Jim Poole, 1994 Fleer Ultra #8

Jim Poole had a couple really strong seasons as a lefty arm in the Baltimore bullpen. In 1991, he posted an ERA of 2.00 and a WHIP of 0.778 in 24 appearances (36 innings). Two years later, he was second on the team with 55 appearances and put up a 2.15 ERA and 1.01 WHIP in 50.1 innings. The O's parted ways with Jim after an ugly 1994 campaign (6.64 ERA, 2.12 WHIP in 20.1 innings), and he traveled all over the league through the 2000 season, never performing as effectively as he had in Charm City. One of the things that struck me about Jim Poole was the near-maniacal grin that he seemed to have in the action shots on some of his card photos. I have to imagine that it was unnerving to be standing at bat, looking out to the mound, and seeing the pitcher leering back at you as he went into his windup.  It's hard enough facing down 90-plus mph heat.

Jim Poole, 1994 Fleer #16

The Orioles were a dispiriting 67-95 in 1991 (33-48 at home), so they didn't exactly leave Memorial Stadium on a high note. However, they were 1-0 that year when black cats trespassed onto the field mid-game.

I know this courtesy of Baseball Nation's Larry Granillo, who recently tracked the wins and losses of home teams in documented cases of cats on the field. In short, the data is inconclusive: nine wins, eight losses for the home team. But the O's were one of those winners. On Monday night, September 23, 1991, they found themselves in a seesaw battle with the BoSox in the early innings. Baltimore starter Jose Mesa spotted the visitors a 2-0 lead in the first inning, courtesy of base hits from the first four batters. The Birds battled back in the bottom of the second to take a 3-2 lead, perhaps with a little help from a feline friend. They'd already tied the game on a pair of walks and a pair of singles, and Mike Devereaux stepped to the plate to face Mike Gardiner with runners on the corners and two outs. That's when the black cat of undetermined origins leapt over the railing near the visitors' dugout. Moments later, Devo hit a grounder to shortstop Luis Rivera. Rivera flubbed it, allowing the go-ahead run to score. When Boston loaded the bases with nobody out in the fourth inning, O's manager Johnny Oates summoned lefty Jim Poole from the bullpen to replace Mesa. Slugger Tom Brunansky bounced into a double play, but the Red Sox scored the tying run. That was all they would get. Oates stretched Poole for five innings of one-hit relief, and Devereaux added an RBI single in the bottom of the fourth to provide the winning margin. Gregg Olson shut the door in the ninth for his 30th save of the season, inducing a double-play grounder from Mo Vaughn after plunking Mike Greenwell. Though the Birds were bottom feeders in 1991, the 4-3 victory gave them a season series win against the Sawx for the first time since 1983.

After last night's 13-2 shellacking at the hands of the Red Sox, I wonder if the O's could track down that mysterious black cat's offspring.

Jim Poole, 1995 Pacific #29

This Day in Orioles History: May 24, 1993

Orioles 8, Yankees 6 at Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY

In front of a sparse crowd in "The House that Ruth Built", the sixth-place Birds (18-25) overcame a rocky start by elder statesman Rick Sutcliffe to top the hated Yankees (24-20). Sut improved to 5-2 despite permitting all six runs in six innings of work. He was victimized by two home runs off the bat of flash-in-the-pan slugger Kevin Maas, which accounted for four of the half-dozen New York tallies. He was relieved by lefty Jim Poole, who shut the Bombers down with two perfect innings of work, fanning three batters in the process. Closer Gregg Olson earned the save despite walking the leadoff hitter in the ninth. It was his ninth save of the year, and his 140th as an Oriole, extending his team record.

Righty Jim Abbott and the host Yanks were nursing a 1-0 lead in the fifth inning when all hell broke loose. A Brady Anderson double and a Mark McLemore 2-RBI single gave the O's a 3-1 lead, and catcher Chris Hoiles delivered a three-run homer that looked like the dagger. However, Sutcliffe coughed up a run in the bottom of the frame and four more in the sixth to tie the game, 6-6. The Baltimore bats immediately bailed their pitcher out, though, with Cal Ripken's leadoff dinger in the seventh putting the club ahead for good. Harold Reynolds added insurance with a run-scoring single in the following inning.