From Ripken's streak to Delmon's pinch-hit, these are the O's 10 best on-field moments

BALTIMORE -- For more than 70 years, the Orioles have played baseball in Baltimore, providing exciting moments for the people of Charm City since 1954.

There have been championships, milestones, incredible feats, thrilling wins and more.

It’s hard to narrow down the best of the best over that time. But here’s an attempt to do so.

Let’s rank the top 10 moments in Orioles history:

1. 2,131

It would be hard for anything to dethrone Cal Ripken Jr.’s record-setting night from the top spot.

On Sept. 6, 1995, Ripken played in his 2,131st consecutive game, breaking the record of 2,130 previously held by Lou Gehrig. The Iron Man overtook the Iron Horse when a game against the Angels at Camden Yards became official in the bottom of the fifth inning.

The contest was paused -- Ripken acknowledged the curtain call from the Baltimore fans, then was urged to take a lap around the warning track, high-fiving as many people as possible. The 22-minute hiatus will go down as one of the most memorable moments in baseball history.

2. O’s sweep way to first championship

How could the first World Series championship in franchise history not be high on this list?

The Orioles swept the Dodgers in four games in the 1966 Fall Classic, capturing their first title in impressive fashion. Frank Robinson was named World Series MVP, while Jim Palmer (Game 2), Wally Bunker (Game 3) and Dave McNally (Game 4) each pitched a shutout.

3. Cal’s catch caps championship win

It didn’t take long for Ripken to win a championship, doing so in his second full MLB season in 1983. After being named American League MVP, the Havre de Grace, Md., native helped Baltimore win its third World Series title by defeating Philadelphia in five games.

Fittingly enough, Ripken caught the final out of the clinching Game 5, as Scott McGregor got Garry Maddox to line out to shortstop to complete a shutout win.

4. Eddie’s 500th homer

Sept. 6 is a special date in Orioles history for multiple reasons.

Exactly one year to the day after Ripken broke Gehrig’s streak, Eddie Murray made history of his own, blasting his 500th career home run to right-center field at Camden Yards. There’s now an orange commemorative seat in the stands where the ball landed that night.

Murray played for Baltimore from 1977-88, before leaving to play for the Dodgers (1989-91), Mets (1992-93) and Cleveland (1994-96). But it was special for him to reach this milestone during his return to the Orioles in ‘96.

5. Cuellar goes distance to win title

Four years after winning the first World Series in team history, the Orioles did it again in 1970.

This time, Baltimore bested Cincinnati in a five-game Fall Classic. The O’s captured the championship with a 9-3 win in Game 5, as Mike Cuellar earned a complete-game victory, allowing three first-inning runs and nothing the rest of the way.

6. The Delmon Young Game

Ask Orioles fans to share the loudest they’ve heard Camden Yards and many will name this moment.

Trailing 6-4 in Game 2 of the 2014 AL Division Series vs. the Tigers, the O’s sent Delmon Young to the plate as a pinch-hitter with the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth inning. The journeyman then etched his name in franchise lore, pouncing on the first pitch he saw from Joakim Soria and clearing the bases with a go-ahead three-run double that caused pandemonium in Baltimore.

The AL East champion Orioles went on to sweep the series in three games.

7. Ultimate slam

There have been 32 recorded ultimate grand slams in AL/NL history (since 1925). The only one hit by an Oriole occurred on May 17, 1996, at Camden Yards.

With Baltimore trailing Seattle 13-10 in the bottom of the ninth, Chris Hoiles delivered his most memorable moment of a solid career by belting a walk-off grand slam to win it for the O’s. Not only was it an ultimate slam, but it came with two outs -- and on a 3-2 pitch from Norm Charlton.

It’s hard to draw up a more exciting conclusion to a game than that.

8. Camden christening

The Orioles have touted Camden Yards as “The Ballpark That Forever Changed Baseball,” because of how unique it was when it opened in 1992. Many ballparks have since instituted similar architecture and designs.

The first game at Camden was a memorable one for O’s fans. On April 6, 1992, Baltimore christened its new ballpark with a 2-0 win over Cleveland in a quick 2 hours and 2 minutes. Rick Sutcliffe tossed a shutout in his Orioles debut.

9. Means’ near-perfect no-no

John Means pitched the sixth no-hitter in Orioles history (since 1954) and the 10th in franchise history during a 6-0 win in Seattle on May 5, 2021. But Means nearly became the first Baltimore hurler to toss a perfect game.

The only blemish against Means came in the third inning, when catcher Pedro Severino dropped a third strike and a wild pitch allowed Sam Haggerty to reach base. Haggerty was immediately thrown out by Severino while trying to steal second.

So Means faced the minimum 27 batters in his near-perfect, 12-strikeout, incredible no-no.

10. The Curse of the Andino

The Orioles ended a 15-year postseason drought in 2012. But the positive momentum began with the final game of the ‘11 season.

The final day of the 2011 campaign was among the most memorable in baseball history due to the playoff implications, and the O’s played a part, despite having already been eliminated. They prevented the Red Sox from reaching October with a 4-3 win at Camden Yards.

The finish was thrilling, too. Baltimore trailed 3-2 with the bases empty and two outs in the bottom of the ninth, when Chris Davis and Nolan Reimold hit back-to-back doubles before Robert Andino ended it with a walk-off RBI single to left that prompted a celebration.