The Orioles fly into town for first time since 1979
Monday, June 06, 2005
By Robert Dvorchak, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Orioles are coming. The Orioles are coming.
Back in the Seventies, that rallying cry meant Baltimore and Pittsburgh -- two of the elite franchises in baseball, separated by a four-hour drive -- were squaring off in two classic World Series matchups.
Tonight, in the ninth year of interleague play in Major League Baseball, it means the Orioles are in town for a three-game series, the first time since 1979 Oriole Orange clashes with Pirate Gold.
"Strange, huh?" said Orioles Manager Lee Mazzilli when he was told that the two clubs haven't been on the same field for so long.
Mazzilli once wore a Pirates uniform. Orioles pitching coach Ray Miller once had the same position in Pittsburgh. Bruce Kison, who started the first game of the 1979 World Series for the Pirates, is now a scout in the Baltimore organization. And Syd Thrift once made personnel decisions for the Pirates and Orioles.
Some acquaintances will be renewed and stories will be swapped, but having the Orioles -- who are in first place in the American League East, a division graced by the Red Sox and Yankees -- at PNC Park lacks the intensity and electricity reserved for heated rivalries.
"I met some wonderful people in Pittsburgh. It's a good baseball town. I'm looking forward to going back. I've heard great things about the ballpark," Mazzilli said. "But it can't be a rivalry because we haven't played each other."
Indeed. The Series of 1979, and the one that preceded it in 1971, seems like ancient history. But one of the endearing charms about baseball is its nostalgic quality.
"From a baseball standpoint, I'm not a big interleague guy," said former Pirates relief pitcher Kent Tekulve. "I wish the system would be the way it was set up, with everybody playing everybody else on a rotating basis, instead of it being a way to generate revenue for the big-market teams like the Yankees-Mets, Cubs-White Sox or Dodgers-Angels.
"But it's interesting. This series gives fans from both cities an opportunity to look back. It's a chance to reflect," Tekulve said. "Parents have a chance to explain to their kids what that was like -- the atmosphere, the excitement, the pride that went along with being part of the City of Champions, how excited this city got when things were going good. From that standpoint, I think it's a great chance to relive some pretty good moments from the past."
Tekulve appeared in three games in the 1979 Series. He saved three of the four victories for the Pirates and was on the mound for the final out in Baltimore's Memorial Stadium, which gave way to Camden Yards, the model for retro chic ballparks like PNC Park.
"Those moments leave such a mark in your life. The instant that happens, there's a bond created that never goes away. I remember how emotionally married the entire area was to us. They were almost taking every breath with you," Tekulve said.
"As it was going on, it was us against the Orioles. Then when it's over with, you have a chance to think, 'Oh my God. We just won the World Series.' That's when the magnitude of it hit me," he added.
Those feelings transcend time.
Tekulve was a broadcaster with the Phillies in 1992 when Camden Yards opened. A security guard in Baltimore spotted him as he was picking up credentials for a game.
"I'm not two steps into the lobby when this guy stands up, points at me and says, 'I remember you. And I still don't like you,' " Tekulve laughed.
When teams from different leagues haven't played in so long, there's a lot of reliance on the scouting reports, just like in the old days when the National League wouldn't see an American League team except in spring training or in the World Series.
"Sometimes the things you see on paper aren't the same things you see with your eyes," said Ray Miller, who spent 10 years with the Pirates under Jim Leyland and is not a big fan of interleague play.
When he was an Orioles coach in 1979, Miller recalled the scouting reports on catcher Manny Sanguillen and pitcher Jim Rooker.
"The last meeting we had, they said we didn't have to worry about Sanguillen. He wouldn't play. And that Rooker's arm was broke. So Sangy gets a pinch-hit double to help them win a game, and Rooker shows up in Game Five and throws as hard as he's ever thrown," Miller said with a wry smile.
A resident of Athens, Ohio, Miller says he still gets grief from the folks back home because the Pirates rallied to win the last three games and the title.
"I got people at home who still hate me over that," Miller laughed. "We were up 3-1, and people pretty much bet the ranch on us and we lost. People are still upset. Scott McGregor threw the last slider he ever threw in his career, and Pops (the late Willie Stargell) hit it in the bullpen. It was a good series."
