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Entering Friday, Brandon Young had little reason to expect history. The Orioles rookie right-hander was 0-6 with a 6.70 ERA, coming off a rough outing in which he allowed six runs in three innings to the Athletics.
For a 26-year-old who only made his debut in April, the start against the Astros looked like another chance to find some footing, not a stage for immortality. Instead, Young delivered the best performance of his young career and nearly etched his name into baseball lore.
Pitching in front of family and friends just 95 miles from his hometown of Lumberton, Texas, Young retired the first 23 Astros he faced. With two outs in the eighth inning, he stood only four outs away from completing the first perfect game in Orioles history and the 25th in MLB history. Then, a familiar face spoiled it.
Former teammate Ramón Urías, dealt to Houston at the trade deadline, tapped a slow roller to the left of the mound. Young charged, barehanded the ball, and made a hurried, off-balance throw that sailed wide of first base. Officially, it went into the books as an infield single.
“I thought I could make the play,” Young admitted. “I got there in time. I think I had a little more time to maybe take a step and make a better throw. Obviously rushed it, yanked it. Definitely want it back.”
Brandon Young shines, loses Perfect Game in the eighth
The bid for perfection was gone, but the night was still unforgettable. Young regrouped to strike out Taylor Trammell with a 96-mph fastball, ending the eighth and sealing his dominance. He finished with eight scoreless innings, six strikeouts, and his first major league win in the Orioles’ 7-0 victory. His ERA dropped to 5.68, and for a night, Baltimore fans saw the potential of a pitcher who had labored through his first 10 starts.
“He was throwing all of his pitches for strikes, behind in counts, ahead in counts,” catcher Adley Rutschman said. “Was able to mix locations well. Thought he just executed his plan really well.”
The near-perfect outing placed Young in rare company. According to ESPN Research, he became just the fifth rookie in the last 50 years to carry a perfect game at least 7.2 innings, joining Triston McKenzie (2021), Jorge López (2018), Travis Wood (2010), and Orel Hershiser (1984).
The context made the performance even more striking. Just six days earlier, Young’s season looked like it was spiraling, but interim manager Tony Mansolino credited the rookie’s accountability and work ethic. “Dejected and also accountable is kind of what I got out of when he talked to the media after that last start,” Mansolino said. “That is one of the reasons why this guy’s going to get the best out of himself in his career.”
Young has shown flashes before. He was named Baltimore’s Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2024 and threw an immaculate inning earlier this season. But to take a perfect game that deep into August against Houston — in front of family, at the same ballpark where he watched the “Killer B’s” as a kid — was a different level.
“It’s really hard not to think about it,” Young said. “It’s kind of just trying to calm yourself down and think about just one pitch at a time. Kind of breathe, calm myself down a little bit, but I could tell what was happening.”
For the Orioles, mired in a losing season, Young’s gem offered a moment of hope. For Young himself, it was validation. Even if perfection slipped away by inches, his name now sits in a small club of rookies who’ve flirted with it — and on Friday night in Houston, that was enough to turn a struggling season into something special.
