Wild Bill Hagy

William G. Hagy
(Wild Bill)

• Born June 17, 1939
• Died August 20, 2007 in Arbutus, MD USA

Biographical Information

Wild Bill Hagy was a Baltimore cab driver who, in a straw hat and sporting a long beard, led cheers from the upper deck at the Oriole games in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Hagy sat in Section 34 down the right field line at Memorial Stadium, would gather attention by waving his straw hat and then would have the fans yell out, "O-R-I-O-L-E-S, Orioles!" as he contorted his body to form each letter. This was known as The Roar from Thirty-Four. In particularly big games, the Orioles would have him come down and lead the cheer from the top of the Oriole dugout.

He last attended a game at Memorial Stadium in 1985. In protest of no longer being allowed to bring in his own beer, Hagy threw his beer cooler onto the field after a game and boycotted the rest of the season. He didn't return to an O's home game until September 6, 1995 -- the night Cal Ripken, Jr. broke Lou Gehrig's longevity streak. He led the fans in his cheer once again. His final cheerleading endeavor was at Ripken's induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame on July 29, 2007. Hagy passed away at his home less than a month later at the age of 68.

The Orioles honored Hagy on June 17, 2008 on what would have been his 69th birthday. As part of their T-Shirt Tuesday promotion, fans on this day were given #34 T-Shirts. He was inducted into the O's Hall of Fame later that year.