now

The golden age of "veteranosity" and "playoff presence." Shades too, of the 1983 Phillies with the old (mid-30s) Reds core, which our gang manhandled in the World Series.

Hmm, that's an intriguing scenario. Wonder how that would have turned out, longer term (Tony, are you there?). Maybe better than what we got? (A thrilling win over Det., dashed by KC and then the debacle of 2016 WC...)

That's fine, but don't you think career W-L record has merit as a stat?

Except for career totals... as per Bill James back in the day.

"You can't make this stuff up."

At first glance I thought this was breaking news of when we might see live baseball again.

Here are another couple of games which should be fun to watch: NYA AT TBA - September 28, 2011 BOS AT BAL - September 28, 2011 Was it coincidence that after the above uplifting upset, the next year's Orioles improved by 24 games? The opposite of the wild card loss of 2016 being followed by a 14-game plummet to 2017? BTW it seems the above naming format is good for searching in YouTube for any game you want (if they have it). Here are some more notable MFY losses, for your viewing pleasure... Edgar hits the Double (ALDS Gm 5, 1995) Josh Beckett shines (2003 WS, Gm. 6) Luis Gonzalez dinks Mariano (2001 WS, Gm. 7

Oh, the minefield of tragic "what-ifs" (and just plain stupid whiffs) that litter Orioles history!@#$%^&*

Cool, thanks for the research. Just think, a near championship season featuring a bus driver (starting the biggest game of the year) and a cabbageball pitcher... "Why not?" stretched to the limit! It so happens, Hickey relieved Johnson in the 8th in that game after a leadoff walk, and gave up another walk. Those proved the tying runs as Williamson came on to cough up the game.

Good one, thx. He's the one--and of course, also in 1989. Why Not? Not quite a one-hit wonder, but an interesting career. Three years with the White Sox, then out of MLB for five years before the O's picked him up for a flash of decency. In between, was he lobbing softballs then?

Oops, good catch. And you're right, it does change the calculus. I forced myself finally to watch *that* game again, especially curious to hear the announcers' reaction to events as they unfolded (or not). Around the sixth or seventh inning Cal Ripken was citing the "conventional" wisdom of saving the closer if you're the road team but using the closer in a late tie game at home. In the ninth with the Jays threatening, Cal wondered if Buck might bring in Britton to solve a tight jam, but O'Day relieved Brach and got out of it. After that neither announcer made a peep about Britton sitting, until the final comment of the postgame, when someone observed, as an afterthought, that Britton was unused. No, wait, the other announcer did mention briefly late in the game that Kimbrell was unused in a key NL playoff game in 2013, but I looked it up and found no comparable situation in the Atlanta losses. I do like to play devil's advocate, and so in theory go with Cal's "conventional" practice as acceptable, despite the bad result in this case. Especially, as another poster pointed out, with Liriano so dominant. But that's on paper. Watching Ubaldo absolutely groove those last 3 meatballs in a row (on 3 consecutive pitches?) was just sickening, and brought back that intuitive sinking feeling that all Oriole fans (except Buck, apparently) knew about Ubaldo from his whole erratic history here--notwithstanding a chimerical September of effectiveness. Just a tease... like Daniel Cabrera, and so many others before him. One final observation, IMO the Orioles lost that game mostly because they failed to take advantage of the Jays' weak bullpen (Cecil, Biagini, Grilli, and Osuna) who gave up like 1 hit in the 7th, 8th, and 9th. Okay, ready to move on...

Just curious, what was his take on Gausman? And BTW, re. Johnson, I remembered the truck driver part, but wasn't he also a softball pitcher before--or am I thinking of some other O's pitcher of that era?

Honorable mention after Steve Stone might be Pat Dobson (the O's fourth 20-game winner of 1971). And how about Roric Harrison? 134 ERA+ in '72, but well below average thereafter. Which also brings us to Earl Williams whom Harrison (and Davey Johnson) were traded for. I thought this bane of Earl Weaver's existence might make the Braves' list at least, but his decline was more gradual. Davey would take some cake, though, with his wholly implausible 43 HR in 1973 for ATL, distinctly Bradyesque.

