It’s March 18, 1996, and the O’s won a preseason slugfest with the Expos, 13-10. Ace pitcher Mike Mussina got hit around a bit, giving up five runs, but these games don’t really count, anyway. Though he didn’t pitch today, veteran lefty Jesse Orosco watched from the bullpen. He’ll be tasked with coming in to pitch to the league’s toughest lefties this season.

They often say that if you are left-handed and have a pulse, you could stay in the major leagues for a while, and that’s certainly true for Orosco, who has pitched in over 800 career games since joining the New York Mets in 1979.

Jesse Orosco was born in April of 1957 in Santa Barbara, Ca., to Mexican-American parents, Ray and Tomasa. Ray was always supportive of his son’s interest in baseball, and served as Jesse’s baseball manager from the time the boy was six years old. The proud father watched his son grow to 6-foot-2 and develop a wipe-out slider that left-handed hitters couldn’t touch.

In 1978, the Minnesota Twins selected him in the second round, but before he could make it to the Twin Cities, in February 1979 they shipped him to New York in exchange for longtime Met Jerry Koosman. Orosco was in the majors later that summer.

The reliever bounced between the majors and minors the next couple years, but by 1982, he was a regular in the Mets bullpen, pitching over 109 innings in 54 games.

In August of that year, Ray suffered a heart attack at his construction job. In Ray’s final days, Jesse promised his father, “I’ll be better for you now. I’ll get stronger now. Even if you are not here to see it. I will be the best for you.” (Stamford Advocate, p. C3, September 11, 1983)

Jesse kept his promise, and in 1983 became one of the league’s best relievers. He won 13 games out of the pen, pitched 110 innings, and had a sparkling 1.47 ERA. He was an All Star and finished third in National League Cy Young award voting. The next year, he made the All Star team again and finished with 31 saves.

Though he never reached those heights again, he remained a vital part of the Mets bullpen through 1987. He was a quiet presence on a team with boisterous personalities. He liked to paint and sculpt when he wasn’t playing baseball, and for the most part preferred to be left alone. (Stamford Advocate, p. C3, May 11, 1986) But he was reliable and durable, and he was a crucial piece in their run to a world championship in 1986.

At the end of the 1987 season, Orosco was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers as part of a massive three-team trade. That season in LA, Orosco would win his second World Series ring. 

Ever since he left New York, Orosco has been the definition of a left-handed specialist, or what is colloquially referred to as a LOOGY (Left-handed One Out GuY). He’s often been brought in to face the toughest left-handed hitters and that’s it, often not even pitching a full inning. In fact, in the last 8 seasons, he has pitched in 447 games, but thrown just 425 innings for Los Angeles, Cleveland, Milwaukee, and now Baltimore.

Last year, 1995, was his first season with the O’s and it was successful. He led the AL with 65 appearances and opponents hit just .169 off of him.

It’s been a fairly quiet spring for Orosco as he prepares for his 16th season in the majors. He showed up to spring training with a goatee he had grown during the offseason, but the Orioles have a no facial hair policy. When new O’s manager Davey Johnson (Orosco’s former skipper in New York) walked up to greet him, he put his hand to Orosco’s mouth. “You can shave it back to here,” Johnson said. Instead, Orosco grabbed a razor and shaved the whole thing. (Baltimore Sun, p. 13C, February 17, 1996)

Now cleanly shaven, Orosco should be a key set up man coming in before closer Randy Myers. He’s looking to get back to the playoffs for the first time since 1988, and to do so, he’ll stay ready in the pen and take the ball whenever he’s needed.

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

Looks like we missed the annual Hong Kong waiter’s race.