Title: February
osfan58202233 - February 1, 2008 05:11 AM (GMT)
February 1
1944 - Paul Blair is born in Cushing, Oklahoma
and there are lots of things said about him in the resurrected Born Today post :biggrin:
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<img src="http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a61/dmhmt/paulblair.jpg" width=400>
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from spring training, ft. lauderdale, march 2006
1944 - Paul Blair is born in Cushing, Oklahoma
and there are lots of things said about him in the resurrected Born Today post :biggrin:
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<img src="http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a61/dmhmt/paulblair.jpg" width=400>
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from spring training, ft. lauderdale, march 2006
Sluggo - February 1, 2008 12:20 PM (GMT)
February 1
1973 - The Orioles sell OF Don Buford to the Fukuoka Lions in Japan.
According to Baseball Library.com:
1973 - The Orioles sell OF Don Buford to the Fukuoka Lions in Japan.
According to Baseball Library.com:
| QUOTE |
| The compact, switch-hitting outfielder-handyman was a key member of the 1969-71 AL champion Orioles. After four years as a regular infielder with the White Sox, he went to Baltimore in the 1968 deal for Luis Aparicio. The 5'7" team player was a top leadoff man, drawing walks, stealing bases, and scoring runs (99 in three consecutive years, leading the AL in '71). He was also the most difficult man in modern baseball history to double up, grounding into only 33 double plays in 4553 at-bats. Buford led off the 1969 WS with a homer off Tom Seaver. After a disappointing 1972 season, he left the Orioles to play in Japan. Known there as "the greatest leadoff man in the world" for his heroics on the Orioles' 1971 tour of Japan, he hit .270 with 65 HR in 1973- 76. |
osfan58202233 - February 2, 2008 04:03 PM (GMT)
February 2
1937 - Don Buford is born in Linden, Texas
from Wikipedia:
1937 - Don Buford is born in Linden, Texas
from Wikipedia:
| QUOTE |
| ...One benefit of being a lead-off hitter is facing a lesser amount of double play situations. Along with this, Don showed his baseball talents by only grounding into 34 double plays during his big-league career (4553 at bats). By doing this, he holds the Major League Record for the fewest GIDP hit into, averaging one in every 138 at bats. His career total is two fewer than Jim Rice's single-season record, set in 1984, of 36, and 316 fewer than Cal Ripken's career record mark of 350 GIDP's. |
and
| QUOTE |
| After the 1967 season the White Sox traded Buford to Baltimore in the same dealt that sent Luis Aparicio back to the White Sox, for whom he had starred from 1956 to 1962 (and was one of the ChiSox’ most popular players). In 1968 Buford batted .282 with 15 home runs in a lineup that also featured the likes of Frank Robinson, Brooks Robinson, Boog Powell and Davey Johnson. In 1969 Buford hit a career-high .291 as the Orioles won the American League pennant. In the first game of the World Series against the New York Mets, Buford hit a leadoff home run against Tom Seaver and drove in another run with a double as the Orioles won 4-1. However, he went 0-for-16 over the next four games, all won by the Mets for a seemingly impossible Series victory. In 1970 Buford batted .272 with 17 home runs and a career high 109 walks. The Orioles gained redemption in the World Series, which they won over the Cincinnati Reds in five games. Buford, playing in four of those games, went 4-for-15, including a home run in Game Three, which Baltimore won 9-3. In 1971 Buford batted .290 with a career-high 19 home runs. He was also selected to the All-Star team for the only time in his career. Again the Orioles went to the World Series; this time, however, the Pittsburgh Pirates defeated them in seven games. Buford collected six hits in this Series; two of them were home runs. |
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<ul>
<li>Buford was the first Baltimore Oriole to homer from both sides of the plate in the same game. He accomplished this feat on April 9, 1970 in a 13-1 win over the Cleveland Indians.
<br>
<li>Buford also had the dubious distinction of being the first Oriole ever to strike out five times in one game, on August 26, 1971. Fortunately for him, his Orioles defeated his former team, the Chicago White Sox, 8-7.
</ul>
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Sluggo - February 3, 2008 03:12 AM (GMT)
February 2
2001 It will take approximately seven more feet to hit a home run at Camden Yards this season as a result of the Orioles moving home plate.
