They were heard, but were they understood?
The players on the field were completely aware of the protesters in the left-field upper deck at Oriole Park at Camden Yards Thursday, but some of the Orioles weren?t quite sure what the protesters were trying to accomplish.
A group of roughly 1,000 fans, mobilized by Nestor Aparicio, owner of radio station WNST 1570 AM, walked out of the 4:05 p.m. game at 5:08 to protest the team?s management and ownership.
“I?m confused with who they?re upset at,” veteran Jay Gibbons said. “Us? The owner? I don?t know.”
Second baseman Brian Roberts had similar thoughts after the Orioles? 4-3 win over Detroit.
“Anytime your fans show that they care, it?s good,” Roberts said. “They care about the team, they care about the organization, they care about winning. Now, what they were trying to accomplish, I have no idea. It was interesting, that?s for sure.”
Other Orioles were just happy to have some energetic fans in the ballpark during the club?s ninth consecutive losing season.
“It was pretty loud,” said Kris Benson, Thursday?s starting pitcher. “It was pretty hard to miss. I think all the players liked it, as far as we don?t mind if they come to the field every single day and do that kind of cheering for the team.”
The protest made national news, including a brief video montage on ESPN?s “SportsCenter.”
“It was a perplexing situation. ? I didn?t know how to take it,” left fielder David Newhan said. “It would be great to have that energy there every night, and I know they?d like to be there every night.”
The one constant from the organization was the desire to have passionate fans back at the ballpark.
“I thought they showed a lot of passion, a lot of exuberance,” said Mike Flanagan, the Orioles? executive vice president and a former left-handed pitcher for the team. “Frankly, it reminded me a lot of the ?70s and ?80s when I was playing. I guess in some respect, we wish it would continue on for nine innings.”
