“What’s the day been like for you guys today?” Aaron Maybin asked the kids in his class at Henson Elementary School in West Baltimore.

“Cold!” more than a few replied with uninhibited childhood screams.

“Very, very, very, very cold,” said one in particular.

Maybin, a former defensive lineman for the Buffalo Bills and New York Jets and the No. 11 overall NFL draft pick out of Penn State in 2009, is now a teacher in his hometown of Baltimore. Since his four-year professional football career ended, he’s lived and worked here, pursuing art and activism.

He has a pseudo-celebrity platform with more than 24,000 Twitter and 22,000 Instagram followers, for example, and a new book out. So when Maybin posted a series of social media messages and a video from his classroom on Wednesday, himself wearing a jacket and his kindergarten and pre-K students proclaiming their frigid feelings, it shined a powerful (and eventually viral) spotlight on the hot-button issue of widespread decrepit city school infrastructure that’s come to the fore as fast as the arrival of the cold temperatures that have drafted through windows, filled decades-old buildings and busted outdated boilers and pipes over the last two weeks.

As many as 60 schools, just on Wednesday, reported problems related to facilities being unable to handle the weather, according to school system CEO Sonja Santelises (whom Baltimore profiled last year). The city teachers union urged her to shut down all schools until the problem is fixed.

Several closed because of lack of heat on Tuesday – the first day back from winter break – and Wednesday, and others dismissed kids early. All schools were closed Thursday as it snowed and again on Friday, as workers addressed some of the problems but expected more to come “particularly broken pipes and water mains,” amid more frigid temperatures, the district said.

Maybin, who attended Mount Hebron High in Howard County and whose father was a Baltimore City fire inspector, taught his lesson, heard well beyond the city, in 40-degree temperatures.   

Outlets like CNN, USA Today, Sports Illustrated, Yahoo, SB Nation and New York Daily News published stories on the issue on Thursday.

“I got two classes in one room, kids are freezing, lights are off,” Maybin said. “No computers. We’re doing our best but our kids don’t deserve this.”

On social media, Maybin promoted a GoFundMe fundraiser started by Coppin State senior Samierra Jones that, as of Friday morning, had generated more than $40,000, well over the $20,000 she estimated that would be needed to buy roughly 600 space heaters for city schools and jackets for kids to keep them warm.

That, of course, is a temporary solution. Maybin’s overarching message is, “We are failing our kids,” as city and state officials debate responsibility for the root cause.

According to multiple sources, O’s executive VP Dan Duquette acknowledges that he’s fielding offers for third-baseman Manny Machado.
 

What our hearts say:

Manny is an Oriole and should be one for life. Quite simply, he’s one of the two or three best young players in the league. He’s just 25, the best third baseman since Brooks, and he can hit for power and average. Additionally, he has a well-documented bromance with second baseman Jonathan Schoop and their friendly rivalry has elevated both of their games. Baseball is meant to be entertainment and Manny’s flair for the dramatic, slick moves in the field and at the plate, and fiery personality are thrilling to watch. Seeing Manny in any uniform other than the orange and black would be downright painful.  

What our heads say:

That thing about Manny being one of the best young players in the game? Players like that don’t come cheap. In fact, it’s safe to assume that when Manny is signed to a multi-year contract (his Orioles contract runs out at the end of next year), it’ll be among the richest in the game. So what kind of money are we talking about? Well, in 2014, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw signed a seven-year, $215 million deal. That kind of money for Manny doesn’t seem unreasonable. And that’s the kind of money that can severely hamstring a midmarket team like the Orioles for years to come. The Orioles have already signed some hefty heart-over-head deals for players that didn’t quite pan out—*cough * Chris Davis. They can’t afford to get sentimental.  

The catch: 
Whomever trades for Manny right now has to be pretty confident that they will be able to sign him to a multi-year deal when his contract expires next year. You don’t want to give up the farm system to rent a guy for a year. That basically means only the wealthiest teams in the biggest markets are true contenders.  

So who are we talking about?

Well, there’s the dreaded Yankees, of course—always the dreaded Yankees. They have a farm system loaded with great arms and the money to sign him.

But although Duquette has made it clear that the Os would trade with a division rival, it seems highly unlikely that the Orioles will let their best player land in pinstripes, especially now that the Marlin’s CEO Derek Jeter conveniently allowed his ex team to trade for NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton. A young lineup of Aaron Judge, Machado, and Stanton would be a murderer’s row for years to come. Duquette wouldn’t let that happen. Would he??  

Apparently, the Chicago White Sox have already made an appealing offer, although we don’t know the details. This Michael Kopech kid, who struck out 155 in 119 1/3 innings to go with a 2.88 ERA at Double-A Birmingham and Triple-A Charlotte, is the real deal—so unless he’s part of the offer, fughetaboutit.  

Other interested teams? The Philadelphia Phillies and the St. Louis Cardinals, both of whom have the money and prospects to make an exciting deal. And of course, lots of other teams—including the Cleveland Indians and the San Francisco Giants—are interested, but that doesn’t mean they have the goods to make a deal.  

So is this definitely happening?

Not so fast. The Orioles have made it clear that they want top-tier pitching prospects or nothing. For now at least they’re in the driver’s seat. “At some point, you have to decide if you’re going to fish or cut bait,” Duquette told The Sun. “So that’s a little ways down the track.” For now, Machado remains an Orioles.

In closing, DON’T LEAAAAAVE US, MANNY! (Sorry, our hearts took over for a second there.)

Monday Night Football was a success for the Baltimore Ravens with a 23-16 win over the Houston Texans. It wasn’t an ideal victory, but they managed to come out on top, keeping the team’s playoff hopes alive. 

Joe Flacco and the offense struggled to move the ball down the field and the crowd at M&T Bank Stadium wasn’t shy about expressing their disappointment with a chorus of boos in the fourth quarter. After 100 yards in penalties for amateur mistakes—we’re talking to you, Matt Judon—the defense still managed to force three turnovers that made all the difference in the game.

The real hero of the night was the special teams squad, aka the Wolfpack. Veteran punter Sam Koch set up the team’s first touchdown with a completion to wide receiver Chris Moore on a fake punt. Koch is now 2-for-2 on the season in completions on fake punts and 4/4 in his career with 48-yard and a quarterback rating of 116.7. Flacco says that he would make a pretty decent backup, backup QB if it ever came to it.

“He definitely has the ability to throw the football,” Flacco said in a post-game conference. “Whether he has any idea about what’s going on back there, who knows.” 

Koch also showed off his crazy accurate leg for the second week in a row by dropping five punts inside the 20-yard line forcing Houston to drive long distances to score. After Monday’s game, he was named AFC Special Teams Player of the week, leading the league with 29 punts inside the opponents’ 20-yard line and a net punt average that puts him just outside the top 10.

Fellow Wolfpack member Justin Tucker shined on Monday night, as well, making a 53-yard field goal look like a cakewalk. He was 8-for-8 in November for field goal attempts and was named AFC Special Teams Player for the month of November. It’s his fourth time earning that title in his six-year career. 

With the Ravens offense ranked 31st in the league (yikes!), Tucker has been the team’s primary scoring weapon. His seemingly bionic leg has an 88.5 success rate, making him the 12th best kicker in the league.

Going into Sunday’s game against Detroit, the Ravens and the Lions—which both have had slow starts and struggling offenses—don’t look all that dissimilar. Seems to be a safe best that the Wolfpack will make the difference once again.

“I’m glad we were able to have a good night on Monday night,” Tucker said. “That’s why you play the game . . . have a big night and get a win with your teammates.”

The 2017 Orioles season is one of those that fans are eager to move past. The attitude is less reflective and more looking forward to spring, counting down the days (95) until pitchers and catchers report in Sarasota, Florida.

But this week we were given a great reason to look in the rear-view mirror, as outfielder—and clutch DH—Trey Mancini was named a finalist for American League Rookie of the Year. He’ll definitely need his “it’s an honor just to be nominated” speech ready, as any baseball fan knows that this has been the year of Aaron Judge. Pinstriped or not, when a first-year player hits 52 home runs and ends up with a slugging percentage of .622, there really is no contest.

Still, it’s great company to be in and Mancini was picked over infielder Yuli Gurriel of the world champion Astros, who had a pretty comparable year to our ROY finalist—albeit a better ending. Mancini, an eighth-round draft pick and University of Notre Dame alum, gave the Orioles plenty of great moments to celebrate this season, including 25 homers, and a resulting slash line of .293/.338/.488. No matter where he falls in the battle for silver or bronze, we are sure glad Mancini had plenty of sunflower-shower moments this year.

But that’s kind of where the good news ends. For the second year in a row, no Orioles were nominated for a Gold Glove. Manny Machado was our best bet. Not to get all stat-crazy, but if you look at his range factor—which divides putouts and assists by the number of games played—Machado’s was low (2.57), especially versus last year (4.13). That number, which is essentially the amount of outs he was involved in, hasn’t been that low since 2014, fittingly another year he didn’t make the All Star Game or MVP list.

Maybe the biggest tell as to what this means for the Orioles franchise is how little outcry there has been. Sports fans are generally all too willing to claim a player was robbed by Rawlings, MLB, or BBWAA. But the O’s faithful seems pretty resigned to the fact that this season we only had one All-Star (a reserve at that), no nod for Manager of the Year, zilch on Gold Gloves, and no one on the short list for American League MVP. As one Camden Chat commenter said about Machado, “At the least, I don’t feel he was unjustly shafted by The Man.”

There is another thing that Orioles fans can all agree on: it’s time for a change in 2018.

History to be made at Poly-City game.
On Saturday at M&T Bank Stadium, Jacey Lee, 16, a junior at Baltimore Polytechnic Institute, will become the first girl to take the field in the school’s 129-year football rivalry with Baltimore City College. She initially joined Poly’s JV team after her stepbrother invited her to come practice with him, and Lee is the first girl to ever make varsity. Lee is 5-foot-4 and plays defensive tackle. “I like hitting,” she told The Sun. “As soon as I get off, somebody is in my face. I either got to push them, or they push me.”

Joe’s back—again.
It’s hard to believe, but a little over a week since he took a violent hit to the head that left him concussed, Joe Flacco says he’s ready to play Sunday when the Ravens face the Tennessee Titans in Nashville. Flacco went through the NFL’s concussion protocol and was cleared to practice fully on Wednesday, albeit with stitches covered with tape on his left ear, where his helmet was ripped off by Miami Dolphins linebacker Kiko Alonso last Thursday night. Offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg joked with reporters yesterday that Flacco should have used his stitches to scare kids on Halloween. Joe Cool predictably didn’t, but he did post a throwback photo from 1995 in which a Frankenstein did appear.

