#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Missed it by that much

#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Missed it by that much
Perhaps you're skipping the trip over the river and through the woods this year. Maybe you've made the tough choice to put the family's health ahead of family togetherness and forego planes, trains and automobiles for now. It might not seem so at the tail end of the kind of year that 2020 has been for all of us, but chances are you've still got much to be grateful for. And while your Thanksgiving table isn't as crowded as usual (or at least it shouldn't be; safety first), we can be...
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Kubatko a finalist for Maryland Sportswriter of the Year

Kubatko a finalist for Maryland Sportswriter of the Year
MASNsports.com Orioles beat writer Roch Kubatko has been nominated as a finalist for the Maryland Sportswriter of the Year award presented annually by the National Sports Media Association. Kubatko, who has been with MASN since 2008, is one of three finalists for the Maryland award, joining Peter Schmuck of The Baltimore Sun and Bill Wagner of The Capital in Annapolis. Voting will be conducted among NSMA members from Dec. 1-31, with the winners to be announced in early January and feted at the...
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Something old, something new

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Something old, something new
We're heading toward a holiday season fraught with uncertainty as we continue to hunker down and try to ride out the pandemic that has turned our lives upside down and is surging again. Thanksgiving is a week from today and many of us are praying for mild weather so that we can, as a means of minimizing risk, re-enact the outdoor feast that the pilgrims had back in the 17th century. Whatever happens in the coming weeks, MASN will keep "Orioles Classics" coming as you await the start of...
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#TBT to "Nationals Classics": An abundance of offense

#TBT to "Nationals Classics": An abundance of offense
There's no way around it: Good teams make their hay at the plate. And if you're one of those who favor offense over pitching, you'll want to pay close attention to this week's smorgasbord of "Nationals Classics" on MASN, which feature more offense than you can shake a stick at. Of course, in this case, that stick would be a Louisville Slugger, or some other wooden implement used to terrorize pitchers. So as you prepare for Thanksgiving, sit back and enjoy these offensive highlights from...
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#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Near perfection at home, craziness in L.A.

#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Near perfection at home, craziness in L.A.
To say that 2020 has been sad, strange and unnerving is almost cliché now. But that doesn't make it any less true. And with seven weeks left before the arrival of 2021, many of us have begun our countdown to New Year's Day a little earlier than usual. As we head toward what's bound to be a long winter likely to bring a coronavirus surge, we all face a long list of morale-challenging circumstances. While it certainly includes much more impactful factors, the absence of baseball still has...
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: From 2,131 through 2020

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: From 2,131 through 2020
As timelines go, this week's "Orioles Classics," if plotted on a chronological chart, would be a series of connecting lines that look like a toddler's scribbles. Luckily, you merely have to watch. No cleanup involved. This week's offerings date from 1995, when the numeral "2,131" entered into Baltimore's sports lexicon, to the recently completed season, which included some strong debuts and the requisite comeback victories. It's early in the offseason, so it's best to remember to pace...
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#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Offseason begins with curly W memories

#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Offseason begins with curly W memories
The World Series is over and free agency has commenced. We've gotten back the hour of sleep we lost in March at about the time baseball and the world went a little crazy. Now it's dark at 5:30 p.m. Is it supposed to be this cold in November? I could swear I saw flurries this morning. While we don't know for sure what the 2021 baseball season will hold, we do know a few simple truths. Among them is that MASN will feed your need for diamond memories all offseason long with "Nationals...
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Comeback wins and marathon matches

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Comeback wins and marathon matches
With the strangest baseball season on record now in the books (congrats to the Dodgers), the offseason is now upon us. The Orioles have already made some roster moves, and more are almost certainly on the way. And with COVID cases climbing again, the O's and the rest of Major League Baseball also will likely be figuring out contingencies in case spring training and/or the 2021 season have to be delayed. So even though there won't be any live games to see, baseball people will still be plenty...
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: A few more retro looks before baseball resumes

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: A few more retro looks before baseball resumes
By this time next week, we'll be staring at real baseball games (assuming COVID-19 doesn't again rear its ugly head and get in the way of our long-awaited reunion with the national pastime). So consider this your own version of the latter stages of spring training 2.0, where you reacquaint yourself with how to watch baseball games in preparation for next weekend's Orioles series in Fenway Park that kicks off the truncated 2020 campaign. Sometimes, the most important thing in a game happens...
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Trumbo, Davis tear up opposition

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Trumbo, Davis tear up opposition
We're now almost a week into the resumption of baseball activities after an abrupt and unwelcome hiatus. And while baseball has undergone many changes over its long evolution, it has never seen such wholesale alteration of the way things are done. Hand-sanitizing stations, daily temperature checks and frequent testing for COVID-19 have become the everyday reality for everyone involved in the sport. The players are doing their best to keep their distance from one another while at the same time...
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#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Walk-off this way, please ...

