O's and Rolling Along

April 4, 2011 Opening Day at Oriole Park at Camden Yards

We are only four games into the 2011 baseball season and already O's fans are loving it. The O's are 4-0, tying their 1997 start and bringing back visions of the World Series winning team of 1970 when they started 5-0 with a series sweep on the road against Cleveland and then won 2 of 3 against the Detroit Tigers at home during the second series of the year.

Now in 2011, the O's are playing the Detroit Tigers at home for the second series of the year. They started the season by sweeping Tampa on the road.

Isn't baseball great. After only four games of a 162 game season, O's fans are already drawing comparisons to the history making World Series champion teams of the past.

Yesterday at the park, it was a sea of orange and black such as I have not seen in a long time. The crowd was electric and the players responded with a crisp 5-1 win, highlighted by Brian Roberts second three-run homer of the year.

The day was glorious and warm. The skies were fair and the fan base made a rare sold-out stadium appearance.

I have attended a lot of games over the past years where sometimes there are more opposition fans than Orioles fans--but not today. I actually spied only one Tiger fan and of course there was a Yankee fan wearing his team's colors and I wondered if he took a wrong turn on I-95 on his way to NYC.

But it was the Orioles and their young pitching staff that stole the show. Hanging on until the offense came around and holding the opposition to only one run, for the fourth time.

And ESPN still will not even acknowledge that the Orioles exist.  It is a credibility deep hole that they are crawling out of.  Game by game.

I love baseball--win or lose and everyone knows that I have been a staunch Orioles fan through every one of the 13 consecutive losing seasons--but this year there is at least hope.

I was astounded when the team was introduced at the size of the cheers for the manager--Buck Showalter. I wonder how many managers get that kind of reception during the opening day introductions. But, Buck has so far turned this team around. They have a solid winning record since he took over last August.

The hopes of all true Orioles fans are rising every day.