1969 Baltimore Orioles

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1 The Offseason
2 Spring Training and Pre-Season Predictions
3 Regular Season Highlights
4 Player Data
- 4.1 Salaries
- 4.2 Team Roster
5 Trivia

[edit] The Offseason

December 4, 1968: Traded outfielder Curt Blefary and minor leaguer John Mason to the Houston Astros for left handed pitcher Mike Cuellar, utility infielder Enzo Hernandez, and minor leaguer Elijah Johnson. (Cuellar would go on to share the 1969 Cy Young Award with Detroit Tigers pitcher Denny McLain).

January 16, 1969: Signed relief pitcher Dyar Miller as a free agent.

January 20, 1969: Traded outfielder Ron Stone to the Philadelphia Phillies for catcher Clay Dalrymple

March 31, 1969: Traded pitcher Gene Brabender and infielder Gordy Lund to the Seattle Pilots for infielder Chico Salmon. Brabender would go on to win thirteen games for the Pilots, a record for an expansion pitcher not broken until Andy Benes won 14 games for the 1998 Arizona Diamondbacks. Salmon was an invaluable utility player for the Orioles three consecutive World Series teams in 1969, 1970 and 1971.

Home games were played at Memorial Stadium, with a capacity of 52,137. During the 1969 season, the Orioles ranked sixth of twelve teams in attendance with a total of 1,062,069 fans, an average of 13,112 per game. Memorial Stadium was slightly advantageous to pitchers, with dimensions of 309 feet down each line, 380 feet to the alleys and to center, 405 feet.

[edit] Spring Training and Pre-Season Predictions

The Orioles were encouraged as the 1969 season began, despite finishing 12 games behind the eventual World Series Champion Detroit Tigers in 1968, they had won 91 games themselves. With eventual Cy Young Award winner Mike Cuellar joining future Hall of Famer Jim Palmer, Dave McNally and Tom Phoebus in solidifying the rotation, and with proven balance both offensively and defensively, the Orioles felt 1969 would be the year to return to the postseason.

The pre-season prognosticators, however, didn't feel the same way. The Tigers were chosen to repeat as American League Champions, and the Boston Red Sox, bolstered by the return of injured stars Tony Conigliaro and Jim Lonborg, were picked for second place in the American League Eastern Division.

[edit] Regular Season Highlights

[edit] Opening Day

The Orioles 1969 season began on Tuesday, April 8, with a 5-4, 12 inning loss to the Boston Red Sox in front of 36,100 fans at Memorial Stadium. Opposing pitchers were 1967 Cy Young Award winner Jim Lonborg for Boston, and lefty Dave McNally for the O's. The score was tied at 2 entering the 10th inning, with each team exchanging two run homers, Tony Conigliaro for Boston, and Frank Robinson for Baltimore. A Dalton Jones sacrifice fly in the 12th inning was the game winner, with Bill Landis getting the win, Mike Adamson the loss, and Juan Pizarro picking up a save.

[edit] April

The Orioles ended April with a 16-7 record, and were in first place, 3 1/2 games ahead of the second place Boston Red Sox. The pitching staff threw six shutouts for the month, with Tom Phoebus authoring two of them. Dave McNally was 4-0 in April.

Frank Robinson was leading the league in homers, (10), slugging, (.763) and RBI (24) as April ended, and was fourth in hitting at .368. Paul Blair led in runs, (22), hits, (32), and Dave Johnson led in doubles with 8.

[edit] May

The Orioles went 18-8 in May, and actually lost a half-game of their lead over Boston. Frank Robinson remained atop the leader board in runs, (41), hits, (62), was second in doubles, (13), third in average, (.332) and slugging, (.615) and fourth in RBI (36). Paul Blair was the league leader in at-bats, (203), second in runs, (39), and fourth in hits, (57). Don Buford and Dave Johnson were tied for third in doubles with 11.

Jim Palmer led in shutouts with 3 and in ERA at 2.06, with Mike Cuellarfourth in ERA at 2.16.

[edit] June

Baltimore went 21-6 in June, and opened up an 11 game lead over the Red Sox. The Orioles began the month with a five game winning streak, and from June 13 to June 22 won ten games of a twelve game road trip, including another long winning streak, this time seven games.

Paul Blair finished the month leading the league in at-bats, runs, hits, and doubles. Frank Robinson ranked third in runs, hits and second in average.

Denny McLain of the Detroit Tigers shared the league lead in victories with Dave McNally with 11, McNally and Jim Palmer led in shut-outs with four, and Palmer, at 1.96 led in ERA, followed by Mike Cuellar at 2.55.

