Before yet another letdown, before another pitching implosion that led to loud boos throughout Camden Yards sending the Orioles off the field, this was supposed to have been Jackson Holliday’s moment.

Holliday had tried to take it in. In the fourth inning, he took a few paces backward from home plate after he’d crushed a pitch that very nearly landed on Eutaw Street. He watched the ball soar for the first multihomer game of his career and tossed his bat toward the Orioles dugout. He could enjoy his home run trot this time, not left questioning as he had two innings prior when his line drive barely cleared the out-of-town scoreboard.

This may have been Holliday’s finest game early in his career. And yet none of it mattered.

The Orioles’ pitching again let them down in an 11-6 loss to the Kansas City Royals (19-16). The Orioles (13-20) have the second-worst ERA in the major leagues and have allowed the most home runs.

The Royals hit seven home runs, a franchise record.

“It was kinda like everyone was throwing punches and they just happened to run away with it at the end,” Holliday said.

Kyle Gibson pitched four innings after his disastrous season debut last week against the Yankees in which he allowed five home runs and nine runs in 3 2/3 innings. On Sunday, Gibson allowed one home run and three runs overall.

Bryan Baker gave up two more runs on two home runs in one inning. Yennier Cano allowed another two home runs in the seventh. Charlie Morton and Matt Bowman allowed yet another each.

The Royals hit nine total home runs over the last two games against the Orioles. They entered the weekend with an MLB-worst 15 home runs. They leave Baltimore at 25.

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said he plans to continue to give opportunities to Morton. He was moved to the bullpen after starting the year with an ERA above 10 through five starts. The 41-year-old has made three bullpen appearances with mixed results. His ERA is still 9.76.

Although Gibson’s start wasn’t clean, he said he felt a lot better with “where everything was” in what he called a sharper and more in-command performance than against the Yankees.

“It is definitely hard for a team when maybe you feel like a group is struggling hitting, a group of us struggling pitching and you’re losing,” Gibson said. “It’s tough to overcome.”

The Orioles’ failure to meet lofty expectations this season aren’t far apart from the weight Holliday has faced.

Every second of Holliday’s career has been met by the immense expectations that come with being a No. 1 overall draft pick and No. 1-ranked prospect who had soared through the minor leagues and made his major league debut last season before his 21st birthday.

The beginning of his career was disastrous. He was sent down after just two hits in his first 34 at-bats. He marginally turned around to hit .218 the rest of the season after getting called back up in July.

Through his first 13 games of 2025, Holliday had remained inconsistent.

Expectations meant pressure to be an immediate success in Baltimore. But it’s taken time. And now into May of his second big league season — a year and eight days after his demotion to Norfolk — Holliday is at last beginning to find the success he’s been meant for in Baltimore.

Holliday’s last extra-base hit before Sunday came April 16. It was a grand slam. But, since that game against the Cleveland Guardians, Holliday is hitting .341, boosting his season average to .273 and working his way up the lineup.

“I’m just trying to go up there relaxed and confident,” Holliday said. “I think being in a position when I’m ready to launch and confident and feeling free has been the biggest change from going up there and not trying to move the ball forward but just trying to put good swings on it.”

Holliday’s performance was one of an overall strong day for the Orioles lineup. Cedric Mullins and Ryan O’Hearn hit home runs. Gunnar Henderson extended his hitting streak to nine games. Adley Rutschman was one of five Orioles with an RBI.

The expectations facing Holliday are a piece of the overall expectations for the Orioles this season — expectations they have fallen significantly short of.

Holliday said the team found positives — albeit fleeting — from going 3-3 in this six-game homestand, including a series win over the Yankees before dropping the weekend series to the Royals. But he said the Orioles “left some games out there that we could have won.”

Holliday and the Orioles know they have to start winning those games.

Now at least, not even a milestone day from one of the Orioles’ stable of young stars proved to be enough.

This article has been updated.