2005 The ill-fated Sammy Sosa trade is finalized. The Cubs exchange ‘Slammin’ Sammy’ for second baseman Jerry Hairston Jr. and two minor-leaguers and agree to pay Baltimore $16.15 million of the remaining $25 million left on a $72 million, four-year contract signed in 2003.
2001 It will take approximately seven more feet to hit a home run at Camden Yards this season as a result of the Orioles moving home plate.
2005 The ill-fated Sammy Sosa trade is finalized. The Cubs exchange ‘Slammin’ Sammy’ for second baseman Jerry Hairston Jr. and two minor-leaguers and agree to pay Baltimore $16.15 million of the remaining $25 million left on a $72 million, four-year contract signed in 2003.
osfan58202233 - February 6, 2008 06:45 AM (GMT)
February 6
1895 - Babe Ruth is born on Emory Street in Baltimore, Maryland.
see Born Today post
and my favorite photo:
1895 - Babe Ruth is born on Emory Street in Baltimore, Maryland.
see Born Today post
and my favorite photo:
osfan58202233 - February 9, 2008 05:19 AM (GMT)
February 8
1977 - Billy Smith, a switch-hitting second baseman who played out his option with the Angels, sings a two-year contract with the Orioles. Smith was the lone free agent acquisition from the reentry draft that saw the Orioles lose Reggie Jackson, Bobby Grich, and Wayne Garland.
1977 - Billy Smith, a switch-hitting second baseman who played out his option with the Angels, sings a two-year contract with the Orioles. Smith was the lone free agent acquisition from the reentry draft that saw the Orioles lose Reggie Jackson, Bobby Grich, and Wayne Garland.
osfan58202233 - February 10, 2008 06:48 PM (GMT)
February 10
1933 -- Billy O'Dell, the first bonus baby signed by the Orioles, is born in Whitmere, South Carolina.
1933 -- Billy O'Dell, the first bonus baby signed by the Orioles, is born in Whitmere, South Carolina.
osfan58202233 - February 12, 2008 06:22 AM (GMT)
hey sluggo - we got some gaps here in the book...you got any contributions the next few days?
Sluggo - February 12, 2008 12:28 PM (GMT)
| QUOTE (osfan58202233 @ Feb 12 2008, 01:22 AM) |
| hey sluggo - we got some gaps here in the book...you got any contributions the next few days? |
Looking a little thin, but here's one for yesterday:
February 11, 1987
Free-agent 3B Ray Knight, who earlier had rejected an $800,000 one-year contract offer from the Mets, signs with the Orioles for $475,000 plus incentives and an option for a 2nd year.
Sluggo - February 12, 2008 12:29 PM (GMT)
February 12, 1932
George Weiss, GM of the Baltimore Orioles (International League), joins the Yankee front office. He will eventually run the club during its years under Casey Stengel's managing.
George Weiss, GM of the Baltimore Orioles (International League), joins the Yankee front office. He will eventually run the club during its years under Casey Stengel's managing.
Sluggo - February 13, 2008 12:47 PM (GMT)
February 13 (Dead guy edition) 
2005: RIP Nelson Briles, pitcher who came to Baltimore via trade from the Rangers in 1977. He ended his fourteen-year career after going 4-4 for in 1978. He recorded 1163 strikeouts in 2111 innings with 547 walks and a career 3.44ERA, with 129 wins and 112 losses.
1997: RIP Bobby Adams, third baseman who played 41 games for the Orioles in 1956. He hit .269 in 4,019 at-bats over 14 years, with 37HR and 303RBI.
1992: RIP Earl Rapp, outfielder who played 56 games for the 1951-52 St. Louis Browns. In his three MLB seasons, he appeared in 135 games, batting .262 with 2HR and 39RBI.
1945: RIP Jocko Halligan, who played catcher, first base and outfield for the 1892 Baltimore Orioles. In 737 at-bats, he hit .280 with 10HR and 132RBI over three professional seasons.
2005: RIP Nelson Briles, pitcher who came to Baltimore via trade from the Rangers in 1977. He ended his fourteen-year career after going 4-4 for in 1978. He recorded 1163 strikeouts in 2111 innings with 547 walks and a career 3.44ERA, with 129 wins and 112 losses.
1997: RIP Bobby Adams, third baseman who played 41 games for the Orioles in 1956. He hit .269 in 4,019 at-bats over 14 years, with 37HR and 303RBI.
