Jorge Julio, 2006 Topps Orioles Team Set #BAL12

I've spent the last two days laid low with my second severe cold of the past month, which is about as welcome as Jorge Julio coming out of the bullpen to protect a one-run lead against the Yankees. I generally like to be able to breathe from both nostrils at the same time, thanks. If you need me, I'll be alternating between sleeping and mainlining vitamin C.

Jorge Julio, 2003 Upper Deck First Pitch #81

Some guy named Derek Jeter is apparently very close to collecting his 3,000th career hit, which means that I've had to read and hear more about him lately than I could possibly stomach. But I did come across a really strange and delightful statistic. In 16 career plate appearances vs. Jorge Julio, Jeter is 0-for-14 with a pair of walks. That's the most at-bats he has against any pitcher without managing a hit. I'll never understand baseball.

Jorge Julio, 2005 Topps Total Silver #503

I need some input from the blog world, specifically those of you who are team collectors. How do you do it? How do you organize your team cards in binders? It would make my blogging life much easier if I had my Orioles collection arrayed in those nifty clear pockets to page through, rather than stacked in boxes. But as robust as my collection is, there are so many holes. You're talking about parallels (like the superfluous Jorge Julio card above...you're not fooling me, Topps. That border is g-r-a-y, GRAY), inserts, short prints...do you just leave blank spaces for those missing cards - any and all missing cards? Or do you just fill every pocket with a card, letting the chips fall where they will? Do you focus on base cards, and store your inserts and parallels and all of that other noise separately? I'm probably not asking my questions coherently. Basically, just tell me how you organize and store your team collection. Spare no detail, tedious though it may seem. You're performing a great service for a silly man.

Jorge Julio, 2003 Topps 205 #297

As I sit here, the Orioles have just bruised my heart for the second time this season, the second of a likely 85 or 90. It's early yet, but the offense is out of sync and the bullpen is holding its own until it matters most. Brian Roberts is 0-for-2010, which concerns me. But here's one silver lining: last night's meltdown notwithstanding, Mike Gonzalez is no Jorge Julio. Courage, Birdland.

Jorge Julio, 2003 Topps #538

For want of a night out, I spent a few hours this evening in the company of my sister and my future brother-in-law at the movies. It was my sister's choice, a fairly uninspired horror movie called Quarantine. While the film wasn't really any good, it certainly had some scares, particularly for someone as skittish as me. I was tense throughout, and eventually took to averting my eyes as much as I could, much as I did when I saw The Exorcist in the theatre during its re-release in my freshman year of college. That movie scarred me for quite a while; I can remember being legitimately relieved to have my roommate close by when the lights went out at night. I can't stay away from a good scare, often dipping into my sister's extensive personal library for a Stephen King novel or reading ghost stories online during slow times at work.

Speaking of things that go "bump" in the night, there have been few things more frightening to Oriole fans than the sight of ex-closer Jorge Julio lumbering in from the bullpen in the ninth inning of a tight game. Just seeing his picture, with that semi-blank look on his face, I'm certain that he's about to hang a slider to a Tampa Bay hitter. That's the kind of scare that I can do without.