Camden Yards

Instead of having a ceremonial first pitch to kick off the home opener, the Orioles chose to keep the baseball on the mound, to the left of the pitching rubber. It was done to honor Orioles Hall of Fame manager Earl Weaver, who died in January at age 82. It's believed to be the first time the club has not had a ceremonial first pitch for a home opener in Camden Yards history. The Orioles always seem to do celebrations well. This one was obviously understated, and touching.There also was a video tribute to Weaver and his name was listed on the roll call of “Orioles' family,” as the final name (though the rest was listed in alphabetical order, Weaver was behind Earl Williams)

One quality that has made Miguel Gonzalez such a valuable pitcher to the Orioles has been his ability to block out distractions. When on the mound, the Orioles right-hander is rarely rattled, and that's why he's pitched so well in his brief big league career. With his wife, Lucia, due to give birth to the couple's first child, a baby girl, in California any day now, Gonzalez couldn't help but have wandering moments. As Gonzalez pitched against the first-place Boston Red Sox on Sunday afternoon at Camden Yards, Lucia had Orioles travel secretary Kevin Buck's number on speed dial, a cross-country flight ready to be planned at a moment's notice.

The condition of a man who suffered a skull fracture following an altercation at Camden Yards last week has worsened, hospital officials said. Matt Fortese, who police said was punched and plunged over a railing onto concrete five feet below at Wednesday's game, is now in critical condition. He had been in serious condition up until Sunday afternoon, Maryland Shock Trauma Center spokeswoman Cynthia Rivers said. Police say Fortese, a lifelong New York Yankees fan who wore the team's cap to the Orioles' matchup with the Washington Nationals, was taunted by two men at the game and had beer thrown on him and his date.

The power? That blunt-force ability to lay wood to a baseball and propel it 400, 420, 450 feet? He had it even when he was a boy. Came from God, as far as he's concerned. Harnessing it? Well, that's the work of Chris Davis' life. There's a paradoxical quality to the Orioles' first baseman, who has emerged this season as one of baseball's most fearsome sluggers, a likely All-Star starter who leads the majors with 22 home runs. Growing up in East Texas, Davis was like a puppy with big paws, bowling over everything.

On Saturday night, I walked down to Camden Yards and bought a $10 Upper Reserved ticket. At some point, it became less $10 ticket and more like a $10 cover charge, the price for admission to a gorgeous urban gathering place and to the new Roof Deck in particular. The choice seats on the new Roof Deck at Camden Yards are first-come, first-served. So far, that seems to be working. On Saturday night, a few fans wearing Minnesota Twins gear had successful commandeered a few of the front-row stools under the overhang, and no one seemed to begrudge them them.

In the aftermath of a Camden Yards fight that left a Maryland man with severe head injuries, Orioles fans have turned to radio talk shows, Twitter, Facebook and office watercoolers to express their outrage. The alleged assault of lifelong Yankees fan Matt Fortese, 25, of Hagerstown was a rare occurrence at the stadium, according to police records and regular attendees. But with Fortese in critical condition, the incident has disturbed many fans - and attracted national attention.

The Orioles are stuck with a struggling Pedro Strop for now. He is too much of a mess right now to be trusted in high-leverage relief situations. But he is also too talented, he throws too hard for them to slip him by 29 other teams if they tried to send him down to the minor leagues. The reality is, though, the Orioles missed on an opportunity to help Strop out, to keep him away from situations like the one he came into Wednesday, when he quickly allowed four runs and an Orioles victory to slip away.

[UPDATE: 7:15 p.m.] The Orioles' game against the Angels started on time as scheduled, but heavy storms were approaching the area at first pitch. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It is currently raining here at Camden Yards and the Orioles grounds crew still has the tarp on the field. With more storms expected throughout the night, expect the O's to wait it out before making a call on tonight's 7:05 game against the Angels.

Twenty years ago, I was thrilled to stand in a line that wrapped around the B&O warehouse in the hope that I'd be able to purchase a standing room only ticket to see the Baltimore Orioles play at Camden Yards. That seemed much longer ago the other night when I was put in a position to defend the empty seats around me at Camden Yards and defend the integrity of the home of the Orioles. Do opposing teams' fans have a right to visit Camden Yards? Absolutely. Do they have a right to cheer for their team?

The victim in an assault at Camden Yards last month has been upgraded to serious condition. Matt Fortese, 25, has been hospitalized with serious head injuries since the May 29 incident. Police said a man, Michael Bell, sitting in a section above Fortese and his date threw a beer that hit them. Fortese approached Bell and began arguing with him and another man, Gregory Fleischman, when Fleischman punched Fortese in the head, according to police. Fortese then fell onto concrete about five feet below.

