1996 Baltimore Orioles season

The 1996 Baltimore Orioles season was the 96th season in Baltimore Orioles franchise history, the 43rd in Baltimore, and the 5th at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.

1996 Baltimore Orioles
American League Wild Card winners
League	American League
Division	East
Ballpark	Oriole Park at Camden Yards
City	Baltimore, Maryland
Record	88–74 (.543)
Divisional place	2nd
Owners	Peter Angelos
General managers	Pat Gillick
Managers	Davey Johnson
Television	WJZ-TV Home Team Sports (Mel Proctor, Josh Lewin, Mike Flanagan, Jim Palmer)
Radio	WBAL (AM) (Chuck Thompson, Jon Miller, Fred Manfra)
← 1995 Seasons 1997 →

The Orioles finished second in the American League East with a record of 88 wins and 74 losses and qualifying for the post-season as the Wild Card team. The Orioles broke the all-time record for most home runs hit by a team (set at 240 by the 1961 New York Yankees) with 257. During the season, four Orioles scored at least 100 runs, four drove in at least 100 runs and nine hit at least 20 home runs (Eddie Murray hit 10 home runs with the Indians before being traded to the Orioles, where he would hit 12 more home runs for a total of 22 for the season. Todd Zeile hit 20 home runs with the Philadelphia Phillies of the National League before he was traded to the Orioles, which technically did not count for his home run total for the season after being traded to the American League Orioles). The Orioles pitching staff allowed 209 home runs, 1,604 hits and had an ERA of 5.15. The Orioles defeated the Cleveland Indians in the ALDS and then lost in the ALCS to the New York Yankees.

Offseason

Oriole Park at Camden Yards, September 1996

• November 22, 1995: Clay Bellinger was signed as a free agent with the Baltimore Orioles.^[1]
• December 14, 1995: Randy Myers signed as a free agent with the Baltimore Orioles.^[2]
• December 20, 1995: B. J. Surhoff was signed as a free agent with the Baltimore Orioles.^[3]
• December 23, 1995: Billy Ripken was signed as a free agent with the Baltimore Orioles.^[4]
• March 13, 1996: Sherman Obando was traded by the Baltimore Orioles to the Montreal Expos for Tony Tarasco.^[5]

Regular season

• On September 27 in Toronto, Roberto Alomar spat at home-plate umpire John Hirschbeck after getting thrown out of a game for arguing a called third strike.^[6]

Opening Day starters

• Roberto Alomar
• Brady Anderson
• Bobby Bonilla
• Jeffrey Hammonds
• Chris Hoiles
• Mike Mussina
• Rafael Palmeiro
• Cal Ripken Jr.
• B. J. Surhoff
• Tony Tarasco^[7]

Notable transactions

• December 21, 1995: Roberto Alomar was signed as a free agent.
• December 26, 1995: Traded Curtis Goodwin and Trovin Valdez to Cincinnati Reds for David Wells.
• April 19, 1996: Luis Polonia was signed as a free agent with the Baltimore Orioles.^[8]
• June 6, 1996: Todd Frohwirth was signed as a free agent with the Baltimore Orioles.^[9]
• August 12, 1996: Luis Polonia was released by the Baltimore Orioles.^[8]
• August 23, 1996: Gregg Zaun was sent by the Baltimore Orioles to the Florida Marlins to complete an earlier deal made on August 21, 1996. The Baltimore Orioles sent a player to be named later to the Florida Marlins for Terry Mathews. The Baltimore Orioles sent Gregg Zaun (August 23, 1996) to the Florida Marlins to complete the trade.^[10]
• August 29, 1996: Traded Calvin Maduro and Garrett Stephenson to Philadelphia Phillies for Todd Zeile and Pete Incaviglia.

Season standings

• v
• t
• e

AL East

Team	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
New York Yankees	92	70	.568	—	49‍–‍31	43‍–‍39
Baltimore Orioles	88	74	.543	4	43‍–‍38	45‍–‍36
Boston Red Sox	85	77	.525	7	47‍–‍34	38‍–‍43
Toronto Blue Jays	74	88	.457	18	35‍–‍46	39‍–‍42
Detroit Tigers	53	109	.327	39	27‍–‍54	26‍–‍55

