Why (and When) did You Become an Oriole Fan ???

[Owen21]

Grew up in Phils country. Went to many games at Reading and watched Bowa, Boone, Schmidt, Sandberg, Luzinski, Andre Thorton, etc. (plus Tommy Underwood, Jeff Stone LOL..fast legs/slow mind, etc.)

It was a bummer that the Orioles did not have an affiliate in the AA Eastern League in the 70's & 80's.

Anyway, the only team on TV in the late 60's (besides "Deron Johnson" & the Phils) were the Orioles. I had to watch them on "UHF" channels 15 & 21 with Bill O'Donnell & Chuck Thompson...and since the 3rd baseman shared my first name, I was forever hooked at the age of 9.

[jofalfa]

Quick easy answer would be my brother became a fan when we were really little and I did too because I did anything he did. It spread to our whole family and we got really into the team in the early and mid 90's. We went to every Orioles/Red Wings exhibition game and made Baltimore a vacation spot most summers. My brother and I are still diehard fans. I see occasional Orioles hats on people throughout Rochester but it's mostly Red Sox/Yankees crap.

[olehippi]

I officially became an Orioles fan on Nov 17, 1953, when it was announced that the St. Louis Browns were now the Baltimore Orioles. I had been to a few International League Oriole's games, but until that day, I would go down to old Griffith Park, in DC, and root for the Senators.

[jackprac]

I became an O's fan because about the time I was becoming interested in baseball, I was living in Baltimore, and they just got this new team from St. Louis. So I went to see them play at Memorial Stadium in 1955. My favorite player was Bob "the rope" Boyd, because he was the only one who could hit.:laughlol:

I date frrom the same era. My original team from inception was the Phila. A's. At the ripe old age of seven my little heart was shattered by the Irsay-like midnight moving vans taking my baseball world to Kansas City. I grew numb to baseball until about May of that year. My Grandfather, my oldest brother, and I were talking baseball and my brother, a Phillies fan ( He allways rooted for the underdog)and the only one in the family asked my grandfather "Pop-pop, now that the A's have left town, are you going to be a fan of the Phillies?" My grandfather looked down his aristocratic nose and said "Since when do the Phillies play the Yankees?" my brother says "They don't they're in the National League" my grandfather said "Then what is the point!" At this point I started laughing, knowing that my grandfather would sooner vote for Joe Stalin than be a Phillies fan. Within our family, out side of my oldest brother, we generally refered to the Phillies as "That AAA franchise in S.Phila." as the A's were in N.Phila. My brother got aggravated at his 7 year old brother laughing at his discomfort and said "Who are you going to root for? The Browns!! (His voice dripping with sarcasm) I said " Shows what you know you big dope they moved to Baltimore last year, they're now the Orioles" he says "Oh, so now you're going to be a Balteemore Orioles fan?"

I said "Yeah, what about it" My grandfather approved of my decision. 56 years later here I am, reading the OH at 10pm.

[Orioles West]

Born on the Eastern Shore wearing an Orioles' T-shirt. Yes, the legend is true, right out of the womb geared up in orange and black.

Went to games with the family as a young one as far back as 1970. Talked O's with my grandfather every day until he moved on to baseball heaven a couple of years ago.

Moved to Colorado many moons ago and learned you can take the guy out of Birdland, but the Orioles are forever.

-Don

[better]

I was born in Switzerland and my family moved to the DC area in 1997, when I was 9 years old. Obviously, it was an exciting year to get into Orioles baseball and I have been ever since, even after moving back to Europe a few years later. I never miss a game..

[underdog]

I learned to read from spreading out the sports section of the News American on my living room floor in the late 60's. Once I learned about Brooks, Frank, Boog and Dave McNally, there was no turning back... although I still want Angelos to buy the Steelers

[dickysty]

1973. Living in Northern VA. I was 9, too young to ever have been a Senators fan. DC's channel 20 would carry O's games and the ones they didn't, I could pick up on Baltimore channel 2. How could you watch Chuck Thompson do an Oriole game and not become a fan? Ain't the beer cold! :beerchug1:

What Big Al said. Same thing too much of a young'n to be a Sens fan.