WWE rolls through Royal Farms.
It’s not really a sport, though maybe there’s still some out there that think pro wrestling is real and not scripted. Anyway, WWE Raw made a stop at Royal Farms Arena on Monday Night. The highlight in wrestling circles was Samoa Joe’s return to the ring, and it seems like everyone had a good time.

Maryland women’s basketball picked second in Big Ten.
What?! The Big Ten coaches and media picked the defending conference champion Terps to finish second in the league, behind Ohio State. Though they might be in a rebuild mode, after losing two All-Americans and seeing a National Freshman of the Year transfer, consider it motivation for one of the area’s top programs in any sport. Maryland begins the season next Friday against Albany.

The Astros give us hope . . .
The smaller-market team formerly known as the Houston “Lastros” (for obvious reasons) won the World Series on Wednesday night in Game 7 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Three years ago, in a prophetic cover, Sports Illustrated featured eventual World Series MVP George Springer alongside the headline “Your 2017 World Series Champs,” referencing the idea that the Astros were building the game’s “next big thing,” with a blend of old-fashioned scouting and new-age statistical analytics. It might be a bit of a stretch to see our Orioles in the same light, but the Astros should at least give us some inspiration that a championship-caliber team can be built in short time. You heard it here first: O’s in 2020.

And if we needed more optimism and feel good-vibes going into the weekend, Astros shortstop Carlos Correa proposed to his girlfriend Daniella Rodriguez right after his team took the national title. Good luck topping that, every other guy on the planet.

Under Armour launches new subscription service.
Local athletic apparel behemoth Under Armour is adding a subscription service where consumers receive a box of products and keep only what they want. A la companies like Stitch Fix and Birch Box, consumers can opt into the service every 30, 60, or 90 days. To receive an ArmourBox, users complete a personal profile that asks about fitness goals, workout settings, exercise preferences, style aesthetic, and sizing. An Under Armour stylist then hand picks 4-6 pieces of gear that the user has a week to try on and decide what they want to keep before they get charged.

“ArmourBox provides yet another level of customization and convenience,” UA said on its website. “For example, subscribers who say they run a certain number of miles each week are sent gear that we know from our Connected Fitness customers and our e-commerce data is frequently purchased and positively reviewed by other people who run those distances.”

Baltimore Running Festival takes off this weekend.
Speaking of running a certain number of miles, the 17th annual Baltimore Running Festival takes place this Saturday. There will be some changes to the marathon this year, including a new finish line at the Inner Harbor along Pratt Street instead of Camden Yards. In addition, the aforementioned Under Armour is no longer a title sponsor, but is still providing t-shirts for all the participants. And this will the first year that Catherine Pugh, who first conceived of a marathon in Baltimore nearly 20 years ago, will be mayor during the event.

“Seeing the streets of Baltimore filled with runners is something I look forward to each October,” Mayor Pugh said at a press conference. “When we started out, we knew we wanted a marathon, a team marathon, half-marathon, and we wanted a 5K because we wanted families to come to Baltimore.”

Of course, be aware of all the road closures and delays that will take place Saturday morning for the full marathon, half marathon, and 5K.

Ravens have a little bit of hope going into Sunday.
We’ll be the first ones to admit that the start to the Ravens season has left us feeling underwhelmed. But going into Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings, consider these positive signs of hope:

• The team has looked better on the road. London aside and, okay, by a very small margin, the Ravens have performed better away (2-1) than at home (1-2). 
• Brandon Williams is practicing again. The Ravens defensive tackle’s foot injury has prevented him from playing in the last four games. And while a lot of other factors come into play, it’s certainly no coincidence that our defense is suffering. (The team allowed 170 rushing yards in the first two games with him and 678 in four games without.) But he practiced on Wednesday and will most likely play on Sunday. However, understandably so, Williams doesn’t want all the pressure. “I’m just a guy,” he told The Sun. “I’m just a guy who is working to get back on the field. That’s all I’m doing.”
• This could be a redemption game for Mike Wallace. Going against his former team the Minnesota Vikings could prove to be good motivation for the wide receiver. While in Minnesota, Wallace had career lows (39 receptions and 473 yards) and didn’t have a single catch longer than 34 yards. “It was humbling just because I’ve never been in a situation like that where I didn’t get the ball or wasn’t put in position to make those explosive plays,” he told the Twin Cities Pioneer Press. Let’s hope he makes some explosive plays this Sunday!

Carmelo Anthony came out swinging in season debut.
Baltimore native Carmelo Anthony made a good first impression with the Oklahoma City Thunder by scoring a 3-pointer to begin the game against his former team, the New York Knicks. He went on to have a strong second quarter, scoring 22 on 8-of-20 shooting in a 105-84 win over the Knicks. “Yeah, that chapter’s closed,” he told ESPN. “No more Knicks talk. We can just focus on the Thunder and moving forward and what we have to do as a team and organization.” Seems like he’s pretty comfortable in his new squad.

His lucky shirt.
A Las Vegas doctor credited an Under Armour compression T-shirt with saving the life of shooting victim Philip Aurich, who suffered major internal injuries in the deadliest mass shooting in recent U.S. history.

The Minnesota-native, who was shot in the back, was moved out of intensive care this week, WCCO in Minneapolis reported. Aurich’s brother told the television station that doctors said the tight-fitting Under Armour T-shirt his sibling had worn helped compress the bleeding until he reached the hospital and helped saved his life.

“Doctors said that shirt was a big part of him not bleeding terribly, bleeding out, pretty, much,” Ben Aurich, who played high school football with his brother in St. Paul, told WCCO.

This past Sunday, Philip Aurich, who lost his spleen and part of his colon—and still has a bullet lodged in his lung—got to see his two kids for the first time since the shooting. 

Good News; bad news.
The good news first: Baltimore moved closer to becoming a host of the 2026 FIFA World Cup this week. The United Bid Committee, coordinating the joint effort between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico to host the 2026 tournament, announced that Baltimore and M&T Bank Stadium had made the narrowing list of 32 cities that could serve as a venue for the world’s most prestigious soccer tournament. (Pittsburgh notably did not make the list. Just saying.) At least a dozen cities will ultimately host games. The bad news? The U.S. men’s soccer team lost 2-1 to Trinidad and Tobago in a qualifying round Tuesday for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, thereby getting eliminated before the tourney even began. 

Will (legal) sports betting come to Maryland?
The 1992 Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act prohibited sports betting in every state—save four: Nevada, Montana, Delaware, and New Jersey. However, the law required that those states offer sports betting with a year, which the Garden State did not do—or they’d lose their privilege, giving rise to current N.J. Gov. Chris Christie’s subsequent legal challenge. The U.S. Supreme is scheduled to hear New Jersey’s petition Dec. 4. Among the groups filing amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) briefs are the European Sports Security Administration, the American Gaming Association, West Virginia and 17 other states, as well as the governors of Kentucky, North Dakota—and Maryland. Gov. Larry Hogan hasn’t said much about legalizing sports betting, but he is considered a long-time political ally of Christie. A bill last year was introduced into the General Assembly to study and implement sports betting—contingent on the overturning of the ’92 federal ban. Gambling lobbyists have already begun campaigning for state elected officials to take up measure again in 2018.

This is monumental.

Morgan State University, celebrating its 150th anniversary, unveiled its new “Legends Plaza” on campus this week, including life-size bronze statues of former Coach Edward (“Eddie”) Hurt and Coach Earl (“Papa Bear”) Banks. According to a press release from Morgan, the memorial—part of a nearly 2,000-square-foot enclosed area near Hughes Stadium and the school’s student center—will eventually add bronze plaques honoring other former Morgan athletic standouts as well. Starting in 1929, Hurt’s football, basketball, and track squads won 33 conference titles, and once posted a 54-game winning streak on the gridiron. Banks’ football teams won five CIAA conference championships, played in four bowl games, and posted three regular-season unbeaten records, including a 31-game winning streak.                                                                                                                      

“It’s okay not to be okay.” 
Greatest swimmer of all time and Towson native Michael Phelps opened up recently about his own anxiety, sharing a story about being bullied and depressed in the new documentary Angst. IndieFlix CEO and founder Scilla Andreen, which made the film, told the Associated Press that she hopes the 56-minute documentary will reach more than 3 million people around the world from 25,000 school and community screenings. Shot in the U.S. and U.K, the film is appropriate for children age 10 and older.

“Once I opened up about that [being bullied] and things that I had kept inside of me for so many years, I then found that life was a lot easier,” Phelps says in the film, describing a period when he did not want to look at himself in mirror. “I got to the point where I understood that it’s OK to not be OK.”      

If Ravens shutout Browns, they’ll break a 72-year-old NFL record.
Not to get greedy, but after watching the way the Ravens defense performed in week one in Cincinnati, we are more confident than ever going against the Cleveland Browns at home. And it turns out, if this Sunday’s game is another shutout, the Ravens will break a 72-year-old NFL record. According to ESPN Stats & Information, the last team to shutout its opponents during the first two games of the season was, ironically, the Cleveland Rams in 1945. If this all seems a little pie-in-the-sky, consider a few facts:

1. The game is at M&T Bank Stadium and the Ravens defense has allowed the NFL’s fewest points at home since John Harbaugh became coach in 2008.
2. DeShone Kizer, the Browns rookie quarterback, is making his first career debut. Godspeed, DeShone.
3. The Ravens held the Bengals scoreless on 12 drives last week, forcing a turnover every time Cincinnati got inside Baltimore’s 10-yard line
4. During the offseason, Browns’ head coach Hue Jackson himself called the Ravens defense “legendary.”

But the cornerstone of the defense, Terrell Suggs, who deflected a key pass last Sunday, says his strategy is to go into this week fresh. “As far as we are concerned, last week didn’t happen,” he told ESPN. “We are taking it as our first game, and of course, it is our first home game. It is our home opener. You kind of have to have a short memory. Because this is the NFL; your fate can change in a week. We are acting like last week was just a dream.”

Bizarre giveaway at M&T Bank Stadium this Sunday.
Speaking of the Ravens, this has to be one of the weirdest giveaways we’ve ever seen at a local sports game. Biotech firm Orig3n will be giving all fans that enter M&T Bank Stadium on Sunday free DNA test kits. Fans who opt to participate can learn about their genetic makeup in four different genes, but they first have to swab the inside of their cheek, drop the sample into a stadium bin, and register with the company online. Among the findings, fans will be able to discover if they are “generally predisposed” to have difficulty metabolizing Vitamin D.

While we personally think this is odd and invasive on many levels (though clever marketing for Boston-based Orig3n), the Ravens are calling it “one of the most innovative events a partner has ever spearheaded.” If you say so.

Maryland football off to impressive start.
When rumors swirled that Maryland was joining the Big 10, a lot of fans feared that our state football team wouldn’t be able to hold its own. A lot of those worries have been dissuaded so far this season, starting with a 51-41 Maryland win against the longhorns in Austin. In true Terp style, the victory didn’t come withouts  hiccups, including quarterback Tyrrell Pigrome (not even the planned starter) tearing his ACL.Thankfully, true freshman and big recruit Kasim Hill saved the day—earning 57 yards and punching in a three-yard run to put the Terrapins up by 10 with just over seven minutes left in the game.

