Baseball State of Mind

Dust, Dust, Cough, Cough

2011-03-25T19:42:00.005-04:00

I haven't posted since late 2009? Oh, where does the time go? So much has happened to me and so much has happened to the baseball world. I'm not going to rehash the past. I just like to keep it in perspective. Anyway, I've already been to four Spring Training games. Here's the photographic evidence...

Rays vs Phillies at Brighthouse Field Clearwater

I also had a great seat at a night Rays @ Yankees game. The weather was incredible, the beer was cold and the ticket was free!!!! I was also able to check another Spring Training venue off my "been there list". I went to Ft. Myers to see the Rays take on the Minnesota Twins. I liked Hammond Stadium. They had some interesting food (carolina dog has pork and slaw on it, yum) and cheese curds (not for me). The place was packed. In fact, I believe every game I've been to this year was a sell out.

Now I'm remembering why I don't blog. I don't type well or fast. It takes me a long time to bang something like this out and it's not even remotely interesting. So, here's more pics....

Rays @ Jays

Speaking of photos, I bought a great new camera. It's a Panasonic FZ100. It's got some great features for a camera that is essentially a point and shoot. Really, it's closer to a DSLR than a point 'n shoot. It shoots great photos and full HD video. Not that I shoot much video with it. I'll probably try some this weekend.

So that's all I got for now. I will try to make some entries while I'm out this weekend, I promise.

2009-09-29T19:27:00.002-04:00

I was given these two cards by one of the instructors I work with. He brought in a large stack of 1950's Bowman that he's had since he was a kid. I put them in penny sleeves for him. He let me pick two that I liked. I picked the Enos Slaughter, because it was a double. The other Enos was in much better condition. (I felt guilty enough taking these). I picked the Westrum from a small stack of Giants. The NY Giants were my dad's favorite team when he was growing up and Westrum was the manager for the Mets between Casey and Gil. It seemed like the right card.

There weren't any big stars in the group, nor would I have taken those. There was a Pesky, a Doby, Antonelli.... I advised him to take the cards to a card shop here in town if he was interested in selling them. They could tell him what they might be worth. But, he's decided to keep them because he just found out he's going to be a grand-dad. I like that much better.

The cards are not in great shape. But, I like them because right now they are the oldest cards I possess and because of the way I obtained them. I always think of Joe when I look at them.

Anyway, I share this because like the Mets this blog is limping into the end of the season.

The Good, the bad and the Ugly

2009-08-19T21:19:00.006-04:00

I was going to post this last night, figuring the Mets would lose to the Braves. Lo and behold, the Mets scored a record high 8 runs in one inning and won the game. It was great. But, the Good, the Bad and the Great just didn't work. So I didn't post. 24 hours later the Mets haven't disappointed me. They are losing to the Braves 14-2 right now. So, here it is...the good, the bad and the ugly.

The Good

A package from Joe at i am the average joe. He contacted me out of the blue a week ago and sent me a link to the cake he made for opening day. It was a reference to the cake my wife made me for my birthday. Anyway, Joe buzz sawed my 2008 U&H & Series wants to a sliver of the cards I needed. Joe's a Met fan so I'm sure he's feeling as bad as I do about the Mets season. Joe I have a package on the way. Many thanks...

The Bad

The NY Mets Line-Up

Gary Sheffield

Jeff Francoeur

Omir Santos

Anderson Hernandez

This is not a Major League line-up. They are pieces to a team, bench players, AAA-players and trade fillers (I'm looking at you Anderson.

I really like D. Murphy at first, but he has to be surrounded by a strong team with good defensive skills. Francoeur has always impressed me with his arm in right field. I always thought the Braves should fire a cannon shot when he throws, now the Mets should do it. It would upset the runner coming into homeplate.

As for the rest of the team. If they aren't around next year, I won't miss'em. Tatis is 1-30 with two outs and runners in scoring position. Come on. Sheffield needs to be a DH in the AL or in old folks home. Don't get me started on Castillo or Pagan. Santos is a back up catcher.

The Ugly

Braves and Mets August 19th

15-2, final

Ouch

They say it's your birthday....

2009-07-26T08:54:00.012-04:00

Yesterday was my birthday. How old am I? 42. What a non-significant number. But, a number of good things did happen to me on my birthday. Not big things. Just nice.

1) I got birthday cards from family members

2) My wife got the oil changed in my truck (I hate doing stuff like that) while she was out getting stuff to make me a birthday cake

3) a birthday cake shaped like a baseball

4) Watched the 1976 All-Star Game on mlbtv.

5) Had dinner at a great pizza place in N. Charleston (evo pizza)

6) Mets beat Astros 9-3 (really nine to one but K-Rod gave up a two run homer in the ninth. He hasn't had many save opportunities lately and is probably rusty)

7) Night Owl sent me a HUGE stack of 09 topps and some other Mets. Thanks Greg!

So, let's see what Greg sent, shall we?

41-2009 Topps Series 2 base cards from my want list. That's one card for each year I have successfully navigated :) With those cards (and a few I picked up at Target) that cuts my Series 2 want list in half.

Very thoughtful, Greg. Thank you.

Here is the other random Mets goodness.

A 2009 UD Johan Santana. Great photography.

A 1986 Topps Doug Sisk. The only card in the bunch that I already had. A reminder of

happier days for the Metropolitans.

Here are cards for sets I've started.

Tim Teufel. Another met from the good old days. I got Tim's autograph last year. (Or was it the year before? My memory is going). He was the manager for the Savannah SandGnats. Now he's the manager for the St. Lucie team.

Willie Randolph, Dave Gallagher. Did you know that both of these guys were born in NJ? Matter of fact, so was I. 42 years ago.

Dave Magadan. He was born in Tampa, FL. I already knew that. I spent my formative years in St. Petersburg, FL. That's right across Tampa Bay from Tampa. St. Pete is where the Rays play. NOT IN TAMPA. Sorry, I'm getting cranky in my old age. Magadan is the hitting coach for the Rays rival Red Sox. I saw him in the dug out at the playoff game last year, but was too far to get a photo.