The current Orioles have a major adjustment to make. They won't be able to use the designated hitter, and their pitchers have been taking batting practice for the last month or so to adjust to a different kind of game.
"You get scared to death that somebody's going to pull a muscle or get busted on the finger or something," said Miller. "And the worst part, when you do play, the pitchers end up on the bases and they're not used to doing that. You have slick bases, quick starts and all that stuff to contend with."
Disco may have died in the years since the Orioles last hit town, but there will likely be a chord or two played this week of Sister Sledge's "We Are Family," the anthem of the 1979 Pirates.
On Wednesday night, the Pirates will give away a dual bobble head doll featuring Steve Blass, who won game seven of the 1971 Series, and Sanguillen. They will participate in a first-pitch ceremony, but there won't be any throwback uniforms. The Pirates of 1979 were as loud as their uniforms -- 64 possible combinations of black, gold and pinstripes, not to mention the pillbox caps adorned with Stargell stars, handed out as merit badges.
One interested observer at the ballpark will be Chuck Tanner, the manager of the 1979 Pirates and now a scout with the Indians.
"It'll be nice to see the Orioles again," Tanner said. "All those memories will come back. I was able to bring the championship trophy to my hometown. Not many managers can say that."
For Hall of Fame pitcher Jim Palmer, the top pitcher in Orioles history who now serves as a TV analyst, at least the weather promises to be better. Palmer recalled Bowie Kuhn attending games without a topcoat while in was snowing during the 1979 Series because he wanted to promote night games.
"The first five games of that series were the coldest games I can remember," Palmer said.
Both he and Rick Dempsey, the current Orioles first base coach, bemoan the fact that Earl Weaver failed to bunt in some crucial situations when the Orioles could have won a clinching fourth game. But Palmer has other vivid memories.
"They were great series even though they didn't end up the way we wanted. We won it in 1970, and if we win one or two of the '71 or '79 series, we're probably regarded as one of the great teams in history," Palmer said.
"The Pirates just had a very scrappy team. Both times. We thought we were the favorites, but they just out-played us," Palmer said.
Monday, June 06, 2005
By Robert Dvorchak, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Orioles are coming. The Orioles are coming.
Back in the Seventies, that rallying cry meant Baltimore and Pittsburgh -- two of the elite franchises in baseball, separated by a four-hour drive -- were squaring off in two classic World Series matchups.
Tonight, in the ninth year of interleague play in Major League Baseball, it means the Orioles are in town for a three-game series, the first time since 1979 Oriole Orange clashes with Pirate Gold.
"Strange, huh?" said Orioles Manager Lee Mazzilli when he was told that the two clubs haven't been on the same field for so long.
Mazzilli once wore a Pirates uniform. Orioles pitching coach Ray Miller once had the same position in Pittsburgh. Bruce Kison, who started the first game of the 1979 World Series for the Pirates, is now a scout in the Baltimore organization. And Syd Thrift once made personnel decisions for the Pirates and Orioles.
Some acquaintances will be renewed and stories will be swapped, but having the Orioles -- who are in first place in the American League East, a division graced by the Red Sox and Yankees -- at PNC Park lacks the intensity and electricity reserved for heated rivalries.
"I met some wonderful people in Pittsburgh. It's a good baseball town. I'm looking forward to going back. I've heard great things about the ballpark," Mazzilli said. "But it can't be a rivalry because we haven't played each other."
Indeed. The Series of 1979, and the one that preceded it in 1971, seems like ancient history. But one of the endearing charms about baseball is its nostalgic quality.
"From a baseball standpoint, I'm not a big interleague guy," said former Pirates relief pitcher Kent Tekulve. "I wish the system would be the way it was set up, with everybody playing everybody else on a rotating basis, instead of it being a way to generate revenue for the big-market teams like the Yankees-Mets, Cubs-White Sox or Dodgers-Angels.
"But it's interesting. This series gives fans from both cities an opportunity to look back. It's a chance to reflect," Tekulve said. "Parents have a chance to explain to their kids what that was like -- the atmosphere, the excitement, the pride that went along with being part of the City of Champions, how excited this city got when things were going good. From that standpoint, I think it's a great chance to relive some pretty good moments from the past."
