The Orioles suck. The Orioles suck. The Orioles suck. The Orioles suck. The Orioles suck. The Orioles suck. The Orioles suck. The Orioles suck. The Orioles suck. The Orioles suck. The Orioles suck. The Orioles suck.

I don’t know how else to say it.

I know they say you can’t fire the players, but can we try it and see if it works out?

Trembley isn’t really to blame for this. I am usually the first to blame a manager, but Dave has been shaking up the lineup to try and stimulate some offense and he’s been managing the bullpen better than I’ve ever seen him do, it’s just not working.

The bright side, if there is one, is that since the 2-16 start, the O’s have been playing .500 ball. My August disillusionment has come a few months early this year.

JaJuan Johnson is excited to head back to Purdue for his Senior year, obviously.

Not all bad news in AMSTS world, as JaJuan Johnson and Etwaun Moore have decided not to join the NBA Draft. This likely puts Purdue in the top 3 nationally in the preseason rankings.

Boiler up!!!

Okay, well, not exactly, but as is being reported on numerous other websites, MacPhail seemed to indicate today that anyone with an option left is available to be sent to Norfolk. Quote MacPhail to the Baltimore Sun: “I would say there isn’t a great deal of time left before they have to start doing more than what they’re doing now. I’m not staying with them forever. It’s not a suicide pact. They either have to start performing or they’ll go to Norfolk.” This leaves big names such as Adam Jones and Nolan Reimold. Of course, I understand the frustration. 7-21 isn’t exactly where we expected the team to be after 28 games, but if I’m a resident of Norfolk I’m thrilled at the opportunity to see major league talent in Norfolk. I mean sure some of these guys are sub .200 hitters but I’m not exactly sure sending them to Norfolk, where they’ll probably dominate, is the right decision. Not to mention the lack of talent in Norfolk to replace those sent down.

That being said, it’s May 5th and I am already almost completely cashed out on baseball season due to the miserable start this team has had. This was supposed to be a year with dramatic improvement, and from what I’ve seen, there’s been none of that. Our starting pitching is about the only valuable asset on the team, and even that’s slightly slipped a bit in the past few weeks. Usually it’s only after the August collapse that I cash out, but this abysmal team after 12 seasons of abysmal teams, I’m at the breaking point. Hopefully they’ll put together a 10 game winning streak and I’ll be sucked back in, but I’m almost at the point where I’m ready to spend my 3 hours a night doing something else, rather than see the Orioles take a lead into the 7th then blow it.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not giving up on my team, I’ll still follow them, but I’m not sure it’ll be worth the 18 hours a week watching Orioles baseball, or the four and a half hour flight out to Baltimore to spend my money and see the team in person. I love Baltimore but I’m just finding it hard to motivate myself when the team continues to be this bad year in and year out.

Okay so, as I mentioned, I attended the Game 7 slaughtering of the Coyotes. Brutal, yes. But after the game, and after the handshakes between teams, I experienced one of the greatest moments in sporting history at an event I attended. The remaining 10,000 or so fans, who had been on their feet and applauding since 1 minute to go in regulation, spontaneously broke out in “Let’s go Coyotes” as loud as they had been all game, but with 7500 fewer people. Thanking the team for playing hard despite the off the ice troubles. I was bummed about the loss, but that moment made the 60 minutes of domination totally worth it.

That being said, it’s baseball season now (sigh).

In other news, the buildup to Game 7 made me really consider how sports fanaticism gets to the verge of religious fanaticism. Let me count the ways:

First off, as a fan of, say the Red Sox, you would never consider ever becoming a fan of the Yankees, much like a pious Christian would never consider a move to Islam.

Secondly, the “houses of worship” are ornately designed edifices built to demonstrate the strengths of the organization.

Along these lines, the older stadia/churches/temples/mosques/whatever tend to attract people from outside the designated demographic (see: St. Peter’s, Westminster Abbey, Fenway Park, Wrigley Field).

In addition, the newer, more ornate, buildings also manage to attract an audience of outsiders (Oriole Park, any of the megachurches in the west)

Fifth, you’re considered a “diehard” if you set aside 10% of your salary for the organization, whether it be in the form of season tickets or the more traditional tithe.

Sixth, both will eat up a fair amount of your time on Friday nights/Saturdays/Sundays, depending on your team of choice (or all of the above)

Seventh, you will be continually tested in your faith, some fans more than others.

Eighth, you will never agree that another team is “better” than yours, even if deep down in your head you know it’s factual.

And of course, you get dressed up on the holy days.

Finally, you’ll have serious issues if you opt to marry a man or woman from the opposite faction, if you were raised in a strong (Irish Catholic/Jewish/Ohio State/Dodger) household.

I guess the major difference is that with sports, if you find out you were wrong, you only have to suffer for another year. With religion, it’s just a bit longer.