It’s June 22, 1996, and for eight innings, the O’s couldn’t do anything against Tim Belcher and the Royals. But with this powerful lineup, things can change in an instant. Three homers in the ninth turned a potential shutout loss into a dramatic 5-3 walk-off win.

Robbie Alomar got things started with a 1-out double. Raffy Palmeiro put the Birds on the board with a two-run homer that chased Belcher. Bobby Bonilla tied the game with a solo shot off Royals closer Jeff Montgomery. And following a Cal Ripken walk, recently called up rookie Mark Smith ended the game with a shot over the left-field fence.

The O’s had only gotten two hits off Belcher through eight innings, but in the span of six batters, the game was over with the Good Guys on top.

“We weren’t smelling anything,” O’s manager Davey Johnson said as he thought back on what happened. “We weren’t even close to anything.”

You can watch the full game here but this video should start at the bottom of the 9th.

Smith had just been called up five days earlier to replace the struggling Jeffrey Hammonds, who went back down to Triple-A Rochester. Smith’s reward for his big moment: A shaving cream pie in the face courtesy of closer Randy Myers.

“I’ll take that any day,” Smith said. “It stings your eyes a little bit though.” (Baltimore Sun, p. 6C, June 24, 1996)

O’s starter Scott Erickson looked like he was destined to be a tough-luck loser after throwing all 9 innings and giving up just three runs (two earned). But after the walk-off, he ended up picking up his fourth win of the season.

Here’s the box score with the lovely totals.

Elsewhere in the Sun, reporter Jason LaCanfora has a feature on how O’s infielder Billy Ripken has traded in his former “Wild Bill” reputation for a spot as a veteran team leader. “I may pick and choose my spots a little more selectively now than I used to,” Billy said when looking back at how his first tenure with the O’s (1987-1992) was full of wacky shenanigans. “Spontaneity used to just fire out of me. Now, I can see something, want to do it, and then say, ‘No, this is not the right time to do that.’ Maybe I’ve gotten smarter. Maybe I’ve learned over the years that you can’t say or do anything you want to. It’s time, age and experience. You look back at things now and know not to do it quite the same way.” (Baltimore Sun, p. 1D, June 23, 1996)

Farewell, Wild Bill. I guess this means no more bats with “Fuck Face” written on them.

Three bricks. All in the ninth. Raffy, Bobby, Smitty to end it.

Royals (31-43) vs. Orioles (39-31), 1:35 p.m.
KCR – RHP Kevin Appier (5-7, 3.88 ERA)
BAL – LHP Rick Krivda (2-2 3.52 ERA)

Kind of a slow news day today on a Saturday, but there is a follow-up to something we covered here earlier. Former football star Franco Harris reached an agreement to buy Baltimore’s Parks Sausage Co. The deal requires the company, which was shut down in May, to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy while it operates with cash from Harris.

“I am very excited about the opportunity presented by Parks,” Harris said in a statement, though the Sun notes they weren’t able to reach the Steelers legend for comment. 

If the federal bankruptcy court approves the plan on Monday, the plant could open again soon. “We hope to begin operations within the next couple of weeks,” said Ira Cooke, one of Harris’ lawyers. 

Raymond Haysbert, the chairman of Parks, had this to say in a statement: “We are pleased that the Parks Sausage tradition will be continued in Baltimore under the direction of Franco Harris.”

Really exciting statements from these folks. I guess a last-ditch effort to save an iconic bankrupt company is not the happiest moment.

Welcome to a recurring segment where I find fun things in today’s (in 1996) Baltimore Sun!

A recent study found that Baltimore was second only to Los Angeles in terms of ground smog impact on ozone. Remember talking about the “ozone layer” instead of “climate change.”