"Let's Go O's! Let's O's! Let's O's!!!"
Believe it or not, the familiar Orioles rallying chant echoed throughout empty Camden Yards during Wednesday's surreal "closed to the public" contest versus the Chicago White Sox. And it started right away.
"O-R-I-O-L-E-S"
When the O's batted around in the first inning and exploded for six runs, highlighted by Chris Davis' 3-run first inning home run, dozens of dedicated Orioles fans—sneaking peaks through the left-center field gates—could be heard all the way into the press box behind home plate going crazy. If nothing else, the O's and White Sox players realized they were not entirely alone despite an official, announced paid attendance of "zero" later in the game.
In fact, the strange thing about today's game was not what wasn't heard, but what was—everything.
Literally, you could hear the ball smacking into the gloves of O's second baseman Rey Navarro, shortstop Everth Cabrera, and first baseman Chris Davis during an early, inning-ending, 5-4-3 double play. Outfielders could be heard calling for fly balls, umps making third-strike calls, White Sox and O's players cheering their teammates from the dugouts. There were also fans positioned as usual atop the Hilton and Hyatt hotels across the street, with a "GO ORIOLES" banner—visible in the ballpark—even hanging from one upper-level room deck. The only people in the stands were a couple of scouts in the first few rows. The paid attendance was announced as "zero."