Oriole Park

Some home-grown heavy hitters are joining the line-up Oriole Park. For the 20th Anniversary season at Camden Yards, the Orioles and its second-year concessionaire, Delaware North Companies Sportservice, have powered up the local presence at the yard. The new 3-4-5 hitters are Gino's Burgers and Chicken, Stuggy's and Dempsey's Brew Pub and Restaurant, named for and partly owned by Rick Dempsey. Word that Gino's Burgers and Chicken was coming to the Oriole Park leaked out in January . But the news about the addition of Stuggy's, a maker of specialty sausage and hot dogs based in Fells Point , has been simmerlingly quietly in management's steam pan. And although there had been word of a new brew-pub moving into the Camden Yard warehouse, fans are only learning Monday that the joint will be named for the lovable longtime Oriole Rick Dempsey.

Orioles fans often hear about the Oriole Way, "Orioles Magic" and the three World Series titles during the team's glory years in the '60s, '70s and '80s. Even 20-somethings who missed the last title, in 1983, have playoff appearances in 1996 and 1997 and the historic career of Cal Ripken Jr. to hold onto. But for many, being an Orioles fan has been nothing but disappointment, a streak of 14 straight losing seasons and teams that have started out hot, with plenty of players showing lots of promise, only to find new ways to crush our spirits.

Number-crunching baseball fans who flock to Camden Yards today will eat this up: 9,200 hot dogs, 4,500 pounds of french fries, 3,700 soft pretzels, 2,500 Boog's pit beef sandwiches and 1,500 hamburgers. But the food stats that the Orioles throw out every year, based on how much gets gobbled up at Oriole Park on a typical Opening Day, don't tell the whole story this time. There's no telling how many gluten- and casein-free Asian noodle salads, "Turtle Bites" or Attman's coddies and knishes fans will down because no one's had the chance to eat them at the ballpark before.

With the outfield at Oriole Park at Camden Yards turning into a track meet for trespassers, the team has decided to hire private security guards to augment the Baltimore Police officers working the game. According to Comcast Sportsnet Baltimore , the private guards started working Monday. They wear white shirts and khaki pants, and line the field before the game and between innings. City police officers continue to work the games in their usual role. "Really, the thing that got us to this point - I wouldn't say it's an embarrassment - it's just not acceptable.

Amnesty for fans who jump on the field and run around like maniacs at Oriole Park at Camden Yards appears to be over.  Like a Caped Crusader vanishing into the night, Mark Harvey - the guy who ran onto the field on Opening Day in a cape and Batman underwear - escaped criminal charges for his stunt due to a "miscommunication" by prosecutors. And while the State's Attorney's Office still had the ability to charge him after the fact, they opted not to while simultaneously vowing to prosecute others in the future.  So was it an empty threat?

The Orioles are searching for the voice of a new generation, and Oriole Park vibrated Saturday with the sounds of the 25 semifinalists who are hoping to become the full-time public address announcer for the team's 20th anniversary season at Camden Yards. The competition began with 670 hopefuls - some of whom produced their audition recordings at FanFest in the hope of replacing Dave McGowan, who stepped down in December after 14 seasons. The candidates who showed up on this wintry afternoon included a surprisingly diverse cross-section of the Orioles fan base and the local media.

Whoever replaces Aramark as the concessionaire at Oriole Park at Camden Yards — and the Orioles are keeping that announcement under their caps — they will have a tough act to follow. While the baseball team has had its ups and downs, the ballpark fare under Aramark's 19-year tenure has been consistently good and widely imitated. Concepts such as selling food on a promenade like Eutaw Street, having a former ballplayer such as Boog Powell cook barbecue at the park, and serving regional favorites like crab soup and coddies were mostly hatched at Camden Yards and have now popped up at ballparks around the country.

As soon as the gates opened at noon Friday, Peter Hudak raced up the stairs to the new rooftop deck behind the center-field wall of Oriole Park at Camden Yards . The Columbia resident held a standing-room-only ticket, and his plan all along was to secure one of the precious stools that offer a fresh, stunning view of the 20-year-old park. He brought to his perch a bag of Doritos, a bottle of Dr Pepper and an absolute determination to hold his seat, which appeared to be coveted by hundreds of other patrons.

They came here from out of town, but come Opening Day, they'll be serving Baltimore fans Old Bay wings, Polock Johnny's sausage and soft-shell crabs battered in Natty Boh. Oriole Park's new concessionaire, the Buffalo, N.Y.-based Delaware North Companies Sportservice, unveiled a new stadium menu Wednesday with a decidedly local flair. They brought the traditional (a tastefully done crab cake), the outrageous (an Esskay hot dog topped with smoked pit beef, pepperoni hash stewed tomatoes and crispy onions)

If state officials and the Baltimore Orioles cannot agree on a name for the new baseball stadium at Camden Yards, they should call in an arbitrator. Or an arbiter. Or an umpire. Baseball is a game of arbitrary judgments. All who play it live with disputed calls.A panel of opinionated people consulted by this department had a clear consensus that Oriole Park is the best name. It is informative and consistent with municipal and baseball history.Be that as it may, other means could be found to settle this trivial pursuit:1.

