Orioles pledge half a million dollars to hurricane Milton relief

Fall is a wonderful time of year for baseball fans. The playoffs are the bittersweet beginning to what is hopefully a very exciting end to the baseball season. As teams compete for the World Series, discussions also heat up about awards and off-season moves to come. But sometimes things bigger than the game need us to put aside our own rivalries and come together to help others in need.

For most of the country, hurricane season is something that is heard about on the news every fall, but for the southeastern region of the U.S., it’s a very real threat. Hurricane Milton reached landfall as a category three hurricane. It battered parts of Florida that were still dealing with the impact of hurricane Helene that had hit less than two weeks prior. Millions of people have had their homes damaged, been left without power or lost virtually all of their possessions. Others, tragically lost their lives. 

It’s been over a week since hurricane Milton made landfall and the cleanup and repair efforts have a long road ahead of them. David Rubenstein and the Baltimore Orioles are doing their part to help and have pledged to make a $250,000 donation that could grow $850,000 in total donations.

On top of the quarter of a million the Orioles are already donating, they will match another quarter of a million donated through the Baltimore Orioles hurricane relief effort. If those numbers are met, The Patterson Foundation will donate an additional $100,000 to the relief effort. 

Orioles' leadership group stepping up with Hurricane Milton relief efforts

Former Oriole Cole Irvin has been boots on the ground for the hurricane Helene relief and now Rubenstein, who has a long history of charity, is stepping up in his own way. Donations can be made here. https://www.cfsarasota.org/Baltimore-Orioles-Hurricane-Milton-Relief

On a baseball note, thankfully most of the spring training sites were spared significant damage from the hurricane. The Rays' stadium in St. Petersburg was unfortunately decimated, with the entire roof being ripped off. Tampa's schedule will be affected in 2025 as they figure out where to play. Outside of Tropicana Field though, most stadiums made it through relatively unscathed.

Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota, the Orioles' spring training site, was spared any damage. It's a small consolation for the Orioles and many others in the area as they work to rebuild the surrounding regions most affected by the storm.