#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Walk-off this way, please ...
They don't call Ryan Zimmerman "Mr. Walk-off" without good reason. He's got 11 walk-off homers to his credit, and the notion of coming through in the clutch with the game on the line isn't a foreign concept to the longtime Nationals slugger, who has announced he will sit out the 2020 season over concerns about the coronavirus pandemic. Well, the next best thing to seeing Zimmerman walk off an opponent live is seeing it on MASN - and that's where this week's slate of walk-off-heavy...
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#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Doubling down on twinbills

#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Doubling down on twinbills
In a time of disappointments for baseball fans everywhere, Nationals fans got an extra dose of woe this week when they learned that the face of the franchise has opted out of the 2020 season, citing his concern that returning to the clubhouse this year would greatly increase his chances of contracting the coronavirus and spreading it to his family. Ryan Zimmerman, 35, would have been easing off on his playing time this season even if the COVID-19 pandemic had not come to pass. Now with the...
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: A whole lotta Cal Ripken Jr.

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: A whole lotta Cal Ripken Jr.
If you're a longtime viewer of "Orioles Classics" on MASN, you know that we run quite the baseball smorgasbord here. You never know quite what you're going to get in terms of games. This week's buffet is heavy on the Iron Man, featuring the collective hits of Cal Ripken Jr. You'll see his 2,130th game, which tied him with Yankees legend Lou Gehrig for the longest active streak in major league history. You'll see Ripken's 3,000th career hit. And you'll see the game where Ripken made...
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#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Reaching baseball's October pinnacle

#TBT to "Nationals Classics": Reaching baseball's October pinnacle
One of the few positive points about living in pandemic hell is that the Nationals continue to be world champions. And the way things are going, they may get an extended stretch atop the baseball world. In this week's collections of "Nationals Classics" on MASN, we're happy to revisit some October baseball, specifically the four World Series games in which the Nats prevailed over the Astros, all of them coming at Houston's Minute Maid Park. So much for home field advantage, right? There...
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: 11th-inning heroics and a World Series triumph

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: 11th-inning heroics and a World Series triumph
In years to come, our grandchildren will ask us about 2020. Political and societal turmoil raging against a backdrop of global pandemic will certainly give future historians much to analyze. When all the books are written, at least a few will dwell on the effects of the prolonged suspension of sporting events, both on fans and on the sports themselves. In the case of baseball, the coronavirus shutdown brought to a rapid boil the labor conflict that had been expected to simmer for another year....
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: A nailbiter, a decisive blast and the start of something big

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: A nailbiter, a decisive blast and the start of something big
One of the great things about baseball is that the game offers something for everyone, an aspect on full display in this week's collection of "Orioles Classics" on MASN. If you prefer pitchers' duels over slugfests, we've got a good one for you from 2017, a night when the Orioles and Blue Jays matched zeros into extra innings before someone broke through. Of course, some people prefer lots of offense, and few players produced it like 2016 American League home run champ Mark Trumbo, whose...
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#TBT to "Nationals Classics": It just wasn't in the cards for St. Louis

#TBT to "Nationals Classics": It just wasn't in the cards for St. Louis
What with the coronavirus and all, you might feel squeamish about leafing through Father's Day cards wherever you usually go to get that sort of thing. But do at least give dad a call this Sunday. If you still (or again) live with dad, you'll want to spend the day together sharing some great baseball memories as you watch "Nationals Classics" on MASN. Who knows? Maybe you attended one or more of these games together, perhaps the one against the Yankees on Father's Day 2006. Ryan Zimmerman...
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Postseason bonanza

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Postseason bonanza
Looking ahead to the coming week's "Orioles Classics," I couldn't help but think of Jim Mora's most famous moment. Mora, then head coach of the Indianapolis (grr!) Colts, spoke with reporters following a 2001 loss that dropped the team to 4-6. One of those reporters asked Mora about the Colts' chances at making the National Football League playoffs that season, triggering the coach's now legendary reaction. "Playoffs? Don't talk about ... playoffs?" Mora screeched incredulously, his...
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#TBT to "Nationals Classics": A wild introduction to postseason run

#TBT to "Nationals Classics": A wild introduction to postseason run
There's no way around it. We miss baseball. We miss everything about a trip to South Capitol Street to see the Nationals play. The way the warm June breezes buffet the upper deck. The taste of a Ben's Chili Bowl half smoke when you bite into it. The taste of a cold, refreshing Budweiser. The roar of the crowd. We don't know when baseball will return, but until the owners and players can come to some sort of agreement, MASN has plenty of "Nationals Classics" to help you get your diamond...
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Hello, goodbye and everything in between

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Hello, goodbye and everything in between
One of the great things about highlighting rebroadcasts of games from a team with a tradition that stretches back to 1954 is the variety of choices you get in the film library. This week's collection of "Orioles Classics" on MASN stretches all the way back to 1987 and a day when a trio from the same family made headlines. It includes the last game at Memorial Stadium in 1991 and the first game at Camden Yards in 1992. And it includes some memorable moments from the 2012 season that saw the...
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