The last time the voting populace elected a Seattle Mariners designated hitter as an All-Star Game starter, the club won 93 games and finished in second place in the American League West.
With the Orioles entering July in second place in the American League East and tied with the Oakland A's for the top Wild Card spot, it's natural to look ahead to the end of the month and baseball's non-waiver trade deadline.
The Orioles officially added first baseman Travis Ishikawa before Tuesday's game. Ishikawa had exercised an opt-out clause in his contract Sunday and the Orioles had until midnight to add him, trade him or release him.
The Orioles grinded out a 5-1 win over the Texas Rangers to advance to the best-of-five American League Division Series against the New York Yankees, which begins Sunday evening at Camden Yards.
Baltimore Orioles manager Buck Showalter has put his team's playoff hopes in the hands of veteran left-hander Joe Saunders, who has been tabbed to start Friday night's do-or-die American League wild-card playoff game at Rangers Ballpark.
The Orioles chose the wrong kind of recent franchise history to mirror in Monday's 13-4 loss to the Rangers, however, the kind that has plagued the Orioles for more than a decade
When the Orioles played at the Rangers Ballpark in Arlington on Monday night for the first time since that fateful meeting, Buck Showalter was in the visiting dugout.