[edit] July

Baltimore slumped a bit in the heat of July, having a 10-10 record for the month before closing out on a seven game winning streak, increasing their AL East lead to fifteen games in the process. On July 4th, Mike Cuellar lost a rain shortened, five inning decision to Mickey Lolich and the Detroit Tigers, putting his record at 8-7. Cuellar would finish the season 15-4 on his way to winning the Cy Young Award.

Paul Blair continued to lead the league in at-bats and hits, although he dropped to third during the month in runs scored to Reggie Jackson of the Oakland A's and teammate Frank Robinson. Robinson himself led the league in hit by pitch and on base percentage, and was third in slugging and batting average.

On July 30, Dave McNally pitched eight innings of an eventual 4-2 win over the expansion Kansas City Royals, which allowed him to tie the American League record for consecutive victories at 15. McNally would lose his next start, on August 3rd, to Jim Kaat and the Minnesota Twins, 5-2, and would finish 20-7 for the season. At this point in the season, McNally was tied for the lead in games started with 26 and wins with 15, and was second in shutouts with 4. Mike Cuellar was third in complete games with 11, and in ERA at 2.43.

[edit] August

The slumping Boston Red Sox had been passed by the [[Detroit Tigers in the standings by the end of August, and despite a 19-12 record for the month, the Orioles lead had been reduced to twelve and a half games. The O's had a five and seven game winning streak during the month but also a four game losing streak.

Paul Blair continued his strong season, still leading the league in atbats, and hits, was third in runs, fourth in doubles, and had already established his career high in homers at 25 with a full month remaining to the season. Frank Robinson also was at or near the lead in several categories, second in runs, fourth in hits, second in average and leading in on base percentage.

[edit] September

The Orioles closed out the season with a final month record of 18-10, ending the season 109-53 and a full 19 games ahead of the second place Detroit Tigers. The O's would go on to win 108 games in 1970, and 101 games in 1971, cementing themselves as one of the great teams in baseball history.

With this being the first year of division play, the Orioles had a day off before beginning the best of five American League Championship Series vs. the American League Western Division Champion Minnesota Twins. The Twins themselves had won 96 games, and finished nine games ahead of the second place Oakland A's

[edit] October

The ALCS began in Baltimore on October 4th, with Mike Cuellar opposing Minnesota's ace, Jim Perry. Perry was touched for three solo homers in the game, including a lead-off shot in the bottom of the ninth inning by Boog Powell which tied the game at three. The Orioles took a 1-0 Series lead by scoring in the bottom of the twelfth inning on a bunt single by Paul Blair. Dick Hall was the winning pitcher for Baltimore, while Ron Perranoski took the loss for Minnesota.

Game Two, also in Baltimore, was another extra inning affair, with Dave McNally pitching an 11 inning, complete game, three hit shutout, winning 1-0. The winning run came across on a pinch single to rightfield by Curt Motton

Game Three was played the following day, October 6th, in Minnesota, interestingly without a TV induced travel day. The Orioles finished off the sweep with an 11-2 rout, behind an 18 hit attack led by four hits and three runs scored by leadoff hitter Don Buford, and a 5-6 performance with five RBI by second place hitter Paul Blair. Jim Palmer pitched a complete game, scattering ten hits, with opposing starter Bob Miller lasting but an inning and two thirds.

Despite their regular season and ALCS success, the Orioles run through the 1969 season ended with a shocking World Series loss to the Miracle New York Mets. In Game One in Baltimore, Don Buford led off the game by homering off Mets ace Tom Seaver, with the O's going on to win behind Mike Cuellar, 4-1. Over the next four games, all Mets' victories, the Orioles managed to score a total of five runs. A combination of great pitching by Jerry Koosman, Gary Gentry, and Seaver, great defensive plays by Art Shamsky, Tommie Agee and Cleon Jones, and even a blown umpire's call all contributed to the Amazin' Mets winning the series in five games.

[edit] Player Data

Games Played Leaders by Position

C Elrod Hendricks, 105
1B Boog Powell, 152
2B Davey Johnson, 142
3B Brooks Robinson, 156
SS Mark Belanger, 150
LF Don Buford, 144
CF Paul Blair, 150
RF Frank Robinson, 148

SP Dave McNally, 40 starts
SP Mike Cuellar, 290.2 Innings Pitched, 18 complete games
SP Jim Palmer six shutouts
RP Eddie Watt 16 saves

Most Common Lineup:

[edit] Salaries

[edit] Team Roster

Pitchers (* denotes lefthander)

Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Manager/Coaches

Bold Type indicates member of Baseball Hall of Fame

[edit] Trivia

The 1969 World Series served as a backdrop for the Dennis Quaid movie, "Frequency"

Of the eight original American League franchises who began play in 1901, the Orioles were the last to win a World Series, in 1966.

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