It was an exhibition game in every sense of the word. It didn't count in anybody's standings and the stats generated by the WBC-depleted Orioles and the Dominican Republic's star-studded WBC lineup on Tuesday will soon be lost to history.
If anything will be remembered about the Orioles' 5-4 win at Ed Smith Stadium, it was the sight of Manny Machado in a blue, red and gray uniform with Dominicana across his chest.
No great surprise there, of course. Machado has been ticketed for the World Baseball Classic for almost a year, and he said from the start he would play for his ancestral homeland, but actually seeing him in an opposing uniform in the Orioles' spring ballpark had to send a shiver through the surprisingly sparse crowd.