Ex-Oriole Davis honored
CINCINNATI -- Former Oriole Eric Davis was being inducted into the Reds Hall of Fame on Saturday at Great American Ball Park. And that occasion gave Orioles head trainer Richie Bancells a chance to reunite with a player with whom he still shares fond memories.
In May 1997, Davis was feeling stomach discomfort and asked Bancells to feel the affected area while in the on-deck circle at Cleveland's Jacobs Field. Davis was cleared to continue playing. After the discomfort didn't improve, Bancells ordered Davis back to Baltimore for an examination. Doctors at Johns Hopkins discovered a tumor the size of an orange in Davis' colon.
Davis had surgery and amazingly returned to the field in September 1997 to help the Orioles' playoff run. Davis would hit .327 for the Orioles in 1998, with 28 home runs, and he played three more seasons before retiring in 2001.
"He's always been a great guy, a great player, and I always enjoyed him when he was here," Bancells said. "It's a lesson for anybody who goes through a cancer situation like that.
"He was strong from the get-go. From the time I talked to him after he knew he had it, he was like, 'This isn't going to beat me.' He took it head-on. You knew everything was going to be OK."
Davis was perhaps more heralded for helping the Reds win the 1990 World Series with his heroics in the four-game sweep over the Oakland A's. But he proved to be a valuable player and clubhouse leader for the Orioles during his two seasons with the club.
Bancells said he still remembers the feeling when he touched Davis' stomach area.
"It was out of my league, but my experience with muscle pulls and muscle strains, my instincts told me it was not that," he said. "When you feel something like that, you have to get it in the hands of people who are more expert than you."
Davis and Bancells had a warm reunion just before Davis was to be inducted into the Reds Hall of Fame. (He was selected by the fans along with former fireballer Jose Rijo.)
"The experiences I had playing in the era I played in -- I wouldn't change it for the world," Davis said in a press conference before the game. "It was more than a teaching thing about how to be a professional. To see how they went through what they went through made my transition a lot easier. It made me the player that I was. The game back then was a totally different game than it is now. It was real down and dirty. They didn't just teach us how to get to the league, but how to stay in it."
Marrero in CF: Eli Marrero, who drew a walk Friday in his Orioles debut, was in the lineup in center field Saturday against Cincinnati lefty Brandon Claussen. Marrero had started three games in center for Kansas City earlier this season but has played mostly left field in his career.
It was Marrero's 52nd game at center, compared with 112 in left.
B.J. Surhoff got the nod in left field, and Sal Fasano caught Daniel Cabrera for the fourth consecutive start.
Farm report: John Maine allowed one run and three hits over six innings and Alejandro Freire drove in two runs as Triple-A Ottawa beat Columbus, 6-1, on Friday night. Larry Bigbie, who played both games of Thursday's doubleheader as part of his rehabilitation assignment, did not play.
Gibbons on the mend: Add Jay Gibbons to the list of Orioles players dealing with some type of ailment. Gibbons did not take batting practice and wasn't expected to play Saturday because of food poisoning. Gibbons did not play in Friday's 4-3 win over Cincinnati and would not have started against left-hander Brandon Claussen.
"I ate a steak the other night and haven't been the same since," Gibbons said. "I am feeling a little better, hopefully I'll be back [Sunday]."
Coming up: The Orioles take on the Reds in the final game of a three-game series and finale of a season-long 13-game road trip. Right-hander Sidney Ponson (6-3, 4.94 ERA) will take on right-hander Ramon Ortiz (1-4, 5.23). Ortiz, formerly of the Anaheim Angels, is 3-4 with a 2.93 ERA career against the Orioles.
Gary Washburn is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
Source: http://baltimore.orioles.mlb.com/
In May 1997, Davis was feeling stomach discomfort and asked Bancells to feel the affected area while in the on-deck circle at Cleveland's Jacobs Field. Davis was cleared to continue playing. After the discomfort didn't improve, Bancells ordered Davis back to Baltimore for an examination. Doctors at Johns Hopkins discovered a tumor the size of an orange in Davis' colon.
Davis had surgery and amazingly returned to the field in September 1997 to help the Orioles' playoff run. Davis would hit .327 for the Orioles in 1998, with 28 home runs, and he played three more seasons before retiring in 2001.
"He's always been a great guy, a great player, and I always enjoyed him when he was here," Bancells said. "It's a lesson for anybody who goes through a cancer situation like that.
"He was strong from the get-go. From the time I talked to him after he knew he had it, he was like, 'This isn't going to beat me.' He took it head-on. You knew everything was going to be OK."
Davis was perhaps more heralded for helping the Reds win the 1990 World Series with his heroics in the four-game sweep over the Oakland A's. But he proved to be a valuable player and clubhouse leader for the Orioles during his two seasons with the club.
Bancells said he still remembers the feeling when he touched Davis' stomach area.
"It was out of my league, but my experience with muscle pulls and muscle strains, my instincts told me it was not that," he said. "When you feel something like that, you have to get it in the hands of people who are more expert than you."
Davis and Bancells had a warm reunion just before Davis was to be inducted into the Reds Hall of Fame. (He was selected by the fans along with former fireballer Jose Rijo.)
"The experiences I had playing in the era I played in -- I wouldn't change it for the world," Davis said in a press conference before the game. "It was more than a teaching thing about how to be a professional. To see how they went through what they went through made my transition a lot easier. It made me the player that I was. The game back then was a totally different game than it is now. It was real down and dirty. They didn't just teach us how to get to the league, but how to stay in it."
Marrero in CF: Eli Marrero, who drew a walk Friday in his Orioles debut, was in the lineup in center field Saturday against Cincinnati lefty Brandon Claussen. Marrero had started three games in center for Kansas City earlier this season but has played mostly left field in his career.
It was Marrero's 52nd game at center, compared with 112 in left.
B.J. Surhoff got the nod in left field, and Sal Fasano caught Daniel Cabrera for the fourth consecutive start.
Farm report: John Maine allowed one run and three hits over six innings and Alejandro Freire drove in two runs as Triple-A Ottawa beat Columbus, 6-1, on Friday night. Larry Bigbie, who played both games of Thursday's doubleheader as part of his rehabilitation assignment, did not play.
Gibbons on the mend: Add Jay Gibbons to the list of Orioles players dealing with some type of ailment. Gibbons did not take batting practice and wasn't expected to play Saturday because of food poisoning. Gibbons did not play in Friday's 4-3 win over Cincinnati and would not have started against left-hander Brandon Claussen.
"I ate a steak the other night and haven't been the same since," Gibbons said. "I am feeling a little better, hopefully I'll be back [Sunday]."
Coming up: The Orioles take on the Reds in the final game of a three-game series and finale of a season-long 13-game road trip. Right-hander Sidney Ponson (6-3, 4.94 ERA) will take on right-hander Ramon Ortiz (1-4, 5.23). Ortiz, formerly of the Anaheim Angels, is 3-4 with a 2.93 ERA career against the Orioles.
Gary Washburn is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
Source: http://baltimore.orioles.mlb.com/
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