Mike Mussina should go into the Hall of Fame as a Yankee.

Out of deference to Baltimore.

The Great Plaque Debate of 2019 comes down to the two teams in question and their respective identities and histories. And the fact the Orioles hold a considerably higher bar for immortality than do the Yankees, and Mussina — through no fault of his own — struggles to clear the former and easily surpasses the latter.

The caustic Mussina, in fine form at Wednesday’s Hall of Fame news conference after living off the radar for most of the last decade, whined with a wink when asked for a second straight day whether he had decided what team’s logo, if any, would be on his plaque.

“No,” he answered flatly, pausing for effect, before elaborating: “Obviously, the situation is unique. I almost split my career down the middle between the two organizations. Right now, I couldn’t sit here and choose between one or the other. They were both instrumental to me sitting here.

“We’ve got a little bit of time here to talk it over with the Hall of Fame and with the people there. I think we’ll come to the right decision, whatever it is.”

As Mussina indicated, he doesn’t get to decide alone; the Hall owns approval rights. The right-hander’s vote will go a long way, however, given the extended time he spent with both clubs — 10 years with the Orioles and eight with the Yankees.

As he contemplates this matter, he should take a tour of Oriole Park at Camden Yards.

Walk a lap around the game’s best ballpark, and you’ll see statues of six revered Orioles: Eddie Murray, Jim Palmer, Cal Ripken Jr., Brooks Robinson, Frank Robinson and Earl Weaver. If you can gain access to the press box, you’ll see a wonderful photo of that beloved sextet together, wearing Orioles caps, at a Hall induction ceremony in Cooperstown. They are the only people with Orioles caps in the Hall.

Would Mussina belong in a theoretical group photo (Weaver died in 2013) to make it a Magnificent Seven? Does his time in Charm City merit a statue?

The answer to both questions would be yes if he had remained an Oriole for the entirety of his career and finished with similar numbers. And Mussina surely would’ve stayed put had the O’s not imploded in the late 1990s and beyond. No intelligent person blames Mussina for jumping that doomed ship at age 32 and joining the Yankees after the 2000 campaign.

With the Yankees, Mussina became the rare sound investment for what was a huge contract (six years and $88.5 million) at the time. He played a huge role in steering the Yankees to seven playoff appearances and two American League pennants in eight years.

When a reporter asked Mussina and his fellow electees Mariano Rivera and Edgar Martinez to name their career highlights, Mussina identified two, both with the Yankees: his outstanding relief appearance in 2003 AL Championship Series in the legendary Game 7 and the last start of his career, in which he became a 20-game winner for the first time.

The Yankees, by virtue of their ultra-successful history as well as George Steinbrenner’s predilection for honoring his many favorite warriors, can’t fit all of their “legends” in one photo. You can find 19 interlocking NYs at the Hall, with Rivera set to become number 20.

And then there’s Monument Park, which currently features 37 Yankees executives, managers and players, including Rivera. If Mussina didn’t get a ring with the Yankees, he nevertheless matched or exceeded the value provided by worthy occupants such as Reggie Jackson, Goose Gossage, Tino Martinez and Paul O’Neill.

For the Yankees, Mussina represents an excellent investment who earned his keep and kept the good times going. For the Orioles, unfortunately, Mussina represents glory lost due to incompetence well above his pay grade.

This is written with a soft spot for Baltimore sports. I have family there and know how much Baltimoreans cherish their teams and their icons. Maybe a no-logo cap (like Yogi Berra’s, oddly) would be less painful for Orioles fans than the hated Yankees? An Orioles cap, though, just wouldn’t feel right for a player who registered his greatest memories elsewhere and a franchise that takes its history so seriously.