On the day after the Manager of the Year awards were announced - Kevin Cash of Tampa Bay won in the American League and Miami's Don Mattingly in the National League - it seems an appropriate time to say a few words about the manager here in Baltimore. Brandon Hyde just completed his second season as Orioles skipper. I think judging a manager is a difficult task. Of course, there is the bottom line of the won-loss record. That is there for all to see and you earn your record. It's one way to...

The Orioles today announced the proceeds of the #F16HT t-shirt sales, created in support of infielder/outfielder Trey Mancini's fight against colon cancer, have totaled more than $80,000 to benefit the Colorectal Cancer Alliance. Nearly 5,000 shirts were sold to fans across North America, with orders spanning 45 states, Washington D.C., and Canada. All net proceeds will benefit the Colorectal Cancer Alliance Patient and Family Support Services. "On behalf of the Colorectal Cancer Alliance and...

Mike Rizzo will tell you he doesn't make a single offseason decision based on what other clubs are doing to their roster. The Nationals general manager's sole focus is on improving his team, no matter what anyone else around the league is doing. It's an admirable philosophy, of course, and it has served Rizzo well in his decade-plus in charge of the Nats. It also may be increasingly difficult to adhere to this winter, because there's reason to believe every other club in the National League...

Ryan Mountcastle stuck his head into the Rookie of the Year voting this summer. Just a quick peek. Maybe he can take a deep dive in 2021. Mountcastle received one point via a third-place vote to finish tied for eighth in the American League, as announced tonight on MLB Network. Cal Ripken Jr., who received the honor in 1982, revealed the winner. The Mariners' Kyle Lewis was a unanimous choice with 30 first-place votes for 150 points, followed by the White Sox's Luis Robert with 83 points and...

As the baseball offseason begins to crank up, fans around the sport continue to wait on news about the future of Minor League Baseball. What has become pretty clear is that Major League Baseball is taking over running the minors. The current Professional Baseball Agreement that governs Minor League Baseball has run out as the two sides continue to negotiate the terms of a new one. But MLB will emerge as the organization that oversees all of it and no doubt in some ways this may be better for...

The Orioles today announced that the club has promoted Mike Hoppes to Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer. Hoppes will oversee the organization's finance and accounting functions, including the team's financial reporting with Major League Baseball and the Commissioner's Office. In this role, he joins the club's Senior Leadership Team that manages all aspects of the organization's business operations, consisting of six veteran executives each holding decades of industry...

Whatever planning is done by the Orioles for 2021 should come with the same asterisk attached to the champion of a 60-game season with numerous rule and travel changes. (OK, that's the last one. But again, my argument is based on comparing seasons, not the teams who played in a pandemic.) No decision has been made on the construction of the upcoming season, including the number of games. It's too early. The Orioles need more information as it becomes available. Some roster battles can't been...

Before AJ Graffanino had the opportunity to join the Orioles, before he received a phone call months earlier from a former Braves employee who prepared him for the news, he began to bond with the organization as a fifth-grader taking ground balls next to a shortstop who would beat him to it by 10 years. If this sounds a little confusing, just imagine Graffanino accompanying his father, Brewers shortstop Tony Graffanino, to the ballpark in 2007. Imagine the kid on the field for pregame drills...

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...

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...