{"id":669996,"date":"2026-04-08T09:54:22","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T09:54:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/669996\/"},"modified":"2026-04-08T09:54:22","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T09:54:22","slug":"the-dark-cloud-over-the-magical-1966-orioles-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/669996\/","title":{"rendered":"The dark cloud over the magical 1966 Orioles’ season"},"content":{"rendered":"

Shortly before they made their most important trade ever, acquiring Frank Robinson from the Cincinnati Reds in December 1965, the Orioles made a far less ballyhooed deal, sending catcher John Orsino to the Washington Senators for Woodie Held, a veteran utility man.<\/p>\n

But while it didn\u2019t generate major headlines, the deal seemingly signified a landmark moment for Dick Brown, a 31-year-old catcher for the Orioles.<\/p>\n

Brown and Orsino had shared the team\u2019s catching duties for the previous three years, but with Orsino gone, Brown was now the No. 1 heading into the 1966 season \u2014 an affirmation he\u2019d seldom earned during his nine years in the major leagues with the Cleveland Indians, Chicago White Sox, Detroit Tigers and Orioles. Although Orioles manager Hank Bauer also planned to use Charlie Lau as part of a lefty-righty catching platoon (Brown batted right-handed, Lau left-handed), Brown would play more.<\/p>\n

A career .244 hitter with on-and-off power, Brown was valued mostly for his defense, which the Orioles appreciated. (Issues with Orsino\u2019s throwing had prompted them to trade him.) Years earlier, while playing high school ball in Lake Worth, Florida, Brown had caught Herb Score, a legendary fireballer even as a youngster. Scouts pursuing Score noticed his lanky catcher\u2019s sure hands, which eventually led to an opportunity in pro baseball for Brown. His solid defense had kept him employed.<\/p>\n

When Brown reported to the Orioles\u2019 spring training camp in Miami in February 1966, the Baltimore media expected him to handle the majority of the catching duties while helping groom Andy Etchebarren to take over at some point in the coming years. Etchebarren, a 23-year-old prospect, had spent the 1965 season with Rochester, the Orioles\u2019 Triple-A affiliate.<\/p>\n

On the morning of February 22nd, before catching a bullpen session, Brown felt a headache and took two aspirin, thinking nothing of it. But when he squatted behind the plate, his head suddenly \u201cfelt like it was going to explode,\u201d he said later.<\/p>\n

After a downpour cut the bullpen session short, Brown approached Dr. Leonard Wallenstein, the Orioles\u2019 team physician, who took a look and was immediately concerned about Brown\u2019s eye movements. Wallenstein sent Brown to Baltimore for testing, which revealed the presence of a brain tumor.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In the midst of experiencing a collective high in Florida as they adjusted to having Frank Robinson and began to envision the good things that could happen as a result, the Orioles were gutted by the news about Brown, which \u201creally put a pall over the club,\u201d executive Frank Cashen recalled.<\/p>\n

Surgery to remove the tumor was scheduled for March 7th in Baltimore. The night before, Orioles manager Hank Bauer and GM Harry Dalton called Brown in his hospital room to wish him well; the team had already been told Brown would miss the entire 1966 season. His teammates sent a telegram telling him to \u201churry up and pull through so you can help us win the pennant.\u201d<\/p>\n

The operation lasted nearly four hours, and initially, there was good news. The tumor was benign. \u201cIt\u2019s a tremendous relief,\u201d said reliever Dick Hall, Brown\u2019s road roommate for the previous three seasons.<\/p>\n

But Brown\u2019s headaches quickly returned and a second tumor was discovered. Doctors removed most of it during another surgery in late May and prescribed X-ray treatments to shrink what was left. Brown soon felt well enough to swim and play golf, which was encouraging.<\/p>\n

On the diamond, the Orioles built a sizable lead as they rolled toward their first American League pennant. With Brown out and Lau also sidelined because of an arm injury, Etchebarren was now the No. 1 catcher. Although he would hit only .221 for the season, he provided decent production with 11 home runs and 50 RBIs and was a solid presence behind the plate as the Orioles dominated despite a run of pitching injuries.<\/p>\n

Watching from afar, Brown was pleased to see the team winning but discouraged about the hand he\u2019d been dealt. Married with a young family, he was already familiar with hardship. When he was a youngster, his father, a coal miner, had moved their family from West Virginia to Florida because Brown\u2019s wheelchair-bound mother suffered from arthritis and it was hoped the better climate would help her. Sadly, she died at age 42 in 1960. Now, six years later, Brown himself was facing the sternest of health challenges.<\/p>\n

\u201cI saw Dick Brown break into the American League as a kid in 1957 at Tucson when we were both with Cleveland, and I have always admired him as a catcher and a person,\u201d Orioles coach Gene Woodling said, according to a\u00a0Society of American Baseball Research profile of Brown<\/a>. \u201cThis is our No. 1 catcher we\u2019re losing for the season, and he is hard to replace. More important than that, though, we\u2019re missing his wonderful influence on the ballclub.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Orioles continued to pay his salary through the season, as if he never missed a workout or a game. And his teammates made sure he knew he wasn\u2019t forgotten.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey sent me letters and called me, kept in close touch and it really made me feel good. They helped to pump me up a little bit,\u201d Brown said later in an interview with Baltimore sportswriter Gordon Beard for\u00a0Birds on the Wing, Beard\u2019s book about the 1966 Orioles.<\/p>\n

On the night the Orioles clinched the pennant in September, they called him from the clubhouse in Kansas City.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was the most pleasant call of all,\u201d Brown said. \u201cIt sounds corny to say it was heartwarming, but it really was. What a great feeling. I couldn\u2019t believe anyone could be thinking about me like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

In October, before the first World Series game played in Baltimore \u2014 Game 3 of the Orioles\u2019 eventual sweep of the Los Angeles Dodgers \u2014 Brown took the mound at Memorial Stadium and threw the ceremonial first pitch to Etchebarren, the catcher who\u2019d replaced him.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI was some kind of scared,\u201d Brown said later. \u201cI kept thinking I was going to throw it over Andy\u2019s head. With 54,000 fans in the park and millions watching on TV, I was sure I was going to blow it.\u201d<\/p>\n

He threw a strike.<\/p>\n

His teammates later voted him a full share of their World Series bonus pool.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Orioles have to be the most generous ballplayers in the world,\u201d Brown said. \u201cI didn\u2019t pick up a bat. Didn\u2019t have a thing to do with winning the Series. But I sure was happy to get the share.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although Brown hoped his health problems were behind him, he could no longer play and became a full-time scout for the Orioles, covering Florida and Georgia, in 1967.<\/p>\n

\u201cI enjoy scouting, and I\u2019m happy to be able to contribute something to the organization,\u201d Brown said. \u201cIt\u2019s more than I expected to be able to do after that second operation.\u201d<\/p>\n

He relished seeing his younger brother, Larry, also become an established major leaguer. An infielder, Larry was with Cleveland for many years and spent the 1973 season with the Orioles, near the end of his 12-year career.<\/p>\n

Sadly, Dick Brown\u2019s headaches returned in 1968 and another brain tumor was discovered. He continued to scout for the Orioles until his conditioned worsened to the point that he could no longer work. Brown\u2019s tragic fate became unavoidable. He died in Baltimore in 1970 at age 35.<\/p>\n

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