Record vs. opponents

1996 American League record Source: MLB Standings Grid – 1996 v t e
Team	BAL	BOS	CAL	CWS	CLE	DET	KC	MIL	MIN	NYY	OAK	SEA	TEX	TOR
Baltimore	—	7–6	6–6	4–8	5–7	11–2	9–3	9–3	7–5	3–10	9–4	7–5	3–10–1	8–5
Boston	6–7	—	8–4	6–6	1–11	12–1	3–9	7–5	6–6	7–6	8–5	7–6	6–6	8–5
California	6–6	4–8	—	6–6	4–9	6–6	4–8	7–5	4–8	7–6	6–7	5–8	4–9	7–5
Chicago	8–4	6–6	6–6	—	5–8	10–3	7–6	6–7	6–7	6–7	5–7	5–7	8–4	7–5
Cleveland	7–5	11–1	9–4	8–5	—	12–0	7–6	7–6	10–3	3–9	6–6	8–4	4–8	7–5
Detroit	2–11	1–12	6–6	3–10	0–12	—	6–6	4–8	6–6	5–8	4–8	6–6	4–9	6–7
Kansas City	3–9	9–3	8–4	6–7	6–7	6–6	—	4–9	6–7	4–8	5–7	7–5	6–6	5–8
Milwaukee	3–9	5–7	5–7	7–6	6–7	8–4	9–4	—	9–4	6–6	7–5	4–9	6–7	5–7
Minnesota	5–7	6–6	8–4	7–6	3–10	6–6	7–6	4–9	—	5–7	6–7	6–6	7–5	8–5
New York	10–3	6–7	6–7	7–6	9–3	8–5	8–4	6–6	7–5	—	9–3	3–9	5–7	8–5
Oakland	4–9	5–8	7–6	7–5	6–6	8–4	7–5	5–7	7–6	3–9	—	8–5	7–6	4–8
Seattle	5–7	6–7	8–5	7–5	4–8	6–6	5–7	9–4	6–6	9–3	5–8	—	10–3	5–7
Texas	10–3–1	6–6	9–4	4–8	8–4	9–4	6–6	7–6	5–7	7–5	6–7	3–10	—	10–2
Toronto	5–8	5–8	5–7	5–7	5–7	7–6	8–5	7–5	5–8	5–8	8–4	7–5	2–10	—

