State knocks $600K off Orioles’ rent for wall reconstruction

It’s nearly impossible to quantify all the effects a deeper, taller left field wall at Camden Yards had on the Orioles’ 2022 season.

The wall — which the team built this spring 30 feet farther back than its predecessor — cost the Orioles more home runs than it did their opponents. And without it, the Orioles might have won one more game, according to a Baltimore Sun analysis.

But one figure is now clear: the Orioles received a $593,413 discount in rent paid to the state during the fiscal year that ended June 30, according to records obtained Nov. 15 in a Maryland Public Information Act request. The credit was granted by the landlord, the Maryland Stadium Authority, in part to incentivize the Orioles to sign a new lease and further cement the team’s commitment to Baltimore.

The Orioles pay the stadium authority a fluctuating rent that’s based upon a percentage of ticket, advertising, parking and concession revenues. Over Camden Yards’ 31-year history, the club has paid an annual average of $6.7 million in rent. For the most recent fiscal year, the team owed $4.7 million, for which it received a 13% discount for building the wall.

The Orioles did not reply to requests for comment on the discount and the stadium authority declined to comment.

The Maryland Board of Public Works, which approves state contracts, approved the framework of the deal in January at the stadium authority’s request. The stadium authority recommended the Orioles receive a discount of one-fifth of the wall’s total cost per fiscal year from 2022 to 2026, up to $700,000, depending on the project’s cost, provided the Orioles extend the lease or sign a new one.