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Uniform Analysis: 1971 to 1988 Baltimore Orioles

By Nelson Barnes II

BALTIMORE, MD - CIRCA 1983: Cal Ripken Jr. #8 of the Baltimore Orioles makes a throw to first base during a Major League baseball game circa 1983 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland. Cal Ripken Jr. played for the Orioles from 1981-2001. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MD - CIRCA 1983: Cal Ripken Jr. #8 of the Baltimore Orioles makes a throw to first base during a Major League baseball game circa 1983 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland. Cal Ripken Jr. played for the Orioles from 1981-2001. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images) /
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There is something special about a Uniform that  taste the cup of a championship victory. The very fabric becomes immortalized in the minds of fans the minute the memory of an era runs by. For this memory, the month is October and the year is 1983.  A line drive hit flies into the glove of Cal Ripken Jr. and less than a second later the Orioles won the world series.  Championship dreams fulfilled, three future hall  of famers. The demons of 1979’s loss was conquered and the franchise achieved it’s 3rd title since 1966.

New Look on the diamond

The times were changing quick. Baseball teams moved away from wool to experimenting with new fabrics. The year is 1971, the first ever alternates appeared as the all orange  uniforms and the Orioles were were experimenting with pullover jerseys.  The team decided on a new look with adapting big multi colored stripes for sleeves, two color lines on the pants.

Did the change manage to stop the success? Not really because the Orioles produced four 20 game winners, a pennant and a berth in the 1971 World Series. Times were changing. With the Senators leaving D.C., The Baltimore script that appeared on the away uniforms were scrapped being replaced by Orioles script as they now represented the DMV. The championship core from a decade earlier were becoming memories. Frank Robinson was traded to the Dodgers in 1972 then to the Indians in 1974, Brooks Robinson retired in 1977, and the torch was slowly but surely being passed onto the new generation of Orioles Baseball.

The Beginning of Orioles Magic

The lore of the birds were established. The Orioles managed to gather a championship caliber reputation for nearly a decade before 1979 season. Orioles magic added yet another dimension to the lore.  Walk off homeruns, line drives, spectacular catches and  dramatic defensive game ending plays defined this era of Orioles baseball. The team turned on the gears and made it to the 1979 world series on this spectacle, but fell short by losing to the Pirates yet again.

The ’83 Orioles Championship Run

Weaver’s successor Joe Altobelli inherited a stocked lineup of talent. Ripken, Murray, Palmer, Bumbry, and Dempsey are only a few names to mention on this championship team. Contributions from role players like veteran Ken Singleton moving towards the DH position as well as a solid core of utility players propelled this team to key wins during that 83 season. Cal Ripkin, the second year shortstop finished first ahead of Eddie Murray for the regular season MVP title. The team marched past the White Sox in the 1983 American League Championship  Series. The White Sox took game one with a score of 2 to 1 and would never see another win  in the series. The Orioles bounce back to take three straight to go onto the 1983 World Series.  Coined as the I-95 series, the Orioles took on the and the Philadelphia Phillies.  At the time, the team consisted of youth with Pete Rose and a few familiar faces that such a Tony Perez, and Joe Morgan. Rick Dempsey became the World Series MVP and  the Orioles would take the Phillies in 5 games and clinch their 3rd title in 17 years .

Aftermath

The title win marked the end of the Orioles post season adventure. The uniform that was worn by every hall of famer in the organization, appeared in 3 world series, and won a title was near its end. Futility would become the norm during  the rest of the 1980’s.  Palmer retiring, a depleted farm system as well as  a subsquent  rebranding of logos and uniforms would mark the definitive beginning of a new era while saying saying goodbye to familiar winning ways. The Orioles would not see another post season appearance until the 1996 Post season.

LEGACY

Winning  does something to a uniform. A Championship  and  an array of hall of famers can definitely push it over the top. Aside from the 1966 to 1970 uniform these are some of the most popular uniforms won by the Orioles. There’s something that is majestic about the fact that the  83 championship team  wore these uniforms. At first sight, you’ll remember Wild Bill Hagy doing the O-R-I-O-L-E-S sign, and Memorial Stadium. Uniforms like this carry a story of their franchise very well.

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