Insert Knee-Jerk Reactions Here

I won’t make excuses for the Orioles. I was hoping for more in the series against the Red Sox. There is plenty of time to improve, but I was disappointed with season debuts from Tillman, Meeks, Webb, and anyone in the lineup not named Cruz. I never like losing – particularly against the Red Sox. But it’s only one series. I’ll wait for some games to pass to actually start identifying trends.

Here’s the thing: I don’t want to hear about how great Nelson Cruz is. Or how terrible Ryan Flaherty is. Or how worried about our rotation you are. Hit me up in May, I’ll be ready to hear all of your criticism and praise at that point.

Here are some knee-jerk reactions I am ready for:

 

1. There is no better place to watch a baseball game than Oriole Park at Camden Yards.

Photo Credit: Rob Carr/Getty Images

Sometimes I forget how spoiled we are because we get to see Camden Yards on a nightly basis, but it’s still the jewel of Major League Baseball. We’ve seen it in the rain (and recently, the snow), and overrun by Yankees fans, but in its Opening Day splendor, our park is truly breathtaking. Do yourself a favor: the next time you go to a game, get in a little early. Walk around, take in the sights and the sounds. Get to your seats before the crowd hits full force, and just look around. I promise you won’t be disappointed.

 

2. He likes our guys, but we love Buck Showalter.

Photo Credit: Rob Carr/Getty Images

Who doesn’t love Buck Showalter? We haven’t quite seen the control freak who wore out his welcome in three other organizations. I don’t know if it’s a kinder, gentler Buck, but he seems to have found a formula that works here in Baltimore. Buck has worked hard to bring the Orioles back into contention (thanks, by the way), as well as re-establish the team’s relationship with the fans. From his first days on the job, being a part of the fabric of Orioles Baseball has been important to him. When he speaks about the Oriole Way, or about fans’ commitment to the team, you don’t get the impression he’s just paying lip service. Buck may like his guys, but he’s quickly become our guy.

When asked about having tipped his cap to the crowd when he was announced on Opening Day, Buck joked about showing off what hair he had left. Wit and deflection aside, it was a nice moment.

 

3. I really dislike David Ortiz.

Photo Credit: Gail Burton/AP Photo

Yes, he is a really good hitter. And I’ll say that without pointing to the fact that his career has “somehow” shifted into a higher gear between the ages of 35-38 (no I won’t). He can impact a game every time he steps to the plate, even when a pitcher fails to make a mistake. He’s really good, and he has feasted on the Orioles in his career.

He’s also a first-class jerk. I hate him because I’m an Orioles fan, but I can’t imagine raising children in Boston and having my child look up to him – to watch him brood, and complain, and destroy phones. Seriously, do you know any other player in major league baseball who is more publicly disrespectful to the umpires? Have you ever seen a grown man pout as much as Ortiz does? He’s easy to hate because he believes in his own hype – he feels like he’s entitled to have it come easy. Maybe we should enact an Ortiz Tee rule?

And one last thing. I get when his fans do it, but no one in Baltimore (especially involved in broadcasting) should call him “Big Papi.” I refuse to say those words because his name is David Ortiz, and also because I am not a young lady making films to support myself through law school.

 

4. I may never warm up to Delmon Young.

Photo Credit: Eduardo Encina / Baltimore Sun

 Delmon Young may test my ability to root for the name on the front of the jersey and ignore the name on the back. Where to start? Let’s get the anti-Semitic. aggravated assault part out of the way first, shall we? Everything I said about how unlikable Ortiz is… pales in comparison here. And he’s on my team. As a starter! Nolan Reimold’s injury has stuck me with a guy who has been repeatedly suspended because of altercations with umpires, and can play the field only slightly better than my dead grandmother.

For me, Young is simply starting from too deep a hole. Many fans were somewhat uncomfortable rooting for Nelson Cruz, with his 2013 suspension for involvement in the Biogenesis case. Delmon Young bothers me even more, and he hasn’t even been caught cheating. Monday’s opener was the first instance in which he did something useful to the team, and I had to begrudgingly accept the fact that he exists. Get well, Nolan.

 

5. Orioles fans, for better or worse, are always going to be like this.

Photo Credit: Joy R. Absalon / US PRESSWIRE

There is a lot of overreaction going on, after only three games. I get it, we’d love our Birds to go 162-0, with 9 All Star starters, on the way to a World Series championship. Anything that deviates from that fantasy is unwelcome, and challenges what we are at our core: fanatics for the game of baseball, and more specifically, the Orioles.

It’s never going to get better. No matter how many winning seasons the O’s put together, fans are going to overreact. It may not be healthy, and it’s certainly not an intelligent way of going about it, but it proves they care. Yes, I think it’s dumb to question whether Jonathan Schoop is ready for the majors after seven 2014 at bats. But when others do, it’s because they care about those at bats. And about Schoop, and about a team that I love.

Maybe I’ll climb off my high horse just this once and give Baltimore fans a pass. Go ahead, insert your knee-jerk reactions here. It’s baseball season – have at it.