masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgWith the NCAA men’s basketball tournament ending last night in such dramatic fashion, did Orioles catcher Matt Wieters experience his own one shining moment?
Wieters had the walk-off single with two outs in the ninth inning in a 3-2 win over the Twins at Camden Yards. His moment came after four failed at-bats that included two strikeouts and five runners left on base.
Mark Trumbo singled with two outs in the first inning and Wieters struck out. He singled with one out in the fifth and Wieters…

With the NCAA men’s basketball tournament ending last night in such dramatic fashion, did Orioles catcher Matt Wieters experience his own one shining moment?

Wieters had the walk-off single with two outs in the ninth inning in a 3-2 win over the Twins at Camden Yards. His moment came after four failed at-bats that included two strikeouts and five runners left on base.

Mark Trumbo singled with two outs in the first inning and Wieters struck out. He singled with one out in the fifth and Wieters lined to second base. He singled with two outs in the seventh and Wieters struck out. He singled with two outs in the ninth and Wieters sent ’em home happy.

Matt Wieters smile.jpgWieters also extended his hitting streak to nine games dating back to Sept. 23, 2015. He’s 13-for-32 (.406).

Trumbo can’t be overlooked as he became the fourth player to record at least four hits in his Orioles debut, joining Chris Parmelee on June 16, 2015, Ronny Paulino on April 7, 2012 and Sam Horn on April 9, 1990.

Are those four shining moments?

Trumbo stole his first base since Aug. 14, 2014 with the Diamondbacks. He swiped two bags that season in 88 games.

We’ll never know if Chris Tillman’s early dominance would have carried through the rest of the game, but he was special. Six batters, five consecutive strikeouts.

“Best stuff I’ve ever seen him carry,” Wieters said. “He’s had plenty of big games for us, but stuff-wise, especially on opening day, that was as good as I’ve seen.”

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Joey Rickard was the first Oriole to start on opening day the year after being selected. According to STATS, the last Orioles Rule 5 pick to appear in an opening day game was Jose Bautista in 2004.

Whatever happened to that guy?

Rickard already has become a fan favorite, the crowd chanting his first name after he singled, doubled and scored a run in his first two at-bats.

“I don’t care how long you’ve been playing, but playing in a new venue in a new park with new teammates, you want to get off right, and I think our guys were pulling for him because they’ve been in those shoes,” said manager Buck Showalter.

“I like the fact that he wasn’t trying to be too cool about it. You could tell there was a lot of emotion today with it, but he stayed under control pretty good.”

Online betting site Bovada still has the Orioles at 40/1 to win the World Series, the same odds posted on Nov. 2, 2015. The Cubs moved from 11/1 to 5/1.

The Orioles are 20/1 to win the American League pennant and 15/2 to win the division.