Chris Davis is 1st player with HR and 3+ RBI in 4 str games at any point in season since Bill Dickey in 1937 (via @ESPNStatsInfo)

They just placed the ball on the mound in honor of the late Earl Weaver.

h/t @masnRoch

The Orioles DH for game 5 of the ALDS is Lew Ford. Earlier in the year he was playing for the independent Long Island Ducks.

The O’s have had quite. a. season.

Image courtesy of nodaktwinsfan.com

Here are the most interesting pieces of info:

• If the Yankees lose and the Orioles win, one-game playoff tomorrow (Thursday). So, yes.
• If the Yankees lose the and A’s win the A’s are the number one seed. The. A’s. are. the. number. one. seed.
• If the A’s beat the Rangers they win the AL West. Only the fifth team to win a division after being back by at least 13 games (June 30) in a season. (1914 Braves, 15 games; ‘78 Yanks, 14; ‘51 Giants, 13; & ‘95 M’s, 13) Three of those four went to the World Series, two won it.
• Neither the Tigers nor the Orioles can be the number one seed.

via Wahoo Sam

While the Baltimore Orioles are getting all sorts of love for their impressive extra-innings winning streak (14 wins in games that extended past 9 innings), culminating in last night’s 19-inning victory over the Mariners, the Pirates would like to avoid playing unscheduled double-headers.

2011:

July 26 - Pirates are 53-48. Lose in 19 innings to the Braves. Go 19-42 (.311 winning percentage) for the remainder of the season

2012:

August 19 - Pirates are 67-54. Win in 19 innings over the Cards. Go 7-19 (.269) through September 18.

Coincidence? Totally. But we love a good coincidence.

Sources: retrosheet.org and baseball-reference.com

(Image courtesy of The “Mc” Effect, a Pirates blog)

Schedules for the AL playoff contenders:

Yankees

12 home, 16 away - opponents’ winning % (as of 9/4): .497 

Orioles

13 home, 14 away - opponents’ winning %: .512

Rays

15 home, 12 away - opponents’ winning %: .529

Tigers

12 home, 16 away - opponents’ winning %: .487

White Sox

16 home, 12 away - opponents’ winning %: .483

Rangers

13 home, 15 away - opponents’ winning %: .502

A’s

11 home, 17 away - opponents’ winning %: .546

Angels 

16 home, 11 away - opponents’ winning %: .530

In one of those great baseball coincidences, the Yankees (2), Rangers (3), Tigers (7), and Angels (8) are all in the top ten in per game attendance. While the Orioles (23), White Sox (24), A’s (29), and Rays (30) are in the bottom ten.

Davey Johnson has the 20th best winning percentage of all-time, .562. That includes a .500 or better percentage with every team he has managed: Mets, Reds, Orioles, Dodgers, and the Nationals.

If the Nationals hold their position in the NL East, Johnson will become the first manager to lead four different teams to the playoffs. (Only the Dodgers didn’t reach the postseason.)

Hall of Fame anyone?

mightyflynn:

Davey Johnson

July 21, 2012

Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images

You know which sport has the best uniforms?

Yeah you do

Obit of the Day: “Better Stuff Than Anyone from 40 Feet”

Kevin Hickey played parts of six seasons in major league baseball over ten years. And he got there because he hit four consecutive home runs off Chicago Sun Times columnist Mike Royko in a 16-inch softball game in 1977.

Up till then Kevin Hickey’s life was disappointing. He had lost a basketball scholarship in high school due to drinking and poker playing. He was fired from his first real job after only 30 days. He was 21, jobless, divorced with two kids, and living at home without much of a future.

Then he hit those homers. In the crowd was White Sox scout Joe Begani and he invited Hickey to an open tryout at Comiskey Park. When Hickey arrived and found there were 250 other guys trying to make the team, he nearly walked out. Instead Begani arranged for Hickey to pitch, and the next day the Sox signed him to a minor league contract  - for $500 a month with a $500 signing bonus.