Though Towson University football isn’t quite on the same level as UT, last week’s 63-17 victory over the Tigers was pretty amazing. (Sorry to our buddies on Osler Drive.) One of the key takeaways is just how impressive the Terps running game is. Against Towson, Maryland rushed for 367 yards and six touchdowns—and running backs averaged 10.2 yards-per-carry. Look for backs Ty Johnson, Lorenzo Harrison III, and Jake Funk to continue to excel—as well as wide receiver D.J. Moore to capitalize on Hill’s success as QB.

Cal Ripken Jr. will not be commentator during baseball playoffs. 
After some, ahem, lackluster reception, Turner Sports confirmed that Cal Ripken Jr. will not be returning to TBS’ Major League Baseball playoff broadcasts. Ripken started working with TBS in 2007 as a studio analyst, transition to game broadcasts in 2012, where he’s worked every post-season since. 

Despite his tenure, Ripken never seemed quite comfortable in the role. The Sun‘s TV critic David Zurawick wrote, “Ripken was sometimes silent for stretches of time, even after Ernie Johnson, TBS’ smooth play-by-play announcer, tried to tee it up for his analysis. Compared to MASN’s Jim Palmer, who is 15 years older, Ripken seemed somewhere between somnolent and comatose in this playoff series during the first two games.” For his part, Ripken acknowledged the learning curve, saying to Awful Announcing in 2016: “I get five or six, I think, of the Sunday games on TBS. So you kind of get back into the position. And over time there is an accumulation of your comfort level, but I could benefit by doing more reps where you could feel like it becomes second nature to you.”

Though it’s not his strongest suit, we will miss the familiar voice of Carl, I mean, Cal during the MLB playoffs.

We love Ravens Ronnie Stanley. And we love Lola.
Ravens linebacker Ronnie Stanley has made it no secret that he’s an animal lover. But there’s something about this recent Petco commercial that is particularly adorable. 

Back, back, back. Joe Flacco returns for Ravens opener.
The quarterback is back from his back issues. Catch the theme? After missing most of the preseason because of a lower back injury (which raised the possibility of the team signing the controversial Colin Kaepernick), Flacco returned to practice last weekend to start preparing for the Ravens’ season-opener on Sunday afternoon at Cincinnati. Still, his health status isn’t exactly clear.

“It’s good,” Flacco told reporters of the back in general, as well as “I honestly don’t know how I did it,” about how the injury happened. And, “I really don’t know the actual answer to that,” about if he feels vulnerable to re-injuring the back, for which he said a spine doctor told him rest was the best medicine.

This isn’t exactly an inspiring start to the season for the most important player on the Ravens’ roster, but, hey, there’s plenty else to be excited about as the new football year begins.

Can we have nine Manny Machados, please?
To quote Buck Showalter, “I like our guys,” but how can you not love Manny Machado at this point? He did it again this week, hitting his third walk-off home run in just 19 days (the shortest span since Sammy “Corked-Bat” Sosa did it in 1996). For extra dramatic effect, he hit it at 1 a.m. Wednesday to end a rain-delayed game against the Yankees, among the teams the Orioles are chasing for, yes, a still-possible playoff spot. (As of this writing, the O’s are two games behind Minnesota for the American League’s second and final wild card position.) 

Visiting fans from the north at Camden Yards serenaded our beloved Manny, the recently named A.L. Player of the Month for August, with chants of “Fu-ture Yank-ee,” and we sure as heck hope not. That’s a story for another day, though a few hours after Machado’s latest heroics The Big Leagues Daily’s Dan Clark started a tongue-in-cheek GoFundMe page (goal: $400 million), after getting more than 1,000 retweets in support of the idea, to show the world we want to keep the modern-day Brooks Robinson here. For now, let’s enjoy the Manny Magic, at the plate and in the field, as he and the rest of the once left-for-dead O’s (as in 4 percent chance to making the playoffs) keep their, and our, postseason baseball hopes alive.

Every (win) is bigger in Texas.
Especially when the University of Maryland football team is doing the winning. To start their season, the Terps, a three-touchdown underdog, pulled off a wild 51-41 win at preseason nationally-ranked Texas last Saturday afternoon. Despite losing starting quarterback Tyrrell Pigrome to a season-ending knee injury mid-game, Maryland notched one of the best victories in the program’s history, and certainly the biggest win of coach D.J. Durkin’s tenure, coming in the first game of his second season. 

#mood:

Up next, the Terps host Towson on Saturday, and, if you’re still on the fence about going, three words: Baltimore Cheese Steak. It’s the newest concession at Maryland Stadium, a “thinly sliced griddled rib eye steak, topped with a white cheese sauce blended with Old Bay and a touch of Sherry,” information important enough to include in a school press release. 

John Urschel fibbed — making him even smarter than we thought?
The recently retired former Ravens center and still math genius revealed on Freakonomics Radio that he was enrolled as a full-time Ph.D. student at MIT during the 2016 football season, and that the Ravens didn’t know. “I guess since I’m retired, I’m allowed to say, I was full-time, full-time,” he said.

Urschel took classes remotely and, for example, studied and worked on assignments on Sundays after games, during off day Mondays and before practice on Tuesdays. “I did not tell anyone this,” Urschel said. “Well, except MIT. But I don’t think an NFL team would be extremely happy to hear that I’m working towards my Ph.D. also in the fall.” Such was his (former) life in pro football. 

Serena Williams and fiancé Alexis Ohanian have baby girl.
We’re still waiting for pictures. C’mon People. But, seriously, congratulations to Ohanian, the Howard High alum and Reddit co-founder, and Williams, the greatest women’s tennis player of all time, on their firstborn, a six-pound, 13-ounce girl.

Baltimore Blast moves to Towson
It’s the end of one era—and the beginning of another. After 37 years at what is now called the Royal Farms Arena, the Baltimore Blast—Baltimore’s Best Team, according to our 2017 Best of Baltimore issue—are moving to SECU Arena at Towson University. 

According to a press release, the team promises, “a more intimate fan experience that will include more convenient parking, better value at the concession stands, and upgraded seating and sight lines that will bring fans closer the action.” We always hate to see anyone move out of the city, but we’re excited to see the Blast play in their new venue. And you had us at “convenient parking.”

O’s making us believe again.
The seven-game win streak came to a disappointing end last night, but the O’s have truly been on fire—and their excellent play has catapulted them right back into the Wild Card chase. (As of this writing, the team is 2.5 games back in the standings, behind LA, Minnesota, and the scuffling Yankees.) I’ll be the first to admit that I had written them off around mid-season, but their combination of solid pitching and clutch hitting—particularly from Manny Machado, who is looking a whole lot like, well, Manny Machado lately—is making me believe. 

Also: Remember the collective shrug we all gave when the O’s traded for Tim Beckham? All he’s done since is bat .394 with 50 hits and 19 RBIs. Throw in the star-making season that Jonathan Schoop is having, Trey Mancini’s Rookie of the Year-caliber performance (*cough* not so fast Aaron Judge *cough*), and Dylan Bundy looking like a legit ace (how bout that beauty of a one-hitter he threw against the Mariners on Tuesday?) and more and more Baltimoreans are finding themselves humming “Orioles Magic” these days.

Baltimore Ravens donated $1 million to the Houston recovery.
The 4-0 preseason was impressive, but this is even more impressive. The team tweeted that they’re donating $1 million to the recovery efforts in Houston. And the Houston Texans are appreciative, RTing the Ravens’ post and adding “#HoustonStrong.” ❤️

Boomer’s getting a sibling!
The cutest little minnow in the sea—Boomer Phelps, that is—is about to get a sister or brother. He looks pretty happy about it, according to to the photo Nicole Phelps posted on Instagram when she made the announcement. But maybe they just told him he was getting a pony. 

Speaking of Michael, we all know that he raced a shark (kind of) during Shark Week and now he has a new proposal—going head-to-head in the pool against MMA champ Connor McGregor, who just had a pretty respectable showing in his much-hyped boxing match against Floyd Mayweather. “Should we race as well?” he jokingly posted to Twitter, with a Photoshopped picture of McGregor donning a swimming cap and goggles. Imagine the Pay Per View bank they could make on that one. . . .

Is the Jeffrey Maier curse over?
Y’all remember Jeffrey Maier, right? That annoying little twerp in NY who interfered with the ball and gave Derek Jeter a home run he never should’ve had in the 1996 ALCS? Well, the O’s are surging, Maier is now a 33-year-old man (yikes!), and this adorable little nugget who seemed exceedingly happy that his dad snagged a Machado home run is our new bleachers spirit animal. All hail #BabyBird.

Ravens start off season with Shake Shack and a win.
We’re not quite sure what made bigger headlines this week—the fact that it was the Ravens’ first preseason game or that Shake Shack is coming to M&T Bank Stadium. The New York City-based burger and shake chain, which already has a location in the Inner Harbor, decided that Baltimore will be home to its NFL stadium location. Shake Shack already has locations in Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, the Mets’ Citi Field, and just down 95 at Nationals Park in D.C. “They’re in other stadiums and areas and do very well there,” said Ravens senior VP of stadium operations Roy Sommerhof. “Their burger is a great burger and they have a lot of great options with it.” Though the signature long lines are to be expected, we’ll take a Smoke Shack Burger over chicken tenders any day.

Arguably more important, the Ravens beat the Redskins 23-3 in the first pre-season game of the year last night. It was a good start considering the team didn’t have its franchise quarterback and a couple of starting offensive linemen. According to ESPN, players and coaches alike are hoping that the Ravens can rely on the run game to really move the ball this year, including reinventing some tactics with new senior offensive assistant Greg Roman. “Especially in the running game, you really do not know where you are at until you play somebody else,” coach John Harbaugh said. “It is a point of emphasis. We have been working really hard at it, and I like what we are doing. I like the way it is being coached, and I like the way the guys are working on the drills, and proof will be in the outcome.”

This seems promising, as does the fact that the team restructured cornerback Jimmy Smith’s contract, creating $5.15 million of cap space. Let’s hope that—Kaepernick or no Kaepernick—these are all good signs for the regular season.

Manny Machado, aka Mr. Miami, hits a grand slam.
It’s been an up and down week for the Orioles (who still have a chance to make the playoffs, by the way) but a real highlight was seeing Manny Machado hit a grand slam on Monday night. The seventh-inning bomb led the Orioles to a 6-2 win over the Angels. Though the season started out slow for him, Machado has been on a hot streak since the All-Star break, going 33-for-95 (.347) and homering in back-to-back games. “Things [are] turning out how I want, hits start falling off,” Machado told MLB.com. “I’m getting a little couple cheap hits instead of hard line-outs I’ve gotten in the past. Just trying to continue my routine and hopefully things turn around . . . This has obviously been a learning season for me and I’m going to take everything positively and just learn from this.”

