Orioles end affiliation with Bluefield

ANAHEIM -- The Orioles announced on Saturday that they have ended their 53-season relationship with the Rookie League Bluefield Orioles, Baltimore's Appalachian League affiliate in Bluefield, W.Va.

The Orioles were affiliated with more Minor League franchises than is typical, president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail said, and it was becoming "a little unwieldy."

"We had a relationship with the people in Bluefield for over half a century, and it is a remarkably difficult personal decision for a lot of the people that have been there for a long time and really enjoyed the relationship," MacPhail said.

MacPhail cited a facility in Sarasota, Fla., for the team's Gulf Coast League affiliate, the construction of a two-year-old facility shared by a pair of teams in the Dominican Republic, and the presence of the New York-Penn League affiliate Aberdeen IronBirds as reasons to discontinue the relationship.

"We had more franchises than are customary, by a club or two, and we're going to try to get it down to what is a more typical range," MacPhail said.

Bluefield's schedule will end on Tuesday with a doubleheader at their home park, Bowen Field. Since 1958, about 100 former Bluefield Orioles have played in the Majors and several former managers have managed in the big leagues. Boog Powell, Eddie Murray, Cal Ripken Jr., and Don Baylor all made stops in Bluefield.