Recap: 2110 Eutaw St.

My wife and I made it to our first Orioles game of the year, which was the 2110 Eutaw St. promotion game against the Toronto Blue Jays. If I was asked to give my first three impressions of the event in under 10 seconds I would say that the promotion was average, Nick Markakis was skinnier than I expected and Brad Bergesen is a stud. Yes, he really does work quickly and economically.

We parked in G lot, which isn’t too much of a haul to OPACY. In fact, I enjoyed the walk. Well, except for the homeless people begging for change. It breaks my heart.

After arriving on Eutaw St. we immediately went to Fan Assistance to turn in the tickets for our shirts, which was part of the $21 promotion. They are white with a license plate on the front that says “2110 Eutaw St.” Above it, it says “I live at” and, of course, there is the required Oriole logo and the names of Adam Jones and Nick Markakis. The shirt isn’t one that I would wear to a game. It’s white! In my opinion, only orange and black is allowed.

After picking up the shirts we went to the store to get a few items, more shirts, hats, etc. Surprisingly, I couldn’t find a shirt of Bergesen or Nolan Reimold. The two I really wanted! Strangely, they did have shirts of Felix Pie and Ty Wigginton, but I got a black #30 Luke Scott shirt with orange lettering and numbers. Now that’s a totally appropriate shirt for rabid fans and supportive of the O’s team colors! I also picked up a Jake Arrieta rookie card and an Oriole key chain that says, “#1 Wife.” Aw, ain’t I sweet?

With 30 minutes until game time, we went to our seats in Bleacher 94 – seats 12 and 13. Our section was packed, but the other outfield viewing areas were sparse. The game attendance was 21,621. After two national anthems (don’t forget – USA and Canada) the game was underway.

Bergesen had a little trouble in the first inning keeping the ball down in the zone, but quickly overcame those struggles and pitched a very economical 6.2 innings. When the 7th inning began, Brad’s pitch count was at 70. I looked at my wife and said, “You know, hon, we may see history today,” as I was hoping for Brad’s first complete game shutout. This wasn’t to be. Brad’s pitches began to elevate and he quickly gave up two runs and was pulled from the game. Damn! Still, a quality start and his 8th in the last 9 games.

Brian Roberts looked good at the plate going 2-4, one being a 2-bagger and his 29th of the year. He also had a ninjaesque swipe of 3rd base. It was like he teleported there. Neither my wife or I saw it happen. Weird. Oscar Salazar’s homerun was a liner that cleared the left centerfield fence easily. The crack of the bat was monstrous! Other than that, hitting was average against a pitcher who really needs to buy a vowel for his last name: Rzepcynski

I hate to admit this, but after watching the game from the outfield, I’m starting to believe that Nicky is just an average player. It seems that AJ has much better fielding instincts (disregarding his mistaken third out blunder). Moreover, I’m a huge Nolan Reimold fan, but he’s clearly new to his position. At times, he appears lost. AJ is the centerpiece of the outfield. Make no mistake about it. If he improves his batting by laying off sliders and taking the ball the opposite way, the O’s will have quite an All-Star on their hands.

Good game. O’s win 4-2.