NEWS: 1988

As 1988 begins, it's mostly cloudy and 46 degrees F at Baltimore's weather station (at BWI Airport). The wind is from the south-southwest at 12 miles an hour.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Mostly cloudy, then cloudy, then mostly cloudy, then cloudy with light rain; breezy/windy in the early morning, afternoon and evening (25-mph gust at 3:00 am); High temp. 53 F; Low temp. 35 F; Precipitation: Trace.  No snow on the ground.

Mandy Harvey is born Amanda Lynn Harvey in Cincinnati, Ohio. She's a jazz and pop singer and songwriter. Profoundly deaf following an illness at the age of 18, she was a contestant in the 12th season of America's Got Talent, where she performed original songs during the competition.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Partly to mostly cloudy, then cloudy; then mostly cloudy; breezy at times until early afternoon; High temp. 35 F; Low temp. 19 F; Precipitation: None.

Baltimore receives 1.6 inches of snow in an evening storm.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Clear, becoming cloudy; snow (1.6 inches) in the evening; High temp. 31 F; Low temp. 16 F; Precipitation: 0.24 inch (liquid).  One inch of snow on the ground.

The low temperature in Baltimore reaches 8 degrees F, the lowest-ever temperature in Baltimore for any January 7th (up to this point)  since recordkeeping began in 1871.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Clear, becoming cloudy; light snow (1.9 inches) late in the evening; High temp. 22 F; Low temp. 8 F; Precipitation: 0.09 inch (liquid).  2 inches of snow on the ground.

BWI Airport gets 6.5 inches of snow, the greatest snowfall on one day for BWI Airport in 1988.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Cloudy; snow until early afternoon (6.5 inches); breezy much of the day; High temp. 27 F; Low temp. 17 F; Precipitation: 0.62 inch (liquid).  7 inches of snow on the ground.

"Phantom of the Opera," a musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, opens at the Majestic Theater in New York City.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Light snow (0.1"); High temp. 34° F; Low temp. 17° F, Precip.: 0.02 inch (liquid).  2 inches of snow on the ground.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: High temp. 62° F; Low temp. 36° F, Precip.: None.  A trace of snow on the ground.

The total precipitation for Baltimore during January 1988 is 3.24 inches, including melted snow and ice, above the normal of 3.08 inches.  The average daily high temperature for Baltimore during January 1988 is 37.9 degrees F, below the normal of 43.2 degrees.  The average daily low temperature for Baltimore during January 1988 is 19.4 degrees F, below the normal of 25.4 degrees.  A total of 13.7 inches of snow falls at Baltimore's official weather station during January 1988, above the normal of 6.4 inches.

The 15th Winter Olympic Games holds its closing ceremony in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

THe Orioles lose their home opener -- also their season opener -- to the Milwaukee Brewers, 12-0. It's the Orioles' worst loss ever on Opening Day (up to this point) but the largest Orioles Opening Day crowd ever: 52,395.

George Bell becomes the first major-league player to hit three home runs on Opening Day, leading the Toronto Blue Jays past the Kansas City Royals 5-3. at Royals Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri.  Bell, despite being bitter about his move to designated hitter, homers three times in that role off Royals pitcher Bret Saberhagen. Attendance is 40,648.

The Orioles lose their fourth game in a row to the Indians, 7-2. Pitcher Mike Morgan of the Orioles allows 7 runs in 6-2/3 innings. THe Orioles are 0-6 this season.

Orioles manager Cal Ripken Sr. is fired by the Orioles this afternoon, after the Orioles lose their first six games of the 1988 season. He is replaced by Frank Robinson as Orioles manager.

The Kansas City Royals defeat the Orioles 6-1. Kansas City pitcher Mark Gubicza allows only two hits to the Orioles.

Baltimore gets a trace of snow (less than one-tenth of an inch).

The Orioles lose to Cleveland 1-0 in 11 innings. Mike Morgan starts the game and pitches 9 shutout innings for the Orioles. However, Wille Upshaw hits an RBI single for the Indians in the 11th inning to win the game.

A U.S. federal ban on smoking during domestic airline flights of two hours or less goes into effect.

The Orioles lose to the Royals, 4-3. Kurt Stilwell hits an RBI single in the 9th inning to win it for the Royals. The Oiroles are 0-17 this seaosn.

The Orioles lose to the White Sox, 4-1, making their April 1988 record 1-22, by far their worst April record ever. Mark Thurmond is the losing pitcher for the Orioles; he is 0-5 this season.

The total precipitation for Baltimore during April 1988 is 2.44 inches.

The low temperature in Baltimore reaches 52 degrees F, the lowest temperature ever recorded for Baltimore on any June 30th (up to this point) since recordkeeping began in 1871.

The total precipitation for Baltimore during June 1988 is 0.84 of an inch, about 1/5 of the normal amount for June.

U.S. President Ronald W. Reagan nominates Lauro Cavazos to be secretary of education; the first Hispanic member to serve in the Cabinet.

The Chicago Cubs win the first official night game at Wrigley Field by defeating the New York Mets 6-4.

The Orioles lose to the Toronto Blue Jays 4-0 in Toronto. The Orioles get only one hit: a single by pinch-hitter Jim Traber with two outs in the ninth inning to break up Dave Stieb's bid for a no-hitter. The single was a popup that fell just inside the right-field foul line. Jeff Ballard pitches the entire game for the Orioles but loses and runs his season record to 8-12.

The total precipitation for Baltimore during September 1988 is 2.05 inches.

The Orioles lose to the Blue Jays 7-3. Jim Traber hits a home run and a double for the Orioles. Jay Tibbs is the starting and losing pitcher for the Orioles, giving up 7 runs in 4-1/3 innings and running his season record to 4-15.

This month, Baltimore radio station WCBM (680 AM) returns to the air after being off the air since early 1988. WCBM has a talk format, consisting mainly of local talk-show hosts who had worked at WFBR (1300 AM) until a month or two prior, when WFBR changed formats and fired all of its talk-show hosts.

In their final game of the 1988 season, the Orioles lose to the Blue Jays 9-3. Larry Sheets hits a home run for the Orioles. Curt Schilling is the starting and losing pitcher for the Orioles, giving up 7 runs in 2 innings and running his season record to 0-3.

 1988 Major League Baseball final standings

American League

National League

The low temperature in Baltimore reaches 29 degrees F, the lowest temperature ever recorded for Baltimore on any October 14th (up to this point) since recordkeeping began in 1871.

The British Government announces plans to change the law regarding a suspect's right to remain silent; a person's reason for remaining silent could be interpreted by a judge and jury for guilt or innocence.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Clear, then partly to mostly cloudy, then clear; High temp. 61 F, Low temp. 36 F; Precipitation: None.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Cloudy, then clear, then cloudy; breezy in the afternoon; High temp. 51 F; Low temp. 29 F; Precipitation: None.

The total precipitation for Baltimore during December 1988 is 0.97 of an inch, including melted snow and ice. This amount is about 1/3 of the normal amount for December.

Total precipitation for Baltimore in 1988 is 32.30 inches, about 9 and a half inches below normal.