Carl Everett was also born and raised in Tampa. I didn't know that. Carl now plays for the Newark Bears. He didn't play for the Mets for very long. There's a nice post about Carl on Paul's Random Stuff blog. I hope he doesn't mind me linking to it. (Paul, I mean, not Carl).

Finally, '09 Goudey D-Wright. He looks like some sort of alien. Still I like the card.

I will spend the rest of the weekend sorting and counting and collating and wondering what the

next 42 years will bring.

Dismal

2009-07-22T22:08:00.002-04:00

I haven't posted in over two weeks. If you're a Mets fan, you'll understand. So, why am I posting on the day that brings disturbing news about a member of the Mets front office staff and another pathetic performance against one of the worst teams in baseball? Because my friend at Nightowl cards emailed to inquire about my 2009 Topps Series 2 needs. I sat down and did a survey of what I had and what I needed (as I watched another Mets loss).

The quick answer is; I need more than I thought.

The long answer is at this link.

Thanks to Greg.

BTW, Let's hope the Dodgers can keep on winning. I couldn't stand another season of the Phillies (or the Braves) in the WS.

Mail and Redemption

2009-07-03T21:31:00.004-04:00

First off thanks to Jeff@cardjunkie.com. I sent him a handful of cards and he returned the favor by sending me a couple of NY Mets cards that I didn't have from the '09 Topps Series 2 collection. So, whether I decide to finish the Series 2 set or simply collect the Mets, I'm covered. Thanks, Jeff!

Next, I was searching e-bay for something (I don't even remember what I was looking up) when I ran across a Topps Red Hot Rookie, #1. It turns out it's Mets Rookie OF'er Fernando Martinez. I am doing this with my eyes wide open and will be rewarded after 30+ weeks with a shiny F-Mart card. By then he will no longer be a rookie, the Mets season will (thankfully at this point) over and I hope to be planning my return to Spring Training for the 2010 season.

30 Weeks!

Topps Series 2 - Jackie Robinson Cereal Box

2009-06-29T21:26:00.012-04:00

I've been having trouble tracking Jackie down, but my wife found him in Target. SInce this is my third box of Series two, I guess I'm now "officially" collecting the set. I'm still 2 short (229 Cesar Izturis, 305 Ivan Rodriguez) on the Series 1 base set. I'll lasso them up soon. (I hope). I'm also all about the inserts in this years Topps.....

Luke Scott from the "hey, what'cha doin' down there" subset

Andy Pettitte

Troy Glaus

Pat Neshek

Billy Butler

Shaun Marcum, two goofy poses in one box. Wheeee.

Luke Hochevar

Robinson Cano

Chris Perez

Ted Lilly

Carlos Lee, wants to be on a Wheaties box

Bengie Molina

Steve Pearce

Jeremy Bonderman

Brandon Phillips

Joel Pinero

BJ Ryan, Yeah!

Ryan Howard

Freddy Sanchez

Chris Iannetta

Johnny Damon

Carlos Beltran, Finally a Met card. Great Action!

Yovani Gallardo

Chris Young

Adam Jones, 1160/2009 Gold Variation

Scott Baker

Kevin Millwood

Matt Harrison

Tony LaRussa

Chris Carpenter

Dustin Pedroia, Another good action shot

Placido Polanco

Chris Davis

Braden Looper

Derek Lowe

David Patton, Rookie

Randy Wolf

Khalil Green

Paul Konerko, part of the White Sox synchronized fielding team. (I give them an 8.7 for the artistic portion, but a 5.5 for degree of difficulty :)

Adam Jones (again, but no gold border)

Trevor Cahill, Rookie

Donald Veal, Rookie

Edwin Morneo, Rookie

Kenshin Kawakami, Rookie

Coco Crisp

Brian Anderson

Milton Bradley

Miguel Olivo

Bob Melvin

Nick Johnson

Eugenio Velez

Ron Washington

And Now the Inserts:

It's hard for me to believe that guys that I grew up watching (Sandberg and Carlton) are now considered "Legends." I don't feel that old. It doesn't seem that it was that long ago.

Friday night at "The Joe"

2009-06-23T22:34:00.006-04:00

Here are some pics from my Friday night at Joe Riley stadium. The Riverdogs hosted the Sand Gnats and I can't say I was disappointed in the results. I love the Riverdogs, but seeing so many future Mets play and hit so well...It was enough to reinvigorate me as a Mets fan. Sand Gnats over the R'dogs....10-5. Lots of HR's (in fact I can't remember that many HR's in a single Riverdogs game, but my memory may be fuzzy. Man they have cold beer).

50% off Topps 2008 Series 1

2009-06-23T21:31:00.003-04:00

Picked up a box of 2008 Series 1 from Wal-Mart. I went in looking for 2009 Topps Series 2 cereal boxes (Jackie R.). They had none. Anyway, I walked away with a consolation prize. Half price Topps Series 1...If your want list is in need of any of these, e-mail me.

Here are the numbers:

21,24,28,31,38,43,45,46,150,52,58,61,65,66,75,83,99

105,114,117,118,122,124,134,135,139,144,181

207,211,217,219,222,236,239,240,244,256,258,259,262,292,299

301,306,310,312

Highlights

Longevity

2009-06-15T22:21:00.009-04:00

Last week I bought a cereal box of 2009 Topps Series 2. I opened it and sorted it and realized that there wasn't one NY Met in the whole lot. What are the odds? I don't know.

Today on the way home from work I went by Wal-Mart and picked up another cereal box. Would this one be loaded with Mets? Nope. One. One lonely NY Met. Francisco Rodriguez. That brings my collection of Mets from '09 Topps Series 2 to a grand total of 2. Ollie and K-Rod. (I picked up Ollie in a stray pack).

But, if we were to base Series 2 on the box cover, longevity would be the theme.

First up,

Ryan Braun, the Hebrew Hammer. Turkey Red. What a coincidence. In the last cereal box I bought I received a Turkey Red Prince Fielder. If I was a Brewer fan I would be in heaven. As far as longevity give this guy some time. I think he has it in him.

