BALTIMORE, MD — The Baltimore Orioles defeated the New York Yankees 5-4 in a tightly contested game at Oriole Park at Camden Yards, securing a series victory in their final matchup of April. Félix Bautista’s game-ending strikeout of Trent Grisham sealed the win, capping a four-run second inning led by home runs from Ryan Mountcastle and Ramón Urías.
The Orioles (12-18), fifth in the AL East, bounced back from a 15-3 loss the previous night to take two of three games against the first-place Yankees (18-13). “It’s been a tough month,” said manager Brandon Hyde. “To win a series at home, to get an off-day, hopefully, this is how we’re going to play going forward.”
Baltimore’s offense erupted early, with Mountcastle’s two-run homer and Urías’ solo shot off Yankees starter Carlos Carrasco powering a 4-2 lead in the second. Adley Rutschman’s RBI single added to the advantage, and Jackson Holliday drove in a run via a fielder’s choice in the fifth. “Just getting back to the basics of the way we play ball, and that’s play hard, play fast and put a bunch of runs up quick,” said shortstop Gunnar Henderson.
The Yankees countered with Aaron Judge’s two-run homer in the first and Paul Goldschmidt’s solo shot in the fifth, narrowing the gap to 4-3. Judge added an RBI single in the seventh, but Baltimore’s bullpen held firm. Cade Povich allowed three runs over 4 2/3 innings, and six relievers combined for 4 1/3 innings of one-run ball. Bautista, earning his fifth save, struck out Grisham with a 99.3 mph sinker. “He is back to being Félix,” Hyde said. “That was the best fastball we’ve seen.”
“I knew [Judge] was coming up,” Bautista said via interpreter Brandon Quinones. “So my mentality out there was to go out there and attack those guys, get out ahead in those counts with an early strike and then finish them off.”
The Orioles’ rotation, plagued by a 6.04 ERA, prompted Hyde to move struggling starter Charlie Morton (9.45 ERA) to the bullpen temporarily. Despite defensive miscues and a challenging April, Baltimore showed resilience. “I consider us a good team,” said center fielder Cedric Mullins.
New York’s offense struggled with runners in scoring position, going 1-for-6, and left seven on base. Judge led the way, going 3-for-3 with three RBIs, but was caught stealing and picked off. Carrasco took the loss, allowing four runs in 3 1/3 innings.
With 22,381 fans in attendance, the 2-hour, 54-minute game marked Baltimore’s first series win since mid-April against Cleveland. The Orioles, with 13 players on the injured list, aim to build momentum in May. “We have a lot of work to do rotation-wise. We have a lot of work to do offensively,” Hyde said.