Is that rating for real, or just "Catcher's ERA"? (I don't know the answer, just asking.)

Wow! I must be old. Walker and those "Baby Birds"!... Among my first Orioles memories, turning 9.

Hey Tony, in the What-if dept., what about resigning Markakis and Cruz after 2014 to extend the window for real... Did you try that, or take the opposite course and rebuild for real, sooner than 2018? (Thus either way, avoiding that unspeakable alternate timeline that we witnessed in 2016)?

Rick Dempsey (claim to fame being a few doubles and a dinger, one October)

Hard to guage the value of that trade at the time. Far more significant in present time (then) was the blockbuster trade earlier that year, of Torrez and Baylor for Holtzman and Reggie. That seemed a fair trade on balance but you had to be excited as an O's fan because of Reggie's superstar-power. Too bad it didn't work out long-term (except in Tony's alternative universe).

Just to add a few more data points to the discussion... Britton was nearly as good in 2014 as he was in 2016. Again he was used in different situations against KC, with mixed results... ACLS Game 1 away Britton pitches 9th of a 5-5 tie. O'Day enters to finish 9th and loses game in the 10th. Game 2 Away Tied 4-4 in the 8th, Miller faces two and O'Day one. O'Day gives up a single to start the ninth. Britton relieves and gives up two hits, allowing the two winning (losing) runs. Season totals: Britton 37 saves, 1.65 ERA. Miller 1.35 as an Oriole. O'Day 1.70. S**t happens. And as an Oriole fan, more times than is pleasant to remember. But hey, with time on our hands... Here's another from the archives: 1989, Sept. 29 in Toronto. O's need to win the next 2 games. Closer Gregg Olson (27 saves, 1.69) relieves Ballard in bottom of the 8th to protect a 1-0 lead, yields a steal, advance to third, and tying run on wild pitch. Olson stays in for the 9th and 10th. Williamson comes on in the 11th and loses the game. 1973 Bob Reynolds 9 Sv, 1.95, Grant Jackson 9 Sv, 1.90 ACLS game 3 in Oakland. Weaver leaves in Cuellar, despite yielding tying run in 8th, into the 11th when Campeneris homers to win it for the A's. Unused in the bullpen are Reynolds (1.95) and Jackson (1.90). But I guess Weaver was saving them for the next game, when the duo combined for 7.1 innings of 1-run relief in a 5-4 Orioles comeback win. (In between, though, with the score tied 4-4 in the 7th, Weaver risked Eddie Watt for two batters). (BTW I was at that game, and predicted the heroics by Etchebarren and Jackson, though I thought it would be Reggie, LOL).

Fair enough. But an apt potrayal of the "madness" you speak of, no?

And didn't Moose also have a monster game vs. Seattle in the ADLS?

No argument on the "steal." As for comparing relievers, your overall point makes sense but breaks down if you just look at the "hot hand" of September results. Both Britton and Johnson were lights out late in the season. Ubaldo was also stellar: 3-1, 2.31, 35 IP, 18 H, 31K, 0.829 WHIP. Strop was atrocious with his 6.48 ERA, and for that matter Rhodes was nothing special heading to the playoffs with a 3.55, 1.342 September. Yet both of those guys were inserted in tie games while Johnson and Myers sat unused in the bullpen.

Yup, I did the Lance Haffner game too, tinkering with dynastic rosters of 3- and 5-year peaks. But Strat-O-Matic was the gateway drug to all the sims.

Ah, so you must know Robert Coover's classic Universal Baseball Association? If not, be sure to check it out.

Yeah, would love to hear more details about that post 1977 run of yours, and the 1992 rebuilt team as well. BTW the real O's in that 1979-81 period weren't too shabby either, just ran into some bad luck in the form of PGH, NYY, and the split schedule. Kudos for taking on this project and sharing with us!