"Preseason game, Orioles vs Yankees" (20th, Sarasota)

Orioles pitcher Tomoyuki Sugano allowed his first run and hit in his fifth exhibition game start. He gave up 5 runs on 6 hits in the middle of the 5th inning, walked 2, and struck out 4. The right-hander, who had not allowed a run in 4 consecutive games until his last appearance, now has a 3.00 ERA.

The start of the game was delayed by 50 minutes due to rain. The 35-year-old rookie struggled against the powerful batting lineup led by last season's MVP Judge. With a 0.00 ERA, he walked Judge on a straight pitch with one out in the first inning. He struck out No. 3 hitter Bellinger, but allowed Dominguez to hit a line drive to center field, putting runners on first and second with two outs. On the first pitch, a high inside pitch was hit by Chisholm, who hit a double over the right field wall, giving up two runs. It was his first run allowed in the exhibition season.

In the second inning, he gave up a single to leadoff hitter Cabrera, but struck out the next batter. However, in the third inning, he walked leadoff hitter Judge on four consecutive balls, mostly on the outside. Bellinger hit a high fastball hard, putting runners on first and third. With one out, Chisholm came up to bat, pitching a high inside fastball on a 1-1 count, for a three-run homer over the right field wall, marking his fifth run.

In the fourth inning, he struck out the bottom of the batting order with five pitches, recording the first three-out retirement of the game. In the fifth inning, he faced Judge, who he faced for the third time, with a full count and struck him out swinging with a slider. He had already thrown over 80 pitches, and was told to leave the game after striking out Bellinger with a fly out to center field.

Sugano exercised his overseas free agent rights from the Giants last offseason and agreed to a one-year contract of $13 million (approximately 2 billion yen) with the Orioles. He is expected to be a key player in the starting lineup.