Orioles Fans

Nick Markakis said during yesterday's news conference that Brian Roberts is one of his best friends and he hopes he can help persuade him to stay, so Orioles fans have that going for them. Which is nice. ( For more, go to baltimoresun.com/schmuckblog)

Dean Prager has been sitting directly behind the left-field wall at Orioles games ever since Camden Yards opened four years ago. He has always respected where his space ends and the field of play begins.Never, Prager said, has he even considered reaching over the wall and pulling in a ball to help his beloved Orioles.Last night, though, Prager was out for revenge."I'll take the guy's glove out of his hands," the Annapolis insurance salesman said before the game. "I'd be escorted out of here, and I'd say thank you [to the usher]

Thanks from a Yankees fanOn behalf of all Yankees fans, I would like to thank your city for providing us with such an easy path to the World Series. Never in my baseball viewing life have I watched such a collection of heartless saps as your Baltimore Orioles -- 18 of 19 runs scored via an out or home run and not one clutch base hit. Your city's baseball club truly is -- as a writer for a local paper once proclaimed -- "the tin men of baseball."Dan HansellPiscataway, N.J.Pre-adolescent columnKen Rosenthal's column Oct. 10 concerning "Bronx Rules" was yet another addition to his seemingly endless string of inane articles.

On the day after the brawlingest night in the history of Camden Yards, Baltimore police doubled their patrols yesterday in the sections loaded with New York Yankees fans. They brought in an extra platoon to discourage post-game clashes in the streets outside the stadium, and they formed a cordon to keep spectators from rushing the field after the final out.But when the Yankees scored early and often, the deflated Orioles fans just didn't seem to be in much of a fighting mood."It's not like [Saturday]

It's often been said in the athletic arena that to simply throw a collection of talent together without letting it develop as a unit is a prescription for disaster, and that theory has often been proved correct.That can also be true in sports announcing, if the roles aren't clearly delineated. NBC's baseball troika of Bob Costas, Joe Morgan and Bob Uecker is a solid example of how it can work when you put talented people together, making sure they know their roles and perform them.It's been clear throughout their Division Series and American League Championship Series work that Costas, the play-by-play man, is at the helm, with Morgan providing the serious analysis and Uecker along, mainly, for the comic relief.

For many of the fans attending yesterday's Ravens game at Memorial Stadium, news that Jon Miller will be leaving his job as Orioles play-by-play announcer was met with anger.The popular response: "It stinks," said Carl Hucke, 31, of Perry Hall.And sometimes, it got nasty.Miller, 44, is ending his 14-year association with the Orioles. Owner Peter Angelos said Miller was not "an advocate for the team," and the Orioles haven't made an offer to retain his services now that his two-year contract has expired.

Like a lot of Orioles fans, Joe DiBlasi is frustrated by Camden Yards visitors who sit above the outfield walls, waiting to intercept fly balls headed for Brady Anderson's glove.Now, DiBlasi, city councilman from the 6th District, has an idea he says may cause fans to pause before they grab.Last night, DiBlasi introduced a bill that would slap potentially heavy sanctions on those who interfere with balls in play at the stadium -- fines ranging to $500 and/or community service requirements of at least 100 hours.

Is this The Year?Or is it another Building Year?When President Clinton throws out the first ball this afternoon, the hopes -- yes, even expectations -- of Orioles fans will be riding high. They're flocking to Camden Yards in record numbers again. The Birds had an unexpectedly good season last year, buoyed perhaps by the enthusiasm of the fans for their new, spectacular surroundings. Oriole Park at Camden Yards is not exactly old hat yet, but this year the excitement will be out on the field.

ANNAPOLIS -- Six weeks before Opening Day, Orioles season-ticket customers still are talking about misplaced orders, unreturned phone calls and seat assignments that don't live up to the team's long-standing promises.But now they've found a new ear -- the Maryland General Assembly. About a half-dozen disaffected fans took their cases to the House Ways and Means Committee yesterday, testifying in favor of a bill that would offer them powers to fight their new and, they contend, unjust seat assignments.

