Orioles Players Serve Beer, Hold Babies At Anne Arundel County Brewery’s Fan Event

ODENTON, MD — Baltimore Orioles players served as guest bartenders this Sunday at Odenton's Crooked Crab Brewing Company.

The visit was part of the Birdland Caravan, a weekend of fan events celebrating the upcoming season.

The Crooked Crab happy hour drew a large crowd. Players poured beer and mingled with fans throughout the afternoon

Related: Crooked Crab Brewing Opens Pizza Kitchen, Expands Taproom In Odenton

One fan asked outfielder Austin Hays to hold her baby, who was decked out in Orioles gear. Hays agreed and held the infant while he was behind the bar. Photos are posted here.

Hays called the Birdland Caravan "electric" and thanked fans for their support after last year's much-improved season.

"They love the guys that are on this team now," Hays said, according to mlb.com. "We have some identities, we have some different things that the fans get behind behind certain players."

Hays pointed to the entrance of closer Félix Bautista as one of the new traditions that excites fans.

The lights go out when Bautista enters the game and a whistle plays over the loudspeaker. That is the same whistle from Omar, a character on the popular Baltimore-based TV show "The Wire." After the whistle, the stadium performs a lights show and flashes Bautista's highlights reel as he warms up. A video of the spectacle is available at this link.

The Orioles also debuted the home run chain last year. The team bestowed the orange necklace upon any player who hit a dinger.

"Those are things that you love as a fan," Hays said. "Those are things that make the stadium atmosphere fun. It’s been great."

Bautista was one of the Orioles to join Hays on the Birdland Caravan, which also stopped at the Maryland Food Bank and Bowlero. Other players in attendance included Adley Rutschman, a highly touted catcher who made his major league debut last year, and Grayson Rodriguez, the team's top pitching prospect who is expected to get called up this year.

The Orioles finished 83-79 in 2022. That was a significant improvement from their 2021 record of 52-110. Last year saw the birds' first winning record since they last made the playoffs in 2016. The O's also finished three games out of the playoffs in 2022.

Baltimore enters the 2023 season with high expectations, though the team had a relatively quiet off-season. The squad's biggest move was trading for left-handed starting pitcher Cole Irvin, who posted a respectable 3.98 ERA last year.

Although the birds did not have a flashy off-season, the team hopes its minor league prospects will make a splash in the near future. The Orioles have eight prospects in the top 100 of the latest MLB Pipeline rankings.

Pitchers and catchers report to spring training on Feb. 15. All other players will head to the O's complex in Sarasota, Florida on Feb. 20.

Spring training games start Feb. 25 with a match-up against the Minnesota Twins and end March 27 with a game against the St. Louis Cardinals.

The regular season begins March 30 in Boston against the Red Sox. Baltimore's home opener is April 6 when the Orioles will welcome the New York Yankees.

Fans can read a full recap of the Birdland Caravan in this story from mlb.com.

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