After back-to-back postseason appearances each of the last two seasons, the Baltimore Orioles were a popular pick by many to potentially take a step up and represent the American League in the World Series. But thus far in 2025, the Orioles have looked like a shell of the team they have been in recent years, resulting in the firing of manager Brandon Hyde on Saturday.
The decision from the Orioles to part ways with Hyde prior to Saturday’s game against the Washington Nationals resulted from of an abysmal stretch of play. Heading into Saturday, Baltimore was 2-10 in its previous 12 games and sat at 15-28, good enough for last place in the AL East.
Some may put it on some of the former All-Stars on the roster who aren’t exactly meeting expectations, like Adley Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson, among others. But ultimately, Hyde ended up taking the fall, a decision that former Orioles ace turned TV color analyst Jim Palmer does ultimately agree with, despite liking Hyde as a person.
Palmer took to social media to weigh in on Hyde being replaced by third base coach Tony Mansolino for the rest of the season, largely placing the blame on the Orioles players and not on Orioles general manager Mike Elias.
“The O’s are playing disheartening baseball,” wrote Palmer. “So they make a change. Tony Mansolino is a really good baseball man. But so was Brandon Hyde. I will not forget the joy of how the O’s played during the 101, 91 wins the last two years. This year is about change, injuries, different team chemistry, and the roster not performing to their capabilities. Elias didn’t get Hyde fired, his players did.”
It’s pretty significant for Palmer to directly blame Orioles players for Hyde’s firing. Simply put, Palmer’s voice holds a ton of weight in the city of Baltimore thanks to his Hall of Fame career as a pitcher, followed by a four-decade-long tenure as a broadcaster.
Maybe Orioles players will use these comments from Palmer as motivation moving forward. But considering the Orioles lost their first game under Tony Mansolino in a 10-6 loss to the Nationals on Saturday, the organization clearly needs to find a way to regroup.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.