Orioles' Brandon Young loses perfect game bid to ex-teammate in 7-0 win over Astros

Jacob Calvin Meyer, The Baltimore Sun on Aug 15, 2025

Published in Baseball

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HOUSTON — When Baltimore Orioles rookie Brandon Young took the mound Friday night for the 11th time in his big league career, he was still waiting for his first MLB win.

Instead, he flirted with baseball immortality.

Young carried a perfect game bid into the eighth inning in the Orioles’ 7-0 win over the Houston Astros, retiring the first 23 batters he faced to come just four outs away from doing something no pitcher in Orioles history ever has. But with two outs in the eighth inning, former Oriole Ramón Urías dribbled an infield single that Young threw away — ending both his bid for a perfect game and a no-hitter.

Young was chasing what would have been only the 25th perfect game in MLB history, and the first since New York Yankees right-hander Domingo Germán’s on June 28, 2023. The most recent Orioles pitcher to carry a perfect game into the eighth inning was Mike Mussina, who did so Aug. 4, 1998, against the Detroit Tigers, also making it through 7 2/3 innings before allowing a base runner. Mussina has the longest perfect game bid in Orioles history, going 8 1/3 perfect May 30, 1997, against Cleveland.

With family and friends from his hometown of nearby Lumberton, Texas, in the stands, Young cruised through the Astros’ lineup, stymying their hitters and striking out six with his five-pitch mix. He stranded Urías, whom the Orioles traded to the Astros about two weeks ago, by striking out the next batter, returning to the dugout to a standing ovation to the small contingent of Orioles fans behind it.

Reliever Yaramil Hiraldo pitched a scoreless ninth to seal a third straight victory for Baltimore (56-66).

While all perfect games are rare, Young’s would have been one of the more unlikely in MLB history. The 26-year-old right-hander was 0-6 with a 6.70 ERA and a whopping 1.74 WHIP entering Friday. His most recent start was the worst of his nascent MLB career when he allowed six runs in three innings against the Athletics, after which he was dejected but determined.

“I’m gonna try to forget it as quick as possible,” he said after allowing six runs in three innings against the Athletics. “I feel like I’ve been dwelling on the past few, but now, this one, I’ve just got to get out of my head.”

Young, who is now 1-6 in his MLB career, did receive plenty of help from his defense — including his own glove. Gunnar Henderson made several sharp plays at shortstop to prevent hits. Young snagged an errant throw from Coby Mayo while covering first base. And center fielder Greg Allen caught a deep fly-ball on the warning track the batter before Urías despite right fielder Daniel Johnson running into him.

The eight-inning gem was Young’s longest start since Feb. 29, 2020, at Louisiana Lafayette. A few months later, he signed with the Orioles as an undrafted free agent because the MLB draft was shortened to five rounds as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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