Game log

1996 Game Log: 88–74 (Home: 43–38; Away: 45–36)
April: 14–12 (Home: 10–6; Away: 4–6) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 1 April 2 Royals 4–2 Mussina (1–0) Appier Myers (1) 46,818 1–0 2 April 3 Royals 7–1 Wells (1–0) Gubicza — 40,068 2–0 3 April 4 Royals 5–3 Rhodes (1–0) Pichardo Myers (2) 38,753 3–0 4 April 5 @ Twins 2–1 Mercker (1–0) Guardado Myers (3) 22,744 4–0 5 April 6 @ Twins 3–8 Radke Haynes (0–1) — 22,334 4–1 6 April 7 @ Twins 4–2 Mussina (2–0) Robertson Myers (4) 14,580 5–1 7 April 10 Indians 3–2 (10) Orosco (1–0) Tavarez — 45,097 6–1 8 April 11 Indians 14–4 Erickson (1–0) Hershiser Rhodes (1) 43,189 7–1 9 April 12 Twins 3–2 Mussina (3–0) Robertson — 42,602 8–1 10 April 13 Twins 7–6 Benitez (1–0) Mahomes — 42,644 9–1 11 April 14 Twins 1–4 Rodriguez Haynes (0–2) Stevens 42,660 9–2 12 April 16 Red Sox 6–1 Wells (2–0) Clemens — 40,017 10–2 13 April 17 Red Sox 6–5 (12) Rhodes (2–0) Maddux — 40,258 11–2 14 April 18 Red Sox 7–10 Moyer Mussina (3–1) Slocumb 47,283 11–3 15 April 19 @ Rangers 7–26 Cook Mercker (1–1) Vosberg 41,184 11–4 16 April 20 @ Rangers 3–8 Gross Haynes (0–3) — 45,358 11–5 17 April 21 @ Rangers 6–9 Oliver Wells (2–1) — 39,456 11–6 18 April 22 @ Indians 3–6 Nagy Erickson (1–1) Mesa 42,236 11–7 19 April 23 @ Indians 8–9 Ogea Mussina (3–2) Mesa 40,770 11–8 20 April 24 @ Royals 11–8 Mercker (2–1) Haney — 13,962 12–8 21 April 25 @ Royals 3–2 Rhodes (3–0) Valera Myers (5) 16,090 13–8 22 April 26 Rangers 4–5 Brandenburg Wells (2–2) Henneman 44,022 13–9 23 April 27 Rangers 2–4 Witt Erickson (1–2) Vosberg 47,311 13–10 24 April 28 Rangers 4–5 (10) Heredia McDowell (0–1) Henneman 47,327 13–11 25 April 29 Rangers 8–7 Haynes (1–3) Helling Myers (6) 41,503 14–11 26 April 30 Yankees 10–13 Nelson Shepherd (0–1) Wetteland 43,117 14–12
May: 14–10 (Home: 8–5; Away: 6–5) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 27 May 1 Yankees 6–11 (15) Pettitte Mercker (2–2) — 47,472 14–13 28 May 3 Brewers 8–2 Erickson (2–2) Bones — 41,037 15–13 29 May 4 Brewers 10–5 Mussina (4–2) Sparks — 44,175 16–13 30 May 5 Brewers 1–13 McDonald Haynes (1–4) — 46,027 16–14 31 May 7 @ White Sox 2–3 Fernandez Wells (2–3) Hernandez 16,130 16–15 32 May 8 @ White Sox 2–11 Baldwin Erickson (2–3) — 14,974 16–16 33 May 9 @ White Sox 6–4 Mussina (5–2) Alvarez Myers (7) 14,507 17–16 34 May 10 @ Brewers 10–7 (12) Orosco (2–0) Garcia McDowell (1) 9,520 18–16 35 May 11 @ Brewers 5–3 (10) Rhodes (4–0) Potts Myers (8) 21,081 19–16 36 May 12 @ Brewers 4–6 Miranda Erickson (2–4) Fetters 14,333 19–17 37 May 13 @ Athletics 4–3 Krivda (1–0) Johns Myers (9) 8,204 20–17 38 May 14 @ Athletics 9–1 Mussina (6–2) Reyes — 8,466 21–17 39 May 17 Mariners 14–13 Mills (1–0) Charlton — 47,259 22–17 40 May 18 Mariners 3–7 Milacki Mercker (2–3) — 46,434 22–18 41 May 19 Mariners 8–7 Mussina (7–2) Hurtado Myers (10) 47,565 23–18 42 May 20 Angels 13–1 Wells (3–3) Grimsley — 43,492 24–18 43 May 21 Angels 2–5 Boskie Krivda (1–1) Percival 39,974 24–19 44 May 22 Angels 10–5 Haynes (2–4) Abbott McDowell (2) 45,817 25–19 45 May 24 Athletics 5–4 (10) McDowell (1–1) Reyes — 45,024 26–19 46 May 25 Athletics 3–6 Johns Wells (3–4) Groom 47,353 26–20 47 May 26 Athletics 6–1 Mercker (3–3) Chouinard McDowell (3) 47,401 27–20 48 May 28 @ Mariners 12–8 Rhodes (5–0) Guetterman Haynes (1) 23,235 28–20 49 May 29 @ Mariners 8–9 Charlton Myers (0–1) — 20,253 28–21 50 May 31 @ Angels 3–10 Langston Wells (3–5) — 21,603 28–22
