@zach

2mo

Orioles Break 21-Game Losing Streak: Today in Sports History

On April 29th, 1988, the Orioles won their first game of their season 9-0 over the Chicago White Sox. Their 0-21 start remains the longest losing streak to start an MLB season ever. Cal Ripken Jr. lead the O's with four hits, including a home run and a double. Eddie Murray also drove in two runs with a homer of his own. He scored three of the Orioles nine runs. Pitchers Mark Williamson and Dave Schmidt silenced the White Sox offense with just 91 pitches and three strikeouts, earning the win and save respectively. The next longest losing streak to open a season was set by the 1997 Chicago Cubs, going 0-14. Only five other teams have started 0-10 or worse. In general, a 21 game losing streak ties the 1988 Orioles with the 2024 Chicago White Sox for the fourth longest same season losing streak ever. The only three teams to have it worse were the 1890 Pittsburgh Alleghenys (now the Pirates, losing streak of 23 games), the 1961 Philadelphia Phillies (also 23), and the 1899 Cleveland Spiders (24 games).

Orioles

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2 Slams on 2 Pitches

On May 9, 1961, Baltimore first baseman Jim Gentile did something so improbable that no one had ever done it before; he hit grand slams in back-to-back innings. First inning at Minnesota: Gentile launched one off Twins starter Pedro Ramos with the bases loaded. Four runs in. Second inning: bases loaded again. Gentile launched another one off reliever Paul Giel. Four more runs in. By the second pitch of the second inning, he had 8 RBIs. By game's end, 9. The Orioles won 13-5. Gentile was the first player ever to hit grand slams in consecutive innings. Only six others have matched him since. He'd finish 1961 with 46 home runs and 141 RBIs... and still finish behind Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris in the MVP race because the M&M Boys were busy chasing Babe Ruth's home run record that summer. One of the great forgotten seasons in baseball history, kicked off by one of the great forgotten innings.

@ChuckieHussy

The Only Ball to Leave Memorial

On May 8, 1966, Frank Robinson did something no one had ever done, and no one would ever do again. He hit a home run completely out of Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Off Indians pitcher Luis Tiant in the first inning, Robinson crushed a 3-2 fastball over the left field bleachers and clean over the back wall of the stadium. The ball landed on a parking lot across 33rd Street. Estimated distance: 540 feet. Memorial Stadium opened in 1954. It hosted 38 seasons of Orioles baseball before closing in 1991. In all that time, with all the sluggers who passed through - Mantle, Mays, Reggie, Jim Rice, Eddie Murray, Cal Ripken - only Frank Robinson ever cleared the building. The Orioles marked the spot in the parking lot with a flag that simply read "HERE." Robinson had been traded to Baltimore that offseason from the Reds in what's still considered one of the most lopsided deals in baseball history because he was "old" at age 30. He won the Triple Crown that summer, the MVP, and led the O's to their first ever World Series title. May 8 was the moment they realized what they had.

@Landon

Max Max Muncy Muncy

Please take a moment to look at the picture up above. Yes, that is true. Though it seems like a glitch in the matrix it’s not. These two individuals share the exact same name, same profession, some position, drafted by the same team, mostly hit towards the bottom of the order, and don’t even know each other. Completely unrelated too! I’d love to see these two on the same team one day.