2001 Donruss Class of 2001 is a set name that comes straight from the Department of Redundancy Department. Sean Douglass, for the uninitiated, was the Orioles' second-round draft pick in 1997, but due to compensation picks, he was actually the team's fourth pick. The O's chose Jayson Werth, Darnell McDonald, and Ntema Ndungidi ahead of the 6'6" righty from Lancaster, CA. Though he pitched in parts of five big league seasons, Douglass did not exactly cover himself in glory. In 54 games with the Orioles, Blue Jays, and Tigers, he was 7-13 with a 6.11 ERA and 1.61 WHIP.
But it's Saturday night and the Birds won today, so let's accentuate the positive. Sean earned his first major league win on September 22, 2001 against the Yankees, limiting that year's American League champs to one run on three hits and two walks in five innings while striking out seven. As you probably could have guessed, catcher Geronimo Gil was the offensive star in that game, going 3-for-5 with a double and five RBI in an 11-2 rout. In a rare start at designated hitter, Cal Ripken had the penultimate multi-hit game of his career, 2-for-3 with a pair of walks, an RBI, and two runs scored. In the eighth inning, future Indians and Dodgers third baseman Casey Blake pinch-ran for Cal in one of his six games as an Oriole, which few folks probably remember. I know I wouldn't recall it, if not for the recollective powers of Baseball Reference.
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It is a shame Ntema Ndungidi never became a major leaguer, for both his name and his heritage.
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