The configuration of manager Craig Albernaz’s lineups is gaining a higher fascination rating.
This isn’t his intent, and most managers have scant interest in the media’s obsessions with the order, whether in spring training or the regular season, but it can’t be avoided the past few days.
Pete Alonso played in 1,129 major league games before hitting leadoff Friday night at Tropicana Field. He’s occupied the cleanup spot in 659 and the third spot in 262. Albernaz put him second again last night for the 154th time in the first baseman’s career.
The Rays used left-hander Steven Matz as the opener Friday and he came out after one inning. Albernaz liked the early matchup and also wanted Alonso at the plate as much as possible as the club’s leader in on-base percentage with Taylor Ward traded, and just about every other offensive category.
Tyler O’Neill appeared in his 724th game last night, and he handled leadoff duties for the first time. He hadn’t hit higher than fourth this season. He’s now hit in every spot in the order in his career, including ninth three times.
O’Neill was 3-for-4 with a double, two home runs and a walk in five career games before last night when substituted into the first spot in the order. Not the same as starting, but probably worth mentioning anyway.
O’Neill went 1-for-5 last night with a run-scoring single in the 10th inning.
According to STATS, this is the third time that the Orioles have given players their first career leadoff assignments on back-to-back days after Floyd Rayford and Glenn Gulliver on July 27-28, 1982, and Steve Pearce and Jonathan Schoop on Aug. 28-29, 2016.
Albernaz has used eight different leadoff hitters in his first season managing the Orioles. Ward led the club with 66 starts, followed by Gunnar Henderson with 42, Dylan Beavers with nine, Adley Rutschman with two, and Alonso, O’Neill, Coby Mayo and Christian Franklin with one apiece.
Ward and Henderson shared the duties exclusively until Adley Rutschman batted first as the designated hitter on July 9 against the Cubs.
The franchise record for most leadoff hitters in a season is 11 in 1955, 1959 and 2018, according to STATS. The 2018 season, when the teardown began at the trade deadline, featured Trey Mancini in 51 games, Cedric Mullins in 37, Tim Beckham in 29, Jonathan Villar in 13, Jace Peterson in nine, Joey Rickard in seven, Craig Gentry in five, Chris Davis in five, Colby Rasmus in three, Corban Joseph in two and Schoop in one.
There’s so much to unpack here.
Davis led off in the first five games because manager Buck Showalter was trying to snap the slugger out of his offensive funk and the roster lacked more traditional on-base options. Rasmus quit on July 3, and this time for good, after informing Showalter prior to a game in Philadelphia.
I saw “Joseph” on the list, assumed catcher Caleb Joseph and discovered it was younger brother Corban, who appeared in 14 games that season and hit first on June 15 and 17 against the Marlins.
Mullins stretch of 37 starts began on Aug. 17 in Cleveland, a week after his major league debut.
Manager Brandon Hyde and interim manager Tony Mansolino combined to use 10 leadoff hitters in 2025, led by Jackson Holliday with 113 starts.
Mullins did it 18 times before he was traded to the Mets and signed with the Rays. Jordan Westburg did it seven times, but he’s going to miss the entire season after undergoing ligament-reconstructive surgery in his right elbow. Ryan Mountcastle did it one time and he’s spent most of this season on the injured list due to a fractured left foot and strained oblique. Ramón Laureano also did it once before the Orioles traded him to the Padres.
Only six players led off for the Orioles in 2024 – Henderson (119 games), Colton Cowser (24), Austin Slater (10), Westburg (six), Rutschman (two) and Holliday (one).
If you can name the six leadoff hitters in 2014, when the Orioles reached the American League Championship Series, I’ll give you two of my Bentleys from my Bitcoin and Crypto side ventures. But no fair looking it up!
Perhaps six is the magic number. That’s how many leadoff hitters were used in 1983, when the Orioles won their last World Series. Al Bumbry had the most starts, of course, with 95, followed by John Shelby with 58, “Disco” Dan Ford and Todd Cruz with three each, Tito Landrum with two and Benny Ayala with one.
The 1979 World Series team used five, and the strangest was Lee May in the last two games of the regular season. Dave May (no relation) led off once for the 1970 champions.
Because some of you might have asked, the 1969 American League pennant winners had only four leadoff hitters – Don Buford (139), Mark Belanger (20), Chico Salmon (two) and Merv Rettenmund (one).
OK, OK, I’ll give you the leadoff hitters for the first Baltimore championship team in 1966 – Luis Aparicio (141), Russ Snyder (11), Belanger (three), Paul Blair (two), Jerry Adair (two) and Davey Johnson (one).
And circling back to 2014, the leadoff hitters were Nick Markakis (148), Alejandro De Aza (six), Jemile Weeks (three), David Lough (three), Alexi Casilla (one) and Jimmy Paredes (one). Where should I ship the Bentleys?
*An interesting leftover from Friday night in St. Petersburg: Henderson’s two-run homer came on an 0-2 pitch. Before that swing, he was 5-for-53 in 0-2 counts this season, and his last home run was Aug. 9, 2025 against the Athletics.
Also from Friday: The Orioles drew a walk in their 113th consecutive game since April 6 to break the single-season franchise record of 112 set from June 3-Oct. 1, 1995. They kept the streak alive last night.
The Orioles walked in a franchise-record 172 games in a row from July 2, 2024-July 12, 2025.