Publications Are Starting to Notice The Orioles

When I went to Baltimore last week, I was happy to carry along with me a copy of the USA Today Sports Weekly to give to my good friend Ryan.  My wife had told me about the issue and how Buck Showalter was on the cover.  Well, that wasn't the only publication that the Orioles graced the cover of recently.

Sports Illustrated featured Orioles Outfielders Endy Chavez, Adam Jones and Nick Markakis on their cover in their most recent issue.  I picked up a copy on the way back to Ryan's Saturday night after the game.  I can't remember the last time I saw the Orioles on the cover of SI.  The cool thing is, I actually have 2 copies of this issue now because Monday when I got to work, my friend Rae had a copy waiting for me.

I'm certain that the Orioles' recent surge has assisted the Baltimore Sun in selling a few more copies.  Most newspapers are struggling at the moment.  Again, I can't remember the last newspaper I purchased for anything other than coupons, so when I saw this front page, I had to get a copy.

Finally, here is the USA Today Sports Weekly featuring Buck on the cover.  I bought 3 copies of this and gave one to Ryan.  I plan on giving the other copy to one of our subcontractors who always talks to me about the Orioles.

It feels really good that the Orioles are starting to get some attention.  The certain 4-letter network still probably can't believe their beloved Red Sox aren't in the playoffs and still sell the Orioles short.  On XM on Friday, the commentators were giving the Orioles 'no chance' to advance past the Rangers in the playoffs and were calling Buck's decision to start Joe Saunders last night a bad decision.  I'm so happy they are proving people wrong.  I hope all of this continues and the Orioles keep getting the ink.

And Then There Were Fewer

The Orioles have defeated the Rangers in the one-game wildcard playoff and will be hosting playoff games at Camden Yards for the first time in 15 years.  I would love to take some donations to go to the game against the Yankees on Sunday; Standing Room Only tickets are available, but I would have to have Chris with me, and I'm not too sure about taking to the madhouse that will be SRO.

Oh well, I can enjoy the game from my living room!  This season has been so magical and I hope it doesn't stop!  Thank God and Let's Go O's!

We are now down to 8 of 30 teams left after the Braves and Rangers have been sent home.  The Braves/Cardinals game is blighted by a terrible call.  I saw it as it happened and was screaming at the TV.  What a joke.

The Orioles will go one to face the Yankees and hopefully get some retribution for the 1996 ALCS.

Let's Go O's!

For the first time since 1997, the Orioles will be playing a playoff game.  Tonight, they will face the 2-time defending AL Champion Texas Rangers in a one-game, do or die, playoff game.  The loser will go home and the winner will go on to face the Yankees in the ALDS.

For the Orioles, they were picked by almost everyone to lose 100 games and finish last in the AL East.  They weren't supposed to be here.  Shows you that the games aren't won on paper.  If ESPN had it's way, the Red Sox would be in the playoffs playing against the Yankees every year with Brett Favre making an appearance.  This is why I don't watch ESPN.  Bobby Valentine said a few weeks ago that the Orioles were lucky.  I bet he wishes he could have had a little more luck this year.  Jim Bowden said on XM Radio a few months ago that even though the Orioles were in the playoff hunt, he still picked them to finish last and the Red Sox to make the playoffs.  He had to apologize on air a couple weeks ago.

My point is, the Orioles aren't supposed to be here and I am glad they have proven every 'expert' wrong.  I hope they can continue to have some of that magic tonight.  I'm not ready to wake up from this dream season just yet.  Let's Go O's!  Feel the magic happen, O-R-I-O-L-E-S!!!!!

Cards From Checkoutmycards

So, I'm sure you all are wondering how I have been doing on COMC so far.  Well, I have sold 3 of the 50 cards that I had listed so far.  I like the site, so I sent them another box of 115 cards (mostly SPs and parallels - a lot less high end stuff this time) and one graded gem mint 10 Bowman Chrome card.  Maybe I can flip that stuff and get some needs met off of my want list again like I was able to with the cards below.

