Baseball Essays
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September 16, 2021 at 12:00 pm
Calling the Pen: The birth of a team
I was looking up famous people born on September 15th and Gaylord Perry’s name surfaced. He was a Hall of Fame pitcher who won 314 games but was known more for putting an illegal substance on the baseball long before gloves and hats routinely went through security checks. I was curious about...
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September 5, 2021 at 7:00 am
Calling the Pen: When 70 is more than just a number
When I think of 70, I think about the 1970 World Series that the Orioles won in five games over the Cincinnati Reds. Five games in which third baseman Brooks Robinson played such remarkable defense that it caused hitters such as Johnny Bench to marvel at his wizardry and to say after...
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May 30, 2021 at 7:00 am
Calling the Pen: Hyde stands tall after Orioles extend losing streak to 12
The Orioles had their worst moment of the season Saturday. Manager Brandon Hyde had his best. After the Orioles dropped both games of a doubleheader with the Chicago White Sox to run their losing streak to 12, Hyde took questions from the media. There were no swings-and-misses. Hyde has been criticized for...
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February 16, 2021 at 7:00 am
Calling the Pen: Oriole pitchers and catchers report but it feels off-base
So the sun, which has taken time off, and Oriole pitchers and catchers, who have been off for even longer, are expected to be back today. By this afternoon, the sun should be shining here, and in Sarasota, Florida, where the Orioles gather for spring training. It would seem to be a...
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May 23, 2020 at 7:00 am
Calling the Pen: One fan’s Top 10 Oriole memories
While there may not have been many memorable moments over the past few seasons for Orioles fans, there certainly have been many since they arrived in Baltimore in 1954. During the Covid-19 quarantine, this longtime Orioles fan has searched his memory bank to come up with his Top 10 memories while peering...
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May 16, 2020 at 7:00 am
Calling the Pen: Thanks for the memories, and a wish for more
I can’t write. I know I can’t write. But my wife and son keep telling me that I should, and we all know how objective a spouse and the children can be. So, I am writing just to prove a point: I can’t write. Although deep inside, I think I can, but...
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May 9, 2020 at 7:00 am
Calling the Pen: Baseball’s a friend that never leaves you
On the ninth day of the fifth month of the year, we still wait. Call it the longest rain delay ever. That’s a great inside joke I have with BaltimoreBaseball.com’s Rich Dubroff. Rich keeps score of everything, including rain delays, and this has trended toward a delightful Twitter joke for two. There...
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May 2, 2020 at 7:00 am
Calling the Pen: There’s no crying in baseball, but it’s OK to miss it
There was something about the last game of a baseball season that troubled me. One-hundred-and-sixty-one games had been played, but number 162 had a finality to it that triggered a certain sadness. I sometimes would watch the replay later that night to hold on to it for just a little longer. The...
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April 25, 2020 at 7:00 am
Calling the Pen: An Oriole fan still waiting to see his first World Series
I was born in 1983 at Union Memorial Hospital, just down 33rd Street from Memorial Stadium. Bittersweet, born an Oriole fan and unable to rejoice in what remains to this day our organization’s last World Series championship. On the bright side, the city had Cal Ripken Jr., real-life Iron Man. I can...
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April 18, 2020 at 7:00 am
Calling the Pen: A fan’s thank you to Mark Reynolds
I moved to Chicago in July 2010, a New York kid who grew up with the dynasty Yankees and loved every minute. Though few would label the Bronx Bombers anywhere near the word underdog, I remember when the team won its first title in 18 years. The Yankees did so in 1996,...
