About Last Night: Yankees 3, Orioles 1

by Derek McAdam

August 19, 2026

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The New York Yankees defeated the Baltimore Orioles last night by a score of 3-1, improving to 70-55 on the season. Here’s a quick recap of last night’s game.

Quick Stats: W: Yerry de los Santos (1-0): 2 IP, 1 H

                     L: Shane Baz (4-13): 6.1 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 10 K

                     S: David Bednar (28): 1 IP, 2 K

HRs: NYY: Trent Grisham (17) BAL: Coby Mayo (17)

Big Story: While the Yankees received news Monday night that Max Fried would be making a return to the IL, the same reason he was on the list the first time, the Yankees did get Carlos Rodon back on the mound last night in his first start at the MLB level since June 28.

The Orioles gave the Yankees and Rodon a headache in the 2nd, when they had runners on first and second with one out. A groundball was hit to Chisholm, who bobbled the ball that likely could have been the inning-ending double play. But instead the bases were loaded for Carlos Narvaez, who struck out. Jackson Holliday then came up with two outs, but Rodon was able to strike him out on a successful challenge by Austin Wells behind the plate to get out of the inning unscathed.

In the 3rd, the Yankees broke the scoring open when Grisham hit a solo home run to right field, giving the Yankees a 1-0 lead. It was Grisham’s 6th home run in his previous 13 games. But in the bottom of the inning, Mayo came back with a solo home run of his own to tie the game at 1-1.

Rodon’s night came to an end after four innings, which was to be expected since he is still working his way back to a regular pitch count. His final stat line was: 4 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 K.

Baz had everything going for him last night, with the one mistake through six innings being the solo home run he have up to Grisham. But in the 7th, the Yankees put runners on first and second with one out to knock Baz out of the game, responsible for both runners. Josh Walker then came in to load the bases with one out for Amed Rosario, who was pinch-hitting for Austin Wells and struck out. Grisham came up again with two outs and knocked a two-run single to center field to give the Yankees a 3-1 lead. Ben Rice was hit by a pitch to load the bases again before Heliot Ramos struck out to end the inning.

The Orioles had another opportunity in the 8th in which the tying run was brought to the plate, but failed to push any more runs across, giving the Yankees a 3-1 victory.

Player of the Game: Grisham was responsible for all three Yankee runs, continuing to show up when the Yankees need him the most.

Notable Performances: Baz pitched a very solid game against the Yankees, while George Lombard Jr. had a nice two-hit night and made a couple of nice plays in the field. The Yankee pitching staff, as a whole, continued to perform well, including all the pitchers from last night’s game.

Better to Forget: It is a tie between Ramos and Chisholm for the Yankees. Both players have slumped over the past couple of weeks and it did not improve at all last night.

My Take: Since I am down in Virginia and have MLB.TV, which I did not pay extra for the Washington Nationals’ and Orioles’ broadcasts, I listened to the entire game with Dave Sims and Suzyn Waldman. And goodness, am I glad that I only had to listen to the game and not watch it.

This was another typical Yankee game as of late: little offense, solid pitching. And yes, while the pitching has been great, for many Yankee fans, this is not what we are used to historically. The Yankees are called the Bronx Bombers for a reason, and they have not been doing much of anything offensively, which is why so many of these games are boring to watch.

But looking on the bright side, Rodon pitched well in his first start back in the big leagues in nearly two months. The walks are still a bit of a concern, but he kept the damage to a minimum in only allowing a solo home run. With Fried out for at least the next two weeks, it is vital that Rodon have a few solid starts over that span. He still has to work his way up to 100%, but if he can at least give the Yankees 5+ innings in his next couple of starts, they will gladly take it. It will, hopefully, only make the Yankee rotation that much better once Fried returns.

Offensively, Grisham just continues to get big hits when big hits are needed. He broke the scoring in the 3rd and gave the Yankees the go-ahead hit late in the 7th. Grisham has also been one of the very few positives on the offense as of late, but it’s time some other players step up to help this entire offense out.

One thing that drove me insane while listening to the broadcast was Sims and Waldman describe Chisholm’s reaction to his error in the 2nd. I did not see the play, but one thing Chisholm cannot do is blame others for his mistake. In fact, Sims noted that Chisholm definitely could have recorded one out if he just took his time instead of going for the double play. I understand that the season has been an utter disappointment for Chisholm, but he cannot start blaming the umpires for being in the way. Unless the second base umpire deliberately got in front of the ball, Chisholm, or anyone for that matter, should not be complaining. They are, in fact, apart of the field.

In conclusion, this was yet another boring game that at least resulted in a Yankee win. The Tampa Bay Rays also lost, so the Yankees were able to pick up a game on them. Every game matters more as the season goes on, and these are the games that definitely matter the most. While the Yankees typically struggle against the AL East, they’re now 6-2 against the Orioles this season. It’s about time they finally beat up on an AL East opponent, although there are still many games to go.

What’s Next?: These two teams will be back in action tonight as the Yankees go for the series victory. Will Warren is scheduled to start for the Yankees while Chris Bassitt is scheduled to take the mound for the Orioles. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. from Oriole Park at Camden Yards and will be broadcast on Amazon Prime Video and MLB Network.