Congrats To Former Baltimore Orioles Harold Baines and Lee Smith

We didn’t have to wait long into the winter meetings to get Orioles news: former Baltimore Orioles Harold Baines and Lee Smith have been elected to the Hall of Fame by the Today’s Game Era committee

It baffles my mind that it took this long for Lee Smith to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. In his 18 seasons with eight teams, Lee had a total of 478 saves. He’s considered one of the best closers of all time, yet his eligibility on the ballot ran out years ago. In 1994, his only season in a Baltimore Orioles uniform, Smith saved 33 games.

It’s a good thing for the Today’s Game Era committee or some of the great players and managers of the late 1980’s and 90’s would never be in the Hall of Fame.

What can we say about Harold Baines? He spent seven seasons in Baltimore totaling 666 games. He was primarily a designated hitter in his time as an Oriole due to recurring knee issues, but that didn’t stop him. He was a pure hitter and he made the most of it.

One specific memory of Harold Baines as an Oriole occurred late one night when I was either in Middle School or High School. I was listening to the game on the radio before bed and Baines hit a walk-off grand slam to win the game. Talk about a memory that will last a lifetime.

Harold Baines was such a clutch hitter and he paved the way for players like Edgar Martinez and David Ortiz. It looks like both those players will eventually get into Cooperstown as well.

The Baltimore Orioles might not be that active during these Winter Meetings, but at least some good news happened with the organization and a few of the greatest players to ever put on a Baltimore Orioles uniform.