O's deliver memorable night for young fan

BALTIMORE -- As the Orioles took the field Thursday night, 10-year-old Daniel Sullivan sat in the lower bowl of Oriole Park at Camden Yards with his grandparents and his friend, Christian.

Daniel wore a No. 13 Manny Machado jersey and clutched an orange foam finger. He said he has been an Orioles fan all of his life.

"Since he was in an Oriole diaper," Trisha Sullivan-Haas said.

Daniel is being treated at Sinai Hospital for Ewing's Sarcoma, a rare form of cancer most frequently found in bones or bone tissue. Despite his love of the Orioles, he had never been to Camden Yards for a game -- until Thursday.

The Orioles brought Daniel and his family to Thursday night's game against the White Sox with the help of the Casey Cares Foundation, a non-profit founded in Baltimore that supports critically ill children and their families. But even before the game began, Daniel had already had an evening to remember.

It started when a limousine arrived at the family's house that afternoon to pick up Daniel, Sullivan-Haas and her husband, Jeff Haas. They shared the ride with one other passenger: the Oriole Bird.

How did the Orioles' mascot even manage to fit in a limousine?

"Well," Daniel said, smiling, "the limo was pretty big."

Daniel received a jersey and backpack, among other gifts, and arrived at Camden Yards in time for batting practice. He watched the Orioles take some swings from the field and got autographs from manager Buck Showalter, Brian Roberts and Ryan Flaherty. Then Daniel and his family took an all-access tour of the stadium, including the press box and television studio.

"They didn't have to do this," Haas said. "It was just awesome."

With his gifts and autographs in tow, Daniel took a seat in row 23 between Haas and his friend, Christian. He listed Adam Jones and Chris Davis as his two favorite players.

Jones homered to left field in his first at-bat.

"I can't say enough about the Casey Cares foundation and the Orioles," Sullivan-Haas said. "To give children a wonderful day after the years they've lost fighting cancer, I just can't say enough."