The 30th anniversary of Oriole Park at Camden Yards has arrived, and with it comes a slew of changes to the stadium — from food to outfield dimensions, if not the product on the field.
Baltimore arrives after being swept by the defending American League East champion Tampa Bay Rays to begin the season. The Orioles welcome the National League’s Milwaukee Brewers, a team that lost its opening series against the Chicago Cubs. With top prospects Adley Rutschman and Grayson Rodriguez beginning the season in the minors, the wait continues for the club’s rebuild to produce results at the major league level.
Those interesting additions will come down the line. In the meantime is a team dealing with a foggy present but a future that could inspire more hope.
Here’s what fans need to know ahead of Monday’s Opening Day.
Festivities
Gates at the ballpark will open at 1:05 p.m., two hours before first pitch. The festivities are scheduled to begin at 2:25 p.m., with a video tribute for the 30th anniversary of Camden Yards that features an original poem by Baltimore-based poet and author Kondwani Fidel.
The Morgan State University Choir — one of the groups that performed when the stadium opened in 1992 — will perform the Star-Spangled Banner from the sod farm located beneath the center field batter’s eye. As they sing, a flag from Fort McHenry will be lowered from the batter’s eye.
Members of the Baltimore City Police and Fire Department color guards will present the colors, and a flyover from the 104th Fighter Squadron of the Maryland Air National Guard 175th Wing will conclude the anthem.
The ceremonial first pitches will honor several public servants who died in the past year, with family members present to represent their loved ones.
Baltimore Police Officer Keona Holley, who died Dec. 23, 2021, seven days after she was shot in her patrol car, will be represented by her son, Kortez Baker. Three firefighters who died battling a fire Jan. 24 will also be honored: Lieutenant Paul Butrim, Kenneth Lacayo and lieutenant Kelsey Sadler. John McMaster, who was left in critical condition after the fire, will also be present.
New food
There are ample new items to try at Camden Yards concession stands, including a new partnership with Jimmy’s Famous Seafood, linking one of Baltimore’s most popular restaurants with an iconic ballpark. The dishes featuring at the stand along the left field concourse includes the Crab Cake Egg Roll, Shrimp Roll, Crab Cake Roll, Crabby Fries and Mo Gaba’s Shrimp Platter.
The Crab Cake Egg Roll is a carryover from the restaurant, melded with a cream cheese blend, mango ponzu and spicy mayo that will be sold for $20. The Mo Gaba’s Shrimp Platter is served with fries and bay sauce, and $1 of the $16 dish will go to the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center in honor of Gaba, a superfan who died at 14 from cancer in 2020.
Eutaw Street also has several new offerings, from a Crab Dip Pretzel ($16) and Pepperoni Pizza Pretzel ($14) at the B&O Market to The Baltimore Smash ($16), a patty melt available at the Eutaw Street Burger Portable.
Another stand opened on the lower concourse near sections 49-52 called The Hot Corner, offering a variety of chicken tenders for $15. There’s a Mambo sauce variety, one with Franks RedHot aioli and another lathered in cheese sauce.
Or bring your own
After fans were held to concession stand food for the 2021 campaign, the Orioles are once again allowing supporters to bring in their own food and non-alcoholic beverages. There are stipulations, though.
So long as the food and beverages are in a clear, sealable, plastic gallon bag, they’ll be allowed. The drinks must be no larger than 20 ounces and the food must be individual quantities rather than bulk supplies. Only one bag is allowed per guest.
New wall
For just the second time in the 30-year history of Oriole Park at Camden Yards, the outfield dimensions have changed. Unlike the brief 2001 alteration, this one is here to stay.
To counteract what has been a hitter’s haven, the left field wall was moved back about 30 feet and the height of the fence was raised from just over 7 feet to 13 feet.
The changes give Camden Yards a slightly different look. About 1,000 seats along 10 rows were removed from the stadium to make way for the deeper wall, and a right angle was added to left-center field where fans used to look down into the bullpens.
The changes might be felt on the field of play, too. At least 14% of the home runs hit at Camden Yards since MLB’s Statcast tracking system began in 2015 would have stayed in play with the new dimensions, according to an investigation from The Baltimore Sun.
Celebrating 30 years
Near the home plate entrance, a 30th anniversary exhibit will feature rotating memorabilia from moments throughout Camden Yards’ history.
“We’ve done kind of the top 30 moments,” said Bill Stetka, the director of the Orioles Alumni program and the team’s historian. “And that’s whittled down from about 80. I had certain players you want to spotlight, certain moments you want to spotlight, and try to make it a little eclectic.”
There will also be auctions for items, such as 25 pairs of removed seats from where the left field wall now stands, with the sales going to charity.
Ticket pricing has also been adjusted to commemorate the season, with the first homestand between April 12-17 reverted to 1992 pricing: $4 for bleachers, $8 for reserve seats, and $12, $13, and $18 for box seats. Hot dogs will also be offered at $1.75 at Camden Franks locations during that stretch, although there will be a limit of two hot dogs per person.
The on-field product
For as interesting as the festivities could be, the on-field product might leave much to be desired. The Orioles struggled in their season-opening series against the Rays, struggling to produce much offensively to make up for a uneven pitching staff.
Left-hander Bruce Zimmermann, an Ellicott City native and Loyola Blakefield graduate, will start for the Orioles on Monday against the Brewers, coming off a season in which he recorded a 5.04 ERA. Behind him, a bullpen that was solid in the first two games of the season began to labor in Sunday’s loss, with right-hander Tyler Wells chased after just 1 2/3 innings in his first major league start.
Behind top-of-the-order hitters Cedric Mullins, Ryan Mountcastle, Anthony Santander and Trey Mancini, there are some new faces in the lineup, with Rougned Odor and Chris Owings utility additions to the infield. But for the most part, many of the fresh faces will join later, such as Rodriguez, Rutschman and right-hander Kyle Bradish.
Home opener
BREWERS@ORIOLES
Monday, 3:05 p.m.
TV: MASN Radio: 97.9 FM, 101.5 FM, 1090 AM