1992: RIP Earl Rapp, outfielder who played 56 games for the 1951-52 St. Louis Browns. In his three MLB seasons, he appeared in 135 games, batting .262 with 2HR and 39RBI.
1945: RIP Jocko Halligan, who played catcher, first base and outfield for the 1892 Baltimore Orioles. In 737 at-bats, he hit .280 with 10HR and 132RBI over three professional seasons.
Sluggo - February 14, 2008 10:52 PM (GMT)
Really reachin' today:
February 14
1959: The Orioles purchase veteran 1B Whitey Lockman from the San Francisco Giants‚ then trade him to the Reds in June for 1B Walt Dropo.
February 14
1959: The Orioles purchase veteran 1B Whitey Lockman from the San Francisco Giants‚ then trade him to the Reds in June for 1B Walt Dropo.
osfan58202233 - February 16, 2008 01:09 AM (GMT)
February 15
1938 - Chuck Estrada, a member of the early 1960s Kiddie Korps and who won 33 games his first two years before developing arm troubles, is born in San Luis Obispo, California.
interesting stuff from John Eisenberg's From 33rd Street to Camden Yards:
1938 - Chuck Estrada, a member of the early 1960s Kiddie Korps and who won 33 games his first two years before developing arm troubles, is born in San Luis Obispo, California.
interesting stuff from John Eisenberg's From 33rd Street to Camden Yards:
| QUOTE |
| The Kiddie Korps caught the attention of many in baseball and was a huge reason that the Orioles finally broke out after being a losing team for their first several years. The Kiddie Korps featured Jack Fisher, Chuck Estrada (22, 18-11), Milt Pappas (21, 15-11), Steve Barber (22, 10-7) and Jerry Walker (21, 3-4). They were the team's starters for much of the season. Most were workhorses who loved to pile up as many innings as possible – and usually did in an era where starters usually weren't limited to six innings or a certain number of pitches. |
| QUOTE |
| With four starting pitchers aged twenty-two or younger and rookies playing first base, second base, and shortstop, the Orioles were unlikely contenders in '60. But they had their first winning season and contended for a pennant until the season's final weeks. The franchise would experience many championship seasons in the coming years, but few were as surprising or enjoyable as the '60 season. The stable of young pitchers, nicknamed "the Kiddie Korps," was the talk of the major leagues. Chuck Estrada, a rookie, won 18 games, a club record. Milt Pappas won 15; Jack Fisher won 12. Steve Barber, jumping all the way from Class-D ball, won 10. Veterans Skinny Brown and Hoyt Wilhelm backed them up with spot starts and solid relief work, combining for 23 wins. Overall, Orioles pitchers led the AL in complete games and tied for the lowest ERA. Lee MacPhail: "It was after the All-Star Game in '59 that we decided we were going to go with younger players. It was a joint decision between myself and Paul [Richards]. We were going with the kids. It was time. We had all those guys in Vancouver, and others, too. In '60 we had seven rookies and practically everyone on the team was younger than thirty. And so many fine, young pitchers. If they had an arm, Paul was all for bringing them up in a hurry." |
osfan58202233 - February 16, 2008 02:53 PM (GMT)
February 16
1947- Terry Crowley, known as "The King of Swing" while playing with the O's as primarily a pinch hitter, is born on Staten Island.
[dohtml]<img src="http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/bwk123/Autographs/TerryCrowley.jpg" width=400>[/dohtml]
1947- Terry Crowley, known as "The King of Swing" while playing with the O's as primarily a pinch hitter, is born on Staten Island.
[dohtml]<img src="http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/bwk123/Autographs/TerryCrowley.jpg" width=400>[/dohtml]
| QUOTE (wikipedia) |
| Crowley was once a player for the Orioles. Crowley played between 1969 and 1983. He was a backup first baseman/outfielder/designated hitter. In fact, when designated hitter rule was implemented, he was the first Oriole to fulfill this role. However, he was best known during his playing career for being a pinch hitter. His 108 career pinch-hits is still the 12th-most all-time. |
Crowley was selected by the Orioles in the 11th round of the 1966 First Year Player Draft. He debuted for the Orioles as a pinch-hitter on September 4, 1969 at Detroit against Earl Wilson. On September 13, 1969 vs. Cleveland, he singled off Steve Hargan for his first major league hit and hit his first major league HR off Dave Boswell on May 1, 1970 vs. Minnesota. His first career grand slam came as a pinch hitter off Roger Nelson on July 23, 1972 at Kansas City.