Next, Mel Ott. As a Met fan I appreciate the connection with the NY Giants. Ott played 22 seasons with the Giants. Pretty solid.

World Baseball Classic. Fu-Te Ni, Chinese Taipei. In the description they say Fu-Te "paced his old circuit in strikeouts in '08, after being his nation's workhorse in the previous year's Baseball World Cup".

Next insert, Larry Jones, Legends of the Game. You may not know this guy by that name, but I'm a Met fan. This guy has been killing the Mets, (and a lot of the NL teams) for some time now. 15 years is long enough. If he goes much more, his next kid will be named "Citi".

Stadium Club 2008 - Complete Set

2009-06-12T16:28:00.003-04:00

Well, sometime last year I bought a box of Stadium Club. Before I knew it I was collecting baseball cards. The blogs are full of stories about guys who started collecting when they were kids, then dropped it, only to pick it up again as an adult. I am not one of those guys. I never collected cards as a kids. I didn't have the focus. I started and stopped hobbies like most people change clothes. I get distracted eas...

oh look shiny!

Get the point. So, it gives me great pleasure to say that, not only have I stuck with collecting, I've managed to finish a set! Hooray, me. Here is the card that finished the 2008 Stadium Club. Carlos Lee, OF, Houston Astros.

I do NOT have a complete set of First Day's or Photographer's Proofs, or whatever. I do have a complete base set that includes, 1st Days, Photographers Proofs, Autos, etc. I don't think I'll ever be that kind of collector. Also, (and I'm learning about collecting as I move along) I'm a "retail" guy. The card shops scare me. I will talk to the nice people at flea markets and garage sells. I buy a lot of "junk wax". Most Goudey cards look creepy to me. I don't know how to pronounce "Goudey". I do like Turkey Red cards & the chrome inserts in the 2009 Topps series. I stick to Topps for the most part but I do like any brand that has a NY Mets player on it.

Oh, look.....shiny Upper Deck.

Charleston Riverdogs

2009-06-09T19:52:00.005-04:00

Here are few photos from Sunday's game at Joe Riley Stadium to see the Charleston Riverdogs vs the Rome Braves. The weather was warm but great. The beer was cold. To top it off I had a great seat right behind the visitor's dugout.

Riverdogs pitcher, Manuel Banuelos, pitched a good game. He scattered 6 hits and struck out 4 over 5.2 innings. The Riverdogs won 4-1.

Check out all the photos here:

2007 Topps Series one, Box 3

2009-06-07T21:20:00.004-04:00

Pack 1:

Huston Street, A's

Cincinnati Reds, Team Card

Anibel Sanchez, Marlins

Rich Hill. Cubs

Checklist

Robinson Cano, Yankees

Royce Clayton, Jays

Pack 2:

JD Drew, Dodgers

Classic Combo, Tigers, Ordonez & Rodriguez

Alex Cintron, White Sox

Chad Tracy, D-Backs

Stephen Drew, D-Backs

Ritchie Sexson, D-Backs

Pack 3:

Derek Jeter, Yankees

Phil Garner, Mgr, Astros

Barry Zito, Giants, Gold

Justin Morneau, Twins, Own the Game

Chase Utley, Generation Now, 34 Game hit Streak

Students: Work Hard, Get Cards

Ramon Ortiz, Nats

Pack 4:

Geoff Jenkins, Brewers

Philip Humber, Mets (Rookie)

Mike Piazza, A's

Bob Feller, Indians, Distinguished Service

Chris Snyder, D-Backs

Prince Fielder, Brewers

Pack 5:

Jason Grilli, Tigers

Hanley Ramirez, Marlins, NL ROY

David Ross, Reds

Frank Thomas, Jays

Checklist

Orlando Hudson, D-Backs, NL Gold Glove Award

Pat Neshek, Twins

Pack 6:

Jeff Kent, Dodgers

Houston Astros Team Card

Hank Blalock, Rangers

Brad Lidge, Astros

Ryan Howard, NL MVP

Orlando Hernandez, Mets

Pack 7:

Joe Crede, White Sox

Mark Ellis, A's

Josh Bard, Padres

Justin Morneau, Twins, Generation Now 28

Students: Work Hard, Get Cards

Scott Kazmir, D-Rays

Tim Wakefield, Red Sox

Pack 8:

Kendry Morales, Angels

Jack Wilson, Pirates

John Lackey, Angels

Justin Verlander, AL ROY

Josh Gibson, HR 600, Home Run History

Shane Youman, Pirates (Rookie)

Pack 9:

Justin Morneau, Twins, AL MVP

Jamey Carroll, Rockies

Andrew Miller, Tigers (Rookie)

Mickey Mantle, HR#259

Jim Thome, White Sox, Own the Game

Checklist

Shannon Stewart, Twins

Bonus Pack: Same Three as Last Box (Odds?)

2007 Topps Series one, Box 2

2009-06-07T15:13:00.006-04:00

Pack 1:

Adam Loewen, Orioles

Barry Zito, Giants

Brian Burres, Orioles

Andruw Jones, Braves, Own the Game

Checklist

Aubrey Huff, Orioles

Alfredo Amezaga, Marlins

Pack 2:

Andre Ethier, Dodgers, Gold Cup

Carl Crawford, D-Rays

James Loney, Dodgers

Matt Capps, Pirates

Bobby Kielty, A's

Bob Wickman, Braves

Pack 3:

Austin Kearns, Nats

Red Sox, Team Card

Jim Edmonds, Cards

Carlos Beltran, Mets, NL Gold Glove Award

Ryan Howard, Phillies, Generarion Now HR#19

Students: Work Hard, Get Cards

Classic Combo, NL All-Stars, Soriano and Beltran

Pack 4:

BJ Ryan, Jays

Chris Gomez, O's

Kenny Rogers, Tigers, AL Gold Glove Award

Jason Marquis, Cards, Gold Card

Brandon Inge, Tigers

Brad Penny, Dodgers

Pack 5:

