1977 Baltimore Orioles season

1977 Baltimore Orioles
LeagueAmerican League
DivisionEast
BallparkMemorial Stadium
CityBaltimore, Maryland
Record97–64 (.602)
Divisional place2nd
OwnersJerold Hoffberger
General managersHank Peters
ManagersEarl Weaver
TelevisionWJZ-TV
RadioWBAL (AM)
(Chuck Thompson, Bill O'Donnell)
← 1976 Seasons 1978 →

The 1977 Baltimore Orioles season finished with the ballclub tied for second place in the American League East with a record of 97 wins and 64 losses. The Orioles stayed in contention for the division title until an 11–10 loss to the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on September 30.[1] They in turn eliminated the Red Sox 8–7 the following day on October 1.[2]

The Orioles entered the campaign with diminished expectations because of the departures of Reggie Jackson, Bobby Grich and Wayne Garland via free agency.[3] The team's biggest boost came from Eddie Murray who hit .283 with 27 home runs and 88 runs batted in (RBI) and was named the American League Rookie of the Year on November 21. He also batted .364 with nine homers and 26 RBI during the last 31 games of the season.[4]

The Orioles lost a five-inning 4–0 decision to the Toronto Blue Jays at Exhibition Stadium on September 15 via forfeit because of third-base umpire Marty Springstead's refusal to have a tarpaulin covering the pitcher's mounds in the home team's bullpen in the left-field corner removed. Out of concern for the safety of his left fielder Andrés Mora, manager Earl Weaver protested Springstead's decision by pulling his team off the field. The forfeit was declared after 15 minutes had elapsed and the Orioles had not returned. Weaver explained, "Mora almost broke his leg on that damn thing yesterday. If that had not happened, I might not have thought of it. If a guy slips out there and hurts his leg, how am I gonna feel?"[5] American League president Lee MacPhail upheld the forfeit two days later on September 17. Even though he said that Weaver's concern for his players' safety was "not only understandable, but commendable", MacPhail stated, "There is a basic principle involved here, and that is that someone involved as a competitor cannot be allowed to dictate decisions that must be made by a neutral official."[6]

The Orioles drew 1,195,769 which at the time was the second-highest home attendance total since the franchise's first season in Baltimore in 1954, surpassed by only 1,203,366 in 1966.[7] A 10–4 defeat to the Red Sox at Memorial Stadium on September 18 drew 51,798, then the largest crowd to attend an Orioles home regular-season game, who paid tribute to Brooks Robinson who had announced his retirement as an active player one month prior on August 21.[8] The ballclub sustained a net operating loss of $43,846, primarily because of a $499,000 increase in player payroll in the first year of Major League Baseball (MLB) free agency.[7]

Offseason

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Regular season

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Brooks
Robinson
3B
Retired 1977

Season standings

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AL East
Team W L Pct. GB Home Road
New York Yankees 100 62 .617 — 55‍–‍26 45‍–‍36
Baltimore Orioles 97 64 .602 2½ 54‍–‍27 43‍–‍37
Boston Red Sox 97 64 .602 2½ 51‍–‍29 46‍–‍35
Detroit Tigers 74 88 .457 26 39‍–‍42 35‍–‍46
Cleveland Indians 71 90 .441 28½ 37‍–‍44 34‍–‍46
Milwaukee Brewers 67 95 .414 33 37‍–‍44 30‍–‍51
Toronto Blue Jays 54 107 .335 45½ 25‍–‍55 29‍–‍52

