March, 2014 - The Baseball Sentinel

Posted on March 11, 2014March 12, 2014 by Baseball Buddha — Leave a comment

Day 25 “Justin Bieber”

I was sitting along the first base in the bleacher seats at Space Coast Stadium, Spring training home of the Washington Nationals. There was a group of guys behind me that looked like a high school baseball team. I asked one kid where they were from, he had some clothing apparel on from a company in Milwaukee, for whatever reason that excited me… He told me that they were from Ontario around Toronto. I asked who their coach was, I figured that it would be an interesting story of a Canadian High School Team down at Spring Training. I got a lot more than I hoped for. Not only does this team have a connection to Justin Bieber but their coach is well connected within Major League Baseball.

Tom Valcke has been around pro baseball for the last 27 years. He was the President and CEO of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame for the past 10 years. He told me as impressive as that might sound, don’t get too excited since part of the responsibilities is to, “take out the garbage and mow the lawn”, he laughs at the thought, adding “Cooperstown has 80 employees, we have two!” The Hall of Fame was started 25 years ago and originally opened in Toronto but was moved to St. Marys, ON to give it more exposure. Tom said, “it was the whole small fish in a big pond deal in Toronto, but it is a slightly larger fish now that it is in St. Marys.” It currently has 80 inductees with 25 ex-major leaguers. One of the most notable is Tommy Lasorda. Big deal you say since Tommy is in eight other Halls of Fame for being a great manager, well in Canada, Tommy was also inducted for is his playing career. Lasorda even showed up for the induction ceremony because of it!

Tom grew up in Windsor, ON, just on the other side of the border from Detroit. His love of baseball was cemented when he was eight. The Detroit Tigers won the 1968 World Series, “that feeling and the excitement never leaves you, that is what put the passion into me”, Tom says of the 1968 Tigers. When questioned about his playing ability he told me he was mediocre at best and was one of the last guys picked. That didn’t stop him from pursuing his dream of working in baseball. He studied the game and quickly understood the science and the mechanics of baseball better than a lot of people.

I asked his wife Paula, a school teacher, if she liked baseball. She laughed, “I love baseball when my kids are playing!” They have 3 kids. Alanna, 22, a senior at the University of Waterloo, majoring in psychology. “She is on the Dean’s list,” Tom says proudly. A son, Jaxon who’s 17, high school junior at Northwestern High School, and part of the iCASE baseball program (more on that in a moment). Then there is Mia, 14, already plays with Team Canada women’s developmental baseball program that was just down in Cuba training with their National Team. I said Cuba… Tom said, “Cuba”, with a laugh. “We are Canadians, we are allowed to go there”.

Tom was a scout for 10 years with the MLB Central Scouting Bureau. He covered Canada for 5 years and then Central California for 5 years. He still does scouting on a consulting basis – i.e. a MLB team might ask him to go into Cuba and check out a few players for them since their American scouts are not allowed to go. He has taught the game of baseball in 22 countries with MLB royalty; Joe DiMaggio, Harmon Killebrew, Hank Aaron, Lou Brock, Tony Gywnn and many more. He said, “Most of those guys knew how to throw and hit a ball. But, they had difficulty teaching the proper mechanics and technics in a way that was understood by new ball players.” This is where Tom excelled. He ran the clinics while those guys drew the players and did the photo ops and autographs. Tom has become very well respected throughout the world for his baseball knowledge and coaching ability.

It was unbelievable dream for Tom to get to work with all those Hall of Fame players. Or, as he put it, “The Greatest of the Greats”. Not only working with such icons of the game, also traveling around the world teaching the game of baseball. “Go figure”, he said, “I got my degree in Computer Science…” Besides working with Major League Baseball, the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame, he has also worked with Canada’s Olympic team and was the technical commissioner of baseball at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Summer Games. Recently he launched iCASE, International Canadian Academy of Sports Excellence in 2012. I took the following from their website:

“Based in Stratford, Ontario, and in partnership with Northwestern High School, the Avon Maitland District School Board, and Ontario Ministry of Education guidelines, iCASE is an opportunity for baseball players in their junior and senior years to develop their skills in an academic environment, led by a staff of world-renowned baseball coaches.

