Eddie Murray, 1988 Topps Big #215

28 years ago today, I was 14 and a half months old. Oh, and the Orioles won the third World Series in team history with a 5-0 shutout over the Phillies. Scott McGregor went the distance, blanking the host Phils  on five hits and two walks while striking out six. It was a sweet bit of redemption for the veteran lefty, who snapped a personal three-game postseason losing streak that dated back to the Game 7 heartbreaker in the 1979 Series. Likewise, the O's only got five hits, but theirs all came early against opposing starter Charles Hudson, who didn't make it through the fifth inning. They made those hits count, as Eddie Murray hit a pair of home runs and Series MVP Rick Dempsey homered and doubled. Those two players were the only ones in the Baltimore lineup to hit safely, with Murray's single standing as the only Oriole hit that did not go for extra bases.

Obviously I have no conscious memory of the last time my hometown team stood on top of the baseball world. I've nearly stopped believing that it's possible for them to get back there. Even if the O's were capable of reversing their fortunes and returning to the postseason, I've seen enough strange things happen in the playoffs as a neutral observer to know that October is a total crapshoot. So I'm left with blind hope and wishing...but aren't we all?