A year ago the Baltimore Orioles looked like a dynasty in the making.
Since then, they've been thoroughly mediocre, and even an improved stretch recently hasn't helped their outlook much for 2025.
After losing two of three to the Yankees in New York, the Orioles are 11 games under .500. They've gone 17-10 over their last 27, so perhaps the worst is over, but over the last 162 regular-season games, Baltimore is 75-87. It's a remarkable decline for a team that won 101 games in 2023, started 49-25 last year and had a core of standouts that was young and cost controlled.
Injuries have been a major factor, with catcher and former No. 1 overall draft pick Adley Rutschman the latest big name to go on the IL. Right-hander Grayson Rodriguez hasn't pitched at all this year. Zach Eflin has made only 11 starts with a 5.46 ERA, and outfielder Colton Cowser and infielder Jordan Westburg have missed significant time as well.
The front office has received little sympathy following an offseason in which ace Corbin Burnes departed and the Orioles replaced him with stopgap solutions on one-year deals.
Although Baltimore is just 6 1/2 games out of a postseason spot, FanGraphs isn't a believer, giving the Orioles just a 3.7% chance of making the playoffs. Baltimore is one of five 2024 postseason participants that would miss out if this season ended today. Here are the others:
SAN DIEGO (42-35 record, 39.3% postseason chance according to FanGraphs): The Padres are a half-game behind resurgent Milwaukee for the last spot in the National League playoffs. San Diego has been treading water since a 23-11 start, and its division just became more interesting after San Francisco acquired Rafael Devers.
CLEVELAND (39-37, 34.1%): The Guardians are tied for the final American League spot but would lose a head-to-head tiebreaker to Seattle if the season ended now. Detroit has opened an 8 1/2-game lead in the AL Central, so unless Cleveland can cut into that significantly, it'll be a wild card or bust for the Guardians down the stretch.
ATLANTA (35-41, 27.3%): The talent is there, but this past week was typical for the 2025 Braves, who followed up a three-game sweep of the Mets by losing two of three to Miami.
KANSAS CITY (38-40, 20.0%): Bobby Witt Jr. can only do so much — only the Pirates have scored fewer runs than the Royals. But the bar in the AL is low, and Kansas City can probably stay in the mix.
In honor of the NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder, name the five current major league franchises that have won the World Series in multiple cities.
Clarke Schmidt threw seven hitless innings for the New York Yankees on Saturday in their 9-0 win over Baltimore. The Orioles managed only one hit on the day — against the New York bullpen.
The Orioles led 8-0 in the third inning at Tampa Bay on Wednesday before the Rays stormed back to win 12-8. Tampa Bay had a 2% chance to win at the start of the third according to Baseball Savant.
Yennier Cano allowed four runs in the fifth to tie the game, and he was sent down to the minors later in the week. Andrew Kittredge then allowed four in the seventh.
That's the issue for the Orioles. Will their pitching allow the kind of hot streak they'd need to jump back into the playoff race?
The Athletics (Philadelphia and Oakland), Braves (Boston, Milwaukee and Atlanta), Dodgers (Brooklyn and Los Angeles), Giants (New York and San Francisco) and Twins (Washington and Minnesota).
Tampa Bay Rays' Josh Lowe (15) and Junior Caminero (13) celebrate after scoring on a Jonathan Aranda single during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles, Wednesday, June 18, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken)
Baltimore Orioles catcher Gary Sánchez (99) talks with starting pitcher Trevor Rogers with the bases loaded during the second inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays, Wednesday, June 18, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken)
Baltimore Orioles players watch from the dugout railing during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees, Saturday, June 21, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)
Minnesota officials have until next week to hand over information on providers and parents who receive federal child care funds that the Trump administration contends have been used fraudulently or risk losing federal funding. State officials said Friday recent inspections showed several childcare centers accused of fraud by a right-wing influencer were “operating as expected.”
In an email sent Friday to child care providers and shared with The Associated Press by multiple providers, Minnesota’s Department of Children, Youth, and Families said it has until Jan. 9 to provide information about recipients of the funds.
The announcement earlier this week by the Trump administration that it would freeze child care funds to Minnesota and the rest of the states comes after a series of fraud schemes involving government programs in Minnesota run by Somali residents, as were many of the childcare centers.
