Orioles Manager Had Harsh Assessment of 24-2 Loss vs. Reds

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The Baltimore Orioles were routed by the Cincinnati Reds 24-2 on Sunday in a game in which Baltimore utilized two different position players on the mound. Speaking to reporters after the game, Orioles manager Brandon Hyde didn't mince words while assessing the blowout loss.
"Not at that point," Hyde said when asked if he had a feeling he'd end up using position players as pitchers after removing struggling starter Charlie Morton in the third inning. "It was 6-1. I'm hoping that [Cody] Poteet could give us three-to-four innings. If that's the case and we're in the game, I had a few guys that I would use.
"But when the game got way out of hand, I didn't want to use Seranthony [Dominguez], [Yennier] Cano, [Gregory] Soto. Unfortunately, it's embarrassing. That's not what you want to do on Easter Sunday in front of your home crowd. You want to compete."
After a disappointing loss to the Reds in the series finale, Brandon Hyde chats with the media. pic.twitter.com/QIgZyjJj6j
— Orioles on MASN (@masnOrioles) April 20, 2025
Morton was charged with seven earned runs in just 2 1/3 innings, and unfortunately for Baltimore, things didn't get much better under Poteet's watch, as the righthander yielded five earned runs of his own. The result was a 12-1 score after five innings—and things continued to go south.
The silver lining for Baltimore is the fact that they didn't tire any of their top arms in the bullpen, though that's not much for solace in light of the club's worst loss since 2007. The Orioles get a much-needed day off on Monday to lick their wounds before a three-game series against the Washington Nationals, which begins on Tuesday.
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Tim Capurso is a staff writer for Sports Illustrated, primarily covering MLB, college football and college basketball. Before joining SI in November 2023, Capurso worked at RotoBaller and ClutchPoints and is a graduate of Assumption University. When he's not working, he can be found at the gym, reading a book or enjoying a good hike. A resident of New York, Capurso openly wonders if the Giants will ever be a winning football team again.