1974 Baltimore Orioles
American League East Champions
LeagueAmerican League
DivisionEast
BallparkMemorial Stadium
CityBaltimore, Maryland
Record91–71 (.562)
Divisional place1st
OwnersJerold Hoffberger
General managersFrank Cashen
ManagersEarl Weaver
TelevisionWJZ-TV
RadioWBAL (AM)
(Chuck Thompson, Bill O'Donnell)
← 1973 Seasons 1975 →

The 1974 Baltimore Orioles season in American baseball involved the Orioles finishing first in the American League East with a record of 91 wins and 71 losses. The Orioles went on to lose to the Oakland Athletics in the 1974 American League Championship Series, 3 games to 1.

The Orioles went 27–6 after being in fourth place and trailing the Boston Red Sox by eight games on August 29. They won 16 of its last 18 matches and ended the campaign with a nine-game winning streak. They moved into first place on September 19 and clinched its fifth AL East title in six years on the penultimate night of the regular season on October 1.[1]

The Orioles had a net operating income of $82,000.[2]

Offseason

Regular season

Much of the success of the team can be attributed to its infield. Second baseman Bobby Grich, shortstop Mark Belanger and third baseman Brooks Robinson each led the American League for their positions in assists.

Season standings

AL East 		W L Pct. GB Home Road
Baltimore Orioles 91 71 0.562 — 46–35 45–36
New York Yankees 89 73 0.549 2 47–34 42–39
Boston Red Sox 84 78 0.519 7 46–35 38–43
Cleveland Indians 77 85 0.475 14 40–41 37–44
Milwaukee Brewers 76 86 0.469 15 40–41 36–45
Detroit Tigers 72 90 0.444 19 36–45 36–45

Record vs. opponents

1974 American League record

Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12]
Team BAL BOS CAL CWS CLE DET KC MIL MIN NYY OAK TEX
Baltimore — 10–8 7–5 5–7 12–6 14–4 8–4 8–10 6–6 11–7 6–6 4–8
Boston 8–10 — 4–8 8–4 9–9 11–7 4–8 10–8 6–6 11–7 8–4 5–7
California 5–7 8–4 — 10–8–1 3–9 5–7 8–10 3–9 8–10 3–9 6–12 9–9
Chicago 7–5 4–8 8–10–1 — 8–4 7–5 11–7 8–4 7–11–1 4–8 7–11 9–7–1
Cleveland 6–12 9–9 9–3 4–8 — 9–9 8–4 10–8 6–6 7–11 5–7 4–8
Detroit 4–14 7–11 7–5 5–7 9–9 — 7–5 9–9 3–9 11–7 5–7 5–7
Kansas City 4–8 8–4 10–8 7–11 4–8 5–7 — 11–1 8–10 4–8 8–10 8–10
Milwaukee 10–8 8–10 9–3 4–8 8–10 9–9 1–11 — 6–6 9–9 5–7 7–5
Minnesota 6–6 6–6 10–8 11–7–1 6–6 9–3 10–8 6–6 — 4–8 5–13 9–9
New York 7–11 7–11 9–3 8–4 11–7 7–11 8–4 9–9 8–4 — 7–5 8–4
Oakland 6–6 4–8 12–6 11–7 7–5 7–5 10–8 7–5 13–5 5–7 — 8–10
Texas 8–4 7–5 9–9 7–9–1 8–4 7–5 10–8 5–7 9–9 4–8 10–8 —


Notable transactions

Roster

1974 Baltimore Orioles
Roster
Pitchers Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Other batters

Manager

Coaches

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Pos Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI
C Earl Williams 118 413 105 .254 14 52
1B Boog Powell 110 344 91 .265 12 45
2B Bobby Grich 160 582 153 .263 19 82
3B Brooks Robinson 153 553 159 .288 7 59
SS Mark Belanger 155 493 11 .225 5 36
LF Don Baylor 137 489 133 .272 10 59
CF Paul Blair 151 552 144 .261 17 62
RF Rich Coggins 113 411 100 .243 4 32
DH Tommy Davis 128 626 181 .289 11 84

Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI
Al Bumbry 94 270 63 .233 1 19
Jim Fuller 64 189 42 .222 7 28
Andy Etchebarren 62 180 40 .222 2 15
Enos Cabell 80 174 42 .241 3 17
Elrod Hendricks 66 159 33 .208 3 8
Frank Baker 24 29 5 .172 0 0
Mike Reinbach 12 20 5 .250 0 2
Bob Oliver 9 20 3 .150 0 4
Tim Nordbrook 6 15 4 .267 0 1
Curt Motton 7 8 0 .000 0 0
Jim Northrup 8 7 4 .571 1 3
Doug DeCinces 1 1 0 .000 0 0

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player G IP W L ERA SO
Ross Grimsley 40 295.2 18 13 3.07 158
Mike Cuellar 38 269.1 22 10 3.11 106
Dave McNally 39 259.0 16 10 3.58 111
Jim Palmer 26 178.2 7 12 3.27 84

Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player G IP W L ERA SO
Doyle Alexander 30 114.1 6 9 4.01 40
Wayne Garland 20 91.0 5 5 2.97 40

Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player G W L SV ERA SO
Grant Jackson 49 6 4 12 2.57 56
Bob Reynolds 54 7 5 7 2.73 43
Don Hood 20 1 1 1 3.45 26
Jesse Jefferson 20 1 0 0 4.40 31
Dave Johnson 11 2 2 2 2.93 6

Postseason

ALCS

Main article: 1974 American League Championship Series

The Athletics defeated the Orioles, 3–1, limiting Baltimore to one run in the final three games.

Game Score Date Location Attendance
1 Baltimore – 6, Oakland – 3 October 5 Oakland Coliseum 41,609
2 Baltimore – 0, Oakland – 5 October 6 Oakland Coliseum 42,810
3 Oakland – 1, Baltimore – 0 October 8 Memorial Stadium 32,060
4 Oakland – 2, Baltimore – 1 October 9 Memorial Stadium 28,136


Farm system

See also: Minor League Baseball
Level Team League Manager
AAA Rochester Red Wings International League Joe Altobelli
AA Asheville Orioles Southern League Cal Ripken Sr.
A Lodi Orioles California League Jimmie Schaffer
A Miami Orioles Florida State League George Farson
Rookie Bluefield Orioles Appalachian League Bobby Malkmus

LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Rochester

Notes

  1. ^ Koppett, Leonard. "Orioles: Miracle of 1974," The New York Times, Thursday, October 3, 1974. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  2. ^ "On Profits, Orioles Mainly Strike Out," The New York Times, Wednesday, April 6, 1977. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
  3. ^ Merv Rettenmund page at Baseball Reference
  4. ^ Dennis Martínez page at Baseball Reference
  5. ^ Rich Dauer page at Baseball Reference
  6. ^ Bob Oliver page at Baseball Reference
  7. ^ Jim Northrup page at Baseball Reference
  8. ^ "A's bankroll $22,219". Lawrence Journal-World. (Kansas). Associated Press. November 12, 1974. p. 10.

References

Categories