BEL AIR, Md. — One week. That's all. Just a week, and we'll have Orioles baseball back where it belongs.
On Thursday night in Bel Air, fans young and old met the Oriole Bird and Mr. Splash ahead of the new season.
Brody Rowan, a fourth grader, and his mom, Lacy, got to attend after a baseball practice was changed to a different day - call it a happy coincidence.
"It was cool," said Brody, "we got a picture with them, and they let us hold the banner."
"It's a lot of fun for families and for kids," Lacy added, "It's a great way to pump everybody up, get us ready for the start of baseball season. We love it. We love the O's."
The meet-and-greet took place at Bel Air Sports Cards, started by Mel Lundgren in 2017, but recently operating at a new location.
Employees don't bartend; they 'card-tend,' serving them to eager O's fans from the store's 'card bar.'
"Kind of like your corner bar from the old days, where everyone would come and hang out," Lundgren said, "trying to build a sense of community, and as you can see, tonight the community showed out for our event."
"Hey bird, we're on TV, we're famous!" said Mr. Splash as he saw WMAR's camera.
Splash, also known as the O's 'Chief Hydration Officer,' wears swim gear and dons 86 on his jersey - the left-center field Camden Yards section in which he sprays fans.
Mr. Splash and the Oriole Bird stood with fans of all ages, waving the '23 AL East Division Champions banner.
The Orioles open their season on March 28 at 3:05 pm at Camden Yards against the Los Angeles Angels.