BJ Upton, D-Rays

Billy Wagner, Mets

Nick Punto, Twins

Ervin Santana, Angels

Checklist

Emil Brown, Royals

Eric Byrnes, D-Backs

Pack 6:

Elizardo Ramirez, Reds

David Wright, Mets

Scott Rolen, Cards

Josh Gibson, HR #4

Curt Schilling, Red Sox

Dontrelle Willis, Marlins

Pack 7:

Bronson Arroyo, Reds

Atlanta Braves Team Card

Cla Meredith, Padres

Unlock the Mick MLB 2K7 Video Game Cheats

Chester Nimitz, Distinguished Service

Clay Hensley, Padres

Pack 8:

Edwin Encarnacion, Reds

Greg Maddux, Dodgers, NL Gold Glove Award

Tom Gordon, Phillies

Mickey Mantle, MMS11

Checklist

Chris Duncan, Cards

Chuck James, Braves

Pack 9:

Edgar Renteria, Braves

Alert Pujols, Cards

Aaron Rowand, Phillies

Alex Rogriguez, Seattle, Road to 500, 18th HR

Eduardo Perez, M's

Chone Figgans, A's

Pack 10:

Drew Anderson, Brewers, (Rookie)

Albert Pujols, Cards, NL Gold Glove Award Winner

Brandon Webb, D-Backs, NL Cy Young Award Winner

Jim Tracy, Mgr, Pirates

Justin Morneau, Twins, Generation Now HR 11

Students: Work Hard, Get Cards

Classic Combo, Delgado and Wright, NY Mets

Bonus Pack:

2007 Topps Series one, Box 1

2009-06-07T13:47:00.010-04:00

Pack 1:

Jeff Kent, Dodgers

Carl Crawford, Devil Rays

Chris Gomes, Orioles

Josh Gibson, Homerun History 2

Aramis Ramirez, Cubs

Ben Sheets, Brewers

Pack 2:

Jason Grilli, Tigers

Kenny Rogers, Tigers, AL Gold Glove Award

Jim Edmonds, Cards

Chris Carpenter, Own the Game

Checklist

Bengie Molina, Giants

Bill Hall, Brewers

Pack 3:

Geoff Jenkins, Brewers

Casey Fossum, Devil Rays

Carlos Beltran, Mets, NL Gold Glove Award

James Loney, Dodgers

Mickey Mantle, MMS14

Bob Melvin, Mgr, D-Backs

Pack 4:

JD Drew, Dodgers

Matt Capps, Pirates

Barry Zito, Giants

Mike Napoli, Generation Now, HR #6

Students: Work Hard, Get Cards

Shawn Riggans, D-Rays (Rookie)

Ryan Feierabend, Mariners (Rookie)

Pack 5:

Magglio Ordonez and Ivan Roriguez, Classic Combo, Tigers

Chicago White Sox, Team Card

Brian Burres, Orioles

Rich Aurilia, Giants

Rod Barajas, Phillies

Mark Buehrle, White Sox

Pack 6:

Huston Street, A's

Ubaldo Jimenez, Rockies

Grady Sizemore, Indians

Dan Uggla, Marlins

Checklist

Rafael Soriano, Braves

Phil Nevin, Twins

Pack 7:

Jason Jennings, Astros

Matt Murton, Cubs

Scott Moore, Cubs (Rookie)

Elmer Valo, Distinguished Service, Philadelphia A's

Oswaldo Navarro, Mariners (Rookie)

Jason Marquis, Cards

Pack 8:

Glen Perkins, Twins (Rookie)

Travis Hafner, Indians

Carlos Beltran, Mets

Alfonso Soriano, Nationals, Own the Game

Ryan Howard, Generation Now, HR #14

Students: Work Hard, Get Cards

Mike Scioscia, Mgr, Angels

Pack 9:

Francisco Cordero, Brewers

Carlos Silva, Twins

Jimmy Gobble, Royals

CC Sabathia, Indians

Mike Redmond, Twins

(Almost the all-pitcher pack. Since someone has to catch, that's Redmond job).

Jeff Francis, Rockies

Pack 10:

Chipper Jones, Braves

Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Team Card

Jeremy Bonderman, Tigers

Jason Varitek, Red Sox

Mickey Mantle, HR #269

Checklist

Johan Santana, Twins, AL Cy Young Award Winner

Bonus Pack:

Ease the pain

2009-06-07T13:31:00.007-04:00

Last night the Mets lost to the Nats, 1-7. I wouldn't say lost. No let's say John Maine threw BP against the Nats and the Mets batters made John Lannan look like a Cy Young candidate. The Mets hit into five double plays. FIVE. Ugh. Anyway, while watching the game I cruised to my favorite card collecting blogs. I read about the Topps Series 2 cereal boxes featuring Jackie Robinson.I decided I needed one of them.

This afternoon I went by Wal-Fart to see if they had any. Normally, I would go to Target, but I needed to pick up something they don't sell at Target (beer) so I thought I would kill two birds with one stone. Well, Wally didn't have any cereal boxes. None. But, they did have 2007 Topps Series One blasters. For $4.97. Well, I picked up 3. I'll go to Target next week.

I figured I would bust open these blasters and if the Mets play like they did last night, I won't be feeling as bad. So let's bust'em.

2008 Stadium Club - Almost There

2009-05-26T19:44:00.004-04:00

I picked up a few '08 Stadium Clubs from ebay. This means I'm down to (1) card. #27-Carlos Lee.

It's out there and I will acquire it. Be it trade or ebay. Anyway, here's the three I picked up from some fine ebayer's.

Robinson Cano. Photographer's Proof.

Cole Hamels. Photographer's Proof

Jacoby Ellsbury. First Day.

My goal when I started on this set was to finish it. By "finish it" I mean the base set. As far as I'm concerned the Photo Proofs, the 1st days, Beam Teams, etc. are just nice to haves. I'm still learning what is considered a complete set. I see it as a complete set. Since I'm doing this for me, I only have to please me. So, like I said, I need one more card to finish it. Come on Carlos Lee. Oh, before I forget. Thanks to Greg@nightowlcards, Jeff@cardjunkie and all you wonderful ebayers! I couldn't have done it without your help!

