As the Orioles have “soared over the past year, they’ve gained national notoriety"Scott Taetsch/Getty Images
The Orioles "aren't running from" baseball’s national spotlight, as they know there is "no escaping" it, according to Jacob Meyer of the BALTIMORE SUN. The Orioles hosted nationally televised games this past weekend against the Rangers, including ESPN’s “Sunday Night Baseball” -- the sport’s weekly primetime slot “normally reserved for big market teams with large payrolls.” But “The Worldwide Leader in Sports” had “no choice but to take a break from airing” the Yankees and Dodgers and “show what's going on in Baltimore.” The two national broadcasts were among approximately 10 the Orioles have on their 2024 schedule, with seven more the rest of the season. As the Orioles have “soared over the past year, they’ve gained national notoriety.” Stars like SS Gunnar Henderson and C Adley Rutschman are "among the game’s biggest stars." Six players, including Henderson and Rutschman, are finalists to start the All-Star Game. There is also “expected to be a heated race with the Yankees for the AL East title.” Orioles DH Ryan O’Hearn said, “We’ve gotten here with how we’ve played as a team last year and so far this year to earn the attention and the spotlight. Of course, with that comes pressure and maybe just a heightened tension around some games. I think if you denied that you’d be lying. It’s part of being a human.” Henderson got his “latest taste of what it means to be one of baseball’s biggest stars” Sunday. He was mic’d up during the third inning of ESPN’s broadcast, revealing that he "would participate in MLB’s Home Run Derby" on July 15 (
BALTIMORE SUN, 7/1).
