Orioles Card "O" the Day

An intersection of two of my passions: baseball cards and the Baltimore Orioles. Updated daily?
Showing posts with label 1991 leaf gold rookies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 1991 leaf gold rookies. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Arthur Rhodes, 1991 Leaf Gold Rookies #BC6

That's right, 1991. Oh, to be athletic and left-handed. Arthur Rhodes was a member of the 1993 Orioles team on which I cut my baseball-fan teeth, and has outlasted all of his teammates from that squad, save for 46-year-old Jamie Moyer, who also happens to be...a southpaw pitcher. Rhodes is still plugging as a 39-year-old reliever with the Reds, and has pitched six scoreless innings so far in 2009. One of his current teammates, outfielder Jay Bruce, was one year old when the O's drafted Arthur in 1988.

But my favorite tidbit about Rhodes' longevity is that he's the last remaining active player who played a home game in Memorial Stadium. He pitched three games on 33rd Street with little success (6.14 ERA), but he pitched there all the same. Whenever he retires, another piece of Baltimore's baseball history will be relegated to the dusty past. Thankfully, that day might not come for a long time, especially if he picked up any pointers from ageless lefty teammates like Moyer, Randy Johnson (still going at 45!), and Jesse Orosco (who retired at 46).