Intro

Yesterday, the Orioles opened up their season to the newly named Tampa Bay Rays 6-2 on a day where the fog was so thick, that bicyclists began to float away into the lingering precipitation. As we approached Camden Yards ( or, rather, as we went where we thought the Yard was...) I couldn't help but recognize the buzz of excitement that surrounded the stadium, which, incidentally, led us to stadium like a guiding light (really more like a giant game of Marco Polo).

The stadium was, as it always is, well kept and overflowed with hopeful Baltimorons. We worked our way up to the seats, only to find two brand new High Definition Scoreboards. Sweet! Anyway, the day was kicked off by the traditional Orange Carpet Ceremony, with two mentionable highlights...

Kevin Millar entered with the Ray Lewis dance, a permanent fixture at the ball park's opening day ceremonies (I hope).

Aubrey Hu... Hu... HuCHHH (cough cough)...Sorry folks, I was choking... Huff was welcomed with a chorus of boos, prompting me to say to my father " The real fans KNOW..."

The first inning for Jeremy Guthrie wasn't too bad. 1 hit, but no damage. Jimmy Shields first inning was considerably less impressive. 2 runs came across the plate thanks to a Millar double that glanced off the glove of Carl Crawford. It looked like the boys were rollin', until a one and a half innings later where Jeremy Guthrie's wheels fell off and the rest of the team went with him. The Rays would score three in that inning, with much help from a Mel Mo error. The Rays would bang in another run from a solo shot in the 4th. 2 more in the 6th gave the Rays a 6-2 lead, one that would not come close to being touched as James Shields went on to have a stellar day with 7 IP and 2 ER. Despite the final outcome, a few Orioles had some fine preformances. Kevin Millar's dazzling glove work kept the O's in the game. B-Rob went 2 for 2 and was the front end of a double steal with Nick Markakis. Slick Nick, in addition to the steal, had a base knock and showed off his glorious cannon of an arm as he threw a man out at second in the third.

As the ninth inning came, and neither Nick nor Kevin could successfully get the ball through the thick air, Huffy came up to bat and spanked a grounder that was handled kindly by Carlos Pena. The pitcher covering mishandled the toss and kept our hopes alive. Despite his best efforts, Huff Daddy reached base. The faint trickle of hope still left in the remaining fan's minds laid rest in the bat of Ramon Hernandez. Ramon CRUSHED a long fly ball to left field that would have gone the distance if it didn't have to swim to get there. Carl Crawford gloved the final out and gave Guthrie his first loss of the season.

The Good News- Dan "The Man" Cabrera is pitching Wednesday, you want need to bring a snorkel to see the game, and we have a chance to tie the series.

The Bad News- We'll have to settle for a 161-1 season.