Something we learned this week is that, while there are a lot of common player nicknames on the Orioles (Crush, Tilly), there are many that we didn’t know existed. In honor of the inaugural Players Weekend, Aug. 25-27, all players will wear colorful, non-traditional uniforms featuring alternate designs. Each player picks a nickname for the back of their jerseys and we were certainly impressed with the selection. What’s your favorite? We are partial to Pappo and Cabob.

Maryland women’s basketball team readies for trip to Taiwan.
The World University Games will take place in Taiwan August 19-30 and the Terps women’s basketball squad will be the second college program to be invited in lieu of a hand-picked all-star team. This has given the team a chance to avoid the NCAA’s 40-day practice restriction rule and get to on-court training sessions in College Park earlier than normal. “This international competition is going to be a tremendous head start for us going into the following season,” coach Brenda Frese told University of Maryland newspaper The Diamondback. “You can’t simulate this kind of international competition that we’re going to face . . . I think we’re going to learn a ton about our team, which will prepare us for the upcoming season.” Look out for burgeoning talent in freshman guard Channise Lewis.

Speaking of basketball…
We were so excited that Baltimore Boys, an ESPN “30 for 30” documentary about the phenomenal early ’80s Dunbar basketball team premiered this week. We spoke to co-director and Park Heights native Sheldon Candis about making the film and finally got to see the final result Tuesday. The documentary was an honest look at Baltimore during that time, an emotional chronicle of difficult childhoods and the death of Reggie Leiws, and ultimately a celebration of the Dunbar Poet players and fierce leadership under Coach Bob Wade. 

Just for fun, here’s a highlight video of the incredible 5’3″ Muggsy Bogues doing what he does best.

Carmelo Anthony’s heart is still in Baltimore. 
Though he was born, and lives, in New York, Carmelo Anthony still refers to Baltimore as home. It’s the place the 10-time NBA all-star moved to when he was 8 years old and where he spent a good chunk of his formative years on local fields and gyms, eventually growing into one of the most famous athletes to come from the city.

This week, Anthony, 33, returned as honorary chair and host of The Basketball Tournament, a three-day $2 million winner-take-all semipro championship held at Coppin State University. The current New York Knicks forward, who played at Towson Catholic (old photo alert!), sat courtside at the tournament’s ESPN-televised title game on Thursday night, and spoke about Baltimore as if he never left. “It’s a way I can bring something positive to the city,” he said of the event, which included cleanup efforts at 12 sites in the city, free health screenings at Mondawmin Mall, and a job fair at Coppin State. “Sports is a connector in life.” 

The thoughts echoed an emotional speech he gave a day earlier at Marshall Park in West Baltimore, where mayor Catharine Pugh awarded Anthony a medal of honor for service to the community. In April 2015, after Freddie Gray’s death, Anthony joined protestors and urged calm amid the outrage. “What we’re trying to create is so much bigger than the negativity that you guys hear, or see, or read about our city,” he said.

Brandon Williams keeps on dancing.
This time it was against a little girl during the Ravens’ open practice on Sunday at M&T Bank Stadium

“What did you think of the dance contest? Kid or Brandon, who won?” Ravens coach John Harbaugh asked reporters afterward.
You might remember Williams’ moves (nimble for a 340-pound defensive lineman, isn’t he?) from a locker room video that impressed the Rockettes two years ago, or him doing the “Carlton”  while on promotional tour in London.

This was a nice distraction from Joe Flacco being hurt (along with seemingly a dozen other injured Ravens) before the season’s even started. And, if nothing else, the impromptu dance-off made for a great first use of the stadium’s new and massive 4K scoreboards.

O’s don’t give up the fight.
The Orioles front office apparently had higher expectations for the rest of this season than we imagined. Instead of trading closer Zach Britton or relief pitcher Brad Brach and for pieces that could help in future years—as were widely rumored as possibilities—the O’s turned into buyers at the Major League Baseball trade deadline—and aren’t giving up on the playoffs.

They got a starting pitcher, Jeremy Hellickson, from the Phillies and a former No. 1 overall draft pick, 27-year-old shortstop Tim Beckham, from the Tampa Bay Rays. Beckham’s started his O’s career with a pair of multi-hit games, and on Wednesday night Hellickson delivered what the team desperately needed, a quality start, as he led the Birds to a fifth straight win and to within 2.5 games of a playoff spot. After a loss Thursday night to Detroit, the O’s are now 3.5 games out. “I’d like this season to go to the end of the year,” GM Dan Duquette said. Thankfully, maybe October baseball isn’t as far off as we thought.

Under Armour lays off close to 300 employees.
About half the layoffs, announced Tuesday by Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank, were effective immediately to employees at the company’s Locust Point headquarters, a distribution center in Curtis Bay, an outlet store near that warehouse, and Under Armour’s store in Harbor East. It’s part of what the company described as a restructuring in the wake of a second straight quarterly loss ($12 million). The footwear and apparel giant is cutting 2 percent of its worldwide workforce, or roughly 280 people. “After six and a half years of more than 20 percent growth, we are clearly operating in a different environment, especially in North America,” Plank said on an earnings’ conference call. Various financial media delved deep into the details of why things aren’t going so well but, in short, this hits home.

File This Under: Trades That Will Never Happen
Look, if we had our druthers, Manny Machado would stay an Oriole for life. But if the Orioles truly can’t afford to sign him—or, if they do sign him, it’ll completely break bank—they should consider trading him for a bunch of high quality prospects. A team like the Dodgers, who have a loaded farm system, would be ideal. 

You know where the Orioles should definitely, never, under no circumstances trade him? To the freaking Boston Red Sox. And yet, that is exactly a trade that Buster Olney—who used to write for The Sun, I might add—suggested on SportsCenter. Yes, it’s true. The Red Sox are in need of a third baseman. It’s also true that the Sox are in contention and the Orioles . . . less so. (Although, after that four-game sweep of the Rangers, we are feeling ourselves.) 

But you don’t trade one of the best players in baseball to a division rival? And especially not the Red Sox, with whom Machado has a fair amount of (justifiable) bad blood. No, nope, never, nada. And don’t you get any bright ideas, either, Yankees.

Speaking of Manny . . .

You gotta love this guy. As you might know, due to what has thus far been subpar offensive season, Machado was not an All Star this season. A one-year glitch, we’re sure. But he did attend the All-Star Game to cheer on his boy Jonathan Schoop and other friends in the game. His assessment: “Yeah, it’s a little boring to watch it…I don’t know how people go out there an watch games. Now I know why sometimes people don’t come to games.” You’re not supposed to say that out loud, dude.

Phelps vs. Shark: It is On!
The moment we’ve all been waiting for—Phelpnado, you might call it—“starts” this Sunday, July 23 on the Discovery Channel. We put “starts” in quotes, because that’s their word, not ours. Not sure how long you can stretch out a race between a swimmer and a fish, but I guess we’re about to find out. Meanwhile, we’ve done a little research. The Great White Shark can go up to 35 miles per hour. Phelps, at his fastest, can go only 6 miles per hour. Umm, that seems bad for Phelps. 

From what we’ve learned, Phelps was equipped with a special shark-like fin to make his time faster. Okay, that should do the trick. Anyway, we’re not totally sure if Phelps and the shark are actually swimming side-by-side or if they’re in two separate bodies of water (which would be laaaaame). The good news? We saw Phelps on Fallon last night and he looked healthy and happy and definitely had all his limbs, so no matter what happened, Phelps emerged intact. Tune in.

We’re Loving These New Under Armour Commercials
Homegrown sports apparel behemoth Under Armour has launched a new ad campaign targeting women called “Unlike Any,” starring ballerina Misty Copeland, stuntwoman Jessie Graff, and world champion sprinter Natasha Hastings, among others, and featuring poems recited by their authors.   

The first one, “For Misty” features Copeland in a stark, concrete arena, warming up and slowly dancing, as poet Saul Williams entrancingly reads an accompanying poem. Notably, there is no music.   

The second one, “For Natasha” features poet Dominique Christina as Hastings begins running alone on a sandy stretch of land; “For Jessie” is set to a poem written by Kojey Radical, and shows Graff doing a lot of “Do Not Try This At Home” stuff like hanging from rafters and flipping through the air.
All the commercials emphasize determination, solitude, grace, and female power. We approve.

Apparently We’re Not the Only Ones Geeked About Game of Thrones.

The Ravens and the Orioles are, too. Both teams posted a Westeros-themed video to their social media accounts in anticipation of last Sunday’s Game of Thrones premiere. In the Orioles case, they offered a Game of Thrones ticket package that included a pre-game bullpen party, a photo op with the iron throne (shouldn’t that be Iron Man Throne?), and tee-shirt featuring the Watcher of the Wall. John Stark? Hell no, this is Birdland. Adam Jones!

The Ravens posted the fun video featured below.

Lone Orioles All-Star Jonathan Schoop is bright spot for team.
This has been a rough first half of the Orioles season, to say the least. As we head into the All-Star break, the Orioles have a record of 40-45, a starting pitcher ERA of 8.66 in the month of July, and are averaging 3.25 runs per game this month—the worst run differential in the American League.

But we here at Baltimore magazine are optimists so, through our rose-colored glasses, we see that Jonathan Schoop was selected to play in his first All-Star Game on July 11 at Marlins Park in Miami. The second baseman, who leads the Orioles with 51 RBIs and 16 home runs, was selected by the MLB to be an AL reserve and becomes the fourth player from Curacao to become an  All-Star.

“I’m excited, happy,” Schoop told The Sun. “My head is spinning everywhere right now. I’ll just go in there and try to enjoy it . . . All I know since I was a kid was playing baseball. It was tough times for me to go through all this and now I’m an All-Star.”

Of course, his baseball BFF Manny Machado couldn’t contain his excitement either, and said he’s already offered to host Schoop and his family while they’re in Miami for the game. 

“To finally see what he’s turning into as a player, it’s unbelievable to watch,” Machado said. “His game has gone to another level and finally other players and teams and coaches are seeing it . . . words can’t describe how happy I am for him.”

Cue the chorus of awes. 

Plus, Britton is back!
Is it just us or does it seem like a lot of our problems can be traced back to May 5 when closer Zach Britton was put on the 60-day disabled list with a strained left forearm. Up until then, the closer had recorded a save in all five chances with a 1.00 ERA.

Though Buck Showalter says he’s easing him back into the ninth inning, things are looking promising as Britton pitched a scoreless seventh on Wednesday against the Brewers. And, clearly, fans are excited, too.

