A three-run homer with one out in the ninth inning sank the Chesapeake Baysox in a 3-2 loss to the Harrisburg Senators on Thursday, spoiling another dominant outing from top Orioles pitching prospect Joseph Dzierwa.
Chesapeake (20-16 in the second half, 49-55 overall) carried a 2-0 lead into the ninth before Harrisburg’s Sam Brown turned the game around with a three-run shot off right-hander Ryan Long, who took the loss to fall to 1-2 on the season. The blast came after a leadoff double and a walk put two runners on ahead of Brown. Chesapeake went down in order in the bottom of the ninth against Harrisburg right-hander Luke Young, who picked up the win to improve to 3-0 after tossing two scoreless innings, including a groundout and a pair of strikeouts to close it out.
The late-inning collapse overshadowed another strong start from Dzierwa, the Orioles’ No. 4 prospect according to MLB.com and a 2025 second-round pick out of Michigan State University. The 6-foot-8 left-hander tossed six scoreless innings, allowing four hits and no walks while striking out nine, fanning six of the final 10 batters he faced. Combined with his previous start at Altoona, Dzierwa has not allowed an earned run across his last two outings, striking out 14 batters against six hits allowed over an 11-inning span. Dzierwa was named to the 2026 MLB All-Star Futures Game in July, a showcase for the sport’s top prospects, and entered this season ranked among Baseball America’s top 100 prospects in all of baseball.
Dzierwa also got help from his defense in the second inning, when Harrisburg put two runners in scoring position with no outs. He induced a groundout before an inning-ending double play sealed by an outfield assist from Brandon Butterworth, who caught a lineout in center field and threw a strike to home plate to cut down a tagging runner and prevent what would have been the game’s first run.
The game stayed scoreless until the sixth, as Dzierwa matched zeroes with Harrisburg starter Josh Hartle, who retired the first 13 batters he faced before Aron Estrada and Thomas Sosa hit back-to-back singles in the fifth. Hartle allowed just one run across five and a third innings before Chesapeake broke through in the sixth. After Hartle gave up a leadoff single to Adam Retzbach, right-hander Robert Cranz relieved him and got a fielder’s choice that put Butterworth on base in Retzbach’s place. Wehiwa Aloy then walked, and Anderson De Los Santos delivered a two-run single to center field to give the Baysox their 2-0 lead.
That lead held until the ninth thanks in part to right-handed reliever Richard Guasch, who pitched two hitless, scoreless innings with three strikeouts. Guasch, who pitched for Harrisburg from 2022 through 2024 before joining the Orioles organization, kept the Senators off the board before the Baysox bullpen ultimately couldn’t close it out.
The loss opened a seven-game series between the two Double-A affiliates, a stretch tied to Major League Baseball’s regional rivalry scheduling between the Orioles and Nationals organizations. Chesapeake and Harrisburg continue the series Friday, with Chesapeake sending right-hander Pat Reilly (0-1, 8.68 ERA) to the mound against Harrisburg right-hander Yohel Tejada Jr. (0-1, 5.40 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at Prince George’s Stadium in Bowie.