Record vs. opponents

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1977 American League record

Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]
Team BAL BOS CAL CWS CLE DET KC MIL MIN NYY OAK SEA TEX TOR
Baltimore — 6–8 5–6 5–5 11–4 12–3 4–7 11–4 6–4 8–7 8–2 7–3 4–6 10–5
Boston 8–6 — 7–3 3–7 8–7 9–6 5–5 9–6 4–6 8–7 8–3 10–1 6–4 12–3
California 6–5 3–7 — 8–7 6–4 4–6 6–9 5–5 7–8 4–7 5–10 9–6 5–10 6–4
Chicago 5–5 7–3 7–8 — 6–4 4–6 8–7 6–5 10–5 3–7 10–5 10–5 6–9 8–3
Cleveland 4–11 7–8 4–6 4–6 — 8–7 3–7 11–4 2–9 3–12 7–3 7–3 2–9 9–5
Detroit 3–12 6–9 6–4 6–4 7–8 — 3–8 10–5 5–5 6–9 5–5 5–6 2–8 10–5
Kansas City 7–4 5–5 9–6 7–8 7–3 8–3 — 8–2 10–5 5–5 9–6 11–4 8–7 8–2
Milwaukee 4–11 6–9 5–5 5–6 4–11 5–10 2–8 — 3–8 8–7 5–5 7–3 5–5 8–7
Minnesota 4–6 6–4 8–7 5–10 9–2 5–5 5–10 8–3 — 2–8 8–6 7–8 8–7 9–1
New York 7–8 7–8 7–4 7–3 12–3 9–6 5–5 7–8 8–2 — 9–2 6–4 7–3 9–6
Oakland 2–8 3–8 10–5 5–10 3–7 5–5 6–9 5–5 6–8 2–9 — 7–8 2–13 7–3
Seattle 3–7 1–10 6–9 5–10 3–7 6–5 4–11 3–7 8–7 4–6 8–7 — 9–6 4–6
Texas 6–4 4–6 10–5 9–6 9–2 8–2 7–8 5–5 7–8 3–7 13–2 6–9 — 7–4
Toronto 5–10 3–12 4–6 3–8 5–9 5–10 2–8 7–8 1–9 6–9 3–7 6–4 4–7 —


Opening Day lineup

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Notable transactions

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Roster

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1977 Baltimore Orioles
Roster
Pitchers Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders Manager

