When the Baltimore Orioles pivoted to a developmental path for the remainder of this season at the trade deadline, their aspirations were for their less-experienced players to make significant strides.
Rookie right-hander Brandon Young took a noticeable step forward on Friday when he carried a perfect game into the eighth inning of a 7-0 road victory over the Houston Astros in the opener of a three-game series.
Entering the game with an 0-6 mark, Young recorded his first career win in dazzling style, completing seven flawless innings on 74 pitches before allowing an infield hit with two outs in the eighth.
Young, 26, displayed accountability following his previous start, when he allowed six earned runs in three innings to the Athletics. His bounce-back showing, in which he walked none and struck out six over eight innings, bodes well for his growth.
“That’s one of those moments right there for a young pitcher to where it kind of catapults him forward for the rest of their career,” Orioles interim manager Tony Mansolino said.
“To see him take the ownership of how he’s pitched thus far and the inconsistency and then to see him go out on the mound in this environment against … a first-place team that has quite a bit of World Series experience on it and pitch the way he did, (his accountability) makes sense.”
On Saturday, right-hander Rico Garcia (0-0, 3.71 ERA) will serve as the opener for Baltimore before turning the game over to left-hander Cade Povich (2-6, 4.95 ERA), who the Orioles hope will pitch the bulk of the innings. He recorded his third quality start of the season on Sunday against the Athletics but did not factor into the decision of a 3-2 loss after allowing one run on four hits and three walks with five strikeouts over six innings. Povich is winless over his past nine starts.
In his lone career start against the Astros, Povich allowed five runs on eight hits and two walks with three strikeouts over five innings but did not factor into the decision of a 7-5 home win on Aug. 23, 2024.
Right-hander Jason Alexander (3-1, 5.02 ERA) is the scheduled starter for the Astros. He has consecutive scoreless appearances, including allowing one hit and three walks with three strikeouts over six innings in a 7-1 road victory over the New York Yankees on Sunday. Alexander threw six shutout innings in an 8-2 win over the Miami Marlins on Aug. 4.
In five starts with the Astros this season, Alexander is 3-1 with a 2.83 ERA across 28 2/3 innings. He will face the Orioles for the first time in his career.
For the second time during their current six-game homestand, the Astros were scoreless entering the bottom of the ninth. Their 14-1 loss to the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday featured a final-inning tally and followed a brilliant display on Monday against Red Sox ace southpaw Garrett Crochet, who surrendered a season-high-tying five runs while working a season-low four innings.
Inconsistency has plagued the Astros all season, with some of their issues tied to an active roster ravaged by injuries, including to closer Josh Hader, who was diagnosed with a left shoulder capsule strain and will not throw for approximately three weeks, the team said Friday.
Still, as Young efficiently carved up their lineup on Friday, the Astros seemed powerless to devise a plan of attack that would help mount any semblance of pressure.
“Our offense at any minute can explode and put a crooked number (on the scoreboard),” Astros manager Joe Espada said. “That’s all we’re trying to do, but we just couldn’t get it done.
“We wanted to be aggressive because we know he (Young) is a strike-thrower. We just couldn’t get anything going offensively.”