Tekulve appeared in three games in the 1979 Series. He saved three of the four victories for the Pirates and was on the mound for the final out in Baltimore's Memorial Stadium, which gave way to Camden Yards, the model for retro chic ballparks like PNC Park.
"Those moments leave such a mark in your life. The instant that happens, there's a bond created that never goes away. I remember how emotionally married the entire area was to us. They were almost taking every breath with you," Tekulve said.
"As it was going on, it was us against the Orioles. Then when it's over with, you have a chance to think, 'Oh my God. We just won the World Series.' That's when the magnitude of it hit me," he added.
Those feelings transcend time.
Tekulve was a broadcaster with the Phillies in 1992 when Camden Yards opened. A security guard in Baltimore spotted him as he was picking up credentials for a game.
"I'm not two steps into the lobby when this guy stands up, points at me and says, 'I remember you. And I still don't like you,' " Tekulve laughed.
When teams from different leagues haven't played in so long, there's a lot of reliance on the scouting reports, just like in the old days when the National League wouldn't see an American League team except in spring training or in the World Series.
"Sometimes the things you see on paper aren't the same things you see with your eyes," said Ray Miller, who spent 10 years with the Pirates under Jim Leyland and is not a big fan of interleague play.
When he was an Orioles coach in 1979, Miller recalled the scouting reports on catcher Manny Sanguillen and pitcher Jim Rooker.
"The last meeting we had, they said we didn't have to worry about Sanguillen. He wouldn't play. And that Rooker's arm was broke. So Sangy gets a pinch-hit double to help them win a game, and Rooker shows up in Game Five and throws as hard as he's ever thrown," Miller said with a wry smile.
A resident of Athens, Ohio, Miller says he still gets grief from the folks back home because the Pirates rallied to win the last three games and the title.
"I got people at home who still hate me over that," Miller laughed. "We were up 3-1, and people pretty much bet the ranch on us and we lost. People are still upset. Scott McGregor threw the last slider he ever threw in his career, and Pops (the late Willie Stargell) hit it in the bullpen. It was a good series."
The current Orioles have a major adjustment to make. They won't be able to use the designated hitter, and their pitchers have been taking batting practice for the last month or so to adjust to a different kind of game.
"You get scared to death that somebody's going to pull a muscle or get busted on the finger or something," said Miller. "And the worst part, when you do play, the pitchers end up on the bases and they're not used to doing that. You have slick bases, quick starts and all that stuff to contend with."
Disco may have died in the years since the Orioles last hit town, but there will likely be a chord or two played this week of Sister Sledge's "We Are Family," the anthem of the 1979 Pirates.
On Wednesday night, the Pirates will give away a dual bobble head doll featuring Steve Blass, who won game seven of the 1971 Series, and Sanguillen. They will participate in a first-pitch ceremony, but there won't be any throwback uniforms. The Pirates of 1979 were as loud as their uniforms -- 64 possible combinations of black, gold and pinstripes, not to mention the pillbox caps adorned with Stargell stars, handed out as merit badges.
One interested observer at the ballpark will be Chuck Tanner, the manager of the 1979 Pirates and now a scout with the Indians.
"It'll be nice to see the Orioles again," Tanner said. "All those memories will come back. I was able to bring the championship trophy to my hometown. Not many managers can say that."
For Hall of Fame pitcher Jim Palmer, the top pitcher in Orioles history who now serves as a TV analyst, at least the weather promises to be better. Palmer recalled Bowie Kuhn attending games without a topcoat while in was snowing during the 1979 Series because he wanted to promote night games.
"The first five games of that series were the coldest games I can remember," Palmer said.
Both he and Rick Dempsey, the current Orioles first base coach, bemoan the fact that Earl Weaver failed to bunt in some crucial situations when the Orioles could have won a clinching fourth game. But Palmer has other vivid memories.
"They were great series even though they didn't end up the way we wanted. We won it in 1970, and if we win one or two of the '71 or '79 series, we're probably regarded as one of the great teams in history," Palmer said.
"The Pirates just had a very scrappy team. Both times. We thought we were the favorites, but they just out-played us," Palmer said.
