Brandon Weigel

The collectibles and tchotchkes I kept from Cal Ripken Jr.’s streak I went digging through my parents’ storage unit and my own basement to resurface some of the items I’ve been holding on to all these years.

By @brandonweigel.bsky.social: The collectibles and tchotchkes I kept from Cal Ripken Jr.’s streak. (📸: @azambelich.bsky.social) (via @thebaltimorebanner.com)

Jordan Westburg would like to see veteran leaders added in the offseason "I think I speak for Jackson, Gunnar, Adley, myself, we are more reserved, quiet," Westburg said. "We are more lead-by-example guys. This clubhouse doesn’t really have that loud voice, perhaps."

Jordan Westburg has spoken as candidly as anyone on the reality of the Orioles this year. In a recent conversation, he dove into the leadership "void" and how he thinks the addition of an outspoken veteran would go far in assisting a young core.

Story:
www.thebaltimorebanner.com/sports/oriol...

Hello prospective and renewing Birdland members. I want to talk to you about this!

Looking for how ticket-buyers are feeling -- good, bad or indifferent (I have not seen a lot of "indifferent" though). DMs are open, or email me at kyle.goon AT thebaltimorebanner dot com.

They speak for the Gunpowder River. That includes warning about E. coli. Volunteers with the Gunpowder Riverkeepers are uncovering dangerously high E. coli levels in parts of Baltimore’s beloved river, raising concerns about water safety, pollution and what’s at stake for ...

Tubing down the Gunpowder River is the perfect way to spend a summer day— except when E. coli levels are soaring, as they have frequently this year. I spent time with the Gunpowder Riverkeepers to see how they’re working to protect the river. www.thebaltimorebanner.com/gunpowder-ri...

Baltimore real estate developer Brandon Chasen agrees to enter bankruptcy In a statement, Adam Freiman, Brandon Chasen's attorney, said his client "remains focused on seeing this process through with dignity and honesty."

NEW: Baltimore developer Brandon Chasen has agreed enter bankruptcy.

In a statement to @thebaltimorebanner.com, his lawyer said Chasen would learn from "painful and profound" lessons.

w/ @dylansegelbaum.bsky.social & @halliemiller.bsky.social

www.thebaltimorebanner.com/economy/grow...

How Orioles pitcher Cade Povich helped the Savannah Bananas explode Cade Povich is sure there’s video of it somewhere, on someone’s phone, and it just hasn’t burst into the light of social media. The Orioles pitcher remembers that day five years ago, though, with some...

Before the Savannah Bananas exploded, Orioles pitcher Cade Povich helped create Banana Ball.

Povich pitched in the first Banana Ball rules game in front of fans. There have been nearly 300 since.

On Povich before the Bananas take over Baltimore: www.thebaltimorebanner.com/sports/oriol...

How cuts to Medicaid and food stamps could end up hurting kids Spending cuts may be aimed at adults on paper, but kids could still end up without sufficient food and health care under the One Big Beautiful Bill.

The largest cuts to SNAP & Medicaid in U.S. history don't explicitly target kids - but they're likely to feel the pain when the adults who care for them lose benefits. Here's what social services experts are most worried about www.thebaltimorebanner.com/education/ea...

Kyle Goon: John Harbaugh should have thought twice before visiting Trump White House The Harbaugh Coaching Academy focuses on caring for those you lead. Why visit the most divisive president in modern history, then?

Great column from @kylegoon.bsky.social.
www.thebaltimorebanner.com/sports/raven...

Guess the Orioles:

www.thebaltimorebanner.com/sports/oriol...

Fallston’s Charlie Cerrato should finally hear his name called at the NHL draft Charlie Cerrato was passed over the last two years but expects to hear his name called Saturday.

Fallston’s Charlie Cerrato should finally hear his name called at the NHL draft

Luis Guevera will never leave his Delmarva Shorebirds teammates For many of these low-level Orioles minor league players, Guevara, who died in a watercraft crash, had been a near-constant companion through their time in the organization.

Spent some time in Salisbury to talk with those in the organization who loved Luis Guevara most.

They called him their brother. A coach promised to be more like the 19-year-old. A minor league baseball team embraced the spirit of an amazing kid.

Read:
www.thebaltimorebanner.com/sports/oriol...

“I think, when she saw the contract it was when she realized, ‘OK, this is the real deal.’”

The family of one of the nation’s fastest high school sprinters takes you inside a landmark NIL deal. How Elise Cooper navigated an uncharted, hazardous market: www.thebaltimorebanner.com/sports/colle...

Johns Hopkins pauses pay increases, freezes hiring amid federal cuts The Johns Hopkins University will freeze staff hiring and pay increases as it deals with federal funding losses

BREAKING: Amid more federal funding and research cuts, Johns Hopkins University is pausing pay increases, freezing staff hiring and reducing capital projects by up to 20%. The university is on track to lose nearly $1 billion in funding — so far. Read:
www.thebaltimorebanner.com/education/hi...

“Even though she’s got aches and pains, she still gets to look beautiful for one more day.”

