The Orioles do not appear for the final and weakly accept the sweep in Houston, 8-1

The Orioles’ no-sweep streak counter can be reset to 0.

The O’s suffered just their second sweep in the last two years — and their first by an American League team since April 2022 — in a snap dud in a final at Houston, 8-1. The Orioles couldn’t pitch. They couldn’t hit. They didn’t play particularly good defense. It was 2021 again, and the O’s now return to Baltimore after a three-game skid.

Alright, Albert Suárez, I know your previous outing was a little rough (six hits, five walks at Yankee Stadium), but today is a brand new day. Blank slate. New start. It’s time to go out and redeem yourself… aaaaaand he gave up a home run on his first pitch. Jose Altuve ambushed a cut fastball to center and crushed it to left center.

GOOD. GOOD. At least it’s only one race. He has plenty of time to settle in and keep the game within reach…aaaaaaaaaand he allows five more hits in the first inning. Alex Bregman doubled, Yainer Diaz singled, Jeremy Peña doubled, Mauricio Dubón singled and Joey Loperfido singled. When the dust settled, the Astros had sent all nine batters to the plate and scored four runs. Brutal.

It’s not like Suárez was working — he threw just 23 pitches, no more than four against any hitter — but the Astros were running healthy, aggressive hacks, making hard contact with his fastball in particular . The right-hander was fooling no one, looking more like the guy who posted a 6.46 ERA in Norfolk than the guy who had been an out-of-nowhere revelation for the Orioles pitching staff.

The Astros continued to muster many baserunners against Suárez, although they inexplicably got out of a third-inning rally when, with two in scoring position and two outs, Chas McCormick attempted to lay one down and l instead sent to Suárez. Thanks for the free out, Astros (didn’t help the Orioles win the game). An inning later, the Astros loaded the bases and this time managed to get away with Diaz’s sac to center, aided by a bad throw from center Colton Cowser.

If there was a glimmer of hope in the dark cloud of a Suárez outing, he at least made it through five innings, eating up a few outs that the bullpen wouldn’t have to make. It’s little consolation for a second straight stinker for Suárez, who allowed 10 hits, three walks and five runs. That’s now 16 hits and eight walks in his last 8.2 innings, and one can’t help but wonder if the magic has run out in his Cinderella story.

The Orioles’ low-leverage, cleanup relievers saw action again on this road trip, with Dillon Tate and Nick Vespi each making their fourth appearance in six games. In the sixth, Tate gave up two runs on a Peña double that Austin Hays couldn’t catch with a jump attempt against the wall. Vespi was tagged for a run in the eighth, the Astros’ eighth.

Maybe the O’s still would have had a chance if they had hit like they did on Thursday and Friday. They… absolutely didn’t. Astros left-hander Framber Valdez absolutely shut them down, spinning a masterpiece almost identical to Ronel Blanco’s the night before. Like Blanco, Valdez worked seven innings and allowed just one run. And in both cases, O’s only run came on a solo home run by Jordan Westburg. It was the Orioles’ 22nd consecutive game with a home run, extending their franchise record. It’s less exciting when they lose games.

By the time Valdez left, the Astros were so far ahead that they didn’t have one but two pitchers make their major league debuts. O’s completely defeated lineup posed no challenge to either. First up was right-hander Bryan King, who mowed down all three batters he faced in the eighth. Next came right-hander Luis Contreras, who advanced on a Hays double in the ninth to give up the next three and close out the game.

And it will. After looking like world beaters in the Bronx, the Orioles stumbled to an unsightly sweep against a sub-.500 Astros club. They went 2-4 on this road trip, marking their first losing road trip (or homestand, for that matter) this season. At least the Yankees also lost two of three to the Braves, so the O’s fell just one game behind in the AL East race. They will return to Baltimore tomorrow and look to rally against a very good Cleveland Guardians club.