June: 14–14 (Home: 6–6; Away: 8–8) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 51 June 1 @ Angels 3–8 Boskie Haynes (2–5) — 35,350 28–23 52 June 2 @ Angels 14–1 Erickson (3–4) Abbott — 33,704 29–23 53 June 4 Tigers 10–7 Mussina (8–2) Gohr Myers (11) 43,727 30–23 54 June 5 Tigers 6–4 Rhodes (6–0) Myers Myers (12) 43,087 31–23 55 June 6 Tigers 13–6 Krivda (2–1) Lira — 46,269 32–23 56 June 7 White Sox 2–8 Fernandez Erickson (3–5) — 47,209 32–24 57 June 8 White Sox 1–2 Baldwin Mercker (3–4) Hernandez 47,634 32–25 58 June 9 White Sox 9–12 Karchner Mussina (8–3) Hernandez 47,352 32–26 59 June 10 @ Tigers 3–8 Olivares Wells (3–6) — 10,655 32–27 60 June 11 @ Tigers 12–9 Coppinger (1–0) Lira — 10,874 33–27 61 June 12 @ Tigers 10–7 Rhodes (7–0) Lewis Myers (13) 12,043 34–27 62 June 13 @ Royals 2–10 Linton Mercker (3–5) — 20,108 34–28 63 June 14 @ Royals 6–1 Mussina (9–3) Gubicza — 28,502 35–28 64 June 15 @ Royals 6–7 (16) Magnante Krivda (2–2) — 24,784 35–29 65 June 16 @ Royals 13–5 Coppinger (2–0) Jacome Mills (1) 19,437 36–29 66 June 17 Rangers 1–1 (6) — 45,581 36–29 67 June 18 Rangers 0–7 Oliver Mercker (3–6) — 47,318 36–30 68 June 19 Rangers 2–3 Witt Mussina (9–4) Russell 45,581 36–31 69 June 20 Rangers 3–2 Wells (4–6) Gross Myers (14) 21,748 37–31 70 June 21 Royals 9–3 Rhodes (8–0) Haney — 47,644 38–31 71 June 22 Royals 5–3 Erickson (4–5) Montgomery — 47,534 39–31 72 June 23 Royals 0–4 Appier Krivda (2–3) — 47,608 39–32 73 June 24 @ Rangers 8–3 Mussina (10–4) Witt — 39,701 40–32 74 June 25 @ Rangers 2–5 Gross Wells (4–7) Henneman 41,685 40–33 75 June 26 @ Rangers 5–6 Cook Orosco (2–1) Henneman 38,984 40–34 76 June 27 @ Yankees 2–3 Rogers Erickson (4–6) Wetteland 34,161 40–35 77 June 28 @ Yankees 7–4 Rhodes (9–0) Rivera Myers (15) 43,515 41–35 78 June 29 @ Yankees 3–4 Pettitte Mussina (10–5) Wetteland 45,295 41–36 79 June 30 @ Yankees 9–1 Wells (5–7) Mendoza — 40,200 42–36
July: 11–16 (Home: 5–13; Away: 6–3) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 80 July 1 @ Blue Jays 7–4 Coppinger (3–0) Hentgen Myers (16) 43,377 43–36 81 July 2 @ Blue Jays 8–2 Erickson (5–6) Quantrill — 32,150 44–36 82 July 3 @ Blue Jays 2–5 Guzman Krivda (2–4) Timlin 32,365 44–37 83 July 4 Red Sox 8–6 Mussina (11–5) Wakefield Myers (17) 47,075 45–37 84 July 5 Red Sox 3–7 Sele Wells (5–8) — 47,237 45–38 85 July 6 Red Sox 4–3 Coppinger (4–0) Clemens Myers (18) 47,500 46–38 86 July 7 Red Sox 5–7 Hudson Myers (0–2) Slocumb 47,532 46–39 87 July 11 Yankees 2–4 Key Mussina (11–6) Wetteland 46,760 46–40 88 July 13 Yankees 2–3 Nelson Wells (5–9) Wetteland — 46–41 89 July 13 Yankees 5–7 Gooden Rhodes (9–1) Wetteland 46,451 46–42 90 July 14 Yankees 1–4 Pettitte Erickson (5–7) Wetteland 47,658 46–43 91 July 15 Blue Jays 8–6 Haynes (3–5) Timlin — 43,192 47–43 92 July 16 Blue Jays 0–6 Guzman Mussina (11–7) — 45,851 47–44 93 July 17 Blue Jays 11–10 Coppinger (5–0) Timlin — 45,955 48–44 94 July 18 @ Red Sox 6–3 Wells (6–9) Sele Myers (19) 33,014 49–44 95 July 19 @ Red Sox 2–13 Moyer Erickson (5–8) — 32,262 49–45 96 July 20 @ Red Sox 0–2 Wakefield Coppinger (5–1) Slocumb 33,590 49–46 97 July 21 @ Red Sox 10–6 (10) Myers (1–2) Stanton — 34,423 50–46 98 July 22 Twins 5–9 Robertson Haynes (3–6) Trombley 42,129 50–47 99 July 23 Twins 2–3 Aguilera Wells (6–10) Naulty 42,006 50–48 100 July 24 Twins 4–11 Rodriguez Erickson (5–9) — 46,181 50–49 101 July 25 Indians 7–10 Nagy Coppinger (5–2) — 47,025 50–50 102 July 26 Indians 9–14 Assenmacher Mussina (11–8) — 46,751 50–51 103 July 27 Indians 14–2 Wells (7–10) Hershiser — 47,360 51–51 104 July 28 Indians 3–6 (13) Mesa Stephenson (0–1) — 46,273 51–52 105 July 30 @ Twins 16–4 Coppinger (6–2) Rodriguez — 16,708 52–52 106 July 31 @ Twins 9–3 Mussina (12–8) Trombley — 15,897 53–52