Once, they owned Pimlico. On Saturday, the De Francis family, friends and longtime employees grappled with saying goodbye to the track they’ve known so well.

www.thebaltimorebanner.com/sports/horse...

I'm at the track as T-Pain performs!

What will be preserved from Pimlico Race Course before it’s torn down? Meet the archivist charged with preserving Maryland's racing history.

Pimlico Race Course is full of artifacts. Where will they go when it is razed?

What you need to know about Maryland’s audit of police-custody deaths The audit’s implications reach far beyond a finding of 36 wrongfully classified deaths.

Groundbreaking audit of Md. police-custody deaths has major implications:
-It "validates concerns" of biased death investigations
-Dozens of deaths will be reexamined
-Nail in the coffin for "excited delirium"
-It all started with the George Floyd trial
www.thebaltimorebanner.com/community/cr...

Maryland wanted to make poor areas greener. It boosted a rich neighborhood instead. Maryland wanted to make poor areas greener but instead it boosted the already rich and green neighborhood of Roland Park in Baltimore.

When Maryland lawmakers approved the Greenspace Equity Program two years ago, they wanted to support parks in poor and polluted communities.

This year, they scrapped the process and boosted one of Baltimore's richest and greenest neighborhoods instead.
www.thebaltimorebanner.com/politics-pow...

Baltimore Banner wins Pulitzer Prize for coverage of overdose crisis The Baltimore Banner was awarded the Pulitzer Prize on Monday for groundbreaking local journalism that exposed Baltimore as the deadliest large city in the nation for drug overdoses.

Baltimore Banner wins Pulitzer Prize for coverage of overdose crisis

The Orioles believe they will find a leader to guide them out of this rut Austin Hays, James McCann, Rougned Odor and Anthony Santander are no longer here. In their place are, in large part, high-profile players navigating the change from prospects to regulars.

The Orioles believe they can get out of this rut — and find a leader to guide them there.

On the leadership question, how the Orioles are going through a “learning curve” and the search for authentic voices in the clubhouse:

www.thebaltimorebanner.com/sports/oriol...

For WrestleMania weekend, we went where pro wrestling dreams begin.

A wrestling school tucked away in a Harford County strip mall has trained stars like WWE's Lita and Mickie James and AEW's Lio Rush and Action Andretti.

Read it 👇🏾

www.thebaltimorebanner.com/culture/life...

Super proud of the @thebaltimorebanner.com newsroom for winning an IRE award for our Key Bridge collapse coverage. At the time, we didn't even have a live blog, but we did have great journalists who know this community and what the bridge meant to it.

The Orioles have yet to extend their young stars. Agents share their thoughts. Scott Boras says the deals are about ‘cost containment,’ while another agent says they get clients big paydays sooner

Spoke with three agents, including Scott Boras, regarding the spate of contract extensions around the league and the outlook for the Orioles, who have yet to seal one.

Here's what they had to say: www.thebaltimorebanner.com/sports/oriol...

The Orioles are bringing back this on-field fashion accessory “Everyone had one,” catcher Adley Rutschman said of the high school baseball staple. “You noticed it, especially in travel ball.”

Remember those necklaces every kid in baseball wore a decade ago? Yeah, the Orioles remember too.

The comeback of the Phiten necklaces begins in Baltimore.

“If the boys are going to wear one, I’ll wear one.”

www.thebaltimorebanner.com/sports/oriol...

Kyle Goon: The Orioles win in ways they struggled to last season With singles and a cadre of relievers, the Orioles show how they can keep winning early this season without some of their biggest names available to play.

Kyle Goon: The Orioles make the most out of scraps on Opening Day. That’s the formula going forward.

Orioles score in bunches, beat Red Sox 8-5 in home opener There are few players over the last decade <a href="https://www.thebaltimorebanner.com/sports/orioles-mlb/anthony-santander-signs-with-toronto-blue-jays-OPJY3QSPHRDD3AG4MCESQCMHPU/" target="_self" rel=""...

Orioles score in bunches, beat Red Sox 8-5 in home opener

Cedric Mullins relishes the spotlight in what may be his final home opener “These first five games, he’s playing really, really good baseball and taking great at-bats," manager Brandon Hyde said. "Our best baseball has always been when Ced’s going.”

Orioles’ Cedric Mullins relishes the home opener spotlight, and comes through with 4 RBI game

MD/DC/VA FRIENDS:
Join us in College Park for a conversation with the reporting and editing team that broke one of the most talked-about sports stories of the year. Hope to see you there.

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Let’s connect. @thebaltimorebanner.com

Meet the heavy metal-loving reliever hoping to pitch for the Orioles Riley Cooper is not a high-profile pitching prospect in Baltimore’s system; he doesn’t throw with the sort of velocity that captivates scouts and makes front offices salivate. But he gets outs — and t...

On that LSU national title team, Paul Skenes was the star. But Riley Cooper, taken 12 rounds behind Skenes, was a hero in his own right.

And he’s chasing his dream too.

Meet Cooper, the loud, confident, heavy metal-loving Orioles minor league pitcher:
www.thebaltimorebanner.com/sports/oriol...