Baseball training is built into the daily curriculum in order to allow student-athletes to partake in whatever other extra-curricular desires they may have after school, or to simply enjoy time with their friends. Both on the field and in the classroom, the program delivered to each iCASE student-athlete will be groomed to their individual stage of development.”

Click here for more information, http://icasebaseball.com/.

This is a great concept where kids can pursue their passion for baseball in the high school setting taking courses such as baseball philosophy, field maintenance, etc… while getting credit for this training towards their diploma. Tom is very grateful that Avon Maitland School District is so progressive. The team needs more “dirt time” (I am using that term, since Tom liked it and I just heard it from my buddies Todd or Bob. Sorry Tom, I played it off like I use it all the time) However, they are progressing nicely in their first fall season. The team played all their games in the states against many established programs ending up with 9 wins and 14 losses. They utilize a 10,000 square foot facility to practice year round but it would be better to be outside. The team was down in South Florida to play some exhibitions games. Tom wanted the kids to see what is happening at the elite level of baseball for themselves.

Well, I have to cut this off since I am over my deadline. I enjoyed Tom very much as he was very easy going and quite cordial. I think every Canadian I have ever met is…save a few hockey parents. I also want to mention that if you run into Tom, ask him about the story Harmon Killebrew told him about being scouted. It is a great story!

Note: Things I failed to mention: Tom was the color commentator for the Montreal Expos in their last season. And he mentioned that Justin Bieber went to Northwestern High School. Tom wasn’t sure if it would be a good idea to bring that up…

If you enjoy this story and you would like to help me complete the “Baseball in America Tour 2014” which is roughly 265 days, please click on the following link to see how you can help http://www.baseballbuddha.com/sponsor.html . Please also share this on your Facebook page and Twitter, I appreciate all the help I can get!

Posted on March 10, 2014March 10, 2014 by Baseball Buddha — 1 Comment

Day 24 “Go Jacks!”

I headed back to the Snowbird Baseball Classic to watch some college ball yesterday and was able to watch 3 games. I was going to just sit and watch a game before I found a story. As I was setting up my chair and getting situated at the South Dakota State Jackrabbits game against the Georgetown Hoyas, someone asked me if I was the “Baseball Buddha”, I said I was. My ego got the best of me in that moment also. I asked her if she followed me, she looked at me kind of confused and said “no but I can read”. She pointed to my shirt and hat, I laughed at myself… she then yelled, “Come on Gumby”, she startled me a little at her intensity but I loved her enthusiasm for the players and the game.

Lori, 48, mother of Aaron Machbitz the starting 1st baseman for South Dakota State (a SDSU senior who will be an athletic trainer when he graduates) was willing to talk to me to get some exposure for the Jackrabbits baseball program. I explained to her what I do and that I am more interested in her story than what is happening on the field. She jokingly told me she didn’t want to talk to me then. I looked at her to see if she was serious. She smiled and then looked at her husband Marc whom she has been married to for the past 24 years, he shrugged his shoulders as if to say “why not”. Again I got my story with very little effort. As we spoke Aaron was batting and her intensity picked up. Her foot started shaking, I didn’t realize it was Aaron at the time. “They pitched him inside and he turned on it and grounded to shortstop. They have him scouted to death. He hasn’t seen a fastball in years,” Lori said in frustration. I apologized to her for talking as Aaron batted, she laughed and said it was her fault. She should have been up and walking around, she isn’t used to just sitting and watching the game.

Love of baseball started at an early age for Lori. She grew up in an all male family and they moved around a lot. She was born in Sacramento, her family moved to St. Louis when she was two, New Orleans after the 4th grade, and during 8th grade moved back to Northern California. She told me that she and her brothers were San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals fans, depending on where they were living. Now she is a hard core Texas Rangers fanatic! She goes to 20-25 games a year with her husband and always has it on the TV, or radio, when not at the game. That is on top of the games that they see Aaron play with SDSU. She said, “last year it was about 25 games and also traveled up to Milwaukee to see him play for the Lakeshore Chinooks of the Northwood’s League.” (one of the top summer leagues for college underclassmen).