The Orioles' 5-4 win in 13 innings over the Boston Red Sox on Thursday night featured a potential future ace, one of the game's current top hitters and one of the best power hitters of the past decade. With right-hander Kevin Gausman on the mound, first baseman Chris Davis producing more heroics and Boston designated hitter David Ortiz going deep, it had all the makings of a classic American League East matchup. But a much more nuanced statistic could have been lost in the shuffle of the Orioles and Red Sox combining to use 11 relievers in the first game of a four-game series.

Last season, the Orioles and Boston Red Sox played four extra-inning games against each other, including games of 17, 13 and 12 innings. The Orioles won all four, mainly because their stellar bullpen kept compiling scoreless innings until the bats could do their job. The one exception was the Orioles' 17-inning win at Fenway Park last May, when the Orioles needed two scoreless innings from Chris Davis on the mound. Thursday night, Davis - who has become a star this season with incredible run-production numbers - helped the Orioles' bullpen with his bat, hitting a bloop walk-off single with two outs in the bottom of the 13th inning, giving the Orioles a 5-4 win before an announced 20,098 at Camden Yards.

The victim in an assault at Camden Yards last month has been upgraded to serious condition. Matt Fortese, 25, has been hospitalized with serious head injuries since the May 29 incident. Police said a man, Michael Bell, sitting in a section above Fortese and his date threw a beer that hit them. Fortese approached Bell and began arguing with him and another man, Gregory Fleischman, when Fleischman punched Fortese in the head, according to police. Fortese then fell onto concrete about five feet below.

The Orioles are stuck with a struggling Pedro Strop for now. He is too much of a mess right now to be trusted in high-leverage relief situations. But he is also too talented, he throws too hard for them to slip him by 29 other teams if they tried to send him down to the minor leagues. The reality is, though, the Orioles missed on an opportunity to help Strop out, to keep him away from situations like the one he came into Wednesday, when he quickly allowed four runs and an Orioles victory to slip away.

At The Yard, the new sports pub located inside the Baltimore Marriott Inner Harbor at Camden Yards, sits a miracle; a modern marvel; a Holy Grail of sorts for beer aficionados: a milkshake … Made. With. Beer. Sweet Baby Jesus! Well yes, it does earn the exclamation but that's also the name of this 8th wonder of the world, officially: The Sweet Baby Jesus Adult Milkshake. It was an industry contest - not divine intervention - that inspired bartender Jeff Crawley to concoct this holy creation.

Each Wednesday, blogger Matt Vensel will highlight five statistics that really mean something for the Orioles. 2.41 -- Chris Tillman's ERA in his six road starts this season. Tillman picked up his sixth win of the season Sunday, allowing three runs (two earned) in six innings against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. It was yet another quality start for Tillman on the road. Tillman is 5-0 on the road this season with a 2.41 ERA. He has pitched at least five innings in each of those games, all Orioles victories.

The power? That blunt-force ability to lay wood to a baseball and propel it 400, 420, 450 feet? He had it even when he was a boy. Came from God, as far as he's concerned. Harnessing it? Well, that's the work of Chris Davis' life. There's a paradoxical quality to the Orioles' first baseman, who has emerged this season as one of baseball's most fearsome sluggers, a likely All-Star starter who leads the majors with 22 home runs. Growing up in East Texas, Davis was like a puppy with big paws, bowling over everything.

One quality that has made Miguel Gonzalez such a valuable pitcher to the Orioles has been his ability to block out distractions. When on the mound, the Orioles right-hander is rarely rattled, and that's why he's pitched so well in his brief big league career. With his wife, Lucia, due to give birth to the couple's first child, a baby girl, in California any day now, Gonzalez couldn't help but have wandering moments. As Gonzalez pitched against the first-place Boston Red Sox on Sunday afternoon at Camden Yards, Lucia had Orioles travel secretary Kevin Buck's number on speed dial, a cross-country flight ready to be planned at a moment's notice.

The torrential downpour that transformed the Camden Yards infield into a muddy slop Monday night made any routine baseball play difficult. But the timing was perfect for the Orioles, who scored two runs through monsoon-like rain in the bottom of the sixth, then held on following a two-hour, 14-minute rain delay for a 4-3 win over the Los Angeles Angels. With the victory, which ended just 10 minutes before midnight, the Orioles (36-28) snapped a three-game home losing streak to the Angels (27-37)

Orioles sixth-round pick Alex Murphy, a catcher from Calvert Hall, passed his physical Tuesday and is scheduled to leave for Sarasota, Fla., on Monday after contract terms are hammered out and approved. Murphy, speaking by phone from a suite at Camden Yards as the Orioles took on the Los Angeles Angels, said he couldn't disclose the details of the contract. The slot bonus money for the 189th pick is $218,500. “It's starting to get real,” Murphy said. “I'm just going through the process and taking the steps.” Murphy is the first Orioles draft pick to take his physical.