If you're coming to Sunday's game between the Orioles and Indians, how about bringing along a new or gently used piece of baseball equipment for the Oriole Advocates' annual Cardboard to Leather collection. Members of the Advocates will be at all gates to collect bats, balls, gloves, bases, uniforms and other equipment for distribution to youth players in underserved areas who otherwise wouldn't have new gear. If you don't have any equipment, don't worry - financial donations are always...

Remember last July when the Oriole Advocates collected new and gently used baseball and softball equipment at Camden Yards as part of their Cardboard to Leather campaign? Well, the bats, balls, gloves, jerseys and other gear collected has been given a second life in Puerto Rico, where kids who otherwise wouldn't get such equipment are now wearing and using it in games. Back in November, the Advocates sent 20,000 items via shipping container to Puerto Rico, where former Orioles outfielder Benny...

Rwanda is a small nation in east central Africa, dominated by rainy seasons that drench mountains to the west and savannas to the east. Green bananas are a mainstay of the country's agricultural commerce, occupying more than a third of its farmland. Other exported crops include potatoes, wheat, maize and coffee. But if 11-year-old Jack Fones has his way, baseball will soon be introduced to the African country where activities like soccer, cross-country mountain biking and basketball are the...

It's time to clean out your closets, dig into the corners of the garage and check your depository of old sports equipment for usable baseball gear that can be repurposed to new owners. The Oriole Advocates will hold their annual Cardboard to Leather collection before Sunday's Angels-Orioles game and until the second inning at all Camden Yards gates. Cardboard to Leather is one of the Advocates' signature programs, a means of collecting and distributing new or gently used baseball equipment...

As a starting pitcher, Ulbado Jiménez is used to doing the heavy lifting. But on Tuesday, the Orioles right-hander did some actual straining and grunting - all for a good cause that is near and dear to his heart. Jiménez visited Dunloggin Middle School to help eighth-grade students pack donations of gently used baseball equipment given to the Oriole Advocates' Cardboard to Leather program for distribution in the Dominican Republic and Venezuela. The Ubaldo Jiménez Foundation recently...

If you're a little late on your spring cleaning, or if you're ready to thin out the baseball and softball equipment you've accumulated now that the youth seasons have ended, the Oriole Advocates have a great way for you to help those less fortunate enjoy a game we often take for granted. The Advocates have scheduled their annual Cardboard to Leather collection for Sunday, Sept. 4 before the Orioles entertain the New York Yankees. Legg Mason sponsors this worthy event, one of the important...

The Orioles offense has certainly been streaky lately. In the last four games of the road trip to Kansas City and Tampa Bay, the Orioles scored just five runs. Then they came home and scored 23 runs in the first three games against the Chicago White Sox. Now they have scored just five runs over the last three games. Eight times this year, the Orioles have scored six or more runs in a game. But seven times this year, they have scored two runs or less. That includes last night, when CC Sabathia...

What do you do with a pair of shoes when you're done with them? Maybe you literally walk a hole in them, and they're bound for the waste basket. Perhaps they're re-soled and recycled, or even turned into family hand-me-downs. Maybe there's still some tread left, and you donate them to your favorite charity so someone without proper footwear can benefit from them. But I'll bet you've never considered turning those worn-out shoes into a makeshift baseball glove. In many poorer countries, a...

On Saturday, Aug. 30, the Oriole Advocates will conduct their 2014 Cardboard to Leather collection at Camden Yards, presented by Legg Mason. The Oriole Advocates created the program in 1992 to provide new and used baseball and softball equipment to underprivileged youth in developing countries. Since the program started, the Oriole Advocates have distributed tons of equipment to youth baseball players throughout the world in places such as Afghanistan, Aruba, Belgrade, Belize, Cuba, the...