"Orioles Classics" #TBT: A heaping helping of Birdland memories

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: A heaping helping of Birdland memories
Since it's Thanksgiving, it's only natural to take a moment to give thanks for the abundance we sometimes take for granted. Really, this should be a daily occurrence. But before you plate the turkey, dig into the sides and ponder the pumpkin pie for dessert, let's take a moment to count our blessings. Since we're a baseball site, we'll start with the national pastime. For as long as I can remember, baseball has been the soundtrack of my life, from the time I tucked my transistor radio...
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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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"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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"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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Last chance to be selected as a Maryland Lottery "Contestant of the Game"

Last chance to be selected as a Maryland Lottery "Contestant of the Game"
Time is running out to enter the Maryland Lottery's FAST PLAY "Contestant of the Game" promotion. The final drawing to pick contestants for the remaining Orioles games is this Tuesday, Sept. 1. Two contestants are selected for each Orioles game. The Lottery has awarded $72,000 in cash prizes to winners so far this season, including $2,500 to both Teresa Martin of Whiteford and Dina Pierelli of Dundalk. They were the "Contestants of the Game" for the Aug. 6 game versus the Miami Marlins....
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The Maryland Lottery's "Contestant of the Game" promotion is back

The Maryland Lottery's "Contestant of the Game" promotion is back
Orioles fans and Lottery players alike are gearing up for the start of the 2020 baseball season. The fan favorite "Contestant of the Game" promotion returns, awarding cash to two lucky Maryland Lottery winners per Orioles game. The Lottery will select two "Contestants of the Game" for each of the 60 Orioles games this season. Each winner will receive $500 just for being selected, and an additional $500 for every Orioles home run hit during that game. The O's hit 213 home runs last season,...
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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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"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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"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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"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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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Ripken's run and retirement

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Ripken's run and retirement
Having to hunker down at home while waiting for the new/novel coronavirus (what are they calling it this week, anyway?) to wane has been tough on all of us. But think about what it might have been like for Cal Ripken Jr. had the pandemic hit our shores during his playing days. The Iron Man carved out a place for himself among the legends of baseball by just showing up to work every single day. He couldn't have kept himself in the lineup had he not produced, of course, but by declining to take...
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Something for everyone

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Something for everyone
One of the great things about a baseball game is that different people can watch the same contest and be entertained in multiple ways. All depends on what part of the game you like the most. With that in mind, this week's list of "Orioles Classics" on MASN contains a little something for everyone. You like offense? Well, we've got bunches of home runs and crooked numbers. How about games in which the Orioles slugged six, seven and five round-trippers? You like history? Then the final game...
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Extras! Extras! Read all about it!

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: Extras! Extras! Read all about it!
If you can get up at (or stay up until) 4 a.m., you can now watch live baseball. It's on the tube at that hour because it's coming to you live from South Korea, where COVID-19 precautions have eased up enough to permit the Korea Baseball Organization to play ball, albeit without fans in the stands. It's a little surreal, watching players you don't know in ad-emblazoned batting helmets and umpires in surgical masks, all rattling around in an empty ballpark at a time of day when the vast...
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: More memories from yesteryear

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: More memories from yesteryear
For many years, Mother's Day and baseball were irrevocably intertwined in my life. The first baseball game I ever attended was on Mother's Day 1966, the day Frank Robinson hit a home run out of Memorial Stadium, making him the only player to ever accomplish that feat. Of course, we didn't know it until the next day, when my dad read it in the morning paper. After my dad passed in 1985, mom and I would usually spend Mother's Day at a ballpark. She particularly loved the intimacy of Harry...
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: The first title, Jones' last game as an Oriole

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: The first title, Jones' last game as an Oriole
If the 2020 season had started on schedule, we might have had several postponements already anyhow, given the wet weather we've had this April. But as those of us who suffer from hay fever are especially aware, those April showers bring May flowers. We here at MASN would, of course, like nothing better than to be bringing you live Orioles baseball, but as we all continue to hunker down to fend off the coronavirus as best we can, it looks as though we may have a May without it this year. That...
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: A trio of tripleheaders on tap

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: A trio of tripleheaders on tap
Back in the days before I smartened up, the notion of a tripleheader was quite intriguing. Doubleheaders of my youth meant glorious Sundays spent at Memorial Stadium, figuring how best to stretch five bucks so that it lasted two games. And if the nightcap went more than the regulation nine innings? No worries, since Dad was listening on the radio and knew exactly when to head to the bus stop on Wilkens Avenue to pick us up for the return trip home. Speaking strictly as a baseball professional,...
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"Orioles Classics" #TBT: O's torpedo Mariners

"Orioles Classics" #TBT: O's torpedo Mariners
We're all (Adam) Jonesing for Orioles baseball right now, but you're not missing it on this particular day because April 16 was scheduled as an off-day to begin with. How's that for rationalizing? If not for this pesky pandemic, the Birds would have just hosted the Cubs for a pair, the Wednesday game coming on Jackie Robinson Day. That's the one day during the season when you can't tell the players even with a program, since everybody's wearing No. 42 in honor of the great Dodgers...
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