Allegations of fraud at the child care centers went viral recently when a right-wing influencer posted a video claiming there was fraud taking place, putting Minnesota and some other states in the crosshairs of the Trump administration.
State officials said investigators did spot checks and reviews of nine centers this week in response to the influencer's video posted last week, found no operational issues. One center was not yet open at the time, and there are ongoing investigations at four of them.
The Administration for Children and Families, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, provides $185 million in child care funds annually to Minnesota, federal officials have said.
The email sent Friday instructed providers and families who rely on the frozen federal child care program to continue the program’s “licensing and certification requirements and practices as usual.” It does not say that recipients themselves need to take any action or provide any information.
“We recognize the alarm and questions this has raised,” the email said. “We found out about the freezing of funds at the same time everyone else did on social media.”
The state agency added that it “did not receive a formal communication from the federal government until late Tuesday night,” which was after Health and Human Services Deputy Secretary Jim O’Neill posted about the freeze on X. All 50 states will have to provide additional levels of verification and administrative data before they receive more funding from the Child Care and Development Fund, which is designed to make child care affordable for low-income families.
The U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform will hold a hearing Wednesday to discuss the allegations of fraudulent use of federal funds in Minnesota. An HHS spokesperson said that the child care fraud hotline put up by the federal agency earlier this week has received more than 200 tips.
Minnesota has drawn ire from Republicans and the Trump administration over other fraud accusations.
Administration for Children and Families Assistant Secretary Alex Adams told Fox News on Friday that his agency sent Minnesota a letter last month asking for information on the child care program and other welfare programs by Dec. 26, but didn't get a response. The state did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Small Business Administration Administrator Kelly Loeffler posted Thursday on X that the agency suspended 6,900 Minnesota borrowers of COVID-19 era loans because of suspected fraud. Trump has also targeted the state's large Somali community with immigration enforcement actions and called them “garbage.”
Minnesota Democrats say the Trump administration is playing politics and hurting families and children as a result. Minnesota's Department of Children, Youth and Families said in a press release Friday that inspectors conduct regular oversight activities for the child care program, noting that there are 55 related open investigations involving providers.
“DCYF remains committed to fact-based reviews that stop fraud, protect children, support families, and minimize disruption to communities that rely on these essential services," the department said. "Distribution of unvetted or deceptive claims and misuse of tip lines can interfere with investigations, create safety risks for families, providers, and employers, and has contributed to harmful discourse about Minnesota’s immigrant communities.”
Maria Snider, director of a child care center in St. Paul and vice president of advocacy group Minnesota Child Care Association, said providers currently get paid at least three weeks after services are provided. Some 23,000 children and 12,000 families receive funding from the targeted child care program each month on average, according to the state.
“For a lot of centers, we’re already running on a thin margin,” she said. “Even centers where 10 to 15% of their kids are on childcare assistance, that’s a dip in your income.”
Any child who attends a child care center with attendees who receive federal funding could be impacted, Snider said.
According to the Friday email from Minnesota’s Department of Children, Youth, and Families, HHS sent a letter to Minnesota asking for data from 2022 to 2025, including identifying information of all recipients of the child care funds, a list of all providers who receive the funds, how much they receive and “information related to alleged fraud networks and oversight failures.” It’s unclear whether Minnesota already has the data the administration is asking for.
HHS said five child care centers that receive funds from the child care program or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families would have to provide “specific documentation” such as attendance, inspections and assessments, according to the email.
HHS said it would provide Minnesota with more information by Jan. 5, but the state agency wrote that it’s unclear what kinds of funding restrictions it faces.
“Our teams are working hard to analyze the legal, fiscal, and other aspects of this federal action,” the email says. “We do not know the full impact.”
Children watch television at ABC Learning Center in Minneapolis, Minn., on Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark Vancleave)
FILE - Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz speaks during a House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform hearing, June 12, 2025, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)
FILE - State Sen. Michelle Benson reacts at a news conference on Wednesday, April 10, 2019 at the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul to a report by the state's legislative auditor on combatting fraud in Minnesota's Child Care Assistance Program. (AP Photo/Steve Karnowski,File)
People gather for a news conference at the state capitol in St. Paul, Minn., on Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. (AP Giovanna Dell'Orto)