2009 Topps Series 2

2009-05-25T20:40:00.009-04:00

One Pack. I bought one pack of 2009 Topps Series 2 at Target the other day. I almost never, no scratch that, I have never bought just one pack of cards that I can remember. Since I've only been collecting a short time I can say that with some certainity. Well, without any further ado.....

Jason Bartlett and Adrian Beltre

Fernando Rodney and Joel Pinero

Ollie Perez and Willy Aybar. (Included is Derek Jeter doing his Bigfoot impression)

Kevin Youkilis ToppsTowne and Trevor Hoffman, Legends of the Game

Cy Young, Legends of the Game

And the best two cards in the pack....

Edwin Moreno, Rookie card Beautiful background and

Jeff Suppan apparently sleeps on the field in a sleeping bag. Ha.

Two outta Three ain't bad

2009-05-24T22:37:00.002-04:00

I really thought the Mets were going to get slaughtered in Boston this weekend. Much to my delight, they played well. The defense, which has struggled as of late, looked good Friday and incredible on Saturday.

The bullpen was killed on Sunday. But, I see the series as a success for the Mets. Murphy played very well at first. Wright has his bat working. The more Sheffiield swings the bat the more dangerous he becomes. Until Delgado gets back Sheffield should be the everyday left fielder. Of course, we need Beltran and Reyes back. Overall, the road trip wasn't that bad. 3 out of 4 from the Giants, an LA sweep and 2 of three at Fenway (with a team that is limping along with injuries). It's .500 on the road. Not bad. Bring on the woeful Nats.

Finally, why wasn't someone on the Red Sox drilled after Papelbon's actions? He races onto the field like a bull in the ninth on Saturday. What is this the WWE? Sit your a#S on the bench and hope nobody remembers you gave up a HR to Omir Santos. If I were Jerry Manual I would've had Redding throw at the first batter on Sunday. Maybe I'm too harsh.

Re-packs help me build sets

2009-05-17T18:16:00.010-04:00

I picked up a repack of cards from Target today and got a few cards I need for Mets set building.

Leading off,

Jose Reyes, 2007 UD Series 1. He singles and steals second.

Batting 2nd,

(2) Keith Hernandez, '85 Record Breakers-1986 inserts. That's a double. Reyes scores. RBI for Hernandez.

Batting 3rd,

Howard Johnson, 1990 Topps mini Superstars sticker. HoJo had 39 HR's and 101 RBI's in 1989.

Oh and 41 Stolen Bases. Single up the middle. Hernandez to third.

Batting clean-up,

Daryl Strawberry, 1988 Topps mini UK. On the back of the card it mentions that "Straw" has two brothers that also play baseball. They look like twins but bear no resemblance to Daryl. I wonder if he discusses it in his new book?

3 run HR.

Batting fifth,

Juan Smauel. 1990's Topps. Already had it.

He hits into a triple play. (How is that possible with no else on base? How would I know? He's Juan Samuel)? The Mets traded away McDowell and Dykstra (two players I really liked) for this guy. Then shipped him off to the Dodgers for Mike Marshall and Alejandro Pena (another player I was never fond of).

Pitching for the Mets. Terry Leach. 1989 Topps. (needed it).

I also pulled a Keith Hernandez UK mini. First time I've pulled that many Hernandez cards.

Needless to say, I'm pleased with my haul of repacking goodness.

Now to finish the weekend with a 4-game sweep of the Giants.

LET'S GO METS!

Manny in Fantasyland

2009-05-08T16:03:00.003-04:00

Two weeks ago I was in the cellar. Well, not me. My fantasy league team. I entered this year as a sophomore fantasy leaguer. I finished out last year somewhere near the bottom (8th of 12). I chalked it up to inexperience and a bad draft. In fact, last year I didn't even bother ranking players for the draft. I should have done that (by "That" I mean nothing) again this year.

I entered this year with a strategy. I ranked my players. I was going to put an emphasis on pitching. K's and Wins! Then some strong RBI hitters. That was my focus. Then the draft was over. I went through the line-up and I realized I don't have any pop. None. Not one big bat. I NEEDED SOME POP! I panicked.

I had some great starting pitching, Lincecum, Shields, Maine, Garza. Not bad.

I started shopping some starting pitching. Someone was willing to trade for Shields. No Dice.

I met "Big Game" James at the beginning of the 2008 season. Then I saw him pitch (albeit losing) against Boston in Game 6 of the 2008 ALCS. No, Shields is my man. I narrowed it down. I was shopping Lincecum.

Tim had a couple of bad starts but nobody was worried. Then he had some great starts, lots of K's. An offer arrived. Not much of one. Mike Jacobs and someone else. Naw. Then another offer. A blockbuster. Manny for Lincecum! Then the offer went away. Then it reappeared.

I took it.

I'm not a fan of Manny's. The palms down superman routine when he hits a HR bores me. He acts like no one else has ever done it before. I say act like you knew you could do it. You knew you would smash the ball off this guy. It should be no big deal. That's the kinda player I like. Unassuming. Manny is anything but. On the other hand.....look at those numbers!

I'm not making excuses but, maybe I'm just like Manny. I compromised myself because I wanted the glory. I wanted to win. Mike Jacobs is a good ballplayer. I could have had him and got some satisfaction knowing that the players I manage (and root for) are clean. But no. I had to have someone who would really make an impact. Manny wants to win. He wants to be known as a great hitter. So he may have compromised himself. He could have been known as a player who played clean. Like I said, I'm not making excuses but, we're only human.

Picked up some Topps series one stuff

2009-04-27T20:11:00.006-04:00

I'm slowly moving towards finishing this set. (Except for those pesky chrome refractors). Ah, a handful of chrome-gold. Nightowl's post about Topps Series 1 chrome refractors, from cereal boxes, making us all rich was very funny. But, alas, I still covet the inserts from this series. I hope to collect them all. I'm keeping this short so I can head over to Nightowl's to see what he snagged at the card show.