The tall wall in right field will cast a Fenway-like shadow in Baltimore this summer. The ivy that someday will serve as a lush, leafy hitters' background in center will plant thoughts of Wrigley.It's almost time for Baltimore to unveil its own classic ballpark -- one that will combine some of what's best in baseball tradition with much of what's good in modern design.Welcome to Oriole Park at Camden Yards -- the hottest ticket in town.Its sweeping brick arches and erector-set-like structural steel frame gives it the distinctive look of a ballpark that is well-connected, both to its downtown neighborhood and to baseball's past.

Nick Markakis said during yesterday's news conference that Brian Roberts is one of his best friends and he hopes he can help persuade him to stay, so Orioles fans have that going for them. Which is nice. ( For more, go to baltimoresun.com/schmuckblog)

Orioles president Andy MacPhail and his front office staff are headed to the winter meetings in Las Vegas, and - if you listen to the fans - the heat is on, even though it's not particularly warm in Nevada this time of year. The offseason has produced little in the way of on-field improvements and much in the way of unsatisfying contract negotiations, which has fueled a fountain of discontent on Orioles message boards and in the blogosphere. It's still relatively early, but Orioles fans already are losing patience with MacPhail and his long-term rebuilding program.

Observations, opinions and musings from last week in Major League Baseball. In the sixth inning of Tuesday's Toronto Blue Jays win against the Cincinnati Reds, the announced 28,153 at Rogers Centre began chanting for the new manager, who is also the old manager. "Ci-to Gas-ton," the fans sang in Cito Gaston's first game managing in Toronto since the Blue Jays canned him in 1997. "It gave me goose bumps," Gaston, 64, said. "It was a special night for me, and it's just great to be back."

The fortunes of the Washington Capitals might mean little to many sports fans in Baltimore, other than NHL enthusiasts, but the lesson of their season should not be lost on anyone who follows this town's teams - especially the Orioles. Incredibly, the Capitals won the Southeast Division over the weekend, which helped them land the No. 3 playoff seed in the Eastern Conference. The Caps accomplished this after finishing last in the division in the past two seasons and seemed to be on their way to a post-lockout hat trick through the first quarter of the current campaign.

With its mostly green pitching staff, unproven starters at several key positions and a cleanup hitter who hasn't slugged even 20 home runs in each of the past four years, the 2008 Orioles - who kick off their season at Camden Yards at 3:05 p.m. today - might need some serious sleight-of-hand to become true contenders in the always-competitive American League East this year. Few expect manager Dave Trembley to yank a rabbit that size out of his orange-and-black cap - all the more reason, perhaps, for long-suffering Baltimore fans to cling to the one shell game they've learned never lets them down.

The landscape is barren, and whenever this happens, our sports world seems to splinter. There's reality and fantasy, and there's really not much blurring between the two. They coexist, completely independent and yet completely reliant at the same time. This is how the new year started for Baltimore's two professional sports franchises: Fan bases eager for news of change, team officials taking their time to bring about that change. This isn't at all the case, but they feel like divergent forces: The more desperate a sports fan might be for news, the slower the wheels of change seem to turn.

Orioles fans can seemingly take anything and keep coming back for more. Ten seasons of terrible play, lackluster attitudes and continual roster mismanagement might have dimmed the passion, but not killed it. Neither have drunken-driving pitchers, stanozolol-stained sluggers or B-12 injecting shortstops. But this one is tough to take. Really tough. It'll test the mettle of Orioles fans. Because Brian Roberts is an Oriole from his first contract. He is one of those professional athletes who has been as much a professional as an athlete.

If you're Orioles president Andy MacPhail, what are you supposed to take from the past three weeks? The team has fallen off a cliff, dragging any illusions of organizational progress over the edge along with it. The only question now is how long it will take to put all the broken pieces back together again. MacPhail is, by nature, an upbeat guy, but he's not fooling himself about the significance of the recent collapse. He knows that those who don't learn from failure are doomed to repeat it. "I think it's important not to ignore it," MacPhail said yesterday.

Good morning -- Matt Wieters -- You used every minute, but gave Orioles fans a very good morning.

Good morning -- Atlanta Braves -- So you're renting Mark Teixeira? Orioles fans wonder if you're interested in a sublet.