I can't believe I didn't own a single 1986 Fleer Cal Ripken card.  I had seen them plenty of times,  but for whatever reason, they didn't end up in my collection.  The above card is the base card for the year and below is his League Leaders card.

He was also featured on the below card with Alan Trammell; two of the best shortstops of their generation.  Why Trammell isn't in the Hall of Fame is anyone's guess.

I saw the below 2004 Delmarva Shorebirds Nick Markakis for $0.99, so I added it to my cart.  I hadn't seen any of them before, so I figured it wouldn't hurt to add it to my PC.

The below Nolan Reimold 2009 Topps Finest redemption RC is direct from my want list.  Apparently, there are a few harder to find parallels of this card, but I haven't ever seen them.  I intend to keep my eyes peeled for them, though, because the parallels I have of other players (notably, Brian Roberts) look pretty good.

I also knocked the 2009 Heritage SP RC off of my want list.  I still need the Chrome, though.

I got my first Kevin Gausman card.  Here's to hoping that the Orioles' pitching depth is finally significant enough that Gausman won't be rushed to the majors like Jake Arrieta and Brian Matusz were when they were brought up.  Give Gausman plenty of time to develop in the minors and then call him up when he is ready to join a rotation anchored by Dylan Bundy.

I don't know about you, but I thought the Bowman Ice parallels scanned really nice.  The below Markakis and McCutchen cards are really awesome.

I really wanted the red parallels, but those are commanding pretty hefty prices right now, so I am going to keep my eyes opened for them and hope to get a bargain later on.

Finally, I don't know how I missed it while I was there, but this is a 2012 National Show Leaf Brooks Robinson.  I love adding new Brooks cards to the collection, so this was a 'must have.'

Well, I think I was pretty successful in flipping three cards for 10.  I feel like I made an Andy MacPhail-type trade.  The cards I sold so far were a 2011 Topps Diamond Die Cut Reggie Jackson, 2008 Bowman Chrome no sig Kosuke Fukudome and a Topps Finest Yu Darvish RC.  Not a bad haul, I think.  Make sure you guys take a look at my wares and stay tuned for more cards to be added soon!

Brooks Robinson Statue Dedication

I love Brooks Robinson.  I grew us a Cal Ripken fan, but never really took the time as a kid to look into the past Orioles and understood the history of the team.  I didn't really get into those teams until I got back into the hobby around 2005 or so.  I'm glad I did, though.  Brooks Robinson is, in my opinion, just as much the face of the Baltimore Orioles as Cal is.  They go hand in hand, really.  Baseball's Iron Man and the greatest defensive 3rd baseman of all time.  They both are Hall of Famers and beloved in the city of Baltimore.  For some reason, over the past several years, Brooks and the Orioles have seemed far apart.  Brooks wasn't seen around the ballpark.  He used to do color commentary on broadcasts many years ago, but hadn't been invited to do any for MASN recently.  A statue of Babe Ruth stood outside the gates of Camden Yards, but no statue to Brooks was anywhere to be seen.

Last year, a private investor commissioned a statue dedicated to Brooks.  The statue was unveiled outside and across the street from the ballpark, near Pickles, the famous pub across from Camden Yards.  The statue was erected in honor of a man who, seemingly, hadn't really been honored enough by the team he spent 23 seasons with (a record).  Yeah, he was in the Orioles Hall of Fame and has his number 5 retired, but it seemed to be missing something.  Until September 29, 2012, that is.  On that night, as a part of the Orioles Legends series, honoring the 6 greatest Orioles of all time, a statue inside the ballpark was unveiled in honor of Mr. Oriole, Brooks Robinson.

His statue, which was supposed to be unveiled in April, was the last of the 6 statues to be revealed (Frank Robinson, Earl Weaver, Eddie Murray, Jim Palmer and Cal Ripken are the others who were honored with larger than life sculptures).  Broos' dedication was delayed due to recurring health concerns and it was thought that he might not be able to attend his own ceremony.

