In 2025, the Orioles and the Athletics were largely the same team. They finished within one game of each other (75 vs. 76 wins). They each sported young, promising stars—Gunnar Henderson for the O’s and Nick Kurtz for the A’s. And they were both largely undone by inconsistent pitching, with Baltimore finishing 26th in ERA at 4.60 and the City-less Athletics finishing 27th at 4.70.
Given the offseasons the two teams had, if someone had to guess which team would come into this series in first place, most would’ve guessed the Orioles. Instead, Baltimore comes in sporting a 17-21 record that has them in third in the AL East, while the Athletics are 19-18 and sit a game and a half ahead of the Mariners for first in the AL West.
Neither team has been great of late, with the Orioles going 4-6 in their last 10 and the A’s 5-5. Baltimore comes into Friday’s series opener fresh off a stinging, walk-off loss to the Marlins in Miami, while the A’s demolished the Phillies 12-1 in their series finale Thursday.
Despite the Sacramento residents coming into Baltimore with a winning record, they are largely a similar caliber team to the O’s. Heading into Thursday’s games, they had the 17th-ranked offense at 4.25 runs/game and the 24th-ranked pitching staff with a 4.67 ERA. The Orioles so far have been a better offensive team (11th with 4.62 runs/game) but a significantly worse pitching team (29th with a 4.88 team ERA).
Both the A’s and O’s have outperformed their expected W-L records by one game, and both come into Baltimore with something to prove. The Orioles want to prove they can beat good teams and solidify themselves as playoff hopefuls. The Athletics want to prove that their start isn’t a fluke and that they have staying power in an AL West that’s been largely disappointing.
The Orioles lost their season series to the A’s last year, 4 games to 2, with the Athletics winning both series. If Baltimore wants to avoid the same fate in 2026, they’ll need to slow down A’s catcher Shea Langeliers. The former first-round pick has been the A’s offensive catalyst the first six weeks of the season, slashing .336/.390/.627 while leading the Athletics with 45 hits, 10 home runs and 24 runs scored. Langeliers’ career record against the O’s—.197 average, .672 OPS—isn’t anything special, but he does have five homers in 16 games vs. Baltimore.
The artists formerly based in Oakland will need to try and slow down Oriole sluggers Samuel Basallo and Pete Alonso. Since the start of the Yankees series, the Polar Bear and the big backstop are a combined 17-for-49 (.347) with three homers, six doubles, a triple and 13 RBIs.
Game 1, Friday, May 8th, 7:05pm ET
Where to watch: MASN/MASN+
Probable pitchers: RHP Kyle Bradish (1-4, 5.03 ERA, 35 K) vs. LHP Jacob Lopez (2-2, 6.60 ERA, 23 K)
Bradish has easily been the Orioles’ most disappointing starter this season, with only one quality start in his first seven outings and a complete lack of sharpness in how he’s pitching. Bradish’s 21 walks are the sixth-most of any major league pitcher, and if he had enough innings to qualify, his 1.82 WHIP would be the second-worst mark in the bigs. His last start against the Yankees was his worst of the year, taking the loss after putting up 4 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 4 K and 2 HR.
Bradish dominated the A’s the only time he faced them, earning the W in a 12-1 Orioles’ win back in 2023. Perhaps better remembered as “the game Gunnar Henderson could’ve hit for the cycle, but decided not to,” Bradish pitched six scoreless innings that afternoon, allowing only two hits and punching out eight.
Opposing Bradish on Friday is one of the only pitchers currently pitching worse than him, A’s left-hander Jacob Lopez. The lefty has had some of the worst command in all of baseball, as his 6.6 BB/9 would be the worst mark in the big leagues if he qualified. Lopez is also coming off his worst start of the year, having surrendered six runs on eight hits over 5.1 IP in a 14-6 loss to the Guardians. Despite starting his career in Tampa, Lopez has faced the O’s only once before, tossing four innings and allowing just one unearned run in a 5-1 A’s win last season.
Game 2, Saturday, May 9th, 4:05pm ET
Where to watch: MASN/MASN+
Probable pitchers: RHP Shane Baz (1-3, 4.99 ERA, 33 K) vs. RHP Aaron Civale (3-1, 2.95 ERA, 27 K)
Saturday afternoon’s matchup seems like a pitching mismatch on paper, as the struggling Shane Baz takes on the surging Aaron Civale in front of the Camden Yards faithful. Like Bradish, Baz was shelled in the Bronx in his last outing. The 26-year-old finished with a line of 5.2 IP, 5 H, 6 R (5 ER), 5 BB, 4 K and 1 HR in a game the Yankees won 12-1. We’ve seen more good from Baz this season than Bradish, but the lows are equally as low, with the former Ray struggling to generate the number of whiffs we expect from good Shane Baz.
Baz faced the A’s twice last year, going seven innings each time, putting up a 4.50 ERA and racking up a combined 18 Ks. The Orioles would love to get that kind of length and strikeout numbers, as they’ll need the Baz we saw against Pittsburgh and Houston if he’s going to out-duel Civale and the A’s.
The Northern California squad counters the Orioles’ former Ray with a former Ray of their own in the cutter-happy Civale. The 30-year-old has perhaps been one of the luckiest pitchers in baseball this season, posting a 2.95 ERA in seven starts, despite an expected ERA of 4.19 and one of the worst hard-hit rates in baseball. In his last start vs. Cleveland, Civale scattered seven hits over six innings, allowing only one run in a 7-1 A’s win.
The Orioles dominated the soft-tossing Civale in his Tampa days, tagging hime for a 5.81 ERA in five starts with eight home runs. The right-hander did have a solid outing the last time he pitched in Camden Yards, scattering six hits over 5.1 innings while limiting the Orioles to just one run. The O’s biggest weakness offensively is their propensity for strikeouts, which shouldn’t be an issue against Civale and his 6.6 K/9 rate.
Game 3, Sunday, May 10th, 1:35pm ET
Where to watch: MASN/MASN+
Probable pitchers: RHP Chris Bassitt (2-2, 5.91 ERA, 20 K) vs. RHP Luis Severino (2-3, 4.15 ERA, 43 K)
The Sunday matinee pits two veteran pitchers against each other, with one trying to rediscover his best form and the other enjoying a recent hot streak. It looked like the Orioles were finally getting good Chris Bassitt when the former All-Star pitched 6.2 innings of one-run ball in a win over Houston eight days ago. However, the 37-year-old followed that up with a 4 IP, 6 H, 4 ER performance against the Marlins, which once again had him looking like the 2026 version of Charlie Morton.
Despite being a former A, Bassitt has faced off against the California club plenty, sporting a 4.20 ERA and 1.18 WHIP in 45 career innings vs. the Athletics. The right struggled in his last start vs. the A’s, allowing five runs over five innings last season in Toronto.
Opposing Bassitt will be a familiar foe in former Yankee Luis Severino. The right-hander’s last trip to Camden Yards was a memorable one for Orioles fans, as the O’s tagged Severino for seven runs in the 1st inning, eventually chasing him in the 4th after he gave up 10 hits and nine earned runs. Severino will hope his current hot streak can help him overcome his career 4.89 ERA at Camden Yards. The 32-year-old has allowed only one earned run in each of his last three starts, posting a 1.45 ERA over 18.2 IP while striking out 16.
Can the O’s do what they failed to do in Miami and sweep the A’s out of Baltimore? Or will the City-less Athletics make themselves feel at home in Baltimore and push the O’s further away from .500? Let us know in the comments.