So we would watch the O's on the Tube or Pops would take me to a few games a year.

Still don't get to excited about those Nats to this day, I may go to a few games a season just because it's easier then driving to Bmore.

What's up Hoodbanger !

[Gleason2]

I became an Orioles fan on June 29, 1974. I turned 13 years old that summer. My parents were considering the purchase of a color TV (we only had a black & white to that point) but told us that, if they purchased the TV, we could not take a vacation that summer. My older sister worked out a deal with our dad. If we were to give up our vacation, could they get the color TV and take us up to Baltimore for an Orioles game. He agreed to the terms and I went to my very first Birds game on 6/29/74. The Birds beat the Yankees that day 2 to 0, and I've been an Orioles fan ever since.

[sportbilly08]

It was 1986

I am from NJ and I was turned off by the Yankees and I was indifferent to the Mets.

A friend of mine and I were talking about baseball, and as a result of that conversation I fell in love with the Cartoon Oriole hat.

Some of my favorite memories from back then were regarding Eric Bell and Larry Sheets. Eric Bell was a left handed starter who I thought had a lot of potential and Larry Sheets was a lefthanded hitting OF/DH who had some pop in his bat.

I had selected both of them on my Micro League Baseball team. The program simulated games based on projecting past stats to future out comes. However, it did not factor small sample sizes well, and as a result over a full season, Eric Bell performed like a CY Young and Sheets like an MVP. They made me look like a fantasy genious!

Not sure what happened to Eric Bell, but Larry Sheets had some good years and I met him at a fan fest.

I have been an avid Oriole and Fantasy baseball fan since.

[oldbrownie]

Was St. Louis Browns fan and my heart moved with them to Baltimore, was 9 yrs old at the time. Old Brownies never die they just turn into Orioles!

[OFFNY]

oldbrownie said:

 

Was a St. Louis Browns fan and my heart moved with them to Baltimore, was 9 years-old at the time. Old Brownies never die, they just turn into Orioles !!!

 

o

 

Welcome, our American Cousin. ) 

 

o

.

[tntoriole]

I went to my first games with my Dad in 1965 at Memorial Stadium and really became a true fan in the World Series year of 1966. I was born and raised in Baltimore though I now live in southwestern Virginia. But, I have been to every World Series that the Orioles have ever played in and I hope to get to another one or two before I am through.

[Eddie_Murray33]

Grew up in Southern Connecticut- in the heart of Yankee and Met country- especially Met country in the 1980's.

Anyway- in the Spring of 1983 my t-ball team was the "Orioles". I remember going to the store and buying a white panel cartoon bird cap to round out my "uniform" and just loving my cap and becoming an O's fan. Then- we ALL know what happened that Fall. Sure I was a winner-picker- but Oriole fandom was cemented after something as magical as that season transpired.

Whatever the case- thought I'd be on "easy" street as an Orioles fan from that point on- but other than a couple glimmers in '89 and the 90's- it's been a rough ride! But somehow worth it. I love my O's...:hearts:

[raveoned]

I would say I started to become a fan in 1991. Of course, being in Philadelphia, my first real awareness of the O's was in 1983!

But, in 1991, I was driving for about a year then, and able to go to all kinds of places I wanted to visit. My oldest brother, who had been to NY and Baltimore for games before, had asked if I was interested in seeing an O's game, since Memorial was in it's last year.

So, we drove down. My impressions of the park were just what I wanted from a baseball experience: a ballpark in a neighborhood (I really loved the setting there - some streets with houses and then there it was!) as opposed to the Vet, which was a stadium in a sea of parking spots, warehouses and highways, plus the people were really friendly! I don't really remember encountering a single rude person at any concession stand I visited that game!

It started then, and my Orioles fandom was hit home later that year when I met Brooks Robinson at a baseball card show. Need I say anymore?

The next season, due to an office of my company being in Baltimore, we lucked into tickets for Opening Day in OPACY. I went that day, and realized that was where I would want to be to enjoy baseball the way it should be.