The Greatest Moments In Orioles History

In the Orioles 55 years of existance they have produced some great moments. But which one is the greatest?

Would You Believe it, 4 Straight!- It was the O's first visit in the World Series. Their opponent, the Dodgers, fresh off of easily beating the Twins in 1965 in the World Series.

They had a rotation that included Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale. In fact that year Koufax had an ERA of 1.73! Meanwhile the Orioles just an unproven bunch on 20-somethings and they would stand no chance against the storied Dodgers.     

But no! In game one the O's get 5 runs on Don Drysdale and beat the Dodgers in Dodger Stadium. Game 2 you have a twenty-year old (future HOFer) Jim Palmer going up against a future Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax. The O's win six-nothing and Jim Palmer shows how good he can be for the first time. In game three Wally Bunker shut down the Dodgers as the Orioles win again. In the final game a young Dave McNally pitches a shut out has the sweep the All-Mighty Dodgers.

Did I mention that the Orioles ERA that series was 0.50 the lowest in the 105 years of the World Series.

Brooks Dazzles in '70 World Series- Brooks Robinson was a force of nature in 1970 World Series snagging anything that came his way. I actually had the opportunity to talk to Brooks and he said the best play he made was in game one, Lee May it a sharp grounder down the third baseline, he back, hands it then throws a strike to Boog to get the out.

Let's not forget that Brooks was on fire in the batter's box, .429 average, 17 total bases (tied a World Series record) and two dingers. I think you could argue that he had one of the best performances by a batter and fielder in the history of the World Series.

Why Not?- That whole entire season had was a very strange and shocking one. Before the season started they were a minor controversy Billy Ripken's Fleer card that season had two words written on his bat handle. But then the season started and the Orioles were good! All the sudden guys who just average players suddenly became good, guys like Froot Loops Tettleton and Mike Devereaux. They became instant fan favorite and stunned Baltimore.

What was even more amazing about the team is that no one had 100 RBI's or more and no one had batted above .300.

How ever in the end the O's come up short, but that season why some of us still believe in the O's because any thing can happen.

2131- Do I have to explain this one?

Tippy Picks Off 3 Jays in One Inning- In a feat that I believe happens less the perfecto or two grand salamis in one game. Tippy Martinez picked off not one, not two, but three Blue Jays. Tippy got two out with the standard pick-off move and a third by getting the runner in a pickle between first and second and Eddie tagging him out. Like I said above, what makes this special is how rare it is.

Earl's Last Hurrah- It was announced at the beginning of the season in  1982 that the Earl Of Baltimore was going retire at the end of the season.  As the season progressed most of Baltimore forgot the Earl's announcement. Then all the sudden the Orioles got red-hot. They won seven games in a row, lost one, won ten in a row, swept five straight from the Yankees, won two of three in Milwaukee to pull within two games of the Brewers with a week left. It came down a final series with the Beer Makers in Memorial Stadium. The Orioles won the first three games of the series but they needed a sweep to win. They sent out Jim Palmer in what was his last start.  He got drilled. But what made this great was the fact that after the game Earl got a 45 minute salute and send-off.

The Camden Cameback-  This was the greatest comeback in Orioles history. it was against the Red Sox. Need I say more.

OPACY Opens-  It EBW's idea. To create a ballpark that had a feeling of the past yet still had modern amenities. He may not of been alive to see it was exactly what he wanted.

From the warehouse to the green seats to Eutaw Street it was a beauty. It was a start to a brand new trend of ballparks and it influenced almost every stadium built after it, a thing that you can't say about too many parks, and best of all it put an end to those ugly cookie-cutter stadium like Three Rivers, Riverfront and The Vet.

What could of made it better? Well a win it debut would a good and that what the O's got. They beat the Indians to have a great start to a great park.

NOTE: I left out Eddie's 500, Cal's 400, Cal's 3,000 because they would be great moments in any team's history, I'm looking for great moments only in Orioles history.