BALTIMORE – There was stretching, but it was not the seventh inning.
It was a different sight than usual for a football practice to be staged, as the Rams warmed up Wednesday afternoon for their first practice at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.
Staying over in Baltimore after last Sunday's game against the Ravens, Los Angeles will also practice there on Thursday and Friday before departing to London Friday night as they prepare for Week 7 against the Jaguars.
"Just want to thank the Baltimore Orioles," head coach Sean McVay said prior to Wednesday's practice. "What an amazing opportunity, and really, just how gracious they've been to offer up the opportunity to be able to use their facilities. And it's a really cool thing for our players, and hopefully it's going to lead to a great week of preparation. Had a good walkthrough, looking forward having a good practice. So, very grateful for them."
The setup featured two shorter fields in the left and right outfields at the ballpark without overlapping the infield, complete with a set up of uprights for the field goal unit to practice on. It's not the normal full-length field they normally practice on back in Woodland Hills, Calif., but it still allows them to get the work they need to do accomplished.
Playing on baseball fields was a common practice for much of the NFL's history. The Rams, of course, played at Anaheim Stadium from 1980-1994. League-wide, teams did so as early as 1925, when the New York Giants played at Upper Manhattan Stadium, and as late as 2019, the Raiders' final season playing at Oakland Coliseum before relocating to Las Vegas.
"I mean, it's just grass," wide receiver Davante Adams said. "We got enough we got enough space. We're not using really 100 yards as it is normally. So I know the defense probably not thrilled about having 25 yards of field here, but yeah, I mean, they can work on red zone stuff, so we'll be okay."
Optically, it's a different setting, Adams said, before re-emphasizing that "it's just grass at the end of the day."
"Barring nobody ends up in the in the infield here," he said, "I think we'll be okay."
Players enjoyed the unique practice environment, walking out from the home and visitors' dugouts and practicing their swings and bat flips with a toy-sized foam bat on their way to warmups as part of content captured by the Rams' social team. Even just the act of stepping out onto the field from the dugouts brought the players joy. After practice, a handful played catch with a baseball that was found; some even took the mound for some pitches.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford's baseball history – and prominent friend who pitches for the Dodgers – have been well-documented. He's thrown out a first pitch at Dodger games, but said "it's been awhile" since the last time he was physically on a baseball field beyond that capacity.
"I mean, when I'm under center, no, but when the defense is up or special teams is going, take a peek around," Stafford said, when asked if, when under center, it's different being in this venue versus practicing anywhere else. "It's pretty cool. It's really cool for us to be able to use really the dugout and clubhouse, all that kind of stuff. It's cool for our guys to see kind of what they go through on a daily basis and some of their stuff. And us guys that played baseball are fired up to be here."