Here are a few highlights from todays pick-up:

Frank Thomas - "The Big Hurt." Is he still playing?

Tug Hullet - Guessing his folks were fans of Tug McGraw?

Mike Pelfrey - "Big Pelf"

Jon Niese - Rookie Card - Could he replace Ollie in the rotation? Was born on October 7th, 1986. Game 7. Coincidence?

Longoria. Gold Cup.

Ian Kinsler

Matt Kemp. Kemp, Loney and now Hudson are a young group that could make the Dodgers a very good team for a long time.

Juan Castro - Parachuted in to make this catch.

Stadium Club 2008

2009-04-22T22:10:00.007-04:00

The set that started it all for me last year. I picked up a pack at Target and was hooked. Well, almost a year later I am 4 cards away from the complete set. So here are the 5 I picked up from ebay. They arrived in the mail this afternoon.

I was searching for the score of this dismal, final Opening Day at Shea. I found this photo on the NY Daily News site. It's the flip side:

The cards I need to finish the set are:
21-Ellsbury, 27-Carlos Lee, 69-Hamels and 72-Cano. I'm stumped on the DiMaggio card. Everything I've seen is a cutout variation card. Well, I'm not letting that hold me back from a complete set. No Sir. As far as I'm concerned that card doesn't exist. I will stick to that story and eventually, it will be a reality. To me.

42

2009-04-15T21:22:00.004-04:00

I started working at the College of Charleston - North Campus in late 2006. The year before I had started what I call the "Annual Pilgrimage" to Florida. This pilgrimage is a return to my home. Sunny Florida. In Spring. Back to the ball fields. A place where you can meet your heroes.
In 2007, I was still new at the job. When people heard I was a baseball fan they told me about College of Charleston Communications Professor and author, Dr. Chris Lamb's, book. "Blackout: The Untold Story of Jackie Robinson's First Spring Training." I picked up a copy right before I left for Spring Exhibition games.

I read Dr. Lamb's book while I was on my trip that year. I contacted him before I left and informed him I was traveling down there and would be blogging. He answered with an encouraging word and a wish to be there with me. I carried the book with me as I walked around Dodgertown (my first trip). Even though Jackie didn't play there in his inaugural season, he was a mainstay in Dodgertown for many years to come. The book added a road map to what Jackie faced before he went to "The Show." Racism in Florida was a reality then and provided him with a glimpse of what lay ahead. His (and Rachel's) courage should never be forgotten.

If you are a fan who would like to learn more about the game than the what's in the box score, this book is for you. Check it out.

Finishing up Opening Week

2009-04-12T22:43:00.003-04:00

The NY Mets lost to the Marlins. The pitching in this game was tremendous. Josh Johnson and Johan Santana were incredible. The difference was Daniel Murphy's catching error. A long fly ball that he initially misjudged, and headed in, then recovered and got under it, but it bounced out of his glove. A run scored. Another run scored on a hit to left. The pitching in this game was awesome.

J. Johnson (W 2-0) 9 IP 5 H 1R 1ER 1BB 7K
J. Santana (L 1-1) 7 IP 3 H 2R 0ER 1BB 13K

I can only hope that Murphy can shake this off. I want him to be the everyday LF an to bat second. The kid has a ton of potential.

I also attended the fourth game of the Charleston Riverdogs. It was a 5:05 start. The Riverdogs won 2-0. The park was kinda empty and we had to move to the third base side because it was chilly in the shade.

Busy Week

2009-04-11T19:56:00.007-04:00

It was a busy week. The highlight was going to the Charleston Riverdogs home opener vs the Rome Braves. The weather was great. The game started well for the R-Dogs but errors got the best of them. They lost 8-2. The park was packed. It was great. I picked up a pack of 2008 Charleston Riverdogs baseball cards.

Thanks to jeff@cardjunkie for a surprise package of 2009 Topps Series One. I knocked a couple more off my wants list. Again, Thanks Jeff. I'm hoping once the season settles in I am able to post more oftener. Of course, if the Mets play like they did last night in their loss to the Marlins, I will hardly be able to get out of bed, much less post.

Check out dayf's post @ about his visit to "the Ted". dayf we have to get together for a game when the Mets visit Atlanta. If you've never been to Turner Field, treat yourself. It's a great ballpark. The people are very friendly, even to Mets fans.

Opening Day Fun

2009-04-06T22:30:00.002-04:00

NY Mets Pitching - Ugh

2009-04-05T07:52:00.000-04:00

Fantasy League Baseball 2009

2009-04-04T10:45:00.002-04:00

I belong to one Fantasy League. It was started last year at work. I finished poorly last year. I was optimistic about this year. I thought I knew what I was doing. Ha. Here's my line-up:

Dioner Navarro, TB C
Joey Votto, Cin 1B
Orlando Hudson, LAD 2B
Kevin Kouzmanoff, SD 3B
Orlando Cabrera, Oak SS
Chris Getz, CWS 2B
Mark DeRosa, Cle 2B, 3B, OF
Daniel Murphy, NYM OF
Chase Headley, SD OF
Randy Winn, SF OF
Travis Hafner, Cle DH
Emmanuel Burriss, SF 2B, SS

Tim Lincecum, SF SP
James Shields, TB SP
John Maine, NYM SP
Matt Garza, TB SP
Mike Pelfrey, NYM SP
Edinson Volquez, Cin SP
Jon Garland, Ari SP
Ian Snell, Pit SP

Not bad in the pitching department. Not sure what to expect with my line-up.

Don Zimmer

2009-04-03T20:31:00.005-04:00

Greg @ Nightowl Cards did a post on a Don Zimmer card he received. In the post he mentions that Zim is a Dodger. I beg to differ. One of the teams Zim played for was the original 1962 NY Mets. I say he's a Met. One of the great things about going to Rays games is seeing a legend like Don Zimmer. He's usually got someone's ear. Last year, during the Rays playoffs I saw him talking with Cal Ripken, Jr. One of the best pictures I've ever taken was this one of Joe Torre and Don Zimmer during a Spring Game in St. Pete between the Yankees and Rays.

