NumerOlogy

Lots to get to today. First of all, the slowest-developing trade in MLB history has been consummated. Erik Bedard is now a Seattle Mariner, so I’ve updated the roster and the 40-49 page to reflect his departure. Best of luck to Erik…except when he’s facing the O’s, of course. If yesterday’s press conference in Seattle is any indication, he’ll continue to wear #45 for the Mariners. Time will tell which numbers Adam Jones and George Sherrill will wear; Jones wore #10 in Seattle last year (recently vacated by Miguel Tejada) and Sherrill wore #52. The most recent #52 in Baltimore was Jon Leicester, who seems to be a long shot to make this year’s team. Welcome to Birdland, guys!

In other news, we’ve got our first confirmed Orioles player to have found this little site! I got an email this morning from reliever Dick Hall, whose grandson showed him NumerOlogy. He says the following:

“Some of players were into numbers. I remember one time in the bullpen paying a game (we were safely way ahead - we didn’t play games much if the game was close) where someone would say a number and then people would name all the players in the league with that number. Milt Pappas especially knew everyone.”

Dick was also fairly certain that when he first arrived in Baltimore in April 1961, he wore a number other than #29. He thought it might have been #38, but wasn’t sure. He also didn’t know when he switched for good. I did a little sleuthing, and Baseball Almanac lists him as #29 and #38 in 1961. I had already confirmed pitcher Dick Hyde for #38, but he didn’t appear in a game until May. This would support Hall’s claim that he started out in #38, and switched to #29 either before or when Hyde joined the team. I’d like to thank Dick for helping me make that correction, and if anyone has more specific dates for the switch they can let me know.

I wanted to acknowledge a few blogs that have had some positive things to say about this site and that were kind enough to toss a link my way:

Neal Shaffer at the Baltimore-centric sports blog The Loss Column asserts that “this is what the Internet is really for”.

Bill Ordine of the Baltimore Sun’s O, by the Way sports blog says, “Count on a great read”.

Finally, Ben Penserga of The Daily Times in Salisbury, MD was kind enough to interview me for his O’s Chat blog. I answered Ben’s questions by email, so hopefully I’ll actually come across as articulate.

Thanks, guys! The feedback for NumerOlogy is already exceeding my expectations. Don’t forget, pitchers and catchers report to Fort Lauderdale in four days!

So far, the first week here at NumerOlogy has been a big success, and I have you guys to thank. I really appreciate all of your feedback on the site, and I’ve got to give out some recognition:

• Uni Watch’s Paul Lukas and Mets by the Numbers’ Jon Springer linked to the site, which brought traffic up from zero to more than zero.
• Joe Hilseberg, who actually stitched the lettering and numbers onto the Orioles’ jerseys in the late Nineties, sent me some great graphics that are now up on the site, including a full set of numbers (to replace my slapdash collage look) and a great-looking site logo that I added to the banner photo on the other pages.
• Bryan Duklewski sent me photos of his Sammy Sosa #21 jersey tee with Nick Markakis’ surname hand-lettered and stitched on top! So now I have visual proof for my Markakis anecdote on this page.
• Bob Andrews has offered to send me some nifty Orioles baseball cards, which will surely appear at some point on my blog.
• Speaking of blogs, reader Dave asked for a little love for his sports blog. I’m in a giving mood tonight, so why not?

So to sum up, my readers rock and I’ve updated the banner and number graphics across the site. As always, hit me up with any comments. Thanks!