After Game 1 blowout, Orioles close doubleheader by getting blown out

Q: What was the final score of the Orioles vs Astros doubleheader?

The Orioles lost the second game of the doubleheader against the Astros 11-5.

Q: Who was the starting pitcher for the Orioles in the second game?

Brandon Young was the starting pitcher for the Orioles in the second game.

Q: How did the Orioles perform in April 2026?

The Orioles finished April 2026 with a record of 15 wins and 16 losses.

Q: What issues did the Orioles face in their loss to the Astros?

The Orioles struggled with poor pitching and defense, allowing eleven runs in the game.

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - APRIL 30: Cam Smith #11 of the Houston Astros celebrates after hitting a three run home run against the Baltimore Orioles during the first inning in game two of a doubleheader at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on April 30, 2026 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) | Getty Images You could hardly get a better representation of the 2026 Orioles season than the doubleheader that they played against the Astros on Thursday. In one game, they swung the bats well and got some pretty good pitching and they blew out the Astros. Check out Paul Folkemer’s recap of the first game. That one was much more fun than this second game, in which the Orioles combined pretty bad pitching, pretty bad defense, and hitting that, while fine, was not enough to overcome these other things. They lost, 11-5, to split the doubleheader and close out their month of April at 15-16. There is a meme that goes around that begins with, “Inside you there are two wolves.” A legend of no fixed origin, this is a tale told by an elder to a young person about inner conflict, how our best selves are battling against our worst selves. Which one wins? Whichever one you feed. These 2026 Orioles feed their good wolves some days and their bad wolves other days. Then there’s this doubleheader, where they fed both. They are the same team that looks very different at different times. Only over a longer stretch of the season will we know which wolf will win. The bad wolves appeared from the beginning of the game. To be sure, the Orioles were helped along by luck going the Astros way, such as when Houston got its first baserunner with one out on an infield single hit by , of all people. Usually, getting Alvarez to hit a ball only 57mph is going to be a good thing. However, starting pitcher could not hold the Astros there, allowing another single. With two men on base, Houston’s floated a line drive out to right field in the direction of Tyler O’Neill. The Orioles right fielder gave just about the most ungraceful pursuit of the ball this side of , then as it bounced up, he bobbled the bounce. Runners scored from second and third base on this two-out single. Harris scored when hit a ball back up the middle that was unable to field cleanly. If I had the power, I would have put this one in the error column. So, at this point there are two runs in, two outs, and two men on base. The runs allowed by Young were not entirely his fault. He had the opportunity to limit the damage and get out of it. And he… gave up a home run to Cam Smith. Who is Cam Smith? Exactly. He came into the game with a .670 OPS for the season. Don’t give up a home run to that guy! On the other hand, who is Brandon Young? Exactly. He had a 6.24 ERA in the majors last season and after today’s clunker has a 6.75 ERA for 2026. This was a classic of what I call the Memorial Inning – the Orioles version of Arrieta, that is. He was always getting into trouble that was not entirely his fault and then, presented with the chance to get out of it, he frequently failed. Bad luck, bad defense, and bad pitching put the Orioles down by five runs before they ever got to bat. Young allowed one more run for good measure because he gave up a homer to Alvarez. I can’t get too mad about that one. That was only the first two innings worth of stuff happening to Young! Before he was done with, he was charged for ten runs, of which seven were earned. Four runs crossed in the fourth inning, many of which stemmed from an error in which Jeremiah Jackson, who delighted everyone with a grand slam in the first game, missed a catch at second base on a fielder’s choice. Again, the defense let him down but Young could not help himself. One might have hoped to see a bit more from the Orioles hitters against Houston starter Lance McCullers. Whenever I write his name, I want to say Carson McCullers, but that’s an author, not the baseball player. Carson McCullers wrote a book called *The Heart is a Lonely Hunter*, maybe the most depressing book that I’ve ever read in my life. More depressing than this Orioles game, which is saying something. Anyway, the baseball player brought a 6.75 ERA for 2026 into today. Did the Orioles make him look like it? Eh. They scored three runs in his six innings, so it could have been worse, but only getting two hits when batters have been OPSing .835 against McCullers this season is kind of a bummer. Also, it didn’t matter that much, since the Orioles gave up eleven runs. It’s tough to win when you give up eleven runs. Now 31 games into this season, the Orioles are both the team that blew out a last place Astros team, 10-3, and the team that was blown out by a last place Astros team, 11-5. They are a team that hit two grand slams in one game and a team that keeps bungling stuff that shouldn’t be bungled, to say nothing of its challenges with guys in positions that require range only they don’t seem to possess the range or instincts to make up for a lack of range. Either one could win out as the season moves along. Or they will remain in tension and remain near .500. That’s still a lot better than last April and May. Things get tougher for the Orioles starting tomorrow, when they begin a four-game set against the , the team that has, by far, the best record in the American League. The O’s will see the Yankees seven times in their next 16 games, with another three games against the first place Braves. It’s going to get harder. If the Orioles are actually bad, we’ll find that out in the next month. As of this writing, there is no scheduled Orioles starting pitcher for the 7:05 Friday series opener. I’m guessing gets recalled from Norfolk. The O’s will be facing righty , who has a 2.59 ERA up to this point in the season.