During last night’s Orioles win over the Boston Red Sox, their historic 100th of the season and the one in which they clinched the American League East crown, an unexpected bomb was dropped on Birdland: The Birds are staying in Baltimore, officially!
The way it unfolded wasn’t exactly what any of us anticipated.
In the bottom of the third inning, Jorge Mateo singled with one out. He attempted to steal, but Austin Hays flew out on the pitch. Mateo, having already reached and slid into second base, got up and went back to first. That seemed to be that, and Adley Rutschman would be batting with Mateo on first and two outs.
But the Sox players left the field. What? There are two outs! Those silly gooses! Those of us in the stadium were extremely confused, though I hear that those watching on TV and listening on the radio weren’t quite as befuddled.
The Orioles were being forced to challenge how many outs there were? I’m sorry, what? And then, after a lengthy replay review, the umpires said that the call on the field was confirmed, and Mateo was indeed out. Apparently he had made some sort of move that looked like he may have been going to third base and then didn’t touch second base again.
BOOOOOO! sang the crowd.
We were still booing and scratching our heads, when suddenly, on the scoreboard, was a live shot of Governor Wes Moore in his orange O’s playoff shirt, in the owner’s suite with John Angelos.
BREAKING: @GovWesMoore & @Orioles just announced at the game that they have struck a deal on a new 30 year lease to keep the O’s at Camden Yards. Applause from the fans smothered in with some boos for Angelos. @wjz @WJZ13sports pic.twitter.com/WpR9Z6DOMa
— Stephon Dingle WJZ (@Stephon_Dingle) September 28, 2023
Confusion quickly turned into exhilaration, as we learned that it was finally, after all this time, official:
Earlier today, the Orioles, Governor Wes Moore, the State of Maryland, and the Maryland Stadium Authority agreed to a deal that will keep the Orioles in Baltimore and Camden Yards for at least the next 30 years!!
While I’m still quite dubious about the call on Mateo, like all of you I couldn’t be happier that our long civic nightmare has ended with assurance that our Orioles aren’t going to Nashville or anywhere else any time soon.
No longer do we have to deal with the internet trolls who “know a business owner in Nashville who is certain the Orioles are coming soon,” or the over-the-top Angelos haters who were convinced he was tanking the value of the team on purpose in order to precipitate a move to the Music City.
No longer do we have to deal with the awkward hemming and hawing from Johnny on the rare occasion a reporter is able to pin him down and ask why he hadn’t signed the lease yet.
No longer will we be inundated with articles quoting “sources” within the Maryland Stadium Authority or otherwise telling us about Angelos’ unreasonable demands, or with tales of his holding the city and state hostage.
No longer do we need to worry that the team we cheer for, that our parents and grandparents cheered for, that our children are currently in the process of falling in love with just like we did, will be packed up in Mayflower vans like the Colts 40 years prior.
We’re free to focus on our 100-win team headed to the playoffs without the dark cloud of their future in the city hovering overhead.
And we’re free to go back to bugging the owner about something else: (re-)sign the players!
(P.S. Kudos to Governor Moore and everyone else who worked to get this done. And to everyone who, somehow, kept a lid on it all day long. In this age of the 24-hour news cycle and reporters rushing to Twitter/X with every rumor they hear, it’s extremely impressive that nobody heard a peep about this yesterday afternoon.)
One Response
Still no lease signed! They have a memorandum of understanding, which is basically nothing. Angelos will hold the Orioles, the city of Baltimore, and the State of Maryland hostage until he gets the he wants! Thursday night to just propaganda! Just for show!