Swimmer Chase Kalisz dominates in 400-meter IM at Nationals.
Cheering on a local swimmer comes naturally to us, which is why we were so excited to see Bel Air native Chase Kalisz dominate in the 400-meter individual medley at the National Championships this past week. The 2016 Olympic silver medalist—who trained with the North Baltimore Aquatic Club—clocked in a winning time of 4:06.99—the fastest in the world this year.

All of this is fuel for Kalisz’s next big goal—the Olympics Games Tokyo in 2020.

“I’m really happy with that progress,” Kalisz told TeamUSA.org. “I tell people all the time that the best thing that happened to me for this four-year period was me getting silver. It motivates me every single day.”

Dunbar alum Jamel Artis shines in Knicks Summer League.
Though he was undrafted in the two-round selection process, Dunbar alum Jamel Artis is hoping to change is his story in the New York Knicks Summer League team in Orlando. In the team’s first three summer games, he has averaged nine points in under 18 minutes a game. Though he’s a swingman, Artis is playing mostly at forward and made five of 12 3-pointers.

“I’m in a good position right now with the Knicks,” told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “I’m in a great position, actually. I can only be thankful and grateful for the position I’m in now. I’ve just got to go out there and play hard.”

The Good, The Bad, and The Adorable: O’s edition
The Good: Despite the O’s latest slump, Manny Machado continues to shine. ESPN the Magazine’s Tim Keown has christened Manny as “the face of MLB’s new identity.”  

“Machado moves with a sprawling looseness that flirts with elegance,” Keown writes in the profile. “His endless limbs and their unusual liquidity have spawned tales — possibly apocryphal—about their composition.”

A perfect example of the “sprawling looseness” and “liquidity” were showcased during last Saturday’s win against the St. Louis Cardinals. Machado seemed to defy the laws of gravity and strength with an insane throw from foul territory to Davis at first base. 

The Bad: After Thursday’s 6-3 loss to the Cleveland Indians, the O’s have now allowed five or more runs in 19 consecutive games, placing them one game away from tying the MLB record set by the 1924 Phillies. Ouch!

The Adorable: Buck Showalter missed Thursday’s game to be with his daughter, Allie, in Dallas and witness the birth of his first grandchild, Winston. Hopefully he will be the good luck charm the O’s so desperately need. Let’s hope he starts practicing his wind-up once he’s home.

Ravens football is back.
Training camp officially begins on July 26, so that means football season will be here before we know it. If minicamp highlight videos are any indication of what the season will look like, we are so ready.

Speaking of the Ravens, tight end Benjamin Watson has been spending his time in the offseason advocating for human rights. Watson traveled to Lebanon in April where he saw first-hand the Middle East’s refugee crisis and now plans to travel to the Dominican Republic later this month with the International Justice Mission to fight for rights against sex trafficking.

Shootout for soldiers
For the past six years, volunteers have signed up to play 24 games of lacrosse for 24 hours straight to raise money to support American veterans. In order to participate, teams must raise a minimum of  $750 to secure a one-hour game slot. This year’s event, June 20-21 in Elkridge, raised more than $200,000. 

Trey Mancini has a magical night at Camden Yards. 
It’s fitting that Trey Mancini sounds like the name of an old-timey magician—because he certainly knows how to put it on a show. On Wednesday night against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Orioles fans felt pretty deflated going into the ninth inning down 6-2. But the Orioles managed to put runners on the corners with no outs, causing the Pirates to bring in closer Tony Watson. A sac fly by Joey Rickard and double by J.J. Hardy cut the lead in half. Then Buck Showalter put in Mancini as a pitch-hitter, where he battled against Watson for eight pitches before hitting a two-run homer out of the park to tie the game.

As if that wasn’t exciting enough, two innings later, Mancini delivered an extra-inning walk-off homer to give the Orioles a 9-6 victory in 11 innings. Because baseball nerds love numbers, Stats LLC reported that he is the first Oriole ever to accomplish the feat of pinch-hitting a game-tying homer and then hitting a walk-off in extra innings. In fact, there have only been two regular position players to ever do it: Boog Powell in 1966 and Eddie Murray in 1980. Pretty impressive company.

Ravens release Dennis Pitta after hip injury.
On the complete opposite end of the spectrum, Dennis Pitta was released Wednesday by the Baltimore Ravens after reinjuring his hip. Pitta is currently being hospitalized and undergoing procedures after he dislocated his hip for the third time in five years. This past Friday, he hurt his hip without any contact and merely stretching out for a catch. Previously, Pitta dislocated his hip during training camp in 2013 and early in the 2014 season. But in 2016 he returned to set team and career high records in catches.

“For him to get that year and to play so well was probably something beyond expectations and yet we hoped for me,” Coach John Harbaugh told ESPN. “We thought we would get more—it was not meant to be.” 

The latest injury for the tight end could be career-ending, and the release frees up $2.5 million in salary-cap room for the Ravens. “It’s going to be a tough conversation,” Harbaugh said. “But we’re friends.”

We will miss the on-field chemistry between real-life best friends Pitta and quarterback Joe Flacco. We wish Pitta and his family the best of luck as he recovers.

Manny Machado out with sprained left wrist.

In other injury news, one downside to Wednesday night’s incredibly Orioles game was third baseman Manny Machado leaving it early due to a strained left wrist, puncture, and bruise. During an awkward stolen-base slide into third, Pirate outfielder Andrew McCutchen unintentionally spiked Machado’s wrist as he tried to field the throw from the catcher.

As a result, Chris Davis got his first start at third base since 2014 against the Nationals on Thursday night. Though it’s been a while, Davis has the most experience at the position.

“I think he’s started over 300 games there, counting the minor leagues,” Showalter told The Sun. “I’m not particularly happy about having to do it, but it’s kind of where we are as a club.”

Woman ends 444-mile solo kayak journey in Havre de Grace.
Cathy Mumford pulled her kayak, dubbed “Sparky” into Havre de Grace marina at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday after quite the trip. The New Jersey native paddled for 444 miles and 26 days by herself from Cooperstown, New York down the Susquehanna River. She started her journey on Mother’s Day, May 14, paddling in her yellow, 9.5-foot kayak and camping along the way. 

“I see lots of fishermen, lots of Boy Scouts. I hardly ever see girls,” she told The Sun. “I’d just like to encourage young women to get out there more.”

 Maryland wins, and she says yes!
It had been 42 years since the Maryland men’s lacrosse team won a national championship, so when this group of 50 18- to 22-year-olds finally did it with a 9-6 win over Ohio State on Memorial Day Monday at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, you can imagine the cathartic celebration that ensued. Hugs, sure. A dogpile, yes. During a TV interview, a dazed Terps coach John Tillman, who had led the team to five title games in the previous seven seasons, handed the walnut-and-bronze NCAA championship trophy back to his players after they gave it to him. 

“This is for you,” he said, then later told the media he might have to make good on a bet made with two of his senior leaders, Matt Rambo and Colin Heacock (Boys’ Latin): That their coach would get a tattoo if they won. “It’s going to be small,” the former Navy assistant coach said, maybe on the bottom of his foot. There was even a marriage proposal on the field. Living up to his own promise to coaches and players, team trainer Anthony Benyarko popped the question to his girlfriend. And she said yes. So it goes when you end a four-decades-long drought and put the University of Maryland, always at the center of the college lacrosse world, back on top of it.

A day earlier in the same stadium, the Terp women beat Boston College to win the program’s 13th NCAA title, and third in the last four years. Oh yeah, Salisbury won its second straight (and 12th overall) Division III men’s championship, too. And last night in Washington, D.C., Rambo and Maryland’s Zoe Stukenberg (Marriotts Ridge) won the Tewaaraton Award, given to the best men’s and women’s players in in the game. Like we’ve thought all along, that famous line from Wedding Crashers should have been, “Crabcakes and lacrosse—that’s what Maryland does!”

Remembering Frank Deford.
Baltimore born and bred Frank Deford, who some considered the best sports writer of a generation, died Sunday at his home in Key West, Florida. He was 78, and leaves behind his wife, Carol, two adult children, and a distinguished catalogue of work produced as a longtime Sports Illustrated writer, NPR commentator and correspondent for HBO’s Real Sports.

Born in 1938, Deford attended Calvert and Gilman before graduating from Princeton University. He started his writing career at the now-defunct Evening Sun before beginning an eventual 50-year career at SI, a 32-year run on NPR, and authoring 18 books, nine of them novels. Known for his literary style and conversational voice, Deford’s most famous sports stories include profiles on Bobby Knight (“The Rabbit Hunter”) and one on Hall-of-Fame basketball player Bill Russell, which won the 1999 National Magazine Award. 

“A thousand writers would praise a sports figure and another thousand would rip him, and then Deford would step in and explain him, and his piece would render the others unnecessary,” Sports Illustrated colleague Michael Rosenberg said in one of the many tributes posted about Deford this week. Although his career took him (and us) around the world, Deford never forgot his Baltimore roots. He spoke at the Enoch Pratt Free Library’s central branch as recently as May 2016. 

“Baltimore is a very idiosyncratic city,” he told The Sun in 2002. “It’s very distinct and very unusual in many ways. For a writer, that’s very good. It gives you a lot of material. I think it made me more aware, even if I didn’t use all the material from Baltimore. I think if you grow up in a bland place, maybe you don’t have as good an eye.”

Cats, dogs, and (thankfully) a few wins.
Let’s face it. The last few weeks haven’t been the best stretch of the season for the Orioles, who, before winning two of three against the Yankees and beating Boston Thursday night at Camden Yards, had dropped 13 of their previous 16 games. The O’s are now in third place in the AL East. They seem to be a different team since closer Zach Britton headed to the disabled list. But, if there’s one thing that can brighten up a clubhouse, it happened this week when Manny Machado, Chris Davis, and company sat down with their animals to shoot the team’s annual pet calendar to benefit the BARCS Animal Shelter. The Oriole Bird’s pets’ are apparently cats . . . 

Baltimore’s first-ever national chess champion honored at City Hall.  
Cahree Myrick, a 12-year-old who attends Roland Park middle school, recently became the city’s first-ever national individual youth chess champion at the U.S. Chess Federation SuperNationals in Nashville. From a field of 249 players, the seventh-grader emerged as the best of anyone from kindergarten through eighth grade. Mayor Catharine Pugh honored him, and his Baltimore Kids Chess League teammates, on Wednesday at City Hall. 

“The city of Baltimore wants you to know we are really proud of your accomplishments,” Pugh told Myrick, according to The Sun. Way to go, kid. He also plays at a barbershop in Barclay, too, and wants to earn a master’s degree at Stanford.