August: 19–11 (Home: 7–4; Away: 12–7) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 107 August 1 @ Twins 4–2 Wells (8–10) Robertson Myers (20) 20,379 54–52 108 August 2 @ Indians 1–11 Hershiser Erickson (5–10) — 42,465 54–53 109 August 3 @ Indians 9–4 Orosco (3–1) Ogea — 42,448 55–53 110 August 4 @ Indians 2–14 Anderson Coppinger (6–3) — 42,349 55–54 111 August 5 @ Indians 13–10 Wells (9–10) Assenmacher — 40,863 56–54 112 August 6 @ Brewers 13–3 Mussina (13–8) McDonald — 17,075 57–54 113 August 7 @ Brewers 12–2 Erickson (6–10) Karl — 20,287 58–54 114 August 8 @ Brewers 6–4 Coppinger (7–3) D'Amico Myers (21) 18,620 59–54 115 August 9 @ White Sox 3–4 (10) Simas Myers (1–3) — 23,995 59–55 116 August 10 @ White Sox 13–4 Mussina (14–8) Alvarez McDowell (4) 26,772 60–55 117 August 11 @ White Sox 5–8 Tapani Mills (1–1) Hernandez 27,088 60–56 118 August 13 Brewers 4–3 Corbin (1–0) Lloyd Myers (22) 44,461 61–56 119 August 14 Brewers 8–5 Milchin (1–0) Bones Myers (23) 47,480 62–56 120 August 15 @ Athletics 18–5 Mussina (15–8) Adams — 14,026 63–56 121 August 16 @ Athletics 14–3 Erickson (7–10) Wasdin — — 64–56 122 August 16 @ Athletics 5–4 (10) Myers (2–3) Mohler — 15,645 65–56 123 August 17 @ Athletics 1–3 Prieto Coppinger (7–4) Acre 20,231 65–57 124 August 18 @ Athletics 6–9 Wengert Wells (9–11) — 18,122 65–58 125 August 20 Mariners 4–1 Mussina (16–8) Wagner Myers (24) 47,679 66–58 126 August 21 Mariners 10–5 Erickson (8–10) Hitchcock — 47,198 67–58 127 August 22 Mariners 3–10 Moyer Coppinger (7–5) — 47,380 67–59 128 August 23 Angels 0–2 Boskie Wells (9–12) Percival 47,291 67–60 129 August 24 Angels 5–4 Mussina (17–8) Abbott Myers (25) 46,487 68–60 130 August 25 Angels 0–13 Springer Erickson (8–11) — 47,239 68–61 131 August 26 Athletics 12–11 (10) Myers (3–3) Acre — 43,361 69–61 132 August 27 Athletics 3–1 Wells (10–12) Prieto Myers (26) 43,641 70–61 133 August 28 Athletics 0–3 Wengert Mussina (17–9) — 45,282 70–62 134 August 29 @ Mariners 6–9 Charlton Myers (3–4) — 24,915 70–63 135 August 30 @ Mariners 5–2 Coppinger (8–5) Hitchcock Mills (2) 44,532 71–63 136 August 31 @ Mariners 7–6 Erickson (9–11) Bosio Benitez (1) 42,092 72–63
September: 16–11 (Home: 7–4; Away: 9–7) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 137 September 1 @ Mariners 1–5 Mulholland Wells (10–13) — 50,015 72–64 138 September 2 @ Angels 12–8 Mussina (18–9) Boskie — 20,287 73–64 139 September 3 @ Angels 2–10 Harris Coppinger (8–6) — 15,924 73–65 140 September 4 @ Angels 4–2 Erickson (10–11) Springer Myers (27) 18,204 74–65 141 September 6 Tigers 4–5 (12) Cummings Mathews (0–1) — 46,708 74–66 142 September 7 Tigers 6–0 Mussina (19–9) Thompson — 47,131 75–66 143 September 8 Tigers 6–2 Mills (2–1) Eischen — 47,082 76–66 144 September 9 Tigers 5–4 Erickson (11–11) Olivares Myers (28) 42,562 77–66 145 September 10 White Sox 5–1 Wells (11–13) Tapani — 43,320 78–66 146 September 11 White Sox 7–6 (10) Mills (3–1) Hernandez — 43,320 79–66 147 September 12 White Sox 3–11 Fernandez Mussina (19–10) — 47,342 79–67 148 September 13 @ Tigers 7–4 Erickson (12–11) Miller Mills (3) 11,178 80–67 149 September 14 @ Tigers 7–6 Mathews (1–1) Cummings Myers (29) 15,386 81–67 150 September 15 @ Tigers 16–6 Corbin (2–0) Van Poppel — 13,764 82–67 151 September 18 @ Yankees 2–3 (10) Rivera Mills (3–2) — 40,775 82–68 152 September 19 @ Yankees 3–9 Rogers Mussina (19–11) — — 82–69 153 September 19 @ Yankees 10–9 Mathews (2–1) Rivera Myers (30) 54,888 83–69 154 September 20 Blue Jays 1–5 Hentgen Krivda (2–5) Spoljaric 47,026 83–70 155 September 21 Blue Jays 6–3 Coppinger (9–6) Williams Myers (31) 47,270 84–70 156 September 22 Blue Jays 5–4 Erickson (13–11) Flener Benitez (2) 46,035 85–70 157 September 23 Brewers 7–8 (10) Jones Mathews (2–2) Fetters 46,542 85–71 158 September 24 @ Red Sox 8–13 Gordon Wells (11–14) Mahomes 28,557 85–72 159 September 25 @ Red Sox 6–2 Krivda (3–5) Wakefield Benitez (3) 28,432 86–72 160 September 26 @ Blue Jays 4–1 Coppinger (10–6) Williams Benitez (4) 30,141 87–72 161 September 27 @ Blue Jays 2–3 Flener Erickson (13–12) Timlin 30,116 87–73 162 September 28 @ Blue Jays 3–2 (10) Myers (4–4) Spoljaric — 36,316 88–73 163 September 29 @ Blue Jays 1–4 Hentgen Rodriguez (0–1) Timlin 38,267 88–74
Legend:        = Win        = Loss        = Tie Bold = Orioles team member

