The Orioles are headed to the playoffs for the first time in seven years and they marked the occasion with a celebration worthy of snapping such a long drought.
With a thrilling 5–4 win in 11 innings over the Rays on Sunday and the Rangers’ loss to the Guardians, Baltimore clinched its first postseason appearance since 2016. Times have been touch for the O’s since that most recent playoff appearance (they had three seasons with at least 108 losses), so everybody was ready to let loose after the trip to October was secured—everybody, including the general manager.
The wild celebration in the home clubhouse featured the usual suspects—champagne and beer being sprayed all over the place by players wearing goggles. It also featured the team’s general manager, Mike Elias, chugging from a beer bong.
ORIOLES GM MIKE ELIAS ON THE DONG BONG 😭 pic.twitter.com/hOI8tVwdHZ
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) September 17, 2023
That wasn’t just any beer bong, either. All season long, the Orioles have been celebrating home runs in the dugout with a beer bong (a hose attached to a funnel, for the uninitiated), although the liquid consumed from it during games was water. The players call it the “homer hose” but fans prefer the name “dong bong.”
Whatever you call it, Elias made good use of it after the clincher, drinking from the hose while other players sprayed him with their drinks. It had been a little while since Elias had been in a situation like that.
“Beer bong, maybe dial it back to New Haven, Conn., about 20-something years ago,” he said, referring to his days at Yale, according to The Baltimore Banner’s Andy Kostka. “I’ve had a couple champagne sprays, but it’s nice to be in the middle of one in the position I’m in now. It’s pretty cool."
