History of the Baltimore Orioles

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The modern history of the Orioles can be traced back to the original Milwaukee Brewers of the Western League. The Brewers were there when the Western League renamed itself the American League. In 1902, the team moved to St. Louis and became the “Browns”. In their first season in St. Louis the Browns finished in second place. The Browns became more popular than their rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals, beating them in attendance. In 1951, Bill Veeck, the former owner of the Cleveland Indians, purchased the Browns. Veeck attempted to move the Browns back to Milwaukee ("Baseball-Statistics"), but was blocked by other American League owners, seemingly for reasons that were more personal than business related. After Veeck was forced to sell Sportsman Park to the Cardinals, he sold the Browns to a Baltimore-based group led by attorney Clarence Miles. With Veeck gone, the American League owners quickly approved the relocation of the team to Baltimore for the 1954 season. The Browns were renamed after their move to Baltimore. The Browns name was associated with losing, so the new team name would be changed to the Orioles. The name has a rich history in Baltimore having been used by the Baltimore baseball teams of the late 1890s. In 1901, the American League announced that the Baltimore Orioles would move their franchise to New York, becoming the New York Yankees. After the move, the Orioles competed in what is now called AAA level from 1903-1953. Babe Ruth pitched for the AAA Orioles before being sold to the Boston Red Sox. ("Baseball Page") On April 15, 1954, thousands of Baltimore fans packed the streets as the new Orioles paraded from downtown to their new park at Memorial Stadium. During the 90-minute ceremony, the Birds signed autographs and threw Styrofoam balls into the crowd. That day, more than 46,000 fans watched the Orioles beat the Chicago White Sox, 3-1. The

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