Baltimore Sports Then and Now

Dave Trembley will have the chance to yell at more umpires in 2010.

At first reaction, the announcement on Friday that the Baltimore Orioles have retained the services of manager Dave Trembley for the 2010 season seems like a head-scratcher.

After all, typically in professional sports the fate of a manger is judged by wins and losses and in that area Trembley has failed miserably. Since Trembley became manager of the O’s midway through the 2007 season he has posted a 169-244 record and the team’s winning percentage has declined each season.

But, managing the Baltimore Orioles the last couple years as the team looks to build for the long haul has not been your typical job.

“When we embarked on this process, we made a commitment to our system to get as much young talent in there as we could,” said team president Andy MacPhail. “We knew when we made the trades that we made it would be a short term pain for us.

“While the win-loss record is obviously important, Dave’s primary job was to get as many talented young kids up here and have them grow and develop as major leaguers. In our judgment he did that. He absolutely did those things that were important.”
Read the rest of this entry →

Brian Roberts has established a new career-high for doubles and is among the league leaders in runs scored.

After a miserable post-All Star Break performance, the Orioles are providing fans with some September highlights.

The Birds are still losing more than they’re winning with a 6-7 mark this month; however, the team already has exceeded its September win totals from 2008 (5-20) and 2002 (4-24).

The O’s are already more than halfway to their traditional 10 September wins, a mark they reached in 2007 (10-19), 2006 (10-18), 2005 (10-18), and 2003 (10-16).

The team’s best September mark this decade came in 2004 when they went 18-10, which they followed up with a 42-28 start to the 2005 season. How does 60-38 sound?
Read the rest of this entry →