First video post

2009-03-30T20:27:00.002-04:00

A cereal box break of 2009 Topps Series 1 and a couple of ebay packages of Topps NY Mets cards.

Another Trip to the flea market

2009-03-22T18:42:00.013-04:00

Another trip to the flea market this weekend. My friend, Mr. Bill, was not in. The Going out of Business sign still hangs there. I went around to see if anyone else was selling cards. I picked up a number of older Topps NY Mets. Here's what I got:

My wife asked me if I would organize and move some of my cards so that the "office" space was a little neater. She allowed me to buy a couple of notebooks and I've been sorting cards most of the weekend. Jeff@cardjunkie posted a quick post on the cards I sent him. I enjoy watching cards I've sent being opened on-line. I've got tons of recent doubles, e-mail if you need something.

I have been out bid on a number of cards that I had my eye on on e-bay. That's a bummer because I want to finish my 2008 Topps Stadium Club. I'm a little peeved that a card I bought two+ weeks ago hasn't arrived. I've e-mailed the seller a couple of times. Has this happened to anyone else? I'm sure I'm not the first. What did you do? Is a trip to Judge Judy (a hero of mine, so be nice) in order?

I need to get rid of some cards

2009-03-19T21:07:00.003-04:00

I've published a list of cards I have for trade here. If you're looking to trade e-mail me or post a comment.

I never published the cereal box break I did after Team USA beat Puerto Rico. I tested the waters but chickened out. Maybe in the future.
Here are the inserts:

Chrome Refractor: Babe Ruth
Topps Turkey Red: Cole Hamels
Legends of the Game: George Sisler
ToppsTown: Evan Longoria

Honestly, if I finish the whole set I'll be happy but, I really would be satisfied just collecting all the Chrome Refractors and Legends of the Game from this series.

I'm just 11 cards away from finishing the 2008 Topps Stadium Club set. This should include the caveat that I'm not looking to collect all the variations. That would be crazy. Very Crazy. (If anyone is or has done this I would love to hear about it. I've collected a few autos, one beam team (that I traded), many 1st days, and some other variations. I've enjoyed collecting the set and will do so again.

I spied some Topps Heritage packs in Wal-Mart on Tuesday, but opted to buy the Topps cereal box instead. I have a feeling that since I'm such a new collector and already so far behind, starting yet another set would break me. I'm going to hold out.

"Going out of Business"

2009-03-15T19:01:00.005-04:00

The last time I was up to visit Mr. Bill at the Flea Market he told me he hadn't been doing well and had been in the hospital for nine days. He's got diabetes. His health is deteriorating. He obviously has other ailments. He had told me a few visits ago that he was going out of business. He would sell everything he had in stock and call it quits, but that could take a year or more. He said he would put together a box of Mets players for me.We talked some more and I bought a box of Lenny Dykstra commons from him. He's the guy who sold me the Mets autograph photos.

I hadn't been up to visit Bill in almost a month. His booth was closed today. The plastic blue tarp was pulled closed. Then I noticed the big yellow sign hanging below his sign. "Going out of Business." I walked down the aisle. Very sad. I went to visit another vendor. Gene is also an older gentlemen. He said, "Bill probably wasn't feeling well." I bought three packs of 1989 Fleers. We talked for awhile about the state of baseball and how lousy of a commissioner Selig is. I'll have to wait until next Saturday to find out how my friend is doing.

No Heritage for me

2009-02-28T22:30:00.004-05:00

I still can't find any Heritage packs here. So, I broke down and bought a cereal box of Topps. There were two in the local Target. Mantle and Ruth. I choose Mickey. I wasn't going to collect Series One but after this I might. First, I really like the boxes. Inside was a Ted Williams Chrome refractor. Nice. Very Nice. I also pulled a Roy Campanella legends card and a David Price Rookie Gold border. Not to mention a Turkey Red Curtis Granderson. Also, are the toppstown cards inserts? I don't think so but the one I got was Longoria. I'm holding on to it.

After I opened it my wife asked if I had checked the mail. It had been raining most of the afternoon. I trudged out to the mailbox. Inside was a envelope from Greg at nightowl. He had scored some Stadium Club cards and had even thought of me and picked up a Chase Utley that he knew I needed. He also included a bunch of 2008 Topps U&H's I needed. That list is getting short. Thanks, nightowl.

Later that evening, after a great dinner at Pane y Vino, downtown Charleston, we ran by Target again. I grabbed the Ruth cereal box off the shelf and a $4.99 repack thingy. My wife shook her head. The cereal box contained a Carl Yaz legends card, a Topps Turkey Red Jimmie Foxx, (Red? Foxx? haha) and another Chrome Teddy Ballgame. No other doubles for the base set. Well, darn. I guess I'm collecting 2009 Topps Series One.

Jeff's pack, Part 2

2009-02-26T21:26:00.009-05:00

Also in the package, protecting the cards were four 1990 Fleer Action Series Sticker Cards with a Baseball Quiz on the back. The 7-year-old in me wants to paste the stickers on my closet doors. The 41-year-old in me will get his butt kicked by his loving, devoted wife. Let's just take the quiz. Good Luck to all and no peeking.

Who is Yamid Haad?

2009-02-26T20:18:00.009-05:00

This evening I returned home to find a very thick package waiting for me. Honestly, I'm finding that the best part of card collecting is trading on line. I get great mail all the time now. Before it was all bills and junk.

Occasionally, ESPN the Mag or Inside Pitch. Now I never know what will be waiting for me. Card bloggers are the best people.

The package was from Jeff at Card Junkie. Thanks, Jeff. He had a bunch of Topps stuff he needed so I happily sent him what I had. He did the same for me, slashing my '08 Series 2 and UH in half. I won't post all of the cards but, the last one I was inserting really caught my attention.

UH6 Yamid Haad. I'd never heard of him so I flipped the card over to see his stats. I assumed this guy was some young rookie.

