Benny the K

I moved to Baltimore in 2005 for school, and really tried to discover the city. Didn't really plan on a new phase of baseball fandom in my life. Camden was as perfect as I'd heard - that and the hot start got me hooked. Bruce Chen, the PanamAsian, was my man. July 9 2005 was the first and only time I sprung for Field Box - it was a glorious day, Bruce dominated the Red Sox, it was the best ballgame I'd ever been to. That offseason I got a Chen #27 jersey. After his 13-win '05, as you know, Bruce hung an 0-fer in '06. I wore that jersey to the ballpark, to Dizzy Issie's in Remington (where I watched games I didn't go to), and around town, and I never saw another Chen jersey, leading me to believe I owned the only one in town. Also, I lived on Yolando Rd. in Ednor Gardens, two blocks from the old Memorial Stadium site - as I passed by I always marveled how small the footprint seemed. It was a short degree program (looking back I'm amazed how much baseball I squeezed in) and by June 2006 I'd moved to Texas. After a year here I knew I'd be staying a long time and (bracing for the boos) decided to choose a team here to follow. Being roughly equidistant from Houston and Dallas, I gave both ballclubs a chance to win me over. The Astros had a recent pennant and air conditioning. Thank god I picked the Rangers. I'm a pretty serious fan now, and they're my team for life, even if I should move again. Is it b.s. that you can have a "second" team? I have such great memories of my brief flirtation with the O's. I saw so many current O's as Rangers or at Round Rock (AAA). I still have that Chen jersey - too bad Wei-Yin isn't #27! I'm really happy for you guys, and hope you win it all.