Coaches

Game log

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Regular season

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1977 regular season game log: 97–64 (Home: 55–26; Away: 45–36)
April: 9–8 (Home: 5–6; Away: 4–2)
# Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Win Loss Save Time of Game Attendance Record Box/
Streak
1 April 7 Rangers
2 April 9 Rangers
3 April 10 Rangers
— April 15 @ Rangers
— April 16 @ Rangers
6 April 17
(1)		 @ Rangers
7 April 17
(2)		 @ Rangers
— April 22 @ Tigers Postponed (Rain) (Makeup date: September 7)
— April 23 @ Tigers Postponed (Rain) (Makeup date: September 8)
11 April 24
(1)		 @ Tigers
12 April 24
(2)		 @ Tigers
13 April 25 Yankees L 6–9 Tidrow (1–1) Martínez (0–1) Lyle (4) 3:06 17,624 7–6 L2
14 April 26 Yankees W 6–2 May (2–2) Holtzman (1–1) — 2:15 12,884 8–6 W1
15 April 27 Yankees L 3–4 Lyle (1–1) Martínez (0–2) — 2:51 15,647 8–7 L1
May: 17–10 (Home: 10–3; Away: 7–7)
# Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Win Loss Save Time of Game Attendance Record Box/
Streak
31 May 19 @ Yankees L 1–9 Figueroa (5–2) Flanagan (1–2) — 2:09 15,909 17–14 L3
32 May 20 @ Yankees W 6–5 Martínez (2–2) Tidrow (2–2) — 3:01 25,872 18–14 W1
33 May 21 @ Yankees W 4–3 (12) Martinez (1–0) Lyle (2–2) — 3:12 19,968 19–14 W2
34 May 22
(1)		 @ Yankees W 5–1 May (5–4) Hunter (1–3) — 2:23 — 20–14 W3
35 May 22
(2)		 @ Yankees L 2–8 Guidry (3–0) McGregor (1–1) — 2:23 43,285 20–15 L1
38 May 25
(1)		 Royals
39 May 25
(2)		 Royals
40 May 27 Twins
41 May 28 Twins
42 May 29 Twins
43 May 30 @ Twins
44 May 31 @ Twins
June: 13–18 (Home: 6–8; Away: 7–10)
# Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Win Loss Save Time of Game Attendance Record Box/
Streak
45 June 1 @ White Sox
46 June 2 @ White Sox
47 June 3 @ Royals
48 June 4
(1)		 @ Royals
49 June 4
(2)		 @ Royals
50 June 5 @ Royals
53 June 8 @ Red Sox
54 June 9 @ Red Sox
55 June 10 White Sox
56 June 11 White Sox
57 June 12 White Sox
64 June 20 Red Sox
65 June 21 Red Sox
66 June 22 Red Sox
67 June 23 Red Sox
July: 20–8 (Home: 10–3; Away: 10–5)
# Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Win Loss Save Time of Game Attendance Record Box/
Streak
76 July 1 @ Red Sox
77 July 2 @ Red Sox
78 July 3 @ Red Sox
79 July 4 Tigers
80 July 5
(1)		 Tigers
81 July 5
(2)		 Tigers
82 July 6 Tigers
83 July 8 Yankees L 5–7 Gullett (7–3) May (10–8) Lyle (13) 2:52 33,738 46–37 L1
84 July 9 Yankees W 6–5 Martinez (2–0) Lyle (7–3) Drago (4) 2:34 44,193 47–37 W1
85 July 10 Yankees W 6–0 Grimsley (8–4) Figueroa (8–7) — 2:12 34,299 48–37 W2
86 July 11 Yankees W 4–3 Flanagan (6–8) Torrez (8–8) — 2:56 42,603 49–37 W3
87 July 12 @ Rangers
88 July 13 @ Rangers
89 July 14 @ Rangers
48th All-Star Game in Bronx, New York
93 July 22 Rangers
94 July 23 Rangers
98 July 26 @ Yankees L 4–5 (10) Lyle (8–3) McGregor (1–2) — 2:48 32,097 56–42 L1
99 July 27 @ Yankees W 6–4 Palmer (12–8) Hunter (6–5) Martinez (5) 3:15 47,271 57–42 W1
100 July 28 @ Yankees L 2–14 Torrez (10–9) May (11–9) — 2:40 40,818 57–43 L1
August: 16–11 (Home: 12–5; Away: 4–6)
# Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Win Loss Save Time of Game Attendance Record Box/
Streak
116 August 15 Twins
117 August 16 Twins
118 August 19 @ Twins
119 August 20 @ Twins
120 August 21 @ Twins
121 August 22 @ Royals
122 August 23 @ Royals
123 August 24 White Sox
124 August 25 White Sox
125 August 26 Royals
126 August 27 Royals
127 August 28 Royals
September: 21–9 (Home: 11–2; Away: 10–7)
# Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Win Loss Save Time of Game Attendance Record Box/
Streak
131 September 2 @ White Sox
132 September 3 @ White Sox
133 September 4 @ White Sox
134 September 5
(1)		 @ Tigers
135 September 5
(2)		 @ Tigers
136 September 6 @ Tigers
137 September 7
(1)		 @ Tigers
138 September 7
(2)		 @ Tigers
139 September 8 @ Tigers
147 September 16 Red Sox
148 September 17 Red Sox
149 September 18 Red Sox
157 September 27 Tigers
158 September 28 Tigers
159 September 29 Tigers
160 September 30 @ Red Sox
October: 1–0 (Home: 0–0; Away: 1–0)
# Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Win Loss Save Time of Game Attendance Record Box/
Streak
161 October 1 @ Red Sox
— October 2 @ Red Sox Postponed (Rain)
Legend:       = Win       = Loss       = Postponement
Bold = Orioles team member

Player stats

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Batting

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Starters by position

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Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Pos Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI
C Rick Dempsey 91 270 61 .226 3 34
1B Lee May 150 585 148 .253 27 99
2B Billy Smith 109 367 79 .215 5 29
3B Doug DeCinces 150 522 135 .259 19 69
SS Mark Belanger 144 402 83 .206 2 30
LF Pat Kelly 120 360 92 .256 10 49
CF Al Bumbry 133 518 164 .317 4 41
RF Ken Singleton 152 536 176 .328 24 99
DH Eddie Murray 160 611 173 .283 27 88