This "rookie" has been playing ball professionally since 1997. He was twenty when he started in Erie hitting .290 in 43 games. He has played in 18 major league games. 1 game with Pittsburgh in 1999 and 17 games with the Giants in 2005. In his time with the Giants he had 10 starts (playing behind Pat Methany). Then he was suspended for steroids for 50 games in May of 2006. He played in the D-Rays system but was traded to the Indians. He was called up but never appeared in a game with the Indians.

That, my friends, is living the dream.

Who knew?

2009-02-26T06:56:00.002-05:00

Like so many I'm waiting on the '09 Heritage from Topps to be released. I was going to swing by the store on the way home, but luckily I checked a couple of my favorite blogs and they mentioned that the release was delayed. That's probably for the best. I'm not exactly flush with cash right now.

Speaking of flush. I have twenty cards left to finish the 2008 Topps Stadium Club set. I'm not being picky about cards. The variations in this set could make a grown man cry. I just want to finish with at least one card of each player in the base set 1-150. I've been lucky enough to pull a couple of autos and a beam team of Delwyn Young (which I traded to nightowl). But, basically I just want to finish the set. So, last night I headed to ebay to see what it would take to go that route. I managed to find all the cards I needed from the same dealer. The cost, however, gave me pause and I will continue to search for more trades.

The Spring Training exhibition season has started. If you can't get down to Florida (or Arizona) I suggest swinging by Matt Cerrone's Metsblog.com. Matt has posted videos, interviews with players and coaches, updates and fun stuff from Duffys. It's like I'm there. Matt has the fans in mind. He asks the questions you would want to ask. He does a great job. Or if you want to check out photos from my trips in the past, then read the posts below.

My boss came by my office and asked, "Now that Spring Training is underway, are we going to get any work out of you?" My reply, "You don't get much from me to start with." haha funny guy.

Help.

2009-02-18T18:46:00.003-05:00

I visited my friend at the flea market a few weeks ago. He had a stack of photos sitting on the table. The top photo, (5x7, b/w, autographed) was of Gil Hodges in a Mets uni. "What's that," I asked? "Take a look." I picked them up. Fifteen black and white photos, all autographed, of the 1969 NY Mets. A little tattered, dogged eared, and yellowed. He got them in an auction.

I can't determine their origin. Are those actual autographs? I checked a couple of the players against signatures I found on-line. They look like matches.

Last week I went back to the flea market. My friend hasn't been doing well health-wise. I sat down to talk and saw another picture sitting there. It was Ken Boswell. "Oh, yeah" he says, "that goes with the set. I saved it for you."

Where did these come from? In my mind I've created an entire story. It involves an 8-year-old kid from Queens. His dad takes him to a fan-fest type thing at the beginning of the 1969 season. You pay a buck or two. The players sign these pics and slide them across the table to you. "Thanks Mr. Swoboda. I hope the Mets win the series this year." "Thanks kid."

Anyway, they mean the world to me. 16 photos of the "Amazing Mets". I will be finding frames and hanging them in my office. Anyone have any ideas about their origin?

Here's the line-up

Tom Seaver

Jerry Koosman

Cleon Jones

Tommie Agee

Jerry Grote

Ron Swoboda

Tug McGraw

Donn Clendenon

Ed Kranepool

Wayne Garrett

Bud Harrelson

Gary Gentry

Ron Taylor

Art Shamsky

Ken Boswell

Gil Hodges

Am I a Blogger?

2009-02-17T23:34:00.002-05:00

Spring Training is here. How do I know? The Yankees had a press conference so some other player could express his sorrow for cheating. I'm sorry I don't like A-Rod. He tried to choke up some tears. He tried to seem like mattered to him. He doesn't give a c@#p. Enough.

I still haven't decided what, if any, cards I might collect this year. Last year was my first and I started late. I ended up hooked on Stadium Club. I tried Series 2 Topps. I tried Topps U & H. I tried Heritage High Numbers. Liked those. This year I will continue my pursuit of building Mets team sets. 2009 Topps here I come. 2009 UD. Look out. I saw a post on paulsrandomstuff about 2009 Topps Heritage. They look cool. This stuff is addictive.

House Cleaning

2009-01-25T16:49:00.001-05:00

I have moved some stuff over from my old .mac account, posted links to my picassa account and cleaned up some old posts that were rambling.

2007 Grapefruit League (A look back/moved from my old .mac account)

2008-11-06T23:02:00.006-05:00

This was the year! I was sure the Mets would make it to the World Series. I got an autograph from HOF'er Ralph Kiner in front of Tradition Field. I also got autographs from Julio Franco, Endy "The Catch" Chavez and Mike Carp. I saw Tom Glavine, Scott Kazmir, Carlos Beltran and Howard Johnson as the Mets batting coach. In Clearwater, I got autographs from Aki Iwamura, Delmon Young and Jonny Gomes. That was also the year Josh Hamilton made his return to the bigs with the Reds. Nobody knew what he would do the next year.....Finally, the NY Mets finished Spring Training at Tropicana Field. They lost to the D-Rays..

Parks Visited:

Knology (Toronto Blue Jays) Dunedin

Tradition Field (NY Mets) Port St. Lucie

Holman Stadium, Dodgertown (LA Dodgers) Vero Beach

Brighthouse Networks Field (Phillies) Clearwater

Tropicana Field (D-Rays) St. Pete

Ed Smith Stadium (Reds) Sarasota

Anyway these are the pics

Grapefruit League 2006 (A further look back/stuff from my old .mac account)

2008-11-05T21:02:00.007-05:00

Spring 2006. The first year I started the "annual" trip to Florida for Spring Training. The NY Mets had a great run that year and lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in the Playoffs despite the memorable catch by Endy Chavez. I stayed in Orlando/Kissimmee that year. I drove back and forth to Port St. Lucie to see the Mets, as well as, going to the Astros in Kissimmee and the Braves at Wide World of Sports/Cracker Jack Stadium/Champion Stadium. I spent the second part of the trip in St. Pete. Blue Jays, Devil Rays & Phillies.

Autographs from:

David Wright (photo hangs on my wall)

Astros Program:

Andy Pettitte

Trever Miller

Phil Garner

Russ Springer

Taