Category Archives: Baltimore Orioles News

Baltimore Orioles: Camp breaks and north we go

With an 8-3 loss to Tampa this afternoon in Sarasota, the Baltimore Orioles break camp with a record of 10-17. That translates as a .377 win percentage, which translates to between 59-60 wins over 162 games played. That might be where the Orioles end up, and it might not be. Keep in mind that often these spring games are controlled scrimmages, and nothing more. But nevertheless, the Birds closed Grapefruit League play with a 10-17 record.

The Orioles’ starting rotation will be as follows (some of these names we already knew): John Means, Matt Harvey, Bruce Zimmerman, Jorge Lopez, and Dean Kremer. It’s also worth mentioning that we don’t know how the rotation will be used. In the past, Hyde’s shown a willingness to use starters as “openers,” or to pull them quickly if the situation warrants it. So whether or not all of these guys are going to be looking to go seven or eight innings in games is another story.

The Orioles will have an off day tomorrow, and a team workout on Wednesday, after which they’ll fly to Boston for Thursday’s Opening Day game at Fenway Park. That rotation will be tested early with three games at Fenway, and then three in New York against one of the best lineups in baseball. I suspect if they can head for home next week for the home opener with a .500 record, they’ll be satisfied.

Once the final roster is set, stay tuned for my 2021 season preview. depending on the timing it may well be on Thursday. Who knows – time will tell. But one way or the other, the regular season starts Thursday!

Baltimore Orioles: So many years later, and the beer’s still cold

The Baltimore Orioles find themselves on the first of two off days during Grapefruit League play. So I’m going to take this opportunity to write the 2021 version of an annual column that I pen during Spring Training every year. The Orioles have statues honoring all of their Hall of Famers at Camden Yards. Save for one…

…and that would be the great Chuck Thompson. By virtue of winning the Ford C. Frick award in 1993, he is in fact a Hall of Famer. And I know that for the most part, he needs no introduction.

Thompson worked Orioles’ games primarily on the radio (but at times on television) from 1962-1982, and remained on the television side until 1987 when he retired. He came out of retirement to work part-time on Orioles’ radio in 1991 until 2000, when his eyesight became too poor for him to continue. Everyone of course knows Thompson’s two big catchphrases, ain’t the beer cold, and Go to war, Ms. Agnes!

He was Baltimore’s version of Vin Scully. Every town had one in a sense, and he was Baltimore’s (despite working Washington Senators’ games for awhile prior to joining the O’s, and despite the national work that he did as well). Philadelphia had Harry Kalas, New York (Yankees) had Mel Allen, Los Angeles (Dodgers) had Vin Scully, and Baltimore had Chuck Thompson.

Speaking for myself, I became acclimated with Thompson towards the end of his career. He called the games on television when I was a young child, but I also spent a lot of years listening to him do games on the radio when he came out of retirement. I used to play pepper in my grandmother’s back yard while listening to the games on the radio by way of Chuck Thompson on WBAL.

So like most people, his voice is a reminder of good times for me. That smooth delivery which always indicated good times and Orioles’ baseball. I can also remember being down at the Delmarva Shore and during a day game hearing Thompson’s voice echoing softly around the beach, as people would follow the games while on vacation.

And everyone reading this has their own memories of Chuck Thompson, and what he means to them. Some people may not care, for all I know. But to throngs of Orioles fans of a certain age he was the voice of summertime, and everything that represents. As I said, good times, easy times, the beach, or perhaps sitting on the porch drinking lemonade while listening to the game in the afternoon.

As I said, I write about Chuck Thompson every year during spring training. Usually on a day off, such as today. He’s an important part of the franchise’s history, and I wish that more fans perhaps too young to have experienced his work knew that. Before there was MASN, before there was listening to and watching games online, there was Chuck Thompson.

I’ve said this in previous years, but I’d love to see the Orioles put Thompson in his rightful spot with the other Hall of Famers. Perhaps not in statue form, but perhaps by dedicating the Camden Yards Press Box in his honor – the Chuck Thompson Memorial Press Box. That would give him the due he deserves, and would thus allow us to say more clearly and for all time…AIN’T THE BEER COLD?!

Baltimore Orioles: Trey Mancini returns for the Birds

Very shortly the Baltimore Orioles will commence their first spring game of 2021, and with a familiar face that we didn’t see in 2020: Trey Mancini. We’ll see Mancini at first base this afternoon in the Grapefruit League opener at Ed Smith Stadium against the Pittsburgh Pirates. And what a great sight that will be.

Mancini of course sat out all of last season after being diagnosed with colon cancer. He’s completed his treatments, and is ready to play. Again, he’s starting at first base this afternoon. However it appears that he’ll platoon this season between first base, the outfield, and perhaps DH. Manager Brandon Hyde on Mancini:

I’m going to play him at first, DH him some, especially the first couple weeks. I talk to him every single day, see how he’s doing every day. We’re just going to continue to communicate and I’ll have him in there every other day for a while, whether it be at first base or DH, and we’ll see how he feels. We’ll crank up the playing time if he feels well the last couple weeks

Quote courtesy of Roch Kubatko, MASNsports

But the bigger story is that he’s ready to play and/or in the lineup at all. It was a tough road back for Mancini. Colon cancer is nothing to sneeze at. This moment was never guaranteed for Mancini, and I can tell you that first hand as the son of a cancer survivor. It’s a moment I’m sure that will be celebrated by his family and friends across the board.

As stated above, today is the Grapefruit League Opener for the Orioles, against the Pittsburgh Pirates, at Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota. Thomas Eshelman gets the start for the O’s, and he’ll be opposed by Pittsburgh’s Chad Kuhl. Gametime is set for just after 1 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Spring Training coverage on Birdland Crush

The Baltimore Orioles and the rest of major league baseball are attempting something that worked out really well just now for the NFL: a normal season. However I would submit that the coming baseball season, while not truly normal, will be more normal than even the NFL season was. The majority of NFL games were played without fans, whereas baseball will be admitting fans this year. It’ll be different than usual in that the numbers will be limited and social distancing will be necessary in ballparks, but we’ll see fans.

The NFL also had no preseason back in August, while baseball is going full steam ahead with it’s Grapefruit and Cactus League seasons. The Orioles open their exhibition slate of games on Sunday at Ed Smith Stadium against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Not that it means anything, but Thomas Eshelman will get the start.

However the league has slightly scaled back the number of games that each team will play, and in the case of Florida, they’ve “quarantined” teams. The Orioles will only play teams that train on the Gulf Coast of Florida. This while teams who train on the east coast will also be playing one another exclusively. I suppose this cuts down on the amount of travel, although with a few exceptions the O’s normally seem to stick with Gulf Coast teams. The Grapefruit League schedule is also ever-so-slightly shorter than in the past, and there’ll be no split squad games.

Coverage of games is also scaled back this year, although that’s more on an individual team basis. As of now, Orioles’ radio will cover twelve games. That could change, but that’s where we stand now. We won’t be covering every game as normal here at Birdland Crush. However you can expect normal game recaps and analysis for a decent number of them. You can also follow me on Twitter, @DomenicVadala, for game highlights and reaction as well. However come April 1st in Boston, we’ll be full-throttle!

Baltimore Orioles: Twelve spring games on Orioles’ radio

Opening Day for Baltimore Orioles’ spring training is this coming Sunday, February 28th. However 105.7 “the fan” (WJZ-FM), the Orioles’ flagship radio station, will be carrying 12 games during the spring. This starting with Tuesday, March 2nd vs. NYY at 1 PM.

The majority of the games will be home games at Ed Smith Stadium. However there will be a few road games sprinkled into that slate. And keep in mind, the games could always change. There have been years that games have been added to the spring slate of games for the sake of fan exposure to the team.

At this time, there does not appear to be any games being carried on television by MASN this spring. Again however, that could change.

Baltimore Orioles: Pitchers and catchers report today

Baltimore Orioles’ pitchers and catchers are due to report to Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota by today. Many of them are already there, as are a few position players. The first workouts begin in earnest tomorrow, and full team workouts begin on February 22nd.

Pitching seems to be a motif for the Orioles dating back to time immemorial. However I suspect we’ll see some open competitions in camp this year for starting roles. That makes the importance of the spring games all the more accentuated.

On that note, the spring schedule has been tweaked slightly. The Orioles will now begin Grapefruit League play on Sunday, February 28th at home against the Pittsburgh Pirates. They’ll also finish up a day later, as they’ll play the Tampa Rays to close the spring slate of games on March 29th. Opening Day is April 1st at Fenway Park in Boston.

MLB also announced last week that the re-tooling of the schedule will pit the teams who train on the west coast of Florida against one another. The same will be true of the east coast of Florida teams. So the Orioles will only exclusively play, Toronto, Boston, New York (Yankees), Tampa, Pittsburgh, Minnesota, Atlanta, Detroit, and Philadelphia. This is being done specifically to cut down on travel due to COVID. Television and radio coverage of the new schedule has not yet been announced.

Baltimore Orioles: Throwing out the “First” pitch

It’s not about the Baltimore Orioles per se, but this is literally one of my favorite recurring columns that I pen every year. It’s probably redundant if you go back and look at previous years. But it incorporates two of my most cherished things in life, civics and sports.

Today is President’s Day, which means it’s a federal holiday. And obviously the Presidency has a very unique link to Major League Baseball. That of course being the President throwing out the first pitch at games. Also known as the “Presidential First Pitch.”

The tradition began in 1910 with President William Howard Taft throwing out the first pitch on Opening Day for the Washington Senators as they began the season against the Philadelphia Athletics. Obviously Washington DC became the most likely venue for a President to throw out the first ball, and it usually happened on Opening Day. President Taft would also return the following year to do the honors again, in what would quickly become a tradition.

