It's a baseball fan's dream come true—or at least a doubleheader kind of day. After last night's rainout washed away the series opener, the Baltimore Orioles and Houston Astros are back at it with a twin bill this afternoon. First pitch for Game 1 is set for 12:35 PM, with the makeup game to follow roughly 30 minutes after the final out of the opener. That means six-plus hours of nonstop action from Camden Yards.
Doubleheaders have been a mixed bag for the Orioles over the years. Last season, they played five of them, and the pattern was clear: they got swept in the first two, split the third, and then turned the tables by sweeping the final two. It's a trend they'll hope to continue today. Interestingly, the only previous twin bill between these two clubs came on September 29, 2018, when the Astros took both games.
On the mound for Game 1, we've got a rematch of Wednesday's rained-out starters: right-handers Chris Bassitt for the Orioles and Peter Lambert for the Astros. Lambert, a former Colorado Rockies prospect who washed out in the big leagues, spent 2025 pitching in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball. He's filling in for Tatsuya Imai, another Japanese import who landed on Houston's injured list after a rough three-start stretch—reportedly struggling to adjust to both MLB and American culture. For those of us who hoped the Orioles would sign Imai, it's a reminder that not every international star translates immediately.
Bassitt, meanwhile, finally notched his first win as an Oriole in his last outing—but it wasn't pretty. He gave up five runs over 5.1 innings in Kansas City, saved only by an eight-run outburst from his offense. His ERA sits at 6.75 through five starts, and now he faces a dangerous Astros lineup led by Yordan Alvarez, who has absolutely owned him with five home runs in just 26 career plate appearances. Chris, please—just don't pitch to him. Game 2 will feature Orioles prospect Brandon Young against Houston's Lance McCullers Jr.
Here are today's starting lineups for Game 1:
Astros
SS Carlos Correa
LF Yordan Alvarez
3B Isaac Paredes
1B Christian Walker
2B Jose Altuve
DH Yainer Diaz
CF Brice Matthews
LF Dustin Harris
C Christian Vázquez
Orioles
DH Gunnar Henderson
LF Taylor Ward
C Adley Rutschman
1B Pete Alonso
Grab your favorite Orioles gear, settle in, and get ready for a full afternoon of baseball. Let's play two!