O nO

The Red Sox were swept away by the Orioles this weekend, and I'm all O'd out because Christine and I spent the weekend in Baltimore to witness Saturday's debacle for ourselves.

Beside the Red Sox - our reason for the trip - it was a nice little getaway.

It was weird seeing so many Red Sox shirts throughout the city. Christine, wearing her Phillies shirt, got to experience what it's like to wear an unrelated team's garb to a ball game.

Besides the game, we walked around the Inner Harbor and took a water taxi over to tour Fort McHenry, and I ate a crab cake sandwich.

During one of our travels, a Red Sox fan (wearing a Cubs shirt?) excitedly stopped us to tell us the Red Sox were staying at his hotel, the Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel. The team did a number on the breakfast buffet - especially Hideki Okajima with the fruit - and Daisuke Matsuzaka was a bit surly, the fan reported. We doubt that the team would eat at the same buffet as the rest of the guests, but we wanted to pass along the man's story anyway.

Walking to the game, a church had a sign out front that said something along the lines of, "Lord bless the O's, maybe the Sox, but the Yankees? Forgive our thoughts." Amen.

At the park: When we went to Camden Yards in 2007, we couldn't believe how poorly it has aged compared with Citizens Bank. It didn't seem as bad this time, probably because we entered with lower expectations, but it was still bush league.

Prime example: CoverGirl was giving makeovers inside the park. "Philly chicks come for the game," I said to Christine, who pointed out that the booth was full of Red Sox fans.

The makeup company also sponsored Kiss Cam. It found a Red Sox fan whose mate was conked out. She seemed angry and embarrassed by the sleeping and started deeply kissing another nearby fan.

Christine and I recently discussed whether a poor year by the Red Sox would "thin out the herd" of some of the bandwagon jumpers. I was starting to warm to this idea until we saw a group of drunken girls merrily singing Sweet Caroline on the way out of the park. If fans are so oblivious to the games, I don't think they'll give up their Neil Diamond fixes because of some losing seasons.

Other culture shocks: Culture Club was playing before the game, the Orioles sold Red Sox memorabilia throughout the park, vendors were so bored they invited you to buy from their food stands, still no cup holders in the seats!, a random fan threw out the first pitch, and fans (mostly Red Sox) started a wave. And they did it backward - counterclockwise.

Other annoyances: Fans were obnoxious, and ushers did not enforce the rule that says you don't move to or from your seat during a pitch. ... A family near us asked an Orioles fan to take a picture of her "large family from out-of-state." The Orioles fan wasn't happy but obliged even as she was introduced to every one of the 20 members of the Red Sox woman's family. ... A guy had the gall to wear a Yankees hat with a Dustin Pedroia jersey - unforgivable. ... The fans. ... The game.

Game notes: The highlight was watching Super Saver win the Kentucky Derby on the scoreboard. This was the second time Christine and I watched a Triple Crown race at a ballpark (first time was 2007). ... Maxx Factor sang the anthem; it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. ... Dice-K, making his 2010 debut, was actually efficient and effective until giving up six runs in the 5th. ... It was sad watching Tim Wakefield take a beating in his first relief appearance. ... David Ortiz hit two home runs. The game was played in beautiful 84 degree weather and moved at a great clip considering it was a 12-9 game - two hours 48 minutes.

Antiquated SoxandO's jerseys: Jeff Conine, Rick Dempsey, Rafael Palmeiro, Nomar Garciaparra, Gregg Zaun, Manny Ramirez, Jason Bay, Curt Schilling, Melvin Mora, Trot Nixon and Brady Anderson.

Huh? We spotted a Schilling Red Sox shirt with white writing, a Chase Utley UCLA-themed shirt and a couple of Babe Ruth Red Sox shirts. Phillies fans were also representing throughout the city - we saw shirts for Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins, Utley, Cole Hamels, Roy Halladay and Citizens Bank Park.

I rocked a new Red Sox T-shirt Christine got me for my birthday.

Oh yeah: The Orioles new scoreboard is an improvement, but it still seems dated. One improvement is the out-of-town scoreboard that is much more detailed than the ones at Citizens Bank. A random example is pictured above: You can see that the Phillies beat the Mets 10-0. Roy Halladay beat Mike Pelfrey. Utley went 3-5 with a double and three runs. Shane Victorino hit a home run.

Curiously, the picture we took of the final score between the Red Sox and Orioles didn't turn out too well.

Oh well, time to finish unpacking so we can watch the rubber game between the Mets and Phillies on ESPN. Mets are leading 3-2 early in the game.