TL;DR The Baltimore Orioles lost 7-2 to the New York Yankees, falling behind early due to a disastrous second inning. Key moments included a three-run homer by Ben Rice that solidified the Yankees' lead.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 01: Aaron Judge #99 and Ben Rice #22 of the New York Yankees celebrate after Ben Rice hit a three run home run in the second inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Yankee Stadium on May 01, 2026 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) | Getty Images Aaron Judge #99 and Ben Rice #22 of the New York Yankees celebrate after Ben Rice hit a three run home run in the second inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Yankee Stadium on May 01, 2026 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Two early Yankees home runs dug the Orioles a hole they couldnât fly out of, as the Oâs dropped their series opener in the Bronx 7-2.
As weâve seen many times this season, a disastrous 2nd inning put the Orioles behind early and ruined the outing for Povich . With the game tied at 1-1, Povich began the inning strong, getting the former All-Star Jazz Chisolm Jr. to wave through a slider for the first out of the inning. From there, though, things went from bad to worse for the Oriolesâ lefty. The very next pitch, JosĂ© Caballero attacked a fastball up and in, hooking it around left field foul pole for a solo homer that gave New York a 2-1 lead.
Povich would come back to strike out catcher Austin Wells on another slider down and away. But the Caballero homer put a crack in Povichâs dam, a crack that Ben Rice would break wide open. With two outs, Trent Grisham attacked a 2-2 fastball, sending it into right field for a double. Paul Goldschmidt then worked a four-pitch walk to bring Rice to the plate. After Povich spiked a first-pitch slider in the dirt, he tried to go back to the breaking ball, only to leave it hanging and watch Rice pummel it into the right field bleachers for a 5-1 Yankees lead.
The Yankees almost chased Povich from the game, as Aaron Judge continued the two-out rally with a single to right, before Cody Bellinger ripped his second double of the night to move Judge to third. The Oriole starter was able to escape that jam, punching out Amed Rosario looking on a fastball down and in. However, after giving up four runs on 34 pitches in the 2nd, it was clear it wouldnât be a banner night for Povich.
The signs of a potentially long night showed up from Povichâs very first inning. He again started the inning well, getting leadoff hitter Paul Goldschmidt to ground out to second before Taylor Ward robbed Rice of a hit with a sliding catch in left. Povich then got ahead of Judge 1-2, only to lose the 3x-MVP on a seven-pitch walk. Bellinger then lined a ball down the line in right, which got away from Dylan Beavers after a carom off the wall, allowing Judge to score from first and Bellinger to coast into second with a double.
In the top of the 2nd, Pete Alsono gave Birdland some hope that this would be a competitive gameâif only briefly. With the Oâs down 1-0, Yankee starter Will Warren left a sinker over the plate, and Alonso blasted it the other way into the right field second deck for his fifth home run as an Oriole.
However, the Alonso homer proved to be an anomaly, as the Oriolesâ lineup struggled to find any answers against New Yorkâs 26-year-old right-hander. Warren started his evening by punching out Gunnar Henderson swinging on a changeup low and away. Judge then gave his starter a defensive assist on a Taylor Ward fly ball, snagging a deep fly up against the right field fence. Warren then finished the inning with a strikeout of Adley Rutschman , freezing the Oriolesâ hottest hitter with a fastball at the knees.
Strikeouts were a problem all night for the Baltimore bats, as they often seemed befuddled by the Yankeesâ starter. Warren punched out another two Birds in the 2nd, getting Samuel Basallo to swing through a changeup before getting Dylan Beavers to chase another offspeed offering. Coby Mayo led off the 3rd with another strikeout by flailing at a sweeper that finished in the left-handed batterâs box. Warren then punctuated that frame with a punch out of Taylor Ward, getting the Oriolesâ LF to swing through a low sinker.
After a Blaze Alexander single in the 3rd, Warren set down the next 12 Orioles he faced, with only two balls leaving the infield on a pair of F7âs in the 5th. Alonso finally broke that streak in the 7th, working a six-pitch walk to give the Orioles their first base runner in four innings. Basallo then followed that up with a single to center that took an awkward bounce past Grisham, allowing Alonso to move to third.
The Basallo bloop single set up the Oâs only real scoring threat of the night, but the rest of the lineup couldnât capitalize. Dylan Beavers tapped a grounder back to the mound that allowed Alonso to score to make it 5-2 with two outs. Leody Taveras then flew out to Judge to end the scoring threatâand any Orioles hopes of a comeback.
The Yankees would erase that consolation run in the 7th. Judge and Bellinger worked back-to-back two-out walks to give New York another runner in scoring position. Amed Rosario then singled up the middle to drive Judge home and restore the Yankeesâ four-run advantage. The reigning AL MVP would then turn run provider in the 8th, singling up the middle on a sharp ground ball that drove home Rice from second and giving the Yankees their seventh run of the game.
The loss Friday night extends Baltimoreâs losing streak against the Yankees to six games, with their last win against New York coming last September 19th in Baltimore. The Oâs will try and snap that streak tomorrow when Kyle Bradish faces off against Ryan Weathers .
