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When David Rubenstein became the Orioles owner shortly before opening day, he pledged he wouldn’t be the type of owner to sit in a suite, away from the fan base. He wanted to walk the crowd and talk to fans.
And spray them with a hose, apparently.
Rubenstein, Baltimore’s control person and the leader of a group that purchased the Orioles for $1.725 billion, will serve as the Guest Splasher for Friday’s game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. In his role as a fill-in Mr. Splash, Rubenstein will spray fans with water whenever his team records an extra-base hit or scores a run.
Or he can spray them whenever he wants to. He runs the place, after all.
In a video posted on X, Rubenstein told the real Mr. Splash that he was “born ready” for the role. Then Rubenstein broke through with several punchlines, showcasing his deadpan humor.
“Do all the owners do this?”
“I spent how much money for this?”
“This reminds me of my bar mitzvah picture.”
The Splash Zone became a highly sought-after seating area at Camden Yards upon its inception last season. Inspired by Cole Irvin, Keegan Akin and James McCann, Baltimore’s players wondered if there was a way to merge the Orioles’ water-themed celebrations with a special section to engage with fans.
“Taking this step further, where it’s like, we’re going to interact with fans in a game, let them be part of something we’ve grown so much to enjoy. I think it’s a big thing,” McCann said last season. “I think it’s a special thing that hopefully fans just absolutely eat up.”
They have. The section is full nearly every game, bringing high amounts of energy to the outfield.
The real Mr. Splash is a mysterious figure whose identity has yet to be determined. Whoever it is will be honored with a bobblehead available to the first 20,000 fans age 15 and older on Friday.
There have been a few guest splashers before Rubenstein, including Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and former outfielder Adam Jones.
Now it’s Rubenstein’s turn to don the goggles, snorkel and inflatable flotation devices around his waist and arms.
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Andy Kostka is an Orioles beat writer for The Baltimore Banner. He previously covered the Orioles for The Baltimore Sun. Kostka graduated from the University of Maryland and grew up in Rockville.
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