A wound that time has not healed for me

[Frobby]

The year was 1969. I was 12 years old, and the Baltimore Orioles were my consuming passion in life. Before the baseball season began, the year had started badly, with the New York Jets beating my beloved Colts in the Super Bowl in what was probably the greatest pro football upset of all time. The Orioles wiped away the pain, it seemed, by running away with the AL East by 19 games, winning 109 regular season games and then sweeping the Twins in the ALCS to win the pennant Soon, the Orioles would be World Champions again and wipe away any lingering pain from the football season.

And then came the "Amazin' Mets."

Words cannot describe how painful it was to see that great Orioles team lose to a bunch of fluky upstarts from, of all the places on Earth, New York. It was the pain from the Super Bowl, squared.

Hindsight has allowed me to see that the Mets did have an excellent pitching staff, but there were so many painful moments in that series, and the Orioles were so clearly the superior team. To rub salt into the wound, the Mets' leading hitter in that series, Al Weis, was a career .219/.278/.275 hitter who somehow hit .455/.563/.727 in that Series. And it was Weis who, two years before while on the White Sox, had collided with Frank Robinson at 2B, causing a severe concussion and ending Frank's bid for a second straight Triple Crown. (In my 12-year old mind, that collision was entirely Weis' fault, though of course there is no evidence of that, and Frank had slid into 2B to break up a DP and his head had collided with Weis' knee.)

It's been 46 years and I've still never lived it down. The Mets got so much ink that winter, and in the years that followed, that it nauseated me. I've rooted against them ever since, and I always will.

Please, please, please beat the Mets!

[TouchemAll]

The year was 1969. I was 12 years old, and the Baltimore Orioles were my consuming passion in life. Before the baseball season began, the year had started badly, with the New York Jets beating my beloved Colts in the Super Bowl in what was probably the greatest pro football upset of all time. The Orioles wiped away the pain, it seemed, by running away with the AL East by 19 games, winning 109 regular season games and then sweeping the Twins in the ALCS to win the pennant Soon, the Orioles would be World Champions again and wipe away any lingering pain from the football season.

And then came the "Amazin' Mets."

Words cannot describe how painful it was to see that great Orioles team lose to a bunch of fluky upstarts from, of all the places on Earth, New York. It was the pain from the Super Bowl, squared.

Hindsight has allowed me to see that the Mets did have an excellent pitching staff, but there were so many painful moments in that series, and the Orioles were so clearly the superior team. To rub salt into the wound, the Mets' leading hitter in that series, Al Weis, was a career .219/.278/.275 hitter who somehow hit .455/.563/.727 in that Series. And it was Weis who, two years before while on the White Sox, had collided with Frank Robinson at 2B, causing a severe concussion and ending Frank's bid for a second straight Triple Crown. (In my 12-year old mind, that collision was entirely Weis' fault, though of course there is no evidence of that, and Frank had slid into 2B to break up a DP and his head had collided with Weis' knee.)

It's been 46 years and I've still never lived it down. The Mets got so much ink that winter, and in the years that followed, that it nauseated me. I've rooted against them ever since, and I always will.

Please, please, please beat the Mets!

OK Now you ruined my entire day I hope your happy as I too lived thru that disaster I could never figure which was worse the Colts gett'in busted, or the O's losing to the best NO NAME LOSERS IN BASEBALL history... :rolleyestf: I consider the Mets the DAMN YANKEE'S COUSINS I HATE THEM.

[33rdst]

That was the worst year in Baltimore sports history. Not only did the O's lose to the Mets but the Bullets last to the Knicks, and the Colts lost to the Jets. I was in Vietnam that year. Lost a lot of money to the New Yorkers. Could've been worse but I didn't think so at the time.

[AnythingO's]

I was a junior at UMD in a dorm populated with guys from NY/NJ. It was and is still painful. Ed Kranepool, Ron Swoboda, the shoe polish trick. I use it as the extreme example of the playoffs being a crapshoot. Heck, I am still pissed over the 2 game sweep in May. Beat the MEts!

[bobmc]

I had "mixed emotions". Being a newcomer to Oriole fandom and coming from New Yawk, I had a history. I grew up a New York Giant baseball fan. I was traveling to FL with parents on U. S. Route 1 when Bobby Thomson hit the shot heard 'round the world". My dad had to pull off the road while Russ Hodges' words, "the Giants win the pennant" ad infinitum still rang in our ears. I then knew what it meant to be a fan.

Those Giants rose to the occasion in 1954 beating the much favored Tribe in the Willie Mays Classic (their only WS win until last year). Then in 1957 they flew to the left coast and there went my passion for baseball. I hated the Yanks and the Mets, even with The Ole Perfesser, were buffoons. I was glad in a way.