Detailed records

American League Opponent W L WP RS RA AL East Baltimore Orioles Boston Red Sox 7 6 0.538 71 78 Detroit Tigers 11 2 0.846 105 68 New York Yankees 3 10 0.231 62 75 Toronto Blue Jays 8 5 0.615 58 55 Total 29 23 0.558 296 276 AL Central Chicago White Sox 4 8 0.333 58 74 Cleveland Indians 5 7 0.417 86 92 Kansas City Royals 9 3 0.750 71 49 Milwaukee Brewers 9 3 0.750 88 61 Minnesota Twins 7 5 0.583 60 55 Total 34 26 0.567 363 331 AL West California Angels 6 6 0.500 68 69 Oakland Athletics 9 4 0.692 86 54 Seattle Mariners 7 5 0.583 81 82 Texas Rangers 3 10 0.231 55 91 Total 25 25 0.500 290 296 Season Total 88 74 0.543 949 903

Month Games Won Lost Win % RS RA April 26 14 12 0.538 141 153 May 24 14 10 0.583 154 145 June 28 14 14 0.500 166 144 July 27 11 16 0.407 153 160 August 30 19 11 0.633 192 165 September 27 16 11 0.593 143 136 Total 162 88 74 0.543 949 903 Games Won Lost Win % RS RA Home 81 43 38 0.531 437 440 Away 81 45 36 0.556 511 462 Total 162 88 74 0.543 949 903

Roster

1996 Baltimore Orioles
Roster
Pitchers 49 Armando Benítez 27 Rocky Coppinger 41 Archie Corbin 19 Scott Erickson 50 Jimmy Haynes 38 Rick Krivda 51 Terry Mathews 31 Roger McDowell 21 Kent Mercker 21 Mike Milchin 75 Alan Mills 35 Mike Mussina 46 Jimmy Myers 28 Randy Myers 47 Jesse Orosco 53 Arthur Rhodes 63 Nerio Rodríguez 57 Brian Sackinsky 45 Keith Shepherd 52 Garrett Stephenson 36 David Wells 43 Esteban Yan		Catchers 59 César Devarez 23 Chris Hoiles 24 Mark Parent 24 Gregg Zaun Infielders  6 Manny Alexander 12 Roberto Alomar 30 Jeff Huson 25 Rafael Palmeiro  3 Billy Ripken  8 Cal Ripken Jr. 17 B. J. Surhoff 14 Todd Zeile		Outfielders  9 Brady Anderson 26 Bobby Bonilla 30 Brent Bowers 10 Mike Devereaux 11 Jeffrey Hammonds 55 Pete Incaviglia 40 Gene Kingsale 29 Luis Polonia 34 Mark Smith  1 Tony Tarasco Other batters 33 Eddie Murray		Manager 15 Davey Johnson Coaches 37 Pat Dobson 48 Rick Down 55 Andy Etchebarren 44 Elrod Hendricks  2 Sam Perlozzo 18 John Stearns