Gervonta “Tank” Davis Signs Deal with Under Armour
This is cool. World IBF junior lightweight champion Gervonta Davis, who just defended his title in convincing fashion Monday with a third-round TKO of Britain’s Liam Walsh, has inked a deal with Under Armour. To announce the partnership, Under Armour unveiled a billboard of Davis on I-95. It’s a particularly cool billboard, because Davis isn’t in the ring or even crouched with his fists up in a classic boxer’s pose. Instead, he’s standing in West Baltimore, looking contemplative but determined, row homes behind him, his elaborate neck tattoo in full view. The billboard reads: “Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis: Baltimore’s Own.”

Dennis Pitta hosts The Bachelorette viewing party.
This is the greatest thing we’ve ever seen. We’re not sure what our favorite part is, Justin Tucker admitting he’s the Whaboom guy (“I would hope that I’m not the Whaboom guy, but I think I might be the Whaboom guy”); Joe Flacco doubling over in laughter as a be-aproned Dennis Pitta brings out his freshly made cinnamon buns; or Pitta proving that real men can love reality TV dating shows when he says, “A lot of football players wants to act like they’re too cool and tough to watch shows like this. Not us.” This is pure gold.

Jones breaks Camden Yards home run record
It hasn’t been a particularly great few weeks for the Orioles (understatement alert), but there is at least one reason to celebrate: Adam Jones, team captain, center fielder, Twitter foodie, and all-around awesome dude has broken the home run record at Camden Yards. He hit his 125th Camden Yards dinger on Monday, a no-doubt-about-it blast to left field against the Twins. (The Orioles went on to lose the game in frustrating fashion, but let’s focus on the positive.) Congrats, Adam!

 Justin Jackson is back
You can exhale now, Terps fans. Forward Justin Jackson, arguably the strongest member of a trio of superb freshmen who helped lead the Terps to the NCAA tournament last season, has removed his name from draft consideration and will be returning to the team next season. Whew!

Michael Phelps teasing us again?
Is it weird that we don’t want Michael Phelps in the 2020 Olympics? It’s not that we don’t love the guy—we do. We just don’t want to mess with the perfection of what he’s already accomplished. That being said, dude keeps “joking” about a 2020 run. First, on April Fool’s he tweeted. “Some goals/dreams you just can’t get rid of…been doing a lot of thinking n I’ve decided that I’m going 2 make another comeback! #tokyo2020.” Okay, that was funny. But then, just this week he posted a photo of himself and fellow Olympiad Grant Hackett to Instagram, with the caption, “Just two old dudes getting back in the pool…2020?” Then he followed that up with a Tweet that linked to the ’Gram post and added, “A little rusty . . . nah, still got it!” One joke is funny. Two jokes are intriguing. But three jokes? We’re just saying.

Saturday night is Showtime.
West Baltimore’s Gervonta “Tank” Davis won the 130-pound world title in January at Brooklyn’s Barclay’s Center in one of the most exciting bouts of the year, finishing off Jose Pedraza with a thrilling seventh round KO. This weekend, the charismatic fighter travels to London for the first defense of his crown against No. 1 challenger Liam Walsh. We can’t wait for Davis fill Royal Farms Arena at some point in the future, but for now we will catch the action on Showtime, scheduled for Saturday at 6 p.m.

Explained: How the O’s do it.
FiveThirtyEight, the popular politics, sports, science and health, economic and culture blog for numbers nerds, recently dedicated a post attempting to uncover how our beloved Orioles keep beating the experts gloom and doom predictions of failure each season. As baseball columnist Neil Paine notes the O’s have far exceeded the expectations of forecasters over the past half-dozen seasons, by as much as 21, 16, and 12 games in recent seasons. What did he find? Buck Showalter, basically. And the O’s bullpen, which, of course, he reveals has been wonderfully managed by Buck. It’s a case of researchers collecting the data on what every O’s fans already knows based on our own subjective observations. We do appreciate the effort.

Boys’ Latin Tops St. Paul’s in 100th regular season match.
Talk about historic rivalries. Perennial Baltimore lacrosse powerhouses Boys’ Latin and St. Paul’s met for the 100th time this week and the occasion lived up to its billing, with Boys’ Latin rallying from a 3-0 deficit, and then holding on to win a 10-9 nail biter. The win pushed Boys’ Latin overall margin in the series to 52-47-1, according to reporting by the The Sun’s longtime high school sportswriter, Glenn Graham, in a rivalry that began in 1933.

There is a little horse race in Baltimore this weekend. 
This is setting up as a nice duel between Derby-winner and odds-on favorite Always Dreaming in the No. 4 position and Classic Empire, at 3-1 bet, in next to him in the starting gate at No. 5. Goes without saying that Preakness is not to be missed, but especially this year.

O’s catchers deliver more than flowers for Mom.
Oriole catcher Francisco Peña, before a rare start Mother’s Day weekend, promised he’d hit a home run for his mom. And he did better than that—blasting two round-trippers. Which means the bar has been set awfully high for every ballplayer ever going forward. That said, O’s catcher Caleb Joseph went deep the following day, on the actual Mother’s Day, as did Chris Davis. Not bad a compliment to the usual flowers, candy, and card.

Despite shade from D.C., Orioles win series against Nats.

We’re a pretty positive bunch here at Baltimore magazine. It takes a lot to ruffle our feathers. But when people start talking smack about our city, we want to snap a bat over our leg Chris Davis style.

Earlier this week, The Washington Post reported that 106.7 The Fan, the flagship radio station of the Nationals, was airing a 45-second promo spot with some aggressive shade thrown Baltimore’s way:

This week two of the hottest teams in baseball meet in the Beltway Series. First, the Nats travel to Baltimore to face Manny Machado and the Orioles. Side note: Natty Boh is brewed in Georgia, and 50 percent of crabs served in Maryland are actually from Japan. Then, Baltimore brings its massive inferiority complex to D.C., a city with more jobs, a lower crime rate and a better baseball team. Hear it all on your flagship home of the Washington Nationals, Sports Radio 106.7 The Fan.

First of all, the harsh tone seems odd for a radio ad, especially for two teams in different leagues and who have had a fairly friendly relationship since the Nats sauntered down form Canada in 2005. Were they feeling left out of all of the Orioles-Red Sox press?

Secondly, we agree about Natty Boh. It’s not a local beer. But don’t act like that is all we drink here in Baltimore. Just like D.C., we have an awesome and ever-growing craft beer scene with a ton of (actually) local beer options in Camden Yards. Also, that crab stat is just totally bogus. If you can read, it’s extremely easy to find domestic crab options in season. We at the magazine happen to do it every July.

Then things take a really ugly turn when they bring up our alleged “massive inferiority complex” (an ironic mid-rant jab), crime rate, and job market. Talk about low blows.

But then it all comes to a head in the ad’s concluding point when they just flat out state an alternative fact—looks like the White House is rubbing off. Better baseball team? The Orioles have a 2017 record of 22-12 (a 66.7 winning percentage) while the Nats have a record 22-11 (64.7). What’s more, the O’s have won the season series going back six years now and have a 19-8 record during that span—thanks in part to the two out of three that Baltimore took from D.C. in this week’s abbreviated series.

So, yeah, you may have Wieters, but your insult game is weak.

Plus, Metallica likes us!
Legendary metal band Metallica kicked off its World Wired tour at M&T Bank Stadium on Wednesday night and, from all accounts, it seemed like an awesome show. Before they headed out of town, though, they put together a nice tourism package for the city of Baltimore. We’ll take it!

Horses begin to arrive at Preakness.
Though Metallica’s video heavily focused on our sports teams and stadiums, they didn’t happen to mention another Baltimore bragging right. We host the middle jewel of horse racing’s Triple Crown, and preparations for the 142nd Preakness Stakes are well underway.

Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming arrived at Pimlico Race Course on Thursday morning and took an early 6 a.m. gallop. “It was kind of what we were looking for—a tranquil, quiet setting,” trainer Todd Pletcher told The Sun. “Also, I don’t have much else to do. I can’t sleep, so we’ve got to get going.” 

Pletcher has had a storied horse-racing career, but Preakness is the only Triple Crown leg he hasn’t yet won. He admits he’s going into the May 20 race more hopeful than ever. “Our confidence level was probably the highest it has ever been in any single horse we brought to it,” he said. “I think just by his physical makeup, he’s a horse that can continue to get better than he already is.”

Ray Lewis’ son transferring to Maryland.
Utah State wide receiver Rayshad Lewis, who happens to have a fairly famous Baltimore dad, announced on Monday that he is transferring to Maryland.

“I just felt at home and very comfortable with the coaching staff, the offense, and how I would fit in,” Lewis told the Orlando Sentinel. In his freshman year at Utah State, he earned 40 receptions and two touchdowns for 476 yards, and should only add to the already talented Terps football team. Due to NCAA rules, Lewis will sit out the 2017 season, play in 2018, and have three years of eligibility.

Though Lewis is a Florida native, there’s obviously a hometown familiarity with his dad, Ray, spending 17 seasons with the Baltimore Ravens and his brother, Keon Lattimore, playing for the Maryland in the mid-2000s.

Melvin Mora becomes a U.S. citizen.

On Wednesday, along with 59 other new Americans, longtime Orioles infielder Melvin Mora became a U.S. citizen. Originally from Venezuela, Mora played for the O’s for nine years and still holds the team’s single-season highest batting average (.340). But becoming a U.S. citizen with his wife, Gisel, in front of their six children (including five quintuplets!) was a lifelong dream. 

“This is the time to do it. It’s the right time,” Mora said, according to Press Box. “I was busy with the season. I should have done it a long time ago. My kids were always fighting with me to try and do it.”

Mora became emotional when three of his children led the room in the Pledge of Allegiance and credited his children with helping him study for the citizenship test.

“I was like, ‘What am I doing?’ I’ve been playing in front of all those fans, and now I’m shaking,” he said. “This is something different.”

Red Sox series ends, thankfully.

Orioles catcher Caleb Joseph summarized the week quite well, and on Wednesday night, with still one game left to be played in the O’s contentious series with the Red Sox. “I’m the most excited person to get the hell out of Boston,” Joseph told reporters.

Seriously.

What the heck was that?!

We wrote a good amount about the heated first two days of the four-game series, including the disgusting and racially motivated words Adam Jones said were tossed at him from the centerfield bleachers at Fenway Park, and the latest (fifth) intentionally thrown fastball by a Red Sox pitcher at our beloved Manny Machado.

That afternoon, the O’s and Red Sox essentially got called into the principal’s office. Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred held a special conference call with representatives from both sides, telling them to knock off the childish, unwritten-rules-of-baseball feud that’s stretched back almost two weeks when the Sox took offense to a high Machado slide into second base.

On Wednesday night, quick-triggered home plate umpire Sam Holbrook ejected O’s starting pitcher Kevin Gausman in the second inning when he hit a batter with a 76 mile-per-hour hanging curveball. It wasn’t the type of pitch you’d typically intentionally hit someone with if you wanted to get your money’s worth. The 98 mile-per-hour fastball Chris Sale buzzed by Machado the night before was. “It’s malarkey,” Joseph said. (We need to talk more with this guy!) Then Jones got ejected later in the game for arguing balls and strikes.

