The thrill of victory, the agony of defeat.
Have ever had the two moments so jarringly juxtaposed? The fall of Ray Rice and the rise of the O’s? We are as distressed by the first as we are elated by the latter.
As the Rice matter continues to unfold, we are treated to the elation of seeing Orioles magic turn into something like routine. We know it all can turn to ashes. And that’s part of the thrill. You’re skating on the edge, finding a way to get the job done, as they say now.
It seems to me though that focusing on the Orioles for the moment could be valuable for the entire city. What they’ve done seems largely if not entirely due to the kind of leadership we see from Buck Showalter. The baseball operations manager Dan Duquette is obviously part of the transformative chemistry. The thrill of victory is not there without both of them.
What are the actual ingredients? As a fan I suggested these factors.
Attention to detail and rules of the road. No way the catastrophic holes in the lineup get filled without both.
Trust: Showalter knows and appreciates the talents of his players – and never fails to point them out. If some more bracing commentary comes in the manager’s room, no one seems to hold a grudge.
The can do attitude. Things look grim. We lose all-stars and imagine the end is near. And here comes another contributor. Where do we find all this talent?
Businesses, non-profits, churches, police departments and any number of other institutions in our communities could learn something from these guys. It’s way ahead of the game, but already – even without the big prize -- the Bucky-Dan show could be a game changer for us all.