On the occasion of my 30th birthday, I felt compelled to feature Frank Robinson, who was dismissed by his previous employers in Cincinnati as "not a young thirty" when they dealt him to the Orioles in December 1965. Indeed, all that he had left in the tank was a Triple Crown, a second MVP award, a half-dozen more All-Star selections, 262 home runs, 803 RBI, and a 160 OPS+. I don't know if my thirties will bring the same successes that Robby experienced, but I can't complain about the way the next decade of my life has started. While I was celebrating with my family over burgers and ice cream cake this afternoon, the O's eked out their 11th straight extra inning win, outlasting David Price and the Rays 1-0 on Taylor Teagarden's 10th-inning RBI double. For my birthday, the Birds have given me meaningful August baseball for the first time in my adulthood. They went 4-2 on a road swing through New York and Tampa, and are just a game out of both wild card slots. With a homestand against last-place Kansas City and Seattle clubs, as well as a still-scuffling Boston team, this would be a good week to get hot. And because I'm still keeping score, the Orioles are now 32-22 all-time on August 5, including a 19-10 mark in my lifetime.
