Other Crap

A season of dashed hopes: the collapse of the Orioles.

• On June 21 the Orioles defeated the Blue Jays to go 14 games above .500. With the season nearly half over, their winning percentage was .600. Since then they have played .333 ball and have witnessed the complete meltdown of their two home run icons, Sammy Sosa and Rafael Palmeiro.
• On the all-time homer charts, Sosa is third of all time among right handers, trailing only Aaron and Mays. Palmeiro is third of all time among left handers, trailing only Ruth and Bonds (although Ken Griffey will eventually knock him down to fourth if he stays healthy.)
• This year was a different story. Sosa had a disastrous season on the field, slugging .376 with an OBP under .300. Palmiero wasn't bad on the field for a guy in his forties, but certainly had problems elsewhere, as we all know.