Originally known as the Portsmouth-Norfolk Tides, the team began play in 1961 as members of the Class A South Atlantic League.

[8][9] Six years after the loss of the Tars and Merrimacs, the Portsmouth-Norfolk Tides were established as members of the Class A South Atlantic League.

[6] They played some home games at Frank D. Lawrence Stadium in Portsmouth and some at High Rock Park in Norfolk.

[12] Their inaugural season opener was a 7–4 victory in Portsmouth over the Charlotte Hornets with 3,158 people in attendance on April 17, 1961.

Under manager Allen Jones, they qualified for the playoffs that year for the first time in team history and defeated the Kinston Eagles in the semifinals to advance to the championship round where they lost to the Winston-Salem Red Sox.

After defeating the Peninsula Grays in the semifinals, the Tides won the Carolina League championship by sweeping the Durham Bulls, 2–0.

[25] International League Manager of the Year Clyde McCullough led the team to a league-best 76–59 record in their first Triple-A season, but they were eliminated in the semifinals of the Governors' Cup playoffs to determine the IL championship.

[28] After another semifinal exit that year,[29] the Tides reached the finals in 1971 but lost the championship to the Rochester Red Wings in the full five-game series.

[30] Hank Bauer, manager of the 1972 club, led the Tides to win their first Governors' Cup with a 3–2 series defeat of the Louisville Colonels in the finals.

[31] Following this win, Tidewater competed in the Kodak World Baseball Classic, a five-team round-robin tournament that included the champions of the American Association (the Evansville Triplets) and Pacific Coast League (the Albuquerque Dukes), the Caribbean All-Stars, and the hosting Hawaii Islanders.

[34] Afterwards, they met the Evansville Triplets, champions of the American Association, in the Junior World Series, which the Tides lost, 4–1.

[38] Under Davey Johnson in 1983, the Tides dispatched Columbus in the semis, and then won a second consecutive IL title over the Richmond Braves.

[49][50][51] Mike Fyhrie won the 1996 Most Valuable Pitcher Award, and first baseman Roberto Petagine was the 1997 IL MVP.

The Orioles preferred the quality of the facilities at Harbor Park as well as the more favorable weather and proximity of Norfolk compared to their previous location in Ottawa.

[53] Maryland Baseball Holding, the Tides' ownership group led by Ken Young, also owned two other Orioles-affiliated teams at the time: the Bowie Baysox and Frederick Keys.

[6] The 2015 team, led by IL Manager of the Year Ron Johnson qualified for the Governors' Cup playoffs as winners of the Southern Division title but lost in the semifinals to Columbus in five games.

[59] No playoffs were held to determine a league champion; instead, the team with the best regular-season record was declared the winner.

[61] In 2022, the Triple-A East became known as the International League, the name historically used by the regional circuit prior to the 2021 reorganization.

[63] On April 8, 2023, the Tides set the franchise record as an Orioles affiliate for the most runs scored in a game in a 21–2 victory over the Gwinnett Stripers.

[66] They won the Triple-A National Championship Game versus the Oklahoma City Dodgers, champions of the Pacific Coast League, 7–6.

Games can be viewed through the MiLB.TV subscription feature of the official website of Minor League Baseball, with audio provided by a radio simulcast.

Several former Tides broadcasters have gone on to work in Major League Baseball or other major league sports, including: Ford C. Frick Award winner Marty Brennaman (1970–1973), Pete Van Wieren (1974–1975), Larry Matson (1976), Bob Rathbun (1980–1985, 1990), Charlie Slowes (1986, 1991–1992), Ken Levine (1989–1990), and Bob Socci (2006–2011).