She graduated high school and went to San Jose State where she got her degree. She owned and operated 2 women’s shoes stores and also taught 2nd grade for a few years. Her passion is her kids and decided to become a full time mom when her daughter Rachel was in the 4th grade and Aaron in 2nd. Marc retired from Chevron, where he worked for 30 years, and they decided to move to Dallas after figuring out where the best schools, sports and overall opportunities lie for their kids. Lori had to get up while we were talking. She was getting nervous and started pacing behind the bleachers. On occasion I would hear her yell, “Come on Jacks” or “Lets go three three”. Lori was blaming her not walking around on Georgetown coming back from a 4-0 deficit. As all this was playing out, Aaron made a excellent play at first base, catching a line shot, then tagging the bag at first to double up the runner. Lori came over to tell me that “Aaron was just as good as Mitch Moreland (Texas Rangers, first baseman) defensively, not quite as good with the bat “yet”, but he will be better than “Goldie” (Paul Goldschmidt, first baseman, Arizona Diamondbacks), not as good as Mike Trout (Outfielder for the LA Angels). I am realistic”, she said with a laugh.

As Lori was walking around I talked to her daughter, Rachel, who was down at the game because “its a free trip” according to her mom (she said it with a chuckle). Rachel is a senior at UT-Arlington and is set to graduate this December with a degree in Industrial Engineering. Rachel said she wasn’t as big a fan of baseball as her mom, dad or brother, but enjoys supporting the team and her families passion for it. Her mom has always supported whatever her kids wanted to do. Rachel started her own business selling comic books and art online a year ago, www.mashupcomics.com. She is very ambitious as her website states, “We are striving to become one of the first comic book and commissioned art retailers online. Not only do we sell back issue comics, we are also proud to offer unique commissioned art. As members of the “Nerd” culture to which many films, comics and media forms are created for, Mash Up Comics and Art will be able to reach consumers on their level, with their level of excitement and commitment.” Please check out her site, I don’t think you will be disappointed!

Lori and I talked about what it was like when Aaron played elite level baseball in Texas. Since Aaron was passionate about the game, Lori encouraged him and made sure that he had the correct pitching and hitting coaches. “To succeed at all the levels most parents did that”‘ she said. “It was tough because you had to be realistic of where you put your money.” Lori put it towards the camps, showcases, and had him on 2-3 teams at a time. Lots of teams would travel to Georgia or Florida for the different tournaments and it cost a lot of money. She didn’t do that much preferring to stay around Texas to save money. Lori said, “she would have done more of that type of stuff but she’s just very grateful that she got to spend a lot of time with Aaron growing up because of baseball.” Lori says, “you must play a lot to be a good baseball player, it is a smart man’s game.” She says that “Aaron is a real student of the game”. Some pro scouts have taken a look at Aaron and he wants to move on to the next level after college. I was impressed with what I saw and I remember him when he played for the Chinooks last summer in Milwaukee. He went 2 for 4 against the Hoyas in a losing effort, 7-4. His dad told me, “he also went 2 for 4 in the morning game they played against Maine”.

I got a real kick out of Lori’s intensity, her passion for her kids and the game of baseball. I also want to mention that the other South Dakota State fans were some of the friendliest I have come across. I definitely will be keeping an eye on Aaron and the Jacks!

Posted on March 9, 2014March 9, 2014 by Baseball Buddha — 1 Comment

Day 23 “Ceremonial First Pitch!”

Yesterdays game was my 25th game I have attended since I began this project. My fear was that I was going to get sick of baseball after a few weeks and then I would wonder how I was going to make it through 9 months. I am lucky that I have enjoyed all the games, people and places. Even though, some people have told me that I would be “hoping for rain outs”. Well, I had my first rain out this week and I was bummed out!

While at the game yesterday I was with my two baseball buddies, Todd and Bob, as well as their kids. We are trying to add a visual element to Baseball Buddha and Todd is helping me do this by shooting a promo video for the website. My goal is to get him more involved with Baseball Buddha. I want to film the stadiums that I am attending and I need someone to edit to a reasonable length. Todd is also a baseball fanatic, I will profile him soon. He and his family are heavily involved with baseball. I met him at Starbucks the very first day that I was typing up Day 1 “Lonnie Burton”. He saw the Snowbird Baseball Classic program and inquired to what I was doing. He loved the idea, we have talked more and I think we can work something out.

