Mobile Gaming Brings Baltimore Orioles Closer in Surprise Team-Building Activity

The Orioles have been finding new ways to grow closer as a team, even if it's through unintended outlets.

Apr 8, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson (2) celebrates in the dugout after scoring during the ninth inning against the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images | Matt Marton-Imagn Images

However you can build team chemistry, you lean into it.

And if that means a few Clash Royale battles in the clubhouse, so be it.

So far, the Baltimore Orioles have had a relatively up-and-down 2026 campaign. Head into a new week of play, the team is recovering following a 3-1 series loss to the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field.

But while the team's general struggles on the mound snagged some of the attention, a more niche story took the headlines.

On Monday, April 20, Jacob Calvin Meyer released an article for the Baltimore Sun, detailing the new obsession that is taking over the Orioles' clubhouse: a mobile video game called Clash Royale. It's a popular multiplayer mobile strategy game that has nearly 700 million downloads across its lifespan. Players can either battle one another, or work together in teams, to climb the different ranking systems in the game.

While many might immediately raise the roof, arguing that the Orioles must start winning games and stop playing childish games, power-hitting 24-year-old Gunnar Henderson says it helps entertain him.

“It’s just something different,” Henderson said in his interview with the Baltimore Sun. “You spend all your time playing baseball, so just having something else to kind of bond over is good to have. It can only help the clubhouse.”

Sometimes, little things like playing a game together can allow the team to bond, detox and reset their mental headspace.

For a team like Baltimore, that is still going through the acclimation phase after bringing in a few youngsters and veterans this offseason, most notably first baseman Pete Alonso, these types of practices allow them to spend time doing things other than playing baseball.

“It’s just another way that we can kind of mesh and spend time getting to know each other,” starting pitcher Shane Baz said. “It’s just being competitive. All of us love to do that. We’re all really competitive, and I think it just helps us stay in that mindset.

"All of us just love to compete, whether it’s literally anything.”

And when one guy starts playing, and then another joins him, it's hard not to notice the commotion. According to Meyer's article, Baz said that Baltimore's clubhouse gets load quick, especially when the competitive juices start flowing.

“We were playing each other and it was kind of getting loud in the clubhouse, so guys would ask what we were playing,” Baz said. “It started quick.”

If the Orioles start trending in the right direction and hop back over .500, it may be hard to tell the players to put down the phone. After all, you'd rather not hold the team back from reaching their full potential, even if it involves tossing a goblin barrel on another teammate's tower.

Credit for the quotes of this article go fully to the Baltimore Sun