Player stats

= Indicates team leader

Batting

Note: G = Pos = Position; Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; Avg. = Batting average

Pos	Player	G	AB	H	HR	RBI	Avg.
C	Chris Hoiles	127	407	105	25	73	.258
1B	Rafael Palmeiro	162	626	181	39	142	.289
2B	Roberto Alomar	153	588	193	22	94	.328
3B	B. J. Surhoff	143	537	157	21	82	.292
SS	Cal Ripken Jr.	163	640	178	26	102	.278
LF	Jeffrey Hammonds	71	248	56	9	27	.226
CF	Brady Anderson	149	579	172	50	110	.297
RF	Bobby Bonilla	159	595	171	28	116	.287
DH	Eddie Murray	64	230	59	10	34	.257

^[11]

Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; Avg. = Batting average

Player	G	AB	H	HR	RBI	Avg.
Mike Devereaux	127	323	74	8	34	.229
Luis Polonia	58	175	42	2	14	.240
Billy Ripken	57	135	31	2	12	.230
Todd Zeile	29	117	28	5	19	.239
Gregg Zaun	50	108	25	1	13	.231
Tony Tarasco	31	84	20	1	9	.238
Mark Smith	27	78	19	4	10	.244
Manny Alexander	54	68	7	0	4	.103
Brent Bowers	21	39	12	0	3	.308
Pete Incaviglia	12	33	10	2	8	.303
Mark Parent	18	33	6	2	6	.182
Jeff Huson	17	28	9	0	2	.321
César Devarez	10	18	2	0	0	.111
Gene Kingsale	3	0	0	0	0	.---

^[11]

Pitching

Position	Name	Games Pitched	Games Started	ERA	Wins	Losses	Saves	Innings Pitched	Strikeouts
Starting Pitchers
	Mike Mussina[12]	36	36	4.81	19	11	0	243.1	204
	Scott Erickson[13]	34	34	5.02	13	12	0	222.1	100
	David Wells[14]	34	34	5.14	11	14	0	224.1	130
	Rocky Coppinger[15]	23	22	5.18	10	6	0	135.0	104
	Kent Mercker[16]	14	12	7.76	3	6	0	58.0	22
Relief Pitchers
	Jesse Orosco[17]	66	0	3.40	3	1	0	55.2	52
	Roger McDowell[18]	41	0	4.25	1	1	4	59.1	20
	Arthur Rhodes[19]	28	0	4.08	9	1	1	53.0	62
	Alan Mills[20]	49	0	4.28	3	2	3	54.2	52
	Archie Corbin[21]	18	0	2.30	2	0	0	27.1	20
	Keith Shepherd[22]	13	0	8.71	0	1	0	20.2	17
	Terry Mathews[23]	14	0	3.38	2	2	0	18.2	13
	Armando Benítez[24]	18	0	3.77	1	0	4	14.1	20
	Jimmy Myers[25]	11	0	7.07	0	0	0	14.0	6
	Esteban Yan[26]	4	0	5.79	0	0	0	9.1	7
	Mike Milchin[27]	13	0	5.73	1	0	0	11.0	10
	Garrett Stephenson[27]	3	0	12.79	0	1	0	6.1	3
	Brian Sackinsky[28]	3	0	3.86	0	0	0	4.2	2
	Jimmy Haynes[29]	26	11	8.29	3	6	0	89.0	65
	Rick Krivda[30]	22	11	4.96	3	5	0	81.2	54
	Nerio Rodríguez[31]	8	1	4.32	0	1	0	16.2	12
	Manny Alexander[32]	1	0	67.50	0	0	0	0.2	0
Closer
	Randy Myers[2]	62	0	3.53	4	4	31	58.2	74

^[11]

Return of Eddie Murray

On July 21, 1996, the Baltimore Orioles re-acquired longtime Oriole Eddie Murray from the Cleveland Indians in exchange for pitcher Kent Mercker.^[33] Murray, a member of the 1983 World Series Champion Baltimore Orioles, would subsequently hit his 500th career home run later in the season. As a commemoration of this event, an orange seat was installed in the outfield stands where Murray's 500th home run landed. The Orioles had a record of 49 wins and 46 losses before the trade, and 39–28 after the trade, not including the playoffs. During the 1996 playoffs, Eddie Murray hit .333 and hit a home run while producing 3 RBI.

