bee” spent 13 of his 14 MLB seasons in Baltimore, racking up 252 stolen bases, third-most in O’s history. Enjoy your day, Al!
Other former Orioles born on April 21 include lefty Cionel Pérez (30), infielder Ryan Adams (39), catcher Ronny Paulino (45), and MLB’s all-time leader in games pitched, Jesse Orosco (69), who made 336 of his 1,252 career appearances as an Oriole.On this day in 1996, Brady Anderson set an MLB record by hitting a leadoff homer for the fourth consecutive game. He accomplished the feat in all three games of a series against the Rangers and a game in Boston before that. The kicker?
The Orioles lost all four games.Random Orioles game of the dayOn April 21, 2005, the Orioles suffered a 1-0 shutout loss to the Red Sox at Camden Yards. The game’s only run came in the second inning on a Ramón Vázquez RBI groundout that plated future Oriole Kevin Millar. Birds starter Rodrigo López pitched brilliantly, going eight innings while allowing only that one (unearned) run, but the O’s offense had no answer for Red Sox righty Matt Clement, who worked eight scoreless of his own before Keith Foulke nailed down the save in the ninth. The O’s had eight hits in the game, including three by Melvin Mora, but couldn’t get any when it mattered.