Newest Orioles skipper Craig Albernaz was pleased with his teams efforts in Sarasota.
The Baltimore Orioles kick started their 2026 spring training campaign with a 2-0 victory over the New York Yankees on Friday, February 20, 2026.
This victory comes encouraging for Baltimore fans, as they have had a grueling past couple of weeks after it was announced that starting third baseman Jordan Westburg and second baseman Jackson Holliday will miss significant time due to injury.
However, Baltimore came to play in game one, especially their pitching unit and recent signee Pete Alonso.
New manager Craig Albernaz spoke with the media following Baltimore's victory, in which he was extremely pleased with his teams' efforts.
After the game, Albernaz was interviewed by local Baltimore media, in which he shared his thoughts on numerous game topics.
Alonso made his debut in the orange and white and made the most of it, going 1-for-3 with a monstrous two-run home-run in the 6th inning to give Baltimore a lead.
After the game, Albernaz commented on Alonso's desire to get a third at-bat, which is rare to see in spring training, especially with a player of Alonso's caliber.
"We're checking in with all of our guys to see where they're at physically, and ya know to see if they want the next one, and Pete wanted it and he made the most of it," said Albernaz.
Albernaz was also asked if Alonso's desire to play six innings and get another at-bat in a meaningless spring training game means anything to him:
"Yeah he just wants to play, you know, also the position he plays dictates that too he plays first base opposed to a shortstop, catcher or center fielder, so Pete's very aware of his body and we were talking to him throughout the game so yeah, it speaks a lot. Pete just want's to play," said Albernaz.
Alonso's desire to get as many reps possible, even during a meaningless exhibition game, displays his high character and love for the game of baseball.
Additionally, Albernaz commented on starting pitcher Trevor Rogers' spring training debut:
"It was great to see Roge [Rogers]. He's working on spinning in zone, did a great job of throwing strikes. Very encouraging first outing for Trevor," said Albernaz.
Rogers only tossed two innings, but was dominant in that small sample size as he struck out the side in the second inning and only allowed one baserunner off a Jazz Chisholm Jr. single in the first inning.
Overall, Albernaz was extremely pleased with the teams efforts, and talked about how good it felt to start the spring training season 1-0:
"You always want to win games, that's why we're out here, and I think a wins a win and you always want to slap hands at the end of the game, but more importantly it's the process we did it and our guys did a great job at the plate and played great defense and our pitchers threw strikes. That's really all you can ask for," said Albernaz.
Baltimore will continue their spring training season tomorrow where they'll take on the Pittsburgh Pirates at 1:05 PM ET.