Yesterday when we were at the game trying to get good footage for the promo video, I talked to a lot of people, especially Bob and his Spring training family; but, I wasn’t focused on getting one persons profile. Like everything else with this project, things are happening and working out so well especially when I least expect it. One of Bob’s spring training “family” members inquired if I was the guy Bob had been talking about, the guy with the website. I said, “I was”. He handed me a piece of paper and told me it was his story… So I am going to use it for today! I typed it up as he had it, I think it is a great baseball fan story. His name is John Garvin and the following is his story:

I was born on January 15th, 1934 on Ruggles Street in the Roxbury section of Boston, just a short walk through the Fenway Gardens on the way to the Fenway Park. My first ballgame was with my Father as a 5 year old boy the summer of 1939. My Father was a life-long fan and saw his first game in Fenway, probably back in 1912, when he was about 14 year old. Sad to say my Dad didn’t live long enough to see the Red Sox win a World Series.

I remember in my early teens, while my Father was away during the World War II, taking my Mother to Fenway Park for a Mother’s Day game. Later we lived in the suburb city of Malden, at the time and took the bus, elevated train and a trolley ride along Commonwealth Avenue to Kenmore Square and the short walk to the bleachers. Then I remember frequently making this same trip with one of my school friends throughout my teen years.

I remember on game in particular, I was probably 14 or 15 years old, standing at the rail at the end of the Red Sox dugout behind first base during batting when Johnny Pesky cracked his bat and he came over and gave it to me. I remember the #6 on the handle. I had that bat for years, today I have no idea what happened to it.

My favorite player was Ted Williams. When playing sandlot summer baseball as a kid, I always wanted to play second base as I also admired Bobby Doerr and wanted to be like him. I travel back to New England every couple of summers to see family and always take time to take in at least a couple of games at my memorable Fenway Park. I’ve eaten Italian sausages from every vendor on Yawkey Way and from the Sausage Guy on Lansdowne Street. I’ve also spent a tidy sum over the years at all the souvenir shops around the park.

I sat in the left field grandstand for the 1999 All Star game. I attended the funeral tribute to Ted Williams in Fenway Park when he passed away. I attended the Ted Williams Hitters Hall of Fame induction ceremony here in Fort Myers. And yes I’ve been to and enjoyed Cooperstown, what a feeling to be there where all the great memories were stored. I was fortunate enough to travel to Boston for the first two 2004 World Series games in Boston with my son-in-law Rob Bentley.

I’ve taken the tour of Fenway Park so many times I know the park like the back of my hand. I have a inscribed family brick installed at a Fenway Park gate C walkway commemorating my long time family history.

I moved my family from New England to Fort Myers in 1962. I’ve been a spring training season ticket holder since the Sox arrived in 1993. Today I live in the Gateway area of Fort Myers which is within walking distance from the new Red Sox (JetBlue) stadium.

Red Sox Collection of John's — Red Sox Collection of John’s

I’ve attended most all the celebrations of the World Series Champs of 2004, 2007 and now 2013 here in Fort Myers and I attended the Grand Opening of the new JetBlue Park meeting Larry Lucchino while standing by the new home plate. Over the years I have collected sizable collection of Red Sox memorabilia at my home that I seem to keep adding to every year.

My family and I have lived in Fort Myers since 1962 and I am a fit and active 80 year old Red Sox fan and in fact, I can still pitch strikes from the pitcher’s mound.

I’d like to ask you to arrange for me to throw the “ceremonial first pitch” at a game this Spring Training at JetBlue Park. I’m a season ticket holder, I’ll be at every game anyway so you pick the game and I’ll be ready.

Just tell me date and time when you want me to show up.

Thanks John for sharing and I hope you will get to throw out the first pitch at a Red Sox game soon!

The promo video should be ready sometime in the next week. I also hope to have a video of McKechnie Field edited and up tonight, or tomorrow, so please check back and see that! I thank you all for your patience and understanding as I learn the ropes, I have been enjoying all of it!