The ceremony was befitting the man who spent decades with the Orioles, signed as a 'bonus baby' out of high school in 1955, making his major league debut later that season as an 18-year old.

His former manager, Earl Weaver, and the other Oriole Hall of Famers, looked on as dignitaries (one being ESPN commentator and huge Oriole fan, Roy Firestone) gave speeches honoring Brooks.  Earl Weaver was even shown on the Jumbotron crying.

Cal, Jim, Earl, Eddie and Frank all removed the sheet from the statue, unveiling it for all who attended the ceremony to see.  We were standing along the fence in the flag court watching the proceedings.

Brooks gave a great speech, thanking all in attendance for their years of support.  He also thanked the sculptor for his work and the Angelos family for their contribution to the team and coming through with a great series honoring the past Oriole greats.

Brooks culminated his speech by professing that he no longer wanted to call us fans 'fans' but instead would rather refer to us as his friends.  This brought tears to my eyes as I knew his sincerity and thought to myself how thankful I was to have actually met and spoken to Brooks in person.  He is a true class act and all sports figures can take a lesson from him in humility and class.

Thirty minutes before the game started, an on field ceremony for Brooks was held.  The other Oriole legends, along with Brooks were escorted onto the field in 2012 Camaros.  I got a picture of each one as they came in via the Jumbotron, except for Frank Robinson.  I was too slow in getting my camera out.

Eddie looks like he has added a few pounds but could still knock a ball out of the park.  Cal also looked good and could probably knock a few out himself.

Brooks, on the other hand does look like he has aged greatly since I met him at the 'Dinner With Brooks' event back in October 2010.  He has battled abdominal issues for the past several months, along with a cancer scare and a fall off of a stage earlier in the year.  His health has been a source of stress for Orioles fans recently, and at the age of 75, it shows that he is getting up in years.

Brooks was presented with a 2-foot tall bronze replica of the sculpture that had been revealed earlier that evening.

Brooks gave a second speech, mirroring the one he had given earlier.  He again referred to the fans as his friends and stated that he hoped this was his last celebration of his career.  I think he has had 4 or 5 different career celebrations, so I don't blame him for hoping this one wraps them up.  Especially is his health is not so great.

Brooks took the time to acknowledge the 2012 Orioles, drawing a huge pop from the crowd when he said "How about them Orioles?"  It was really cool to see him acknowledge this year's club and the playoff feel that has been spreading around Baltimore.

Finally, Brooks took a second to assure the crowd that he wasn't "...going anywhere for a long time!"  I took that to mean that he has gotten a clean bill of health and has put the health concerns from earlier this year behind him.

I was so blessed to be able to experience the Brooks statue dedication with some close friends, my wife and my son.  I told Chris that he would be able to take his grandkids to see the statue and tell them one day that he and his daddy were there to see it unveiled.  It definitely was a cool night and I'm glad I was there for Brooks.

September 29, 2012 Buckle Up Rally

Before Saturday's game, we all (me, Ryan, his wife, my wife and my son) went to the Baltimore Animal Shelter and attended one of the Buckle Up rallies that had been held to pump fans up about the team.  At the event were Orioles players such as Brian Matusz, Jake Arrieta, Chris Tillman, Nate McLouth and Wei-Yin Chen.  You were supposed to buy the $15 BARCS Pet Calendar in order to get an autograph, but the players were signing anything put in front of them.  I did get the calendar, in case you were wondering.

They were also giving away T-Shirts, so I got a free Buckle Up shirt and Chris got two free shirts, Arrieta and Matusz.  I was hoping he could get a Chen shirt, but they were all gone by the time we got there.

