O's All-Stars hoping to return from Cincinnati with memories aplenty

Manny Machado spent part of Sunday preparing for his All-Star trip to Cincinnati. He was folding his No. 13 gray Orioles uniform, trying on his orange glove and packing his Orioles duffle. The 2015 All-Star bag was going to Cincinnati empty, but the plan is to return with it full of memorabilia. At 23, Machado, the Orioles' youngest leadoff batter since Paul Blair in 1965, will be one of four Orioles representatives in Tuesday's All-Star Game. Machado was 21 when he played in his first All-Star Game in 2013 at New York's Citi Field, home of the Mets. "It was unbelievable," Machado says. "I was 21 and walking into the clubhouse and seeing all my heroes - Robinson Cano, Mike Trout, Felix Hernandez, Big Papi (David Ortiz), Miggy Cabrera and Mariano Rivera. It was something you don't forget." Machado remembers the advice Rivera gave him: "He told me to stay humble and true to myself. I'll never forget it." In addition to Machado, the Orioles' All-Stars in Cincinnati are outfielder Adam Jones and relief pitchers Darren O'Day and Zach Britton. It's the best star power from Baltimore since 1970 when the Orioles sent Jim Palmer, Mike Cuellar and Dave McNally, Davey Johnson, Boog Powell, Brooks Robinson and Frank Robinson to play in Cincinnati's Riverfront Stadium. Palmer was the winning pitcher with three shutout innings and three strikeouts. Brooks Robinson had two RBIs and two hits, including a triple. Johnson went 1-for-5. The game is remembered for Pete Rose scoring on a play where he knocked AL catcher Ray Fosse into the next time zone. In 1988, at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati, the Orioles' lone representative was Cal Ripken Jr. Jones, in his fourth All-Star Game, played in his first in 2009 in St. Louis' Busch Stadium. What was his lasting memory? "Taking ground balls with Derek Jeter and batting against Trevor Hoffman," Jones says. "I flew out against Hoffman. I grew up watching him pitch." Ask O'Day and Britton for All-Star memories and they remember more about Ken Griffey Jr. in the Home Run Derby and not much about the game itself. Griffey hit the warehouse at Camden Yards in the 1993 Derby. "Ken Griffey Jr. was captivating to watch," O'Day says. "I remember Griffey hitting home runs, wearing his cap backward," Britton says. Britton says he expects to pitch, but probably not close if that situation comes up in Tuesday's game: "I think that will be (Glen) Perkins (of the Twins). He deserves it.'' At 32 and in his eighth big-league season, O'Day is used to getting time off during the second week in July. So there's an adjustment. "I'm very good at taking vacations this time of year," O'Day says. "I heard the All-Star Game is crazy busy and that we get shepherded around a lot. I'll find out if I'm good at that." In 1992, as manager of the Yankees, Orioles manager Buck Showalter was the AL third base coach for the game in San Diego. He remembers being nervous and talking to Jimmie Reese, an Angels coach who was best known for rooming with Babe Ruth. Reese told Showalter not to worry, that pitching would dominate and all the runs would be scored on home runs. Reese's prediction missed by a mile. The AL scored six runs in the first three innings en route to a 13-6 win. The first five runs for the AL were scored without a home run. Griffey hit a home run in the third. So there were hits, running and, of course, judgments for Showalter as he shook off the coaching rust. "I was never so glad when that game was over," Showalter says.