Opinion

There’s a wide range of possibilities for how this year will go for both established players and prospects. These are the benchmarks to look for as the season unfurls and you attempt to evaluate the progress of the rebuild that is trying to prove it is no longer a rebuild.

It’s Counseling Awareness Month. Here’s why taking care of your mental health should be a necessity, not a luxury.

Baltimore and Maryland school officials need to reverse course and keep Steuart Hill Academic Academy open, a leader of a community activist group says. Cecilia Gonzalez says children and families of the West Baltimore neighborhood surrounding Steuart Hill have been well-served by the elementary school.

Black people in Maryland would still be more likely to face prosecution under the state's current marijuana reform legislation, defense attorneys J. Wyndal Gordon and Warren A. Brown say.

The Banner’s TikTok anchor picks three pieces that deserve another look.

When the General Assembly wraps up Monday and lawmakers head home, they’ll talk about their accomplishments and failures. Headline-grabbing big bills will feature in that conversation. But so will less splashy matters, like rewriting a 32-year-old law on trees.

Mothers are advocates by nature, but Baltimore Ravens star Lamar Jackson’s decision to make his mom an advisor could have its cons.

Segregation remains a reality in Baltimore County schools, a parent of a county school student says; lack of an effective inclusionary housing policy reinforces a system that subsidizes segregation in Baltimore, a policy analyst says; families can take steps to ease the transition of people with developmental disabilities into adulthood, a services coordinator says.

Built through discipline and tougher batting practice sessions, more Orioles are trusting a program introduced by the team’s hitting instructors that emphasizes forcing pitchers to throw more strikes.

Claribel and Etta Cone brought a premier collection of European modern art home to Baltimore and played a major role in establishing the Baltimore Museum of Art’s national and international reputation. They corresponded with Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse and purchased works by both artists early in their careers.

Baltimore must find ways to rightfully honor writer, orator and abolitionist Frances Ellen Watkins Harper and the power of her legacy, author and Johns Hopkins History Professor Martha S. Jones says.

They'll remember the win, most of all, but the Orioles have plenty to take from opening day. The positives: A potent, patient offense powered by speedy, daring runners. The negatives: Questions about the defense and relief pitching, which were solid on the way to 2022's surprising season.

Whether you plan to have them go ziplining or binge TV all week, remember to do what feels right for you and your family.

Housing redevelopment in Baltimore’s distressed neighborhoods would pay for itself with economic benefits such as tax revenues and construction jobs, says Paul C. Brophy, a principal with Brophy & Reilly LLC who specializes in neighborhood revitalization.

The Environmental Protection Agency needs a stronger rule to reduce particle air pollution and to protect people with chronic lung disease and the broader community in places like Baltimore, says Dr. Panagis Galiatsatos, a physician with the Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center and community engagement co-director of the Baltimore Breathe Center.

The Maryland Lynching Truth and Reconciliation Commission probably won’t consider the case of Hattie Carroll, but it should, DeWayne Wickham, public editor for The Baltimore Banner, says.

Any frustration anyone feels about Rodriguez not being on the opening day roster has nothing to do with the reason given, which was that he isn’t good enough right now. It has everything to do with how the Orioles under Mike Elias have operated.

Maryland’s small-town state capital has a formula for the number of officers, but it’s suddenly not working.

Meoli covered the Orioles from 2016-2021, the launched a newsletter with the mission to write about the players, processes, philosophies and anything else that can help make the Orioles good again. Now, he’s bringing his insights and reporting to The Baltimore Banner.

We’re more open to talking about mental health in the wake of the public crises of people like Amanda Bynes. But is that enough?