Look, it’s not rocket science. When your team spends years rebuilding—eating up those losses, trading the stars, and selling hope—fans are going to expect payback. The real paycheck, of course, is the rings. And right now, no one is feeling stung more than the Baltimore Orioles fans. After years of hanging at the bottom of the division, this was supposed to be their breakthrough year.

Instead, it’s been a full-on nightmare with a brutal 10-17 start. Firstly, it is an embarrassing loss, and secondly, their championship window is looking rather jammed. But even then, GM Mike Elias is trying to play it cool. If anything, he is saying there is no need to press the ‘panic buttons’ yet. But let’s be real. Outside, the people are losing their patience.

Plus, it’s not just fans who are losing their cool; the heat is coming from within their house, too. Baltimore Sun reporter Jacob Calvin Meyer went to Foul Territory, and no, he didn’t mince words. He said everything that Baltimore Orioles fans are thinking.

While Meyer did start with the fact that it’s tough to be overtly critical of Elias and his regime, given the rebuild. He said that even though the front office did great at the start of the rebuild, there is still a major problem. Something, he mentioned, David Rubenstein might not look past. “So is David Rubenstein willing to look past the 10-17 start? Is he willing to look past a three-year, $50 million contract for Tyler O’Neill? …if they don’t start capitalizing on what was perceived to be a championship window, then yes, the onus is on Mike Elias.” And he is right.

One cannot ignore the red flags, starting with Tyler O’Neill. It’s turned into a giant sign saying, BAD DECISION now. The Orioles gave him $49 million to bash the lefties and pop their lineup. The problem is that everyone knows he was an injury magnet, and so surprise! He is back on the injured list for the fifteenth time in his career.

Instead of pushing the roster ahead with proven guys, the Baltimore Orioles’ season is looking like a swing and a miss right now. David Rubenstein didn’t drop fortunes just to see the franchise be in a progress phase. He would want the runs, the parades, and the wins, and if Mike Elias can’t keep it going, fingers will be pointed only at him when everything falls apart.

Everything is going wrong with the Baltimore Orioles

The Orioles are in such bad condition that they sit dead last in the AL East. In comparison, the Chicago White Sox, at a brutal 7-21, and the Colorado Rockies, at an even worse 4-23, have uglier records than them. This is not the company that the Baltimore Orioles were hoping to keep. And honestly, there is no shortage of reasons to see why it has gotten so bad.

The first alarming thing is the pitching, mostly the starting rotation. It’s been a full-blown disaster, and it’s exactly what people had warned about before the season started. Corbin Burnes left, and the front office got Charlie Morton. But he has become less helpful and more of a liability with his gameplay. But it’s not just pitching; even the offense isn’t lighting up. It almost feels like déjà vu from last season for the fans.

And one of the season’s biggest disappointments is Adley Rutschman. ESPN’s David Schoenfield named him the most disappointing catcher in baseball so far. Ouch! Well, the all-star catcher was supposed to be the cornerstone of the team, but his rough second half of last season is what has come through even in 2025. He is slashing .209/.314/.363—but at least his barrel rate is kicking up, so better days might be around the corner.

The Orioles badly need a spark, and they need the players in a slump to just wake up and get going. Do you think they can find their magic anytime soon?