Here is a photo of Wei-Yin Chen signing Chris' baseball.  We were at the tail end of the line and were being rushed through.  The event was supposed to end at 2PM, but we got to the front around 2:10.  They still signed for the remaining folks in line, which I thought was nice.  The handlers wouldn't have had this problem, however, had they moved the line along quickly to begin with.

Here is a rare shot of my wife making it onto my blog.  She was flirting with Brian Matusz, I think.  Trying to bribe him with her endless pad of signatures.  Actually, he flipped through her pad and wanted to look through it, but he didn't have enough time.  He even told my wife that he was dying to know who all she had in there.

Here is my Matusz ball.  I now have 3 signed baseballs from Matusz.  I might be willing to trade one if someone has anything to offer.  Just saying.

Here is my Jake Arrieta ball.  This one, along with the one below were a little tough to distinguish 'which way is up.'  I had to go on Ebay and look at some other Arrieta autos in order to tell which was the proper orientation for his auto.  The photo above is the correct oriantation.

So, now, this one is really cool.  Wei-Yin Chen came from the Japanese league, but is actually from Taiwan.  He signs his name in Mandarin Chinese and it is read from top to bottom (I think).  At least, he put his number at the bottom, so I assume that is how it is to be read.  If any Chinese scholars would like to correct me on this, please feel free to do so.  I know English and German, so Chinese is definitely not a strength of mine.  I was excited to get this ball, however.  I got the Matusz and Arrieta autos on Rawlings OLB balls, and the Chen on a Selig OMLB ball.

We had a blast at the Buckle Up rally and got 3 good signatures for only 15 bucks, so I feel like we made out pretty well.

Oriole Magic - Orioles Clinch a Spot in the Playoffs

For the first time since 1997, the Baltimore Orioles will be playing baseball after the regular season ends.

In 1997, the Orioles led the division wire to wire; I was a senior in high school.  I was able to follow the season every morning by discussing the previous night's game with an art teacher at my school.  She wasn't my art teacher, but she shared a classroom with us and her planning period was during my class.  She actually gave me a team photo of the 1997 Orioles when it was sent to her by the Baltimore Sun.  I still have that photo.

That year was long before blogs and social media permeated our lives and culture, so this year, I have been able to follow and discuss each and every game, mainly by following Roch Kubatko's blog on MASNSports.com.  This year was also the first year that I have been a subscriber to Dish Network.  I canned my cable company in favor of Dish because, well, my cable company refused to carry MASN.  I told my wife before spring training started that we were getting Dish for the sole purpose of being able to watch O's games.  I think I have either watched on TV or listened on XM, probably 90% of O's games this year.  I think the ones I have missed were a couple west coast games, or daytime games while I was at work.

I could not have predicted that this year's Orioles would make the playoffs.  They have used 52 different players this year.  Seemingly, a shuttle was running from Camden Yards to Harbor Park (Norfolk's stadium) to the doctor's office.  Yet, they remain tied with the Yankees for the AL East lead with 3 games to go.  It isn't out of the realm of possibility that the Orioles could surpass the Yankees.  It will be tough for the O's to win their upcoming series with the Rays, but the last time they played each other, the Orioles swept them.  So, it could happen.

This year has been so improbable.  Seeing Chris Davis slam 31 home runs AND record a win as a pitcher while striking out Adrian Gonzalez.  Or Manny Machado starting at third base after beginning the year at AA Bowie.  Or how about Dylan Bundy starting the season at Low A Delmarva and now residing in the bullpen.  Oh yeah, you can't forget the mysterious appearance of Miguel Gonzalez, an oft injured pitcher who was released by the Red Sox organization only to be discovered in the Mexican League by the Orioles scouts and signed to a minor league deal.

I don't know what the Orioles will be up to next week, but my hope is that they will be working their way deep into the playoffs.  In years past, it would be really easy to count them out, but this year, they have scratched and clawed their way through the season and now, they, as much as any of the other 9 teams, have a decent shot of heading to the World Series.

Oriole Magic, feel it happen.