One other 12 months, one other Orioles season, however not every part would be the similar when Baltimore followers head to Camden Yards on Friday afternoon.
Oriole Park has new meals, new guidelines and new points of interest for a 2023 season that has excessive expectations for a company that has declared an finish to its rebuild.
On the sector, the Orioles are again dwelling after going 3-3 of their first two sequence to open the marketing campaign. Baltimore will host the defending American League East champion New York Yankees for a three-game sequence this weekend. The house opener was initially scheduled for Thursday, however the group pushed it again to Friday due to potential inclement climate.
Right here’s every part followers must know.
Festivities
Gates on the ballpark will open at midday, about three hours earlier than first pitch at 3:05 p.m. The opening day giveaway for followers is an Orioles 2023 schedule magnet.
The pregame festivities will start at 2:30 p.m. for a ceremony emceed by Mid-Atlantic Sports activities Community broadcaster Kevin Brown.
Parijita Bastola, a Severna Park native who starred on season 22 of NBC’s “The Voice,” will sing the nationwide anthem. Bastola additionally sang “The Star-Spangled Banner” at Maryland Gov. Wes Moore’s inauguration in January. Members of the Baltimore Metropolis Police and Hearth Division honor guards will current the colours.
Moore and his youngsters, Mia and James, will throw out the ceremonial first pitch. Mia and James will then yell “play ball” earlier than first pitch.
Merrill Heim — the “Fired Up Man” — will probably be acknowledged because the Mo Gaba Fan of the Yr from the 2022 season. Geoff Meehle, a well being and bodily schooling coordinator for Baltimore Metropolis Public Colleges, will probably be honored because the Birdland Neighborhood Hero.
Earlier than the on-field festivities, the Budweiser Clydesdales will trot from Lee Road to Eutaw Road starting at 11:30 a.m.
New bag guidelines
Bringing meals, drinks and different objects into the park will probably be simpler this season than in the last few years.
Orioles followers can deliver baggage inside Camden Yards because the membership has reversed its pandemic-era coverage that banned something bigger than one-gallon-sized baggage.
Nevertheless, the brand new guidelines aren’t a return to the pre-pandemic days. Backpacks aren’t allowed, and the luggage which can be allowed have to be clear and no bigger than 12-by-6-by-12 inches. The coverage is much like different sports activities groups, together with the Ravens.
Fanny packs and clutches no bigger than 5-by-7 inches and medically mandatory objects, corresponding to diaper baggage, are additionally allowed.
New meals
Followers who will eat within the park quite than herald their very own meals will expertise Oriole Park’s new concessions operator.
This offseason, the Orioles changed Delaware North, which partnered with the group since 2010, with Levy to handle concessions at Camden Yards. Levy, a Chicago-based hospitality firm, can also be the concessions operator at Nationals Park, FedEx Area and Audi Area within the Washington area.
A number of the park’s hottest distributors, like Boog’s Barbeque and Jimmy’s Well-known Seafood, will proceed to function beneath Levy.
In late March, the Orioles showcased a few of the new meals choices at Camden Yards this season, together with crab chips, a three-foot sizzling canine topped with crab dip and a crab pretzel boule.
Ballpark adjustments
One fan-favorite eatery at Oriole Park, although, is not there.
Dempsey’s Brew Pub on Eutaw Road has been changed by SuperBook Bar & Restaurant. SuperBook Sports activities, a Las Vegas-based sportsbook, will function a sports activities lounge at Oriole Park, however the venue just isn't a retail sportsbook. Opening day would be the restaurant’s debut.
Additionally on Eutaw Road, the Orioles’ group retailer was renovated this offseason.
The 2023 season would be the Orioles’ thirty first at Camden Yards, and if the grass and filth look further shiny, it’s not your eyes enjoying tips on you. The Orioles put in new sod and replenished 5 inches of filth, together with 105,000 sq. toes of Kentucky bluegrass and 1,500 tons of sand.
The middle area scoreboard may also look totally different. “The Solar” signal was taken down from atop the scoreboard this offseason to open the house up for sponsorship alternatives. Decrease on the scoreboard, a brand new SuperBook Sports activities commercial has been added with the playing slogan: “Good groups win, nice groups cowl.”
MLB rule adjustments
Baseball was as soon as the game with out time restrictions. Not anymore.
The 2023 season has ushered in a number of new guidelines for gamers, coaches and followers to get accustomed to, together with a pitch clock, bigger bases and limits to defensive shifting.
The change with probably the most noticeable impression on the sport is the pitch clock. Pitchers may have 15 seconds with no runners on and 20 seconds with a base runner to ship a pitch. Batters have to be within the field and able to hit with eight seconds remaining, and so they can name timeout as soon as per plate look. If a pitcher fails to ship a pitch in time, an computerized ball will probably be referred to as. If a batter isn’t prepared in time, the umpire will name an computerized strike.
The brand new guidelines have minimize practically half-hour off sport instances up to now this season. The size of MLB video games have grown in current a long time — from a mean of two:30 within the Nineteen Seventies to three:06 final season. By way of the primary week of the 2023 marketing campaign, the common sport has been 2:37 — the primary season beneath three hours since 2011 and the bottom up to now since 1979.
The infield shift has additionally been curtailed this season. The favored follow — one which started a century in the past however grew to become widespread follow within the 2010s — has been blamed for the decline in batting averages, as defenses had been capable of place a number of infielders on one facet of second base to stymie a hitter’s possibilities of reaching base. These aggressive alignments have been banned, although, as the brand new shifting guidelines state that every one 4 infielders will need to have each toes within the infield and two infielders on all sides of second base.
The bases are additionally larger — up from 15-by-15 inches to 18-by-18 inches — in an effort to enhance participant security and encourage stolen-base makes an attempt. Pitchers are additionally restricted in what number of instances they'll step off the rubber to name timeout or decide off to a base, which is one other rule change that would enhance stolen bases. The Orioles lead the majors in stolen bases with 11. They swiped 10 baggage of their first two video games towards the Boston Pink Sox for probably the most by any group in its first two video games of a season since at the least 1901.
The on-field product
The adjustments to Oriole Park will supply new taste for followers, however the on-field product might supply simply as a lot pleasure.
After an 83-win season during which the Orioles had been one of many greatest surprises in MLB, the hype for the 2023 marketing campaign is increased than it’s been for the reason that rebuild started in 2019.
Proper-hander Dean Kremer will begin on the mound for the Orioles, hoping to get again on monitor after permitting 5 runs in three innings to open his season towards the Pink Sox final week.
The Orioles are coming off a sequence win over the Texas Rangers earlier this week. After their pitching and protection struggled within the opening sequence towards Boston, Baltimore bounced again to win its first two video games towards the Rangers.
Whereas a lot of the 26-man roster from final 12 months is again, newcomers corresponding to beginning pitcher Kyle Gibson and second baseman Adam Frazier will expertise their first Camden Yards opening day as Orioles. Former prime prospect Gunnar Henderson and Orioles prime pitching prospect Grayson Rodriguez are actually within the massive leagues, as properly.
Heart fielder Cedric Mullins, catcher Adley Rutschman, first baseman Ryan Mountcastle, shortstop Jorge Mateo and outfielders Austin Hays and Anthony Santander are again to guide the Orioles’ lineup. And, if all goes properly for the primary eight innings Friday, nearer Félix Bautista might get the decision to close the door within the ninth.
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