Posted on March 8, 2014March 8, 2014 by Baseball Buddha — 3 Comments

Day 22 “Boring Bill”

I have said in the past that I fret about finding a story almost every day. Some days, I just don’t have the courage to walk up to someone to explain what I am doing and to find out if they are willing to talk to me. Other days, I am very confident. My reflection of my personal and current excursions reminds me of that old Fram Oil Filter commercial from about 20 years ago that reminds you to change your oil every 3,000 miles. The tag line is, “you can pay now or you can pay me later, but you are going to pay me…”, I might not be remembering it correctly and I’m not going to “Google”, either, because I like how I remember it, since it motivates me. I walked around the entire stadium, twice, looking for the perfect person to interview. I saw a guy walking around it a few times, also. He had a Kansas City Royals hat on, to be honest, I didn’t think he would be very interesting so I kept walking the first time I saw him in a walkway by home plate. But, for some reason, he was my first choice. A couple of innings later, when I was starting to get really worried that I wouldn’t find a story, I saw him again in the outfield area getting a hot dog. I thought I would ask, “what is up with the KC hat at a Pirates-Twins game?”

The guy that I thought would be boring to write about was not in the least! Bill Patton, 49, was from Harrisburg, PA. He was at the game with a bunch of guys that have been coming down to watch the Pirates for basically the last 15 years. He was wearing the KC hat because his wife is from there and is a Royals fan, (Bill that is still a poor excuse, even though you state that the Royals are your “American League” team now – But!). He jokes that the attraction between he and his wife was due to the fact that both were fans of “oppressed” baseball franchises. He met his wife through politics 15 years ago, they have been married the last 10 years.

Bill has been working in the Pennsylvania State legislature for the last 25 years, the last four as the Press Secretary to the Democratic Leader Frank Dermody. His main responsibilities are to insure that the Democratic Party views are heard. He speaks to reporters and to caucus members to make sure that everyone has the facts and are on the same page. Bill says, “it can be very frustrating since, like national politics, the state political arena in Pennsylvania is very partisan”. Currently, the House of Representatives in the State has 110 Republicans and 92 Democrats, so it is constant work to separate fact from the hearsay and spin, which is all over the news and Facebook. Bill joked, “you can’t put a partisan spin on baseball, everyone can see what is happening on the field for themselves…”

A graduate of Penn State, with a degree in Political Science, he attends one or two football games a year. He knew immediately that I was going to ask him about the “Sandusky” scandal. Bill shared that there was a lot of soul searching that went on, and stated that most people think that the football program is suffering for something that was outside of football. The ‘situation’ has been very interesting for the state and university, changes have taken place and everyone is ready to turn the page.

I asked Bill why he is a fan of the Pirates and not the Phillies. Harrisburg is a little closer to Philadelphia, but essentially it is between both cities. He explains that it is because of growing up in the mid to late 70’s – the culmination of the World Series in 1979. The “We are Family” Pirates team of Willie Stargell, Dave Parker, Phil Garner, Bert Blyleven and Kent Tekulve . It was at the height of disco music, Sister Sledge’s hit song, “We Are Family” became the team’s theme song as 39-year-old NL MVP Willie Stargell slugged the way to a championship. The Pirates rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the World Series to beat the Orioles. Stargell was also World Series MVP, hitting three home runs. That was a year and team that will go down in team history as one of franchise’s best.

The love of baseball runs deep for Bill as he explained it is one place that there is bipartisan support for the Pirates and Phillies, it is nice to put party affiliation aside and just enjoy the teams. Bill told me he always has the game on when the Pirates are playing and he gets over to Pittsburgh one or two times a year during the season. He is able to catch 15-20 games a year of the different teams that play in the area. Harrisburg is located within easy driving distance to Baltimore and Washington D.C., also. So he is very lucky to be able to get his MLB fix easily with the four teams close by.

In addition to the majors, there are also eleven minor and independent league teams within easy driving distance from Harrisburg. The Washington Nationals’ Double A affiliate is the Harrisburg Senators. During a long legislative session last year, Bill needed to unwind one night and walked over to a Senators game. He was there by himself and he ran into the Republican House Leader, who was also there alone. They watched the game together and had a great conversation about baseball, he said it was very enjoyable. That is what he loves about baseball in that the sport brings people together, to common ground, and removing the open drawbridge of partisan politics.