On April 6, 1973, he became the Orioles first-ever designated hitter.
He played for the Orioles in 12 of his 15 major league seasons (1969-73 and 1976-82) and also played for Atlanta, Cincinnati and Montreal.
He finished his career with a .250 batting average, 42 HR, and 229 RBI. He appeared in three World Series, two with Baltimore (1970 and 1979) and one with Cincinnati (1975).
Terry is in his 22nd year as a major league hitting coach. This will be his 14th season as an Orioles coach and 2008 will be the 10th year of his second stint with the club. Crowley also served as the Orioles hitting coach from 1985-88 under former managers Joe Altobelli, Earl Weaver, Cal Ripken, Sr., and Frank Robinson.
In 2004 under his tutelage, the Orioles set a club record with a team batting average of .281, topping the previous club record (.279) set in 1999, his first season back with the team. They also set club records for hits (1,614) and doubles (319) in a season. It marked the 4th time in a 6-year span that the Orioles established a new doubles record.
From 2004-2006, individual players established new club single-season records for batting average (Melvin Mora, .340 in 2004), RBI (Miguel Tejada, 150 in '04), doubles (50, by Brian Roberts in '04 and Tejada in '05) and hits (Miguel Tejada, 214 in 2006).
In between his stretches with the Orioles, "Crow" served as minor league hitting instructor for the Boston Red Sox in 1989 and 1990 before spending eight seasons as the Minnesota Twins' batting coach, 1991-1998...In 1984, after finishing his playing career, Terry was the Orioles' minor league batting instructor.
from "The Official Site of The Baltimore Orioles," partially edited to reflect 2008
Sluggo - February 17, 2008 05:06 PM (GMT)
February 17
2003 After his body temperature soars to 108 degrees, Orioles pitcher prospect 23-year old Steve Belcher dies of multi-organ failure after spring training workout yesterday. Early speculation is the expectant father death may have been caused by ephedrine, the dietary supplement linked to heatstroke and heart attacks.
1995 The Orioles announce they will not play exhibition games against teams using replacement players.
1955 The Orioles get P Erv Palica from the Dodgers for 1B Frank Kellert and cash. This replaces the Preacher Roe deal‚ which fell through when the Brooklyn lefty announced his retirement
Happy Birthday to former Orioles: 2B Alan Wiggins, and P Scott Williamson
2003 After his body temperature soars to 108 degrees, Orioles pitcher prospect 23-year old Steve Belcher dies of multi-organ failure after spring training workout yesterday. Early speculation is the expectant father death may have been caused by ephedrine, the dietary supplement linked to heatstroke and heart attacks.
1995 The Orioles announce they will not play exhibition games against teams using replacement players.
1955 The Orioles get P Erv Palica from the Dodgers for 1B Frank Kellert and cash. This replaces the Preacher Roe deal‚ which fell through when the Brooklyn lefty announced his retirement
Happy Birthday to former Orioles: 2B Alan Wiggins, and P Scott Williamson
osfan58202233 - February 19, 2008 12:23 AM (GMT)
February 18
1954 - In an ill-fated trade made just before the Orioles' first spring training, Roy Sievers is sent to Washington for Gil Coan. Whereas Sievers emerged as an authentic power-hitting threat of long standing with Washington, Coan had two lackluster seasons in Baltimore before being sold to the White Sox in 1956 for the waiver price [and leaving baseball at the end of the 1956 season...]
1954 - In an ill-fated trade made just before the Orioles' first spring training, Roy Sievers is sent to Washington for Gil Coan. Whereas Sievers emerged as an authentic power-hitting threat of long standing with Washington, Coan had two lackluster seasons in Baltimore before being sold to the White Sox in 1956 for the waiver price [and leaving baseball at the end of the 1956 season...]
osfan58202233 - February 27, 2008 06:29 PM (GMT)
February 27th
1993 - Dodger lefthander Fernando Valenzuela, who won 141 games and pitched in five All-Star games in 11 seasons in Los Angeles before being released and joining the Mexican League, signs a minor league contract with the Orioles.
1993 - Dodger lefthander Fernando Valenzuela, who won 141 games and pitched in five All-Star games in 11 seasons in Los Angeles before being released and joining the Mexican League, signs a minor league contract with the Orioles.