Pinch-Hit Henderson
The first game of Thursday’s day-night doubleheader began pretty much as a pitcher’s duel with Baltimore Orioles starter Charlie Morton going toe to toe with New York Mets (53-40) starter David Peterson. Despite similar pitching lines, neither starter factored into the final decision on this day.
Morton allowed 1 run on 4 hits (2 doubles), walked 3 and struck out 4 on 104 pitches (70 K’s) over 6.0 innings while Peterson allowed 1 run on 5 hits and struck out 5 on 90 pitches (59 K’s) over 7.0 innings. Peterson was a bit more efficient, however, and might have had a scoreless line had it not been for a bullpen failure on the Mets part.
Colton Cowser opened the bottom of the eighth with a single to left. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza relieved Peterson with Ryne Stanek (2-5). Interim Manager Tony Mansolino countered that move by pinch hitting Gunnar Henderson for Luis Vazquez. Henderson took the fourth pitch he saw, an 88 mph slider, 400 feet to the right field flag court for his first career pinch-hit homerun.
Three walks by Stanek loaded the bases and a Ramon Laureano sac fly resulted in the third Baltimore run.
Closer Felix Bautista pitched a clean ninth to lock down the 3-1 win and record his 18th save of the ’25 season.
The win would not have been possible had Grant Wolfram (1-0), the 27th man for the DH, not given the Orioles 2.0 solid innings of relief. The 6’7″ southpaw earned his first MLB win after allowing one hit and striking out four in his third appearance for Baltimore.
The Orioles did run themselves out of the fourth inning when Jordan Westburg, who had led off with a single, was thrown out at third while advancing on a Laureano single. Jackson Holliday was picked off first base in the sixth inning as well; another case of questionable base running by the team.
The come from behind win was especially significant following the pre-game news that General manager Mike Elias had traded reliever Bryan Baker to the Tampa Bay Rays for a Competitive Balance Round A pick (#37) in the 2025 MLB Draft.
2025 Record: 41-50
Next Game: Thurs. 7/10 (Game 2) @ 5:05 pm vs. New York Mets