I told Bill that I was ranking all the spring training stadiums I have attended. Bill let me know he has been to a bunch of Spring training stadiums to watch the different teams over the years. His favorite stadiums are McKechnie Field of the Pirates and Bright House Field of the Phillies, spoken like a true politician! Thank you for speaking to me Bill (and not being boring). I enjoyed the conversation and if we could all get along like we do when we are rooting on our favorite baseball team, there is hope that we can do it politically!

Posted on March 8, 2014March 12, 2014 by Baseball Buddha — 1 Comment

McKechnie Field – Pittsburgh Pirates

When I was driving to McKechnie Field, through the neighborhoods, I knew I was going to like this park before I even saw it. I like a ballpark that is part of the city landscape. For me, there is a charm of playing a baseball game in the heart of the city with a chance of foul ball hitting a passing car. When I arrived at the park, I was not disappointed. The park was situated around industrial buildings, automotive garages and residential homes in the older part of town, with the businesses advertising parking in their lots at reasonable rates. I found a church lot, 3 or 4 blocks away, for $4 and I walked from there. The street was bumper to bumper with fans trying to get to the game. The day was overcast, again, and chilly. I had some butterflies, and if I had butterflies I wonder what it is like for the hard core Pirates’ fan that was coming to McKechnie for the first time.

“McKechnie’s nostalgic charms in its city neighborhood appeal to many baseball traditionalists and ballpark enthusiasts, and some consider the facility to be Florida’s version of Fenway Park. It’s built in a Florida Spanish Mission style, with white stucco on the main grandstand and cover bleachers over the reserved seating section. The Pirates and the City of Bradenton celebrated their 40th anniversary together during the 2008 spring training season, which included an agreement between the city and the Pirates to continue their partnership through 2037.” (Wikipedia) I highly recommend reading about more of the history of this field, just click on the following link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McKechnie_Field.

The park was open and airy, home plate was less than 30 yards from the street, the place had a very historic feel to it. Recent renovations made it possible to walk around the entire stadium and sit in the outfield. There is a large concession area on the 1st base side that had been added in the last couple of years. I walked the original concourse that was behind home plate and down the 3rd base side, which butted up against the outside sidewalk and street. You are on top of the action and very close to the players in the dugout. I rate this as my number one venue to see a spring training game, keep in mind I like the nostalgia. I took a lot of video of this place and I thought I had taken more pictures than I actually did! I hope you enjoy the pictures I posted and hopefully very soon I will have a video!

If you enjoy this story and you would like to help me complete the “Baseball in America Tour 2014” which is roughly 265 days, please click on the following link to see how you can help http://www.baseballbuddha.com/ then click on the “How To Help” tab. Please also share this on your Facebook page and Twitter, I appreciate all the help I can get!

Posted on March 7, 2014March 8, 2014 by Baseball Buddha — 1 Comment

Day 21 “Spring Training Stadium Rankings”

I am going to rate the spring training stadiums I have been to. This is my personal take on them and the only criteria I am going to use is, (A) – how I felt when I was there, and (B) – if I would drive 2 hours to see a game. I will add a column to my current Games page on the website and rename the page Games & Rankings. I hope to have the page redesigned by tomorrow, I have been to 7 parks, actually 8 if I count City of Palms in Fort Myers that is not being used. Every time I go to a new park that I have not rated I will do a review and rank it, I will only do this for MLB teams at the moment. When the MLB season starts I will rank the different stadiums as I attend games at each, the main parks will be put into a different category obviously than their spring training counterpart. I hope to have the video figured out by then and have a nice edited clip with the ranking. I will try to take a lot of pictures until then and then hopefully I can start ranking other minor league or college stadiums.

The following is in the order of ranking from best to least. I have learned a great deal the last month, I know now that I have to take more, and better, pictures of the stadiums that I attend games at. You might think that is a given but at times it is overwhelming to get all things accomplished, I will get it! I am having a great time doing all of this and I know that some of you want more pictures and video of the fans, food and the atmosphere of the stadium. Sorry I don’t have a lot of pictures of the stadiums currently, but I included the Wikipedia link for each so you may read more information.

