Jim Palmer

Jim Palmer is being honored with his sculpture today. Several notables in attendance, none bigger than Brooks Robinson - who has missed the first two celebrations (Earl Weaver and Frank Robinson) due to health reasons. Brooks had his own ceremony pushed back to September. But he is here and looks good. Brooks received a huge ovation from the crowd. Also here are Hall-of-Famers Eddie Murray and Cal Ripken Jr. and Baltimore native Al Kaline. Frank Robinson, who lives in California, is the only Oriole in the Hall-of-Fame who didn't make it. Former Oriole Ken Singleton was the first speaker.

The post-game celebration of the Orioles' 1983 World Series victory over the Philadelphia Phillies remains etched in traveling secretary Phil Itzoe's mind. The team ran out of champagne, and he had to find more.When the first five cases had been consumed, Itzoe rushed to the Stadium Club in Philadelphia's Veterans Stadium and bought two more, sent one to the Orioles' wives, who were in a waiting room, and the other to the locker room.After everybody piled into four buses for the ride to Memorial rTC Stadium, where rejoicing Orioles fans waited, the caravan had a police escort the entire way -- first Philadelphia's finest, then New Jersey's, Delaware's, Maryland's and finally Baltimore's.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- It's not until he's addressed topics like West Palm Beach real estate, Nolan Ryan's personal-services contract and why no one questions Frank Robinson's 49 home runs the way they wonder about Brady Anderson's 50 home runs that Jim Palmer gets really Jim Palmer-esque. Why did he speak out on steroids and name an ex-Oriole when all he was trying to do was illustrate how baseball's credibility is out the window the way the union refuses to institute a stiffer drug-testing policy?

It's hard to pinpoint one pivotal moment in the Orioles' 1983 postseason run, because so many players contributed. But in conversations with members of the team, one name came up over and over. Mike Boddicker, they said, put them over the top. Boddicker had already filled in brilliantly for Jim Palmer and Mike Flanagan by the time the Orioles reached their American League Championship Series showdown with the Chicago White Sox. But he had never faced a situation as pressurized as the one that greeted him in Game 2. In the opener of that best-of-five series, La Marr Hoyt shut down the Orioles for a 2-1 victory over Scott McGregor.

After listening to eight days of testimony detailing a nasty, longstanding skirmish in Little Italy, Baltimore jurors began deliberating last night about whether to award $1 million in damages to the president of the neighborhood association. Plaintiff Roberto Marsili, president of the Little Italy Community Organization, sued community residents Rosa Aquia and her daughter Gia Blatterman for malicious prosecution and abuse of process, saying they brought an erroneous harassment suit and other legal action against him. The case, heard in Baltimore Circuit Court, was punctuated by heated testimony, accusations, name-calling and an appearance by Orioles Hall of Fame pitcher Jim Palmer.

When A. J. Van Slyke is at home, he helps run the household and gets to tell his younger brothers what to do. At school, A. J. stands out as Andy Van Slyke's son.In the Orioles' clubhouse, A. J. is just a ballboy."

Jim Palmer is in camp. No, he's not trying to make a comeback. Jamie Walker has been cleared to do everything except run. I noticed that he flinched while walking toward the first base line after stretching, and Ramon Hernandez's throw from the plate to first whizzed past him. It wasn't that close, but it got Walker's attention. Yesterday's drills on the back fields involved delayed double steals, and how to prevent the runner on third from scoring as the initial throw goes to second - either from the pitcher or catcher.

Poll results Last week, we asked you to pick a cause for the Orioles' recent struggles. You decided the fault mainly resides in the team's bats. The results: Clutch-hitting difficulties, 39.6 percent (639 votes) The starters' inability to pitch deep, 24.7 (398) Mental mistakes and lack of intensity, 19.0 (307) Sam Perlozzo's managerial decisions, 12.0 (193) A brutal schedule, 4.8 (77) Poll position Who would you like to see come out of retirement to pitch for the Orioles? Mike Boddicker Mike Flanagan Dennis Martinez Scott McGregor Jim Palmer Steve Stone Vote at baltsun.

Storm Davis came back to Baltimore yesterday -- just for a visit, but soon to try his hand in the renovation of the Baltimore Orioles pitching staff.New teammate and old soulmate Glenn Davis picked him up at the airport and drove him to Memorial Stadium, where he talked about his past and his future at the press luncheon in his honor.He was acquired last week from the Kansas City Royals for catcher Bob Melvin. He and his wife, Angie, were flown in by the Orioles yesterday to meet the media, though Storm knew almost everybody from his first tour of duty here.

It all seemed so right. The Orioles long ago chose Thursday night to unveil Cal Ripken's statue at Oriole Park because of the obvious connection to what happened here on the same date 17 years ago, but they could not have known it would be so perfectly timed to coincide with the re-emergence of the team as a late-season contender and the start of a huge four-game series against the Yankees. The significance certainly wasn't lost on Ripken, who used his edition of the Legends Celebration Series to forge a link between the Hall of Famers who will forever populate the plaza behind center field and the new generation of Orioles players who have responded so well to the leadership of Buck Showalter.