The trade for Eddie Murray sparked the Orioles to have a better record after his arrival, than before. One can attribute that to his great leadership, which is well documented, as a Sporting News correspondent, Michael P. Geffner said, "To think of Murray as anything other than a great player these days is not to have a dissenting opinion anymore but to be dead wrong, blind not only to the inner game but to an understanding of what truly raises baseball to something classic and beautiful--when the game is executed purely and seamlessly. Which is Eddie Murray to a T.".^[34] The Orioles success after the trade can also be attributed to the theory of "Power, worth, and recognition,^[35] " which Thomas S. Parish who is an associate professor of psychology at Upper Iowa University, Fayette, Iowa, describes as a type of motivation where athletes attempt to out do or "show off" to each other, which leads to better statistics, and more wins. In Eddie Murray's last at-bat with the Orioles he hit a home run off of New York Yankee pitcher, Andy Pettitte.

ALDS

Game 1, October 1

Main article: 1996 American League Division Series

Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Baltimore, Maryland

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Cleveland	0	1	0	2	0	0	1	0	0	4	10	0
Baltimore	1	1	2	0	0	5	1	0	X	10	10	1
WP: David Wells (1-0)   LP: Charles Nagy (0-1) Home runs: Cle: Manny Ramírez (1) Bal: Brady Anderson (1), B. J. Surhoff (1, 2), Bobby Bonilla (1)

Game 2, October 2

Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Baltimore, Maryland

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Cleveland	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	1	0	4	8	2
Baltimore	1	0	0	0	3	0	0	3	X	7	9	0
WP: Armando Benítez (1-0)   LP: Eric Plunk (0-1)   Sv: Randy Myers (1) Home runs: Cle: Albert Belle (1) Bal: Brady Anderson (2)

Game 3, October 4

Jacobs Field, Cleveland, Ohio

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Baltimore	0	1	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	4	8	2
Cleveland	1	2	0	1	0	0	4	1	X	9	10	0
WP: Paul Assenmacher (1-0)   LP: Jesse Orosco (0-1) Home runs: Bal: B. J. Surhoff (3) Cle: Manny Ramírez (2), Albert Belle (2)

Game 4, October 5

Jacobs Field, Cleveland, Ohio

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	R	H	E
Baltimore	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	4	14	1
Cleveland	0	0	0	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	7	1
WP: Armando Benítez (2-0)   LP: José Mesa (0-1)   Sv: Randy Myers (2) Home runs: Bal: Rafael Palmeiro (1), Bobby Bonilla (2), Roberto Alomar (1) Cle: None

ALCS

Main article: 1996 American League Championship Series

Game	Score	Date
1	Baltimore 4, New York 5	October 9
2	Baltimore 5, New York 3	October 10
3	New York 5, Baltimore 2	October 11
4	New York 8, Baltimore 4	October 12
5	New York 6, Baltimore 4	October 13

Jeffrey Maier incident

During Game 1 of the ALCS, New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter hit a deep fly ball to right field. Orioles outfielder Tony Tarasco camped under the ball and prepared to make a catch. However, a 12-year-old boy seated in the first row of the bleachers named Jeffrey Maier reached over the wall and caught the ball just above Tarrasco, costing the Orioles an out. Although it was fan interference, the umpire ruled the ball to be a home run. While Maier became a hero to Yankees fans, he immediately became a "symbol of the Orioles futility."^[36] The Orioles would go on to lose the series in five games.

Farm system

Level	Team	League	Manager
AAA	Rochester Red Wings	International League	Marv Foley
AA	Bowie Baysox	Eastern League	Bob Miscik and Tim Blackwell
A	High Desert Mavericks	California League	Joe Ferguson
A	Frederick Keys	Carolina League	Tim Blackwell and Julio Garcia
Rookie	Bluefield Orioles	Appalachian League	Bobby Dickerson
Rookie	GCL Orioles	Gulf Coast League	Tommy Shields

LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Bluefield^[37]