1983 ALCS Game 5 vs White Sox

Lore & Background

The season was the Orioles' first in nearly 15 years without manager Earl Weaver, who retired after the Orioles missed the playoffs in the final game of the 1982 season. The Orioles replaced the future Hall of Famer Weaver with Joe Altobelli. On April 3, 1983, the Orioles left spring training with much the same team that fell just a game short of the playoffs the year before. Of the Orioles starting in the 1982 Opening Day lineup only Lenn Sakata and Al Bumbry would lose their opening day spots in 1983. Terry Crowley was the last player cut during spring training, and on his way out of the clubhouse he predicted an Orioles championship. The team featured three future Hall of Famers: Cal Ripken, Eddie Murray, and Jim Palmer. During an August 24, 1983 game, Orioles pitcher Tippy Martinez picked off three Toronto Blue Jays baserunners in one inning.

In Their Own Story

The lights of Comiskey Park hummed against the Chicago night sky, casting long shadows across the diamond. Inside the dugout, Earl Weaver adjusted his cap, eyes fixed on the field where the final out hung in the balance. The crowd noise was a wall of sound, but for the Orioles players, it faded into focus. One more play stood between them and Philadelphia.

Reader's Guide

The Orioles fielded a team similar to the 1982 team, but Altobelli broke camp with a four-man rotation which occasionally increased to five pitchers rather than the three-man rotation preferred by Weaver. Ten different Orioles pitchers would take the mound to start a game in 1983 whereas in 1982 only six players got the starting nod.

Did You Know?

• The 1983 World Series was the Orioles' third World Series title overall (1966, 1970, 1983).
• Earl Weaver managed the Orioles to World Series titles in 1970 and 1983, but not a third; he won only two World Series as a manager.