When the Orioles Were Good

Here’s a cautionary tale for Red Sox fans getting ready to celebrate another trip to the postseason: Baltimore Orioles fans used to celebrate, too. Once, the Orioles were one of the great franchises in baseball and they have the World Series trophies to prove it.

In fact, many years ago, when I was about 11, some friends and I thought about abandoning the Red Sox and joining “Orioles Nation.”, if in fact there was one. This was 1961 and the Sox were in a decade-long mess while the O’s were an up-and-coming team on its way to a 95-win season with such young pitchers as Steve Barber, Chuck Estrada and Milt Pappas, who won 46 games among them. The young Brooks Robinson was on that team along with first baseman Jim Gentile whose .302/46 HR/141 RBI season was better than anyone Boston had to offer. Marv Throneberry even got into 56 games, one year before he became Marvelous Marv for the Amazin’ 1962 Mets. This was a team heading for great things!

Looking at that roster, there were a lot of Red Sox connections and several future managers and coaches. In addition to Adair, Williams would go on and play for the Sox before turning to managing. Jim Busby, Gene Stephens and Walt Dropo had all played for the Sox and Charlie Lau would be their hitting coach 20 years in the future. It was on this team that left fielder Dick Williams met Wes Stock, who was his pitching coach during the years Williams managed Oakland and Seattle.

Well, my friends and I decided to stick with the Sox, who sucked for six more seasons until former O’s player Dick Williams managed Boston to the 1967 pennant, helped by Jerry Adair, the Orioles 1961 second baseman. Good thing, because in 1962 the O’s slipped back to 77-85, tied with the Sox for seventh place.

But, then Baltimore started moving up again. They won 97 games in 1964 and finished third, having added Luis Aparicio from the White Sox and Boog Powell (39 homers) and Wally Bunker (19 wins) from their farm system. The next year, most of the pieces were in place as speedy Paul Blair became the regular center fielder (playing shallower than any other center fielder before or since), and rookies Dave McNally, Jim Palmer and Mark Belanger came up.

A year later, it all came together in the person of Frank Robinson. Acquired for three spare parts (Jack Baldschun, Milt Pappas and Dick Simpson), Robinson was the veteran presence the club needed to sweep the Dodgers in the World Series.

And in the pre-free agency era, this team was able to stay together and stay successful, going to three consecutive World Series (1969-71), winning it all again in 1970. They even had four 20-game winners on the staff in 1971 (Palmer, Cuellar, Dobson, McNally), the only time that has ever happened.

The Birds flew around the top of the American League, bringing in Hall of Famers Cal Ripken and Eddie Murray along with pitchers Scott McGregor and Mike Flanagan.

But then, it happened.

On October 9, 1996, in game one of the ALCS, calm-eyed Derek Jeter intangibly lofted a fly ball to right field. O’s right fielder Tony Tarasco got ready to catch it. Instead, Jeffrey Maier reached out of the stands and caught the ball, which was ruled a game-tying home run instead of fan interference and an out. The Orioles lost the series, the ALCS the next year, and apparently the will to win. In the 12 years since, they have finished next-to-last or last in the AL East 11 times, including this season when they will finish last.

Call it the curse of Jeffrey Maier. Or maybe it’s the curse of Peter Angelos, one of Sports Illustrated’s five worst owners, who has never let the Orioles be free-agent players except for 2007 when they cornered the market in middle relievers.

Whatever it is, the Sox won the season series 16-2 yesterday. Baltimore’s only two wins were in games started by John Smoltz, one of them the rain-delayed 11-10 loss.

I’m glad I didn’t switch 48 years ago.