The O's - A Reason To Celebrate?

When I saw the end of Wednesday night's final regular season game between the Red Sox and Oriole's, I had to really try to comprehend what I was witnessing. Of course, the Orioles had just beat the Sox in the bottom of the ninth inning, knocking them out of play-off contention. Impressive, I suppose, especially against a good team like Boston.

But here's where I have a problem.....


Initially, watching the celebration brought back memories of when the Oriole's won the World Series back in 1983. But this year's team was far from a World Series team. The Birds finished yet another disappointing season with an unimpressive 69-93 record. And they're celebrating? Ok, so you've knocked the Red Sox out of the play-offs, so what? At least Boston was an actual contender. The Oriole's haven't had a winning season since 1997! What is there to get so excited about?? Has the organization been reduced to the role of perennial spoiler?

At the conclusion of Wednesday night's game, the Oriole's players resembled a flash mob the way the were jumping on top of one another. Players were hopping and bopping in from the bullpen like they were coming down the final stretch of a three-legged race. I figured it was only a matter of time before someone started break dancing on top of the pitcher's mound. The only thing missing was The Pointer Sisters belting out "I'm So Excited" from the stadium's P.A. system.

I'm sorry, I know I'm going against the grain with my hometown baseball team and I'll likely take some heat from my buddies. But I just found the excessive celebration to be way over the top. It's like watching a football team conduct a 5-minute dance routine in the end zone when the other team is still up by 30 points. It makes you look stupid.

On a positive note, the Oriole's played really good baseball going into the final week of the season. The big question in my mind is whether Oriole's can actually learn something from their strong finish this year. I grew up watching the classic O's teams and I would love to see some of that magic come back. Although, it's hard to get overly optimistic, I really do wish the Oriole's the best. It would be nice to actually celebrate making the playoffs for a change......

kw