So we wondered: What does Boog the barbecue baron keep in his own refrigerator? What epicurean delights await the one-time American League MVP when he raids the icebox at midnight?

"Hmmmm. . . let me check," Powell said from his home in Grasonville, on the Eastern Shore.

"Let’s see ... there’s a 12-pack of Miller Lite, but that’s a given. There are four kinds of hot sauce I made from the peppers in my garden, some homemade chow chow – it’s real good on hot dogs – and my own pickled green tomatoes. They are wonderful in martinis, better than olives because I add cayenne to the tomatoes to add sharpness. Makes you want to take another sip."

He rummages from shelf to shelf, glossing over the staples to describe the rest.

"Here are two lamb shanks that I’ll brown, then put in the slow cooker for seven hours with some limas, onions, celery, carrots and rosemary. That’s real good. I know people who threaten to drive up from Florida just to have some."

Powell, who is married, said he owns "several thousand" cookbooks and that he has prepared the family’s meals for 30 years.

"I just fool around in the kitchen. I’m not scared to take chances," he said. "I even cooked as a player. We lived in a row house, five blocks from the ballpark, and I’d come home at 11 o’clock after a night game and fire up the grill. The smoke would go all over and the neighbors would holler out their windows, ‘Hey, Powell – you may not have to go to work tomorrow morning but WE do!’ "

What else is in Boog’s fridge?

"Worcestershire sauce made from scratch. It’s a whole lot better than Lea & Perrins," he said. "Oh, look – here’s a three-pound tub of peeled garlic that cost $4 at Sam’s Club. In six weeks, when it gets too ugly to use, I’ll just throw it out and go get some more."

What, no moldy bread, fuzzy cream cheese or sour milk?

"I had some asparagus that looked like it had been around for about 11 years," he said. "But I’ve taken all of the science projects out of there."

Then he opened the freezer. Inside were several geese, a couple of rabbits, a half-dozen lobster tails, two rockfish fillets, sea bass, four slabs of ribs, a ribeye steak, a capon, some ground conch, country sausage and five pounds of crabmeat that Powell put up last summer.

"Hey!" he said, head buried in the grub. "Here’s the creamed spinach I made to go with my oysters rockefeller. That’s a secret recipe to die for."

So ends the tour of Powell’s icebox.

"I try to keep it orderly," he said. "Now, should I check out the freezer in my garage?"

Bottom photo: Orioles shortstop Luis Aparicio (left) and outfielder Boog Powell skip rope during practice in 1964 (Baltimore Sun photo by Joseph DiPaola).