Ed Smith Stadium http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Smith_Stadium When I walked
Ed Smith Entrance

up to the stadium which was located in an residential area, it had a great presence to it. As I walked into the stadium I also had a great feeling, it had an “Art Deco” look to it and just seemed bright. I liked the colors and how it was laid out. I had seats right behind the visiting teams dugout, so that probably helped. It was a beautiful day to watch a game, and the Orioles were taking on the Minnesota Twins. There were a lot of fans in the seats for a Monday and they were excitable.
Roger Dean Stadium http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Dean_Stadium I loved where this was located, next to a university in a residential area, with a cool “urban” shopping area next to it. I sat behind the Miami Marlins dugout when they were playing the Miami Hurricanes. The day was partly cloudy, there wasn’t a lot of people at the game but the feel and the look was great. Both the Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals play games and practice here.
JetBlue http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JetBlue_Park I watched the Boston Red Sox take on two college teams at this place. I would rate it higher but it is just too new and out in the middle of no where, well next to the airport. It was overcast, but the crowd was big and into it. So far, the Red Sox fans were the most enthusiastic I have come across. Also the scoreboard, I was told, was the original Fenway one. I didn’t verify this but I believe what Todd and Bob tell me! I will be attending a Red Sox vs Orioles game there tomorrow night so this ranking might change.
Charlotte Sports Complex http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte_Sports_Park This is a very nice place, but it is out on the edge of town. Parking was easy to get and I didn’t have to pay. The place was clean, the crowd was fun and the sun was shining, You can walk around the entire stadium; but, from the outfield looking in it didn’t have a presence to it, the booths were just “blah”. I like the main gate and getting in and out was very easy.
Walking up to Hammond Stadium

Hammond Stadium http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hammond_Stadium I love the walk up to this stadium from the parking lot. The distraction – cars in the walk up that took away from the view and getting into and out of the place was horrible. The stadium is in year 1 of a 2 year renovation makeover. You can now walk around the entire ball park. I was there to watch the Twins and the Red Sox. The crowd was great, and it was packed.
Bright House http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bright_House_Field This was a very nice field but walking up to it I didn’t like. It was hard to get to and in a residential neighborhood and next to the highway. It was a beautiful day for a game, the place was packed with Phillies fans, but people didn’t seem as friendly. I sat in the outfield and when I looked back towards home plate everything seemed dark.
Tradition Field http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tradition_Field When driving up to the stadium I thought I was going to love it. It was located next to a large Shopping Mall, in a fairly new industrial area that was very clean and spacious. The stadium had a big presence. However, when I went inside and to the outfield and looked in, it felt very cold. There wasn’t a lot of fans at the game. It was a bit overcast day, the overhang was concrete which I am sure that had a lot to do with the cold feeling. The stadium seating was “Mets” blue and overwhelming with the small crowd. The Mets were playing the Miami Marlins. This is the only place I won’t drive 2 hours to see a game at if I wasn’t a fan of either team… Sorry Mets fans this place needs work!

Remember these are only my rankings, I am sure that others feel differently. The above descriptions are just my initial reactions and I will reserve the right to change them as I attend other games at each place. To see the rankings on the Website go to www.baseballbuddha.com and click on Games on the top of the main page, soon it should read Games & Rankings, then scroll to the bottom under all the games. I will get it better organized in the future!

Posted on March 6, 2014March 7, 2014 by Baseball Buddha — 1 Comment

Day 20 “Rain Out!”

I will not be posting a story tonight! I went to see the Pittsburgh Pirates play the Toronto Blue Jays today in Bradenton, FL at McKechnie Field, but it was rained out. I was going to see a high school game later and that was cancelled also… These things are going to happen; but even though, I will count it as a game I went to because I did show up! I took some pictures of the stadium. I’m hoping the rain stops because I will be going to a game here tomorrow between the Pirates and Twins!

Posted on March 6, 2014 by Baseball Buddha — 7 Comments

Heared opposite then around but a heinous square amphibisly

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