Other batters

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Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI
Rich Dauer 96 304 74 .243 5 25
Andrés Mora 77 233 57 .245 13 44
Dave Skaggs 80 216 62 .287 1 24
Kiko Garcia 65 131 29 .221 2 10
Tony Muser 120 118 27 .229 0 7
Elliott Maddox 49 107 28 .262 2 9
Tom Shopay 67 69 13 .188 1 4
Larry Harlow 46 48 10 .208 0 0
Brooks Robinson 24 47 7 .149 1 4
Terry Crowley 18 22 8 .364 1 9
Ken Rudolph 11 14 4 .286 0 2
Dave Criscione 7 9 3 .333 1 1
Mike Dimmel 25 5 0 .000 0 0

Pitching

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Starting pitchers

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Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player G IP W L ERA SO
Jim Palmer 39 319.0 20 11 2.91 193
Rudy May 37 251.2 18 14 3.61 105
Mike Flanagan 36 235.0 15 10 3.64 149
Ross Grimsley 34 218.1 14 10 3.96 53

Other pitchers

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Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player G IP W L ERA SO
Dennis Martínez 42 166.2 14 7 4.10 107
Scott McGregor 29 114.0 3 5 4.42 55

Relief pitchers

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Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player G W L SV ERA SO
Tippy Martinez 41 5 1 9 2.70 29
Dick Drago 36 6 3 3 3.63 20
Dyar Miller 12 2 2 1 5.64 9
Fred Holdsworth 12 0 1 0 6.28 4
Tony Chévez 4 0 0 0 12.38 7
Mike Parrott 3 0 0 0 2.08 2
Nelson Briles 2 0 0 1 6.75 2
Earl Stephenson 1 0 0 0 9.00 2
Randy Miller 1 0 0 0 40.50 0
Ed Farmer 1 0 0 0 inf 0

Awards and honors

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Farm system

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See also: Minor League Baseball
Level Team League Manager
AAA Rochester Red Wings International League Ken Boyer
AA Charlotte O's Southern League Jimmie Schaffer
A Miami Orioles Florida State League Len Johnston
Rookie Bluefield Orioles Appalachian League J. R. Miner

References

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  1. ^ "Red Sox Oust Orioles, 11–10, To Stay Alive," The Associated Press (AP), Friday, September 30, 1977. Retrieved April 18 2023.
  2. ^ "Six Oriole Homers Eliminate Boston at Fenway, 8–7," The New York Times, Sunday, October 2, 1977. Retrieved April 18 2023.
  3. ^ Povich, Shirley. "Orioles Seem Destined for Third Place," The Washington Post, Wednesday, March 23, 1977. Retrieved April 18 2023.
  4. ^ "Eddie Murray Rookie Of Year In AL," The Associated Press (AP), Tuesday, November 22, 1977. Retrieved April 18 2023.
  5. ^ "Orioles Forfeit Game to the Jays in Dispute over Bullpen Mound," United Press International (UPI), Friday, September 16, 1977. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
  6. ^ Montgomery, Paul L. "But Baltimore Loses Appeal to League Over Forfeit," The New York Times, Sunday, September 18, 1977. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
  7. ^ a b Scannell, Nancy. "Orioles Expect Loss At Gate of 150,000, Substantial Deficit," The Washington Post, Sunday, September 10, 1978. Retrieved April 18 2023.
  8. ^ Montgomery, Paul L. "Red Sox Set Back Orioles, 10–4, As Both End Ungainful Weekend," The New York Times, Monday, September 19, 1977. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
  9. ^ Darryl Cias page at Baseball Reference
  10. ^ Bob Galasso page at Baseball Reference
  11. ^ Dave Pagan page at Baseball Reference
  12. ^ Dave Criscione page at Baseball Reference
  13. ^ John Shelby page at Baseball Reference
  14. ^ Paul Blair page at Baseball Reference
  15. ^ Billy Smith page at Baseball Reference
  16. ^ Vic Rodriguez page at Baseball Reference
  17. ^ Randy Stein page at Baseball Reference
  18. ^ Dick Drago page at Baseball Reference
  19. ^ Ken Rudolph page at Baseball Reference
  20. ^ Nelson Briles transactions at Baseball Reference
[edit]
  • Johnson, Lloyd; Wolff, Miles, eds. (1997). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (2nd ed.). Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America. ISBN 978-0-9637189-8-3.
  • 1977 Baltimore Orioles team page at Baseball Reference
  • 1977 Baltimore Orioles season at baseball-almanac.com
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