After three years in the minors, Hickey made the White Sox roster in 1981 and pitched in 124 games over three seasons. In 1983, as the Tony LaRussa-led Sox headed toward the American League West division pennant, Hickey blew out his shoulder. His career looked over.

Then six years later Roland Hemond, former Sox general manager and now leading the Orioles, found him and signed him to another minor league deal. He worked his way back to the big leagues in 1989. He pitched with the O’s until they released him in the middle of the 1991 season. (Here are Hickey’s career stats.)

Once again Hickey was rudderless. He worked as a greeter at Oriole Park at Camden Yards hoping for his next break. And it came in the guise of the casting director for the upcoming Major League II. Hickey was not only cast, but given a line, and befriended Charlie Sheen (to whom he sold his AAA championship ring) and Corbin Bernsen.

Then nothing. Again. Until the White Sox found him at the 1983 White Sox team reunion and asked if he wanted to pitch batting practice. He agreed, tried out, and for the first time in two decades, Kevin Hickey was wearing a White Sox uniform again. Hickey would pitch batting practice and travel with the team for $30,000 a year. He loved it, and the White Sox loved him. After winning the 2005 World Series, the Sox players voted Hickey a full share of the bonus - ten times Hickey’s salary. (As a pro the most Hickey made was $250,000 in 1990.)

On April 5, 2012, the day before Opening Day against the Texas Rangers, Hickey was found unconscious in his room. He had an apparent seizure. After six weeks in a coma, Hickey passed away. He was 56 years old.

Additional source: baseball-reference.com

(Image of Hickey, circa 1982-1983, is courtesy of rattleradio.mlbblogs.com.)

Note: This was also posted on my other site, www.obitoftheday.com.

(Source: suntimes.com)

Just like we all thought they would.

The Red Sox lost to the Orioles in 17 innings today. On Friday they lost in 13, and on Saturday, just nine. So on top of the fact that the O’s swept the Sox, and Baltimore now has a 1/2 game lead in the AL East, these other odd moments occurred:

* Neither starting pitcher went five full innings. Clay Buchholz (Boston) went 3 2/3 giving up 5 runs. Tommy Hunter of the Orioles went 4 1/3 giving up 5 as well.

* Every member of the Red Sox had at least one strikeout. (Baltimore pitchers struck out 18. Boston struck out 15 O’s.)

* Adrian Gonzalez went 0 for 8 with two strikeouts leaving eight men on base.

* Not to be outdone, Baltimore DH Chris Davis went 0 for 8, with five strikeouts leaving 5 men on base. Oh, and he also grounded into a double play. So 8 at-bats, 9 outs.

* No runs were scored by either team from the 9th through the 16th.

* The Orioles grounded into five double plays in extra innings.

* Chris “Platinum Sombrero” Davis would then pitch the bottom of the 16th. He struck out one and then nearly lost the game but Marlon Byrd was thrown out at the plate by J.J. Hardy. Whew.

* Darnell McDonald, who pinch ran for Big Papi in the 8th and scored the tying run, would be sent in to pitch the 17th inning. McDonald (who is listed in the box score with the never seen position listing of “PH-DH-P”) walked two and then gave up a 3-run homer to Adam Jones.

* In the bottom of the 17th, Davis came back to the mound and put two Sox on. After striking out Adrian Gonzalez, Davis then induced a double play. Who hit into the DP? Darnell McDonald, of course.

So your final results:

WP - Chris Davis, first win in his major league career (Who are we kidding? First pitching appearance in his career.)

LP - Darnell McDonald, first appearance, first loss

Time of Game: 6:07, not a typo

deceptacle:

The Orioles are paying their respects to the past this season, wearing an awesome patch to celebrate 20 years of Camden Park (n.b. the subtle warehouse nod). This is of course in addition to the triumphant return of the cartoon bird logo to the Baltimore uniforms

How else can they rekindle the glory days? Unfortunately running Peter Angelos out of town on a rail isn’t feasible, so maybe they should bring back the Oriole girls

-KJ