Junior economics and finance major
For the second time ever, both local ball clubs are in the postseason. After early exits for both the Baltimore Orioles and the Washington Nationals in 2012, when both mid-Atlantic teams were eliminated in tragic late-inning fashion, they have returned with more experience and resolve. The chances of an orange and black parade through the Inner Harbor or a red and blue parade down Pennsylvania Avenue have never been higher. If you haven’t been paying attention, it’s not too late to start.
If you were born in the early- to mid-90s and raised in this state, baseball fell into doldrums during your formative years. As the novelty of Camden Yards faded, Cal Ripken Jr.’s retirement in 2001 began an era of futility for the O’s. How could the nondescript Brian Roberts and Melvin Mora compare with the championship physicality of Ray Lewis and Ed Reed?
Meanwhile, the Nationals were still the Montreal Expos before arriving in Washington in 2005, only to begin an eight-year period of at-best mediocrity. While Gilbert Arenas’ and Alex Ovechkin’s teams were unable to even come close to championships, their above-average play drew the local spotlight. The Nats did nothing to distinguish themselves in the barren landscape of D.C. sports.
While the Orioles have a long and storied history and the Nationals are the new kid on the block, they have been equally irrelevant for the majority of years our generation has been alive. This is the year all that changes.
If you like scoring, the O’s are your team. With only decent pitching but elite hitting, their postseason hopes rest on winning high-scoring ballgames. You probably know star center fielder Adam Jones, but the versatile Steve Pearce has come out of nowhere to become a key cog in the lineup. They are this state’s own squad and the reason you yell “O” during “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
The Nationals, whose stronghold in this state is in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties, have depth and balance but not elite individual hitters. Hyped phenom Bryce Harper has been trying to get back on track after suffering numerous injuries, but the underrated Anthony Rendon is this team’s unofficial MVP. A 30-minute trip on the Green Line is all it takes to see this team in person.
The Terrapins baseball team’s 2014 season was its most successful ever, as the team made it to the NCAA Super Regional and pushed Virginia to the brink. There must be something in the water in the Chesapeake Bay. The year 2014 has raised local baseball to a higher standard with an impressive trifecta.
If the impossible comes true and the Beltway World Series comes to fruition with the Nats and Orioles facing off, our campus will be geographically right near the middle. When was the last time a college campus was at the 50-yard line of the Super Bowl? Nothing is guaranteed in October, but dreams of a pennant are more vivid along the Interstate 95 corridor than ever before. With Ebola being confirmed on U.S. soil, forget that and get baseball fever instead! If you catch it, don’t call a doctor.
Daniel Galitsky is a junior economics and finance major. He can be reached a dgalitskydbk@gmail.com.
