Javy Lopez, 2004 Bowman Heritage #56

The stands behind Javy Lopez are empty because this photo was taken during Spring Training in Fort Lauderdale. But tomorrow, due to the continuing unrest in Baltimore, the Orioles and White Sox will play the first game in MLB history to be closed to the public. It will be televised on MASN, and it will be a bizarre spectacle to see the O's playing in an empty Camden Yards. Even though the Birds have lost four home games (this weekend's series vs. the Rays is being moved to Tropicana Field) and a scheduled off day (an Orioles-White Sox makeup doubleheader has been scheduled for May 28), it's important to remember that there are people in our city who have lost much more, and that is at the center of this week's upheaval. Hopefully we can take steps to right the things that have gone wrong in Baltimore.

Jerry Hairston Jr., 2004 Bowman Heritage #4

Jerry Hairston thought it was odd that the photo shoot was scheduled for 7:00 AM, but he didn't want to make waves. It was only when he showed up to the completely empty stadium that he realized he'd been had.

Don Levinski, 2004 Bowman Heritage #313

This card design is obviously based on 1955 Bowman, the set from which I posted this Johnny Pesky card. Much like Pesky, pitcher Don Levinski (acquired from the Marlins in the Jeff Conine trade) never played a game with the Orioles. Perhaps the screen on his TV should display a "Technical Difficulties: Please Stand By" graphic.

Speaking of technical difficulties, this will be the first of two posts today as a mea culpa for missing yesterday's entry. After all, when you routinely wait until the last few hours of the day to start thinking about the day's post, it's just a matter of time until the Internet connection goes out before you have a chance to write something up. That's precisely what happened to me on Monday. Oops!