Red-hot Pete Alonso Back at DH For Orioles With Ongoing Calf Issue

To the surprise of no one, especially after Orioles skipper Craig Albernaz’s ridiculous post-game antics Tuesday, slugger Pete Alonso is back at DH Wednesday and not at first base.

Alonso has clearly been dealing with a muscle strain of some sort since up running down the first base line in Tampa about 10 days ago. The team has been trying to monitor him closely and get him off his feet when possible, and things reached theatre-of-the-absurd levels as Baltimore pummeled the Cardinals Tuesday night.

Albernaz has tried to call it a “calf cramp” on some occasions in the past and then referenced the calf himself during his meeting the media after Tuesday's game. He went on to spin Alonso leaving midway through the game a “precaution”’ and then snapped at a reporter for asking if it was the same calf as Tampa, which frankly already seemed obvious from how Albernaz initially spoke about it before catching himself. You really can't make this stuff up.

Sigh. It really isn’t this hard when you hire people qualitied for the job in the dugout.

But Albernaz was hired to be a puppet for the general manager and has proven to be ill-equipped at pretty much every part of the job, including this media obligations and keeping his messaging straight.

The MASN broadcast pointed out Alonso talking to trainers and pointing to his calf and, in their broadcast, referenced Alonso asking to come out of the game. Bottom line, Alonso has a lingering calf issue that flared up and nags him, but thankfully has not kept him from performing like an MVP in the second half of the season. And given the horrible lineups Albernaz and Elias concoct every night - Tuesday being a rare exception – they need Alonso to be an aircraft carrier.

Rookie Samuel Basallo is back at first base and Basallo’s linger shoulder issue and Alonso’s calf are further reasons why the Orioles are carrying three catchers. Basallo is a natural at first base and always looked the part there in the minors, but had a rough night against lefty arms Tuesday at the plate.

Alonso had four hits Tuesday before departing and now has 18 RBIs in his last 16 games and a ridiculous slash of .484/.536/.919 in that span (1.456 OPS). He is smashing left-handed pitching and right-handed pitching and starters and relievers alike. Alonso is back in the two-hole in the lineup and Jackson Holliday, who grew up in St. Louis when his dad was starting for the Cardinals is back at leadoff.

Holliday has struggled there overall but reached base in his first four plate appearances Tuesday.

Gunnar Henderson has been arguably the worst slugger in all of MLB when batting on the road this season and is batting below .200 the last 30 games and has an OPS below .700 since the 2025 All-Star break, but this bush-league operation insists on batting him third. He sees a good bet to be playing elsewhere next season, anyway.

Orioles Lineup

Holliday 2B

Alonso DH

Henderson SS

Basallo 1B

Christian Encarnacion-Strand 3B

Dylan Beavers LF

Leody Taveras RF

Colton Cowser CF

Carlos Narvaez C

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