As I sat down to watch tonight’s Rays-Orioles game, I expected another dull contest with Mark Hendrickson on the hill for what might be his last start before a returning Rich Hill bumps him to the bullpen.
Boy, was I wrong.
Not about Hendrickson—he was gone after giving up five runs in two innings of work—but this game has seen a little bit of everything.
We’ve seen 12 runs scored in four innings of baseball.
Adam Jones is looking more and more like a superstar in the making.
Juan Samuel can’t stop windmilling with his shoulder.
Neither team appears interested in hitting a cutoff man.
And the Orioles started the top of the fourth inning without a left fielder. Apparently, Felix Pie had a bit of a stomach problem and left the game.
(Insert your favorite joke here about feeling the same way when you watch him play.)
This is definitely one of those head-scratching games the casual fan enjoys, but the baseball purist despises.
“Arena” baseball (as Jim Palmer likes to call it) at its finest.
