It may be just another road trip for the Orioles.
But for John Halama, this week?s series in Seattle is the chance for him to see old friends and recall special times.
Halama, an Oriole lefty, was a starting pitcher for the Seattle Mariners from 1999-2002. He won a career-high 14 games in 2000 for Seattle. Halama was 10-7 for Seattle in 2001, when the M?s won 116 games.
“Playing there, being in the playoffs two of the four years there … we were close to being in the World Series two years,” Halama, 34, said. “My last year there, we won (93) games.”
“It?s a great city. If there is a city where you win, and the fans will come, it?s Seattle,” he added. “There was a lot of buzz in Seattle.”
Halama was 11-10 with an ERA of 4.22 in 38 games (24 starts) for Seattle in 1999, his first full season in the majors. The Brooklyn native was named to the Topps Rookie all-star team as a left-handed pitcher.
In 2000, he threw nine innings and allowed four runs against Boston in a game that Seattle won, 5-4, in 19 innings ? the longest home game by innings in M?s history. He made twostarts against the Yankees in the AL Championship Series in 2000, and was 0-0 with an ERA of 2.89.
“We had something special over there. When you win 116 games … how much of it can be luck? We played the game the right way,” Halama said. “We had a lot of special moments there.”
Halama began last season with the Boston Red Sox, then signed with the Washington Nationals as a minor-league free agent on Aug. 5, 2005. He played two games in the minors with Triple-A New Orleans, and pitched in 10 games for the Nats.
Halama became good friends with Seattle pitchers Jamie Moyer and Aaron Sele. Moyer, a former Oriole, was slated to start Monday night for Seattle in the first of the four-game set. The teams play tonight at 10:05.
“Being in the Northwest, they don?t get the publicity they need. But it?s a great baseball city. I am looking forward to going back there and seeing friends,” Halama said this past weekend.
THE HALAMA FILE
Position: Pitcher
Age: 34
Height/weight: 6-5/215
Birthplace: Brooklyn, N.Y.
Did you know? Prior to Monday, Halama was 2-1 with an ERA of 5.09 in 13 games out of the bullpen for the Orioles. He threw 17.2 innings and allowed 23 hits (including five homers) with eight strikeouts and seven walks … Halama attended St. Francis in Brooklyn, N.Y. and studied special education … He was all-Northeast Conference as a freshman, with a record of 6-1. Mount St. Mary?s, of Frederick County, is now a member of the Northeast Conference … He was signed by the Orioles as a minor league free agent on Jan. 31, 2006.