In 1966, I was fresh out of college and in Washington, DC, who had a similar lot in the Senators. One of my co-workers from Arkansas loved Brooksie and the Orioles. I slowly came to love this team of grinders and a few superstars. Finally, a team to kick the Yankees' butt! I was all in. They won in '66 and '68 and were in the Series in '69 against the upstart Mets. The rest, as Frobby has spoken, came to pass. Freakin' Ron Swoboda!

Now as I watch the new upstart Metropolitans I get a similar feeling. Many of my NY friends love them. I love their young hurlers also. But, let's pay them back for '69 a little bit with a two game sweep!

[OrioleAL]

Great post. I remember those Tommie Agee/Ron Swoboda catches like they were yesterday. If anything in baseball was ever predestined that World Series was it.

[DJHJR86]

Glad I wasn't born yet, or else I too would have been crushed. But I agree, I want to destroy the Mets.

[mdbdotcom]

When we got the interference call last night for the hitter running to 1B in fair territory, it reminded me of Richert drilling a Met in a similar situation. Of course, that call did not go our way.

I did get to go to Game 1 of the series. There is nothing like a World Series crowd. What an awful series.

And, it came on the tail of the Jets beating the Colts in the Superbowl.

And, the Bullets lost to the Knicks in the playoffs.

Wow, did I hate New York for years.

[Guest rochester]

Interesting... I remember watching Game 1 in school. Our teacher took us to the auditorium to watch it. 1968 was my first big baseball year (ST.L/Det WS) but the O's were my favorite team. It's weird but I really do remember sitting and watching all of the games.. the catches....

[bobmc]

Interesting... I remember watching Game 1 in school. Our teacher took us to the auditorium to watch it. 1968 was my first big baseball year (ST.L/Det WS) but the O's were my favorite team. It's weird but I really do remember sitting and watching all of the games.. the catches....

Were you in Rochester or Baltimore?

[bobmc]

When we got the interference call last night for the hitter running to 1B in fair territory, it reminded me of Richert drilling a Met in a similar situation. Of course, that call did not go our way.

I did get to go to Game 1 of the series. There is nothing like a World Series crowd. What an awful series.

And, it came on the tail of the Jets beating the Colts in the Superbowl.

And, the Bullets lost to the Knicks in the playoffs.

Wow, did I hate New York for years.

It's tough being "from there" and disliking so much about the Big Apple. I always wanted to leave and did so at the earliest moment. Funny that I end up in the DC area and, in many ways, that area is so full of itself also. So I escape to FL and OH to "get away from it all"! :laughlol:

[Guest rochester]

Were you in Rochester or Baltimore?

Rochester - O's became my favorites because of the Red Wings. Never lived in Baltimore but was a Colts (not Ravens) and Bullets fan.

[Redskins Rick]

Being a Senators fan all through the 60s, didn't give much hopes for post season wins.

I wasn't much better following the Skins all through the 60's.

First extremely painful loss, was the Reskins Superbowl loss to the Dolphins, 14-7 in 1972.

I was an old man in 96, and sitting in the stands for Game 3 in OPACY, not too far from Chuck Thompson, The game came apart in the 8th inning. Todd Zeile thought he would fake a throw home to get the runner back to 3rd and threw the ball into the dirt and it bounced and that was all she wrote. That game is still burned into my mind, and left a bad taste with me for years, that I can't shake.

Thankfully, the Redskins had several SB victories after that bad lose in 72.

Still waiting on the Orioles to overcome that bad loss in 96 and win the damn WS.

[JLee2027]

OK Now you ruined my entire day I hope your happy as I too lived thru that disaster I could never figure which was worse the Colts gett'in busted, or the O's losing to the best NO NAME LOSERS IN BASEBALL history... :rolleyestf: I consider the Mets the DAMN YANKEE'S COUSINS I HATE THEM.

After much time and searching, I came to the conclusion that the Mets were simply the better team. They played .729 ball starting August 1 (51 wins and 19 losses) and no one could touch them. They had Nolan Ryan and Tom Seaver. They had Koosman who always pitched lights out in the postseason.

Honestly over a 70 game stretch, that's one of the best in baseball history. It was meant to be.

[jmi1960]

That was the worst year in Baltimore sports history. Not only did the O's lose to the Mets but the Bullets last to the Knicks, and the Colts lost to the Jets. I was in Vietnam that year. Lost a lot of money to the New Yorkers. Could've been worse but I didn't think so at the time.

Just in case you haven't heard it lately....thank you for your service.

Go O's!!!

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