Last night’s series-ending game, an 8-3 win, was less dramatic, and more sweet and orderly for the O’s. Machado launched a 466-foot moonshot home run that landed on the street outside Fenway – his third cathartic HR in the four games – and boos rained down as he circled the bases, as they did before every one of his at-bats on the road trip. Manny, after his epic rant against the Red Sox organization, is a serious villain in Boston. With the way some fans there behaved this week, we don’t mind being on this (right) side. “This is my team. I play for Baltimore,” Manny said last night. “I bleed for this team. I’m going to die out there, I’m going to do whatever I’ve got to do to keep this team going.”

Ravens tight end Ben Watson seems like one heck of a guy. 
The 36-year-old veteran hasn’t played a regular season game with the Ravens yet (he tore an Achilles’ tendon last preseason), but he’s already doing things worth noting. How often can you write this sentence? Not only did he recently spend three days in Lebanon, helping Christian humanitarian charity World Vision assist refugees near the country’s border with Syria, but the father of five also this week released a new book, The New Dad’s Playbook: Gearing Up For the Biggest Game of Your Life. Waston, who signed with the Ravens last offseason and won a Super Bowl title with the Patriots, is obviously a Renaissance Man. Back in 2004, when he was rookie coming out of Georgia, he scored a 48 – the third-highest score ever – on the NFL’s Wonderlic test, used to evaluate the learning and problem-solving ability of prospects. Sounds like he and mathematician lineman John Urschel have their own section of the locker room.

So is former Ravens tight end Todd Heap. 
Former Ravens tight end Todd Heap and wife, Ashley, are going through every parent’s worst nightmare: the unthinkable death of a child. A few weeks ago, Heap tragically and accidentally hit and killed his 3-year-old daughter, Holly, while moving his truck in the driveway of the family home in Arizona. Absolutely heart-breaking. On Wednesday, on what would have been the fourth birthday of their daughter, the Heaps asked the world to wear pink and hand out #HugsFromHolly in her memory. Twenty-five of the NFL’s 32 teams shared support on social media.

Welcome a 330-pound London native and rugby player to town. 
Jermaine Eluemunor, the Ravens fifth-round draft pick, selected last weekend, doesn’t exactly carry the usual NFL rookie profile. Aside from being typically large, as required for offensive lineman (he weighed 300 pounds when he was 14 years old and is now 6-foot-4, 330 pounds), Eluemunor sounds like he’s from London (because he is), and has only played one full season of football as a starter. He has more experience playing rugby. In any case, he’s in town with the Ravens now, who hope he’ll blossom into a bonafide NFL lineman, and he’ll get to visit his home country this season when they play the Jacksonville Jaguars Sept. 26 at London’s Wembley Stadium.

And say goodbye to an old Ravens fan favorite.

His stay in Baltimore wasn’t very long, but Justin Forsett’s retirement this week is notable because of how beloved he became in just two seasons with the team. He originally signed a one-year deal with the Ravens in 2014, expecting to be a third-string running back, but became the starter after Ray Rice’s suspension and release, and injuries to Bernard Pierce. Forsett, not the biggest or fastest guy, which he noted in his retirement announcement, helped during a difficult time, and had the best season of nine-year career, racking up 1,266 yards. “Congrats to Justin Forsett on his outstanding football career,” John Harbaugh said in a statement. “A Pro Bowl player and a Pro Bowl person. We were honored to have this outstanding and blessed man as a Raven. His success will continue, no doubt.”

Forsett wrote more about his retirement here:

Brigade’s home opener is Sunday afternoon. 
One more football note: The first-year Baltimore Brigade of the Arena Football League host their home opener at Royal Farms Arena at 1 p.m. Sunday. Here’s a glimpse of what you can expect to see, from the field, at least:

Wonder if Joe Flacco will support the home team this time?

Ravens make a wish come true.
The best moment of the draft, bar none? Nope, it wasn’t when San Francisco tricked Chicago into swapping picks (and getting a third and fourth round pick in the bargain). It was when McDonogh 8th grader T. J. Onwuanibe stepped up to the podium to announce the Ravens pick, punctuating his excitement with a fist pump. Onwuanibe was diagnosed with a rare form of brain cancer two years ago and this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity was provided by the Ravens and the NFL in conjunction with the Make-a-Wish Foundation. At the podium, T.J. was poised and adorable. (He also did the nearly impossible, getting the Philly crowd to stop booing NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.) Better still? T.J.’s cancer is officially in remission! Kudos to all involved. We’ve never been prouder to be part of the Ravens Flock.

Ozzie gets his man.
In something of a surprise, Ravens used their 16th pick in the draft to take Alabama cornerback Marlon Humphrey. This move is particularly unexpected, since the Ravens signed free agent corner Brandon Carr in the off season. But considering the fact that the Ravens’ secondary has been a major concern since Ed Reed left the team, we have no objections. Also, Humphrey is stupid fast (he’s a former track star), has a great family lineage (his dad was Alabama All-American Bobby Humphrey), and he sports a fun, if mysterious Twitter handle, “Fruit PUNCH.” We can smell the sugary fan giveaways already.

ESPN lays off a bunch of employees.
Proof that even the World Wide Leader in Sports is not immune to the new ways people consume sports entertainment and news, ESPN laid off 100 staffers on Wednesday, including many popular on-air talents. Among them was QB Trent Dilfer, who parlayed his solid, if modest game-management skills into a Super Bowl victory for the Ravens in 2001. As an ESPN analyst, he was fiery and opinionated but might sadly be best remembered for the classic: “You cannot lose games in the NFL and still win.” Yes, he really said that.

“Laid off by ESPN today,” Dilfer tweeted, echoing the sentiments of many who were let go. “Although sad cause I loved my job, mostly filed w/ gratitude and appreciation for the 9 years.”

Also let go was college basketball analyst Len Elmore, a Maryland great.

Juan Dixon in as new Coppin Coach
Juan Dixon, beloved Terps star and nephew of former Mayor Sheila Dixon, has just landed the head coaching position at Coppin State. Dixon’s career has had some ups and downs since he led the Terps to their only NCAA Championship in 2002—including a brief stint in the NBA and an embarrassing suspension for steroid use from the International Basketball League in 2010. But this hiring manages to be a great opportunity for both Coppin and Dixon, who is still a huge, high profile draw in Baltimore and will surely help with recruiting. Dixon’s ex-wife, Real Housewives of Potomac star Robyn Dixon, with whom he is still very close, expressed her support for Juan on social media. “I really can’t express how proud I am of Juan for believing in himself and staying confident and faithful that one day his dream of leading a Division one men’s basketball team would come true,” she wrote. No word on whether or not Coppin State players will be making a Real Housewive‘s cameo. 

Orioles on a roll.
At 14-6, the Orioles are on top of the AL East and one of the most exciting teams in all of the majors, with a penchant for come from behind wins. (Like this. And this. And this.) Like all good teams, they take advantage of other teams’ mistakes, like this doozy from Wednesday’s game against the Rays.

Baltimore Blast wins ninth national championship.
In true Blast fashion, you couldn’t count the team out even when it was looking bleak. Before more than 8,000 fans at El Centro de Usos Multiples in Hermosillo, Mexico, that Blast was losing 6-3 in the third quarter. But the team rallied back to earn a 9-8 overtime win with a lone goal in the 15-minute mini game from forward Vini Dantas. The victory represents the Blast’s second championship in a row and ninth overall—making them the most winning professional sports franchise in Baltimore. 

“What we did tonight and the entire season is something that me—being in five finals and a professional since I was 16—has never experienced before,” goalie William Vanzela, who had a crucial save with just over a minute left, told The Sun. “We are an unbelievable team that never ever gave up, and nobody deserved it more than us. It’s a magical night that will be forever on our minds.”

As Blast general manager Kevin Healey discussed with us a few weeks back, soccer might not be the most popular sport, but the physicality of the game and the fan engagement make it an incredibly exciting live game. And nowhere was that more evident that the nail-biting final championship game. 

The team’s owner Ed Hale, Sr. also noted that there might be one other secret ingredient to the Blast’s success: “A Baltimore workmanlike attitude.”

Ravens publish unbelievable piece about Konrad Reuland and Rod Carew.
In one of those cases of truth being stranger than fiction, Baltimore Ravens’ Garrett Downing wrote an incredible piece about the late Konrad Reuland and Ron Carew. Reuland was a tight end for the Ravens and, at just 29 years old, lost his life to a brain aneurysm. In the meantime, at a hospital just five miles away, baseball Hall of Famer Rod Carew was suffering complications from a heart attack and his condition so severe that doctors immediately rushed his name to the top of the transplant list. Less than a week later, Reuland’s heart was given to Carew. 

The story is heart-wrenching, seemingly impossible, and inspiring. Give it a read to find out how the two families discovered the connection and how this isn’t the only history Reuland and Carew have shared over the years.

Orioles played home run derby at Fenway.
Wednesday night’s Orioles-Red Sox game got off to a hell of a start. In the first three innings alone, the Orioles hit five home runs—two from DH Trey Mancini—catapulting them to a 12-5 victory over the Red Sox at Fenway Park. The other homers came from Chris Davis, Adam Jones, and Jonathan Schoop. But it was Orioles draft pick Mancini that really shined, becoming .

“It felt incredible, and it’s something I’ll remember by whole life,” he said after the game. “It was a special night, for sure, and to be able to do it in a place like this is something I couldn’t have imagined.”

Showalter and Duquette making off-field moves.
The O’s have won six of their eight games and, while Zach Britton was earning his 53rd consecutive save last night, the team was making plenty of moves off the field. Right-handed pitcher Stefan Crichton was added to the roster, Alec Asher was called up from Norfolk to pitch on April 15, and the team acquired another new reliever—Damien Magnifico from Milwaukee. 

“Damien Magnifico has an excellent sinker, a strikeout pitch in his slider, and a knack for keeping the ball down and in the ballpark. We look forward to his contributing to the Orioles,” executive vice president of baseball operations Dan Duquette told Press Box.

Teams do a lot of cross-promotion this week.
When the Blast won their championship, there were tons of congratulations being shared on social media, but one of our favorites came from the Ravens. 

And then last night the Orioles got in on the lateral support too, donning Washington Capitals t-shirts in hope that each team got a victory over Toronto (which they both did, by the way). Apparently some fans were a little peeved that a Baltimore team was supporting a D.C. team, which is honestly pretty silly. Save those bitter tweets for teams that really deserve them, like the Yankees, Steelers, or Patriots. 

But the Orioles—including Jones, Mancini, Caleb Joseph, and manager Buck Showalter—had some fun rooting for the NHL team.

Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti says team will continue to pass on players with domestic violence history. 
Watching from afar, it was unclear who asked the question during the Ravens’ annual State of the Team press conference on Tuesday in Owings Mills, but kudos. It came not in these exact words, but team owner Steve Bisciotti answered as if it did. More than two years after video surfaced that turned Ray Rice from a loveable small-sized hero to a toxic, unemployable running back, are the Ravens still staying 100 yards away from drafting or signing players with questionable pasts, or nebulous “character issues”?

“Character is a pretty big pot,” Bisciotti said, “but some people we’re going to take off our board. That’s the way it goes. Domestic abuse? Not taking them. Kansas City is in the playoffs, partly because of a guy they took a chance on. Will we take chances like that again? I don’t think so.”

In the razor-thin, competitive, and big money NFL environment, the approach can make a difference. The Ravens had an 8-8 record with nine games decided by six or fewer points and . . . we all know what happened in the Steelers game on Christmas. As the Ravens self-made billionaire owner noted, Chiefs rookie wide receiver Tyreek Hill, who in 2015 pleaded guilty to beating his pregnant girlfriend while in college at Oklahoma State, has been a key player as Kansas City grabbed the second seed in the AFC postseason. In the name of winning, teams take calculated, if not morally questionable, risks. “It does [come up] all the time,” Bisciotti said, like with talented Oklahoma running back Joe Mixon in December (who, like Rice, was caught on tape).

The Ravens aren’t going there. Even with “the pitchforks,” out from fans, after a second straight playoff-less year, as the owner acknowledged during the 30-question, 70-minute media session. Bisciotti, general manager Ozzie Newsome, and coach John Harbaugh primarily fielded questions about how the team can improve.

“We need to get more out of Joe [Flacco],” Bisciotti said in one of the answers, which were typically measured and reasonable, and also included mention of a potential ticket price increase for next season.

West Baltimore boxer Gervonta Davis gets first world championship shot Saturday. 
As we wrote in the December issue, 23-year-old West Baltimore-native and up-and-coming boxer Gervonta “Tank” Davis was waiting for his first world championship title shot. He will get it on Saturday night at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, against Puerto Rico’s Jose Pedraza, the IBF super featherweight (130-pound) champion.

Davis, a relatively small 5-foot-6 lefty, is pound-for-pound strong with amazingly quick hands and a remarkable backstory. He trains out of Upton Boxing Gym on Pennsylvania Ave., under the mentorship of coach Calvin Ford—the inspiration for The Wire character, Cutty—and has endured all kinds of rough situations, with drug-addicted parents for starters. Ford’s been a father figure, Upton a refuge.

“I dedicate this fight to my team,” Davis said Thursday at a press conference in New York. “I’m no Mike Tyson, Floyd Mayweather, or Sugar Ray Leonard. I’m Gervonta Davis, and on January 14th, I will become a world champion.”

Saturday night’s fight will air live at 9:30 p.m. on Showtime. Watch early. Davis usually makes quick work of opponents. He’s 16-0 with 15 knockouts, 13 coming within the first four rounds, and is promising something similar this time around against the more experienced, taller Pedraza. If Davis wins, he will be Baltimore’s fourth world champion boxer; the others are Joe Gans, who owned the world lightweight title during the time of segregation more than 100 years ago, Vincent Pettway (1994) and Hasim Rahman (2001).

Orioles have a minicamp in Florida.

It’s not much, but just the sight of the Orioles black-and-orange uniforms under sunny skies makes winter feel a tad warmer. (And it really was yesterday!)

The start of spring training is the traditional sign that baseball season is near. Minicamp? Not so much. Not many major league teams even have them, but the Orioles have the last few years under Buck Showalter, who finds the time valuable. He and a small gang of players had a three-day camp in Sarasota, Florida, this week, mainly to evaluate those coming off injuries, and to look at a few of the organization’s minor league pitchers who are a bit more off the radar, but may be factors come the six-month, 162-game slog that is a major league baseball season.

Minicamp did not appear too stressful for veteran players like Chris Tillman, the O’s top hurler. Guys like him aren’t the focus. Select prospects are. Here Tillman, alongside Showalter and the team’s new pitching coach, Roger McDowell, watches young pitchers Garrett Cleavinger and Brian Gonzalez throw.

One pitcher not there? Yovanni Gallardo, who the Orioles traded to Seattle last Friday in exchange for corner outfielder Seth Smith. Gallardo went 6-8 last year with a 5.32 ERA in 23 starts, and spent a good amount of time on the disabled list with shoulder issues. Smith is a veteran, 34-year-old left-hand hitting outfielder, something the O’s needed (with Mark Trumbo gone, for now). Last season, while his batting average wasn’t spectacular (.249), Smith played in 137 games, had an on-base percentage of .342, hit 16 home runs, and a career-high 63 RBIs. Fun fact: Smith, a Mississippi native and multi-sport athlete, was Eli Manning’s backup quarterback at Ole Miss in the early 2000s.

Just 32 days until spring training and less than two months until Opening Day at Camden Yards. Not that we’re counting.

Terps win, Terps win!
With a 75-72 win over Indiana on national TV on Tuesday night, the Maryland men’s basketball team improved to 15-2 and 3-1 in the Big Ten, and should enter national top-25 polls early next week. The hero of their latest triumph? That would be 6-foot-7, 190-pound ginger-headed freshman guard Kevin Huerter. Call him Big Red. The former Mr. Basketball from New York, who had a late growth spurt in high school, sank a go-ahead three-pointer with just under two minutes left then grabbed a rebound and fed fellow freshman Anthony Cowan with a long pass to give Maryland a three-point lead with 1:12 to go. Fight on, turtles!

Terps Kick Off Big 10 Play in Style
The Terps were favored to win Tuesday’s game against Big 10 rivals Illinois, but not by a lot. First of all, the Fighting Illini were on a six-game winning streak of their own and the Terps, while going an impressive 12-1, had demonstrated an annoying tendency to fall behind and come charging back at the last minute for a narrow victory. Throw in the fact that the team’s big men, Michal Cekovsky and Damonte Dodd, were both on the bench nursing injuries, it seemed a recipe for a close game. Well, the team had other ideas, blowing Illinois off the court for a surprisingly easy 84 to 59 romp. Melo Trimble continued his stellar play, but we were particularly impressed by guard Jaylen Brantley, who, at 5’11” (at most), is usually the shortest guy on the court. In the beginning of the season, some experts were suggesting that Brantley would struggle for playing time, but he has inserted himself into the lineup with his aggressive and confident play. The Terps freshman class is a thing of beauty, with a different player stepping up each game. This time, it was a chance for guard Anthony Cowan to shine. The kid is fast as hell, has great court vision, and can finish at the rim. We think we’re in love.

Speaking of love…
A guy proposed to his girlfriend on the Terps Kiss Cam and it was freaking adorable.

SHE SAID YES! ????????????

Congrats to Terp fans Jeff Wehberg and Carly Smith who got engaged during yesterday’s kiss cam! https://t.co/FwJdI3fXYl
— Maryland Basketball (@TerrapinHoops) December 28, 2016

And speaking of adorable…
Boomer Phelps has his own Instagram account and it does not disappoint.

London calling.
It’s only a seven-hour direct flight.

The NFL formally announced this week that the Ravens will be one of eight NFL teams to play a game in London next year. Overseas games are big business for the league, which has staged 17 games in the United Kingdom since 2007, most in front at least 83,000 fans at Wembley Stadium, where soccer is typically played.

Joe Flacco and friends will be there either Sept. 24 or Oct. 1, 2017 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Whatever happens, hopefully no one makes like Paul Rudd in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, and leaves a bad impression across the pond.

As for this year, after losing to the Patriots on Monday night and releasing veteran returner Devin Hester, the Ravens can still make the playoffs. They just need to win their last three regular-season games (vs. Philadelphia on Sunday, at Pittsburgh on Christmas Day and at Cincinnati on New Year’s Day), or even lose one and get some help from other teams losing. That would avoid a dubious first: missing the playoffs in two straight years for the first time in coach John Harbaugh’s nine seasons.

Get your tea and crumpets ready, #RavensFlock.

Next season, we will play a road game vs. Jacksonville at London’s Wembley Stadium. pic.twitter.com/SqYDeaWk7L
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) December 13, 2016

Pugh, Trump meet at Army-Navy game.
Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh met face-to-(hair?) with President-elect Donald Trump in the bowels of M&T Bank Stadium last Saturday at the 117th Army-Navy football game.

Pugh shared details of the brief exchange with reporters on Wednesday at City Hall. She greeted Trump as he got out of his car and she hand-delivered a letter that details what she hopes are common interests: improving parts of the city’s infrastructure.

Pugh offered Baltimore as “the perfect place to target” federal money for the type of upgrades Trump has touted he will make happen during his presidency. The meat of the letter focused on transportation around a redeveloped Port Covington and a proposed expansion of the Howard Street rail tunnel, upgrading aging water and sewer systems—please, not another sinkhole!—and strengthening citywide internet capabilities.

In typical lightning-rod fashion, when he arrived inside the home of the Ravens during the first quarter, Trump drew some cheers while protesters outside voiced their opinions and officials boosted security for the visit. On air with CBS television during the game, which Army won 21-17 to snap Navy’s 14-game win streak in the series, Trump said of the play on the field: “I don’t know if it’s necessarily the best football—but it’s very good—but, boy, do they have spirit.”

So there’s that. But at least sports brought a Democrat and a Republican together for a few minutes, and gave the city an audience.

With @realDonaldTrump in Baltimore I delivered a letter noting importance of our infrastructure needs & need for investment of federal funds pic.twitter.com/61OsajKvtQ
— Catherine Pugh (@MayorPugh50) December 10, 2016

O’s, kids have fun at holiday party.
The Oriole Bird slipped into his Santa suit and hat—where does he get these things?—and joined Orioles players Chris Davis, Darren O’Day, Caleb Joseph and Tyler Wilson, and 80 outpatients from the University of Maryland Children’s Hospital, at the team’s 38th annual charity holiday party on Tuesday.

The kids and adults (well, baseball players are really kids, too) hit the arcade games and shared lunch at Dave & Buster’s at Arundel Mills Mall. Chicken nuggets, pizza and fries were on the menu. Davis even poured a few drinks at the bar: punch and lemonade. And he later joked about how fun it was to get “dominated in games by kids that are half your age.”

Davis and his wife, Jill, a former nurse who worked in a children’s hospital in Texas, have partnered this year with UMCH and they will serve as an ambassadors for the hospital. The Davis’ plan to raise awareness of the hospital’s programs (last year it cared for 40,000 children) and childhood illnesses, in addition to donations that Baltimore’s $161 million dollar man and spouse have already made to the hospital’s NICU unit.

A holiday cheers to that. Now, Santa Bird, we love you and your outfit, but how about that starting pitcher or two we’ve been waiting on the last few years?