It was reported last evening that Melvin Mora, the Orioles' longtime third baseman/utility man, signed a one-year contract with the Colorado Rockies, effectively ending his 11-year career in Balmer.
Mora came to the O's as part of the Mike Bordick trade in 2000. Mora immediately filled the void left by Bordick at shortstop, but his true value in his first few years in Balmer was as a super-utility player. In 11 seasons, the only two positions not played by Mora were pitcher and catcher.
Since 2004, Mora has been Balmer's regular third baseman, and a pretty good one, too. He also hit more than 150 homers in Balmer and batted .280. His best season came in 2004 when he hit .340 with 27 homers and 104 RBIs with a .419 OBP.
The signing of Miguel Tejada to play third assured Balmer fans what they knew to be true already -- that Mora would not be returning. Ironic, since when Tejada last played for the O's, it was Mora who talked the then-superstar out of demanding a trade during the offseason. Mora thought Balmer needed Miggi. It didn't turn out to make a difference, but isn't that the kind of guy you want on your team?
Mora, who said his family will continue to live in Bel Air, Md., has been one of the few consistent bright spots in a miserable decade-plus of Oriole baseball. While some players slumped their shoulders down the losing stretch of each season, Mora hustled for every inning that he was in the ballgame. Other than the end of last season, when Mora openly clashed with manager Dave Trembley, he never complained about the club's perennial losing or being forced to bounce around the infield and outfield until he was finally given a permanent home at third.
He became a fan favorite for the way he played the game. Among those fans is my high school girlfriend, for whom I once went to great lengths to obtain a Melvin Mora autographed baseball.
Ask around and you'll find that the ladies adore me. It's OK, it's common knowledge. It's mostly for my near-legendary charm and thoughtfulness. Being insanely handsome doesn't hurt, either.
But my senior year in high school I made what would be the first of multiple trips in the ensuing years to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where the Orioles held Spring Training up until moving to Sarasota for 2010. I skulked around Fort Lauderdale stadium before, during and after one weekday game searching for No. 6, who wasn't playing that day due to an ailment.
I finally tracked down Mora in the seventh or eighth inning -- I don't remember which -- as he walked from his vehicle with his wife and four of their children. I called down to Mora, ball and pen in hand. I thought for sure I'd be getting that autograph and going back to Rising Sun a hero in the eyes of the girl.
But Mora kept walking. I'm not even sure he ever looked up.
Now, before you jump to conclusions, I don't blame Melvin. Not one bit. I was the bratty kid hanging over the concourse railing begging for an autograph while he tried to keep track of his young children. I was the jerk, not Melvin.
And besides, the story ends happily. I returned to Rising Sun with a baseball signed by O's pitcher Eric DuBose and the girl smiled with delight at my thoughtfulness.
Huh?
Follow me on this one. I'll lay it out to you just like I did her several years ago.
Balmer shortstop Mike Bordick, you see, was a member of the Oakland Athletics ball club before signing as a free agent with Balmer. As a result of losing their starting shortstop to free agency, the Athletics received a compensatory draft pick for the following year. The pick was DuBose, out of Mississippi State University. Bordick and DuBose, forever linked.
Bordick, of course, would be traded for a package of players which included Melvin Mora, as we've already discussed. Mora and DuBose, forever linked through Bordick.
DuBose would eventually find his way into the O's minor league system and finally made his Major League debut for Balmer in 2002. By the time I got to Fort Lauderdale a few days later, DuBose was still hanging on, trying to make the team and signing autographs for fans underneath the Fort Lauderdale Stadium concourse. It took me a while to find the link, but it worked out pretty well in the end.
See what a sweetheart I am?
So through a few hundred words of rambling, what I'm trying to say is that even if not everyone misses Melvin Mora in black and orange, I certainly will. He was a good ballplayer and by most accounts a great teammate.
He also was the only guy in the locker room nice enough to give me an interview about playing in the All Star Game back when I covered the Birds a handful of times for The Baltimore Sun. He didn't want to talk to me, I could tell that much. But he did anyway, and I'll never forget it.
So thanks, Melvin. Thanks for 1,323 hits, 158 home runs, 662 RBIs and playing seven positions over 11 seasons. Thanks for giving a young sportswriter an interview when several of your teammates barely looked me in the eye as they declined.
Oh, and you didn't know what was happening, but thanks for blowing me off in Fort Lauderdale. The story about the trouble I went to in order to get the Eric Dubose signed baseball is still paying dividends.
SUBSCRIBE