In 1915 President Woodrow Wilson became the first President to throw out the first pitch outside of Washington DC, when he did the honors at Philadelphia’s Baker Bowl in the World Series. His successor, Warren G. Harding, would also travel outside of the capital to throw out a first pitch, doing so on Opening Day in 1923 at Yankee Stadium.

Pretty much every President up to and including President Obama threw out a first pitch somewhere. One highlight I always like to throw in (no pun intended) is Opening Day, 1940, at Griffith Stadium in Washington. President Franklin D. Roosevelt arrived on the scene to throw out the first pitch, and apparently hit a Washington Post camera in doing so. I’m not sure why I always work that into this column, but I do. It’s kind of a tradition – embrace it! Of course back in those days the President (or any person throwing out the first pitch) would sit in the front row of the grandstand by the dugout and throw the ball to the catcher on the field. President Ronald Reagan actually began the tradition of throwing from the mound.

When the Senators left after the 1972 season, Baltimore became the most likely destination to host the Presidential First Pitch. President Jimmy Carter came to Memorial Stadium in game seven of the World Series in 1979 to do the honors, and President Reagan came on Opening Day 1984 and 1986.

Memorial Stadium also hosted President George H.W. Bush on Opening Day 1989. The final season at Memorial Stadium brought Vice-President Dan Quayle to town on Opening Day, but the following year President Bush was back in town to throw out the first ball in the inaugural game at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. President Bill Clinton would come to Camden Yards in 1993 and 1996, both on Opening Day.

I do find it sad that the President throwing out the first pitch on Opening Day is a tradition that seems to have subsided in recent years. President Donald Trump was the first President in a line dating back to Taft not to throw out the first pitch anywhere. Every other President has done it at least once – and most of them have only done it once at that. Invariably, that’s probably due to baseball being absent from Washington DC for so long.

Which brings me to the present, where America currently has a new Commander-In-Chief, President Joe Biden. (Who incidentally came to Baltimore as Vice-President and threw out the first ball on Opening Day one year.) My hope is that the Washington Nationals invite him to do the honors this year. I always close this column with the same point: regardless of party affiliation or anything else, I think that the President of the United States should throw out the first ball in Washington DC on Opening Day every year.

Baltimore Orioles to admit fans at Ed Smith Stadium

The Baltimore Orioles announced today that fans WILL BE ADMITTED to Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota for spring training games. It will be limited to 25% of capacity, however fans will be allowed to purchase tickets for spring games. Each home game will be limited to 1,833 fans, and tickets will be sold in “pod seating,” so as to allow people to socially distance.

Nothing has been announced in the way of fan admission for regular season games, however that 25% capacity number shouldn’t necessarily tell us how many fans will be admitted come April. First off, every locality is different. That number’s based on where Florida is in terms of COVID right now. However Oriole Park at Camden Yards is also a much bigger facility than Ed Smith Stadium. It may well end up being that the Birds can get away with allowing 40 or 50% capacity in Baltimore.

The Orioles also announced all of their game times yesterday. There are a few changes from years past; Monday-Thursday home games will begin at 6:35 PM as opposed to 7:05 in April, May, and September. I suspect this is being done to allow the games to end earlier for kids in school. Exceptions to this rule: Thursday, April 15th vs. Seattle (1 PM), Thursday, April 29th vs. NYY (1 PM), Thursday, May 20th vs. Tampa (12:30), and Thursday August 16th vs. NYY (1 PM).

During the summer months (June, July, August) the mid-week games will revert back to the 7:05 start time. All Friday games will begin at 7:05, as will most Saturday games over the course of the season. However select Saturday games will begin at 4:05, and all Sunday home games will begin at 1:05 PM.

Baltimore Orioles: Felix Hernandez coming to the O’s

The Baltimore Orioles yesterday signed former Cy Young award winner Feliz Hernandez to a one-year minor league deal. Hernandez of course had many great seasons with the Seattle Mariners, earning him the nickname, King Felix. His last season was 2019, as he opted to sit out last season due to the pandemic.

This sounds like the Orioles signing washed up stars once again. However bear in mind that it’s a minor league deal. Very low risk to the organization. Hernandez will presumably have an opportunity to compete for a roster spot during spring training, and could well end up an innings eater, back-of-the-rotation type of guy on the 2021 Orioles.

Baltimore Orioles: MLBPA rejects delayed and shortened season

It appears that Baltimore Orioles baseball will be returning in 2021 at the previously prescribed moment. Last night the MLBPA rejected MLB’s proposal of a 154-game season, starting roughly a month later than scheduled. The proposal also included expanded playoffs, universal use of the DH, and the players being paid based on 162 games.

In my view this is the best outcome in general. I personally don’t see how delaying the start of the season would do anything in regards to COVID. As of now, camps are set to begin on February 17th. Opening Day is set for April 1st. Teams are being instructed by the league to prepare to get things going based on that original schedule. And again, I see that as a good thing.