Tuesday’s onslaught aside, Tne New York Times’ William Rhoden is kicking a club when it’s down, down, down.

While Commissioner Bud Selig is investigating steroids and vitamin B-12, he should also investigate the Baltimore Orioles – for consumer fraud.

Until last night, when they finally beat the Yankees, the Orioles had been the embarrassment of the stretch drive. While the Mets, the Royals, the Tigers, the Blue Jays and the Devil Rays have done their part to upset the contenders, the Orioles have been the pin cushion of the playoff race, the American League punching bag, a runway for the Red Sox and the Yankees, a trampoline boosting aspirations in Boston and New York.

Before yesterday’s victory, Baltimore had lost 10 consecutive games to the Yankees and the Red Sox, four of them at Camden Yards, the place the Orioles marginally call home.

What’s so bizarre about this is that Baltimore has ceded its ballpark to New York and Boston. Last weekend, Red Sox fans were so prevalent here that it looked as if they had rented out Camden Yards for a private party.

Now Yankees fans attempted to take over Oriole Park.

Baltimore is suffering through its eighth consecutive losing season. Next year, Peter Angelos should consider putting his Orioles on the road full time – the baseball equivalent of the New Orleans Saints – and lease Camden Yards to other Major League Baseball teams.

Don’t the Washington Nationals need a slicker place to play?

A franchise can have a bad season or two or three. But the Orioles have been overcome by a culture of losing.

So how does Angelos regain the glory of a once-proud franchise?

Perhaps he should sell it.

As a result of the Orioles’ lack of effort down the stretch, the Red Sox and the Yankees have a full head of steam heading into a weekend series in Boston that could prove pivotal.

There’s even the possibility of a one-game playoff between the Red Sox and the Yankees. If that happens, Major League Baseball should play the game here, at Camden Yards, where Red Sox and Yankees fans feel comfortable.