Baltimore Orioles: The lead-up to FanFest

I’ve always felt that the Baltimore Orioles do their FanFest event the right way in that it’s held in the dead of winter. There was a season a few years ago when there was a scheduling conflict at the Baltimore Convention Center and they ended up doing it on a Saturday in April  at Camden Yards. That year it was kind of a whirlwind because the team had to be down in DC later that evening for their final Grapefruit League game (at the Nationals), and of course the following Monday was Opening Day. However I feel that a Saturday in the dead of winter is a good time to start building excitement for the coming season.

Courtesy of Joy R. Absalon-USA TODAY Sports

Whether or not the roster is complete or not at this point is another story. In 2010 the O’s announced literally in the middle of the FanFest festivities that they had inked Miguel Tejada to a deal for that year to be the club’s third baseman. I suppose you can’t argue that this franchise doesn’t have a flair for the dramatic when it chooses to do so! Whether or not something like that happens this year is beside the point and impossible to predict.

As I wrote last week, several players and coaches will be at various events around the state of Maryland this week participating in a caravan of sorts leading up to FanFest. I’ll touch more on this towards the end of the week, but the gates open at 11 AM for the event on Saturday (10 AM for season ticket holders). Also be sure to check out the free tours at Oriole Park at Camden Yards that are offered during the event. Admission to Orioles’ FanFest is $10.