The Orioles wrapped up their 1988 spring training schedule with a game against the New York Mets at RFK Stadium in Washington DC on Easter Sunday. It had been 16 years since the Washington Senators had departed the nation's capital for Texas and this would be I believe only the third time major league teams played at RFK since then (an exhibition game in 1972 and the rain-and-snow shortened exhibition game between the Mets and the Phillies in 1987). A preseason exhibition game at RFK would become a tradition for the next decade or so - I know I went to game here as late as 1999 - before the Expos would become the Nationals in 2005.
My friend Steve and I attended this game. It was not a pretty game for the Orioles, not that should have been a surprise. The Mets were two years removed from a World Series Championship and would win the NL East again in 1988. As I recall the Orioles came into the game needing to cut just one more player before Opening Day. Starter Jose Mesa made it easy for them - giving up seven runs in 2 2/3 innings. He gave up three home runs - a three run shot by Daryl Strawberry, a two run homer by opposing pitcher (and future Oriole) Sid Fernandez and a solo shot by Kevin McReynolds. The home runs by Fernandez and McReynolds were cheap shots to left field - because the stadium was still in football configuration the left field line was only 245 feet. As Mesa departed in the bottom of the third, Steve and I did our best Jack Benny impressions while calling out "Oh, Rochester!"*
*Rochester was the home of the Orioles AAA team that season
The final for the game was 10-7 - the Orioles had a couple cheap home runs themselves off the bats of Rick Schu and Jeff Stone. They had actually tied the game at 7 in the sixth inning before Lee Mazzilli put the Mets up for good with a two run home run off of Mark Williamson who took the loss.
The Orioles finished the 1988 preseason with a record of 9-19, worst in the American League and only better than the Atlanta Braves 8-21 record.
I had saved the newspaper clippings for the game from the Washington Post (April 4, 1988):
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