The Orioles have a message, and it was played loud and clear Sunday afternoon: Oriole Magic is not dead.
But the theme song inspired by the 1979 Orioles blared from the clubhouse speakers after Luis Hernandez?s single scored Jay Payton for a 3-2 victory at Camden Yards on a dreary afternoon.
Hernandez lofted reliever Mark Lowe?s offering into right-center field for his first hit of the season ? one that lifted the Orioles (4-1) into first place after trailing 2-0 entering their final at-bat.
“I was thinking that before I hit, ?The best time to get a hit is right now,?” Hernandez said. “So I did it.”
Jeremy Guthrie, who scattered two runs and six hits in seven innings, was the one who played the team?s theme song that once was a staple in the team?s locker room in Memorial Stadium.
Twenty-nine years later, the Orioles said its time for fans to hop on board the bandwagon.
“It was nice to see the old ballpark come alive there at the end,” Orioles manager Dave Trembley said. “It was good for our team and real good for our fans.”
The win came in front of 19,215 fans, and it began with Nick Markakis? double to lead off the ninth, which led his teammates to believe the Orioles would rally.
“Nick leads off with a double, and next thing you know, pressure seems to go immediately on their shoulders,” Millar said. “One through nine had great at bats.”
The Orioles struggled mightily to reach base against Seattle starter Felix Hernandez. The Venezuelan flame-thrower, who turns 22 on Tuesday, filled in for injured former Oriole Erik Bedard, who was scratched from Sunday?s start with a hip injury.
Hernandez threw eight shutout innings, scattering five hits on 97 pitches. But he was lifted in favor of the Mariners bullpen, which was without All-Star closer J.J. Putz, who is on the disabled list.
Markakis doubled off left-hander Eric O?Flaherty to lead off the inning, and after two groundouts, Luke Scott and Payton singled. Adam Jones, running for Luke Scott, came home on a wild pitch by Lowe to tie the game, and Hernandez?s single touched off a wild on-field celebration.
Seattle (2-4) was 75-0 last season when leading after eight innings. Conversely, the Orioles were 4-87, and 13-31 in one-run games last season.
But it?s a different team this year.
Who knows if magic is truly in the air at Camden Yards? But it?s clear these Orioles know how to have fun.
Sean Welsh is the Orioles beat writer for The Examiner. He can be reached at [email protected]
