Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team that plays in the American League (AL) East division of Major League Baseball (MLB). The team plays its home games at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore, Maryland. The oriole is the official state bird of Maryland.
The original Orioles began play in 1876 as a member of the National League, which replaced the National Association, the first professional baseball league. The Orioles were one of the dominant teams of the 1890’s. The club then played in the newly established American League in 1901 and 1902. The Orioles went bankrupt, however, and the team’s AL spot was given to the newly established New York Highlanders (later the Yankees) in 1903.
Baltimore then had no MLB team until the American League’s St. Louis Browns moved to the city in 1954 and became the Orioles. From 1966 to 1983, the Orioles dominated the American League, winning seven division championships, six AL pennants, and World Series titles in 1966, 1970, and 1983. The team then suffered through a number of losing seasons, advancing to the playoffs only two times—in 1996 and 1997—during the period from 1984 through 2011.
A number of Orioles stars have been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. They include outfielder Frank Robinson, third baseman Brooks Robinson, pitcher Jim Palmer, manager Earl Weaver, first baseman Eddie Murray, and infielder Cal Ripken, Jr.