One of the more remarkable traits of the Baltimore Oriole is its ability to make a home out of an odd collection of cast-offs and under-valued items — grass, bark, horsehair, wool, even cellophane and fishing line. And that's not the end of their cleverness. They are also acrobatic feeders who can snatch a meal from the most unlikely of sources. Perhaps it's only fitting that the Major League Baseball team of the same name has in the first month of the season demonstrated similar skills.

Through the raindrops, the Orioles honored Hall of Famer Frank Robinson, unveiling a statue of the Orioles great beyond the left-center-field fence at Camden Yards, kicking off a season-long celebration honoring the club's six Hall of Famers. Those in attendance for the ceremony included Robinson and fellow Hall of Famers Hank Aaron, Jim Palmer and Earl Weaver. Rick Dempsey, Brady Anderson, Boog Powell and Don Buford - all members of the Orioles Hall of Fame - were there, too, as were current Orioles center fielder Adam Jones, right fielder Nick Markakis, manager Buck Showalter, first base coach Wayne Kirby and Oakland Athletics manager Bob Melvin, a former Oriole - all in uniform.

Orioles center fielder Adam Jones, whose eighth-inning solo homer was the deciding run in the Orioles' 5-2 win over the Blue Jays on Thursday, said he's not paying attention to the American League East standings. Thursday night's win, which completed Baltimore's first three-game sweep of Toronto since Sept. 13-15, 2010, kept the Orioles in first place in the division, tied with the Tampa Bay Rays at 12-7. But to Jones, who is off to a sizzling start to the season, filling Camden Yards will be a truer indicator of the team's success.

The Orioles are going for a three-game sweep against the Blue Jays tonight at Camden Yards on an overcast day here at Oriole Park. The Orioles (11-7) enter the night with a share of the AL East lead with Tampa Bay. Orioles left-hander Brian Matusz is still looking to end a personal 12-game losing streak, the longest active streak in the majors, tonight against Toronto right-hander Drew Hutchinson, who is making his second major league start. A lot going on around the Orioles clubhouse today: -- We had our first glimpse of injured left-hander Tsuyoshi Wada, who was in the clubhouse today, since he returned to Baltimore.

The mission was a lot easier to define than it was to carry out. The Orioles wanted six larger-than-life bronze likenesses of the six living legends who have had their numbers retired by the team, and they had to be perfect. The first one will be unveiled at Oriole Park on Saturday, when the team celebrates the life and career of Hall of Famer Frank Robinson. Brooks Robinson will be honored next, then Earl Weaver , Jim Palmer, Eddie Murray and Cal Ripken Jr. - one a month throughout the season.

Amnesty for fans who jump on the field and run around like maniacs at Oriole Park at Camden Yards appears to be over.  Like a Caped Crusader vanishing into the night, Mark Harvey - the guy who ran onto the field on Opening Day in a cape and Batman underwear - escaped criminal charges for his stunt due to a "miscommunication" by prosecutors. And while the State's Attorney's Office still had the ability to charge him after the fact, they opted not to while simultaneously vowing to prosecute others in the future.  So was it an empty threat?

Oriole Park at Camden Yards will begin the 2011 baseball season with a new concessionaire, wider seats in many areas and more casual seating options as part of a campaign to coax fans from in front of their high-definition television sets and back into the downtown ballpark. The Orioles are also exploring plans to eliminate up to 12 corporate skyboxes along the left and right field lines and replace them with larger group-sales venues and party suites offering a greater variety of seating and entertainment arrangements.

Oriole Park at Camden Yards , which will mark its 20th anniversary season next spring, may soon be getting a makeover — one that will make the area overlooking center field into a year-round attraction. The street-level picnic area behind the center-field wall would be reconfigured into a park where fans can stroll in and gaze out on the diamond, even in December, according to a Maryland Stadium Authority plan. The area would have expanded space for concessions and a rooftop viewing area.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and Councilman Brandon M. Scott announced Tuesday that beginning this year, the Baltimore City Public Schools baseball championship will be held at Camden Yards. The title game will take place at 2:05 p.m. on May 5. Admission is free. Gates will open at 1 p.m. with parking available in lots B and C. "Playing the biggest game of the year at the greatest baseball stadium in the country is a priceless opportunity for our student-athletes," Rawlings-Blake said in a news release.

As soon as the gates opened at noon Friday, Peter Hudak raced up the stairs to the new rooftop deck behind the center-field wall of Oriole Park at Camden Yards . The Columbia resident held a standing-room-only ticket, and his plan all along was to secure one of the precious stools that offer a fresh, stunning view of the 20-year-old park. He brought to his perch a bag of Doritos, a bottle of Dr Pepper and an absolute determination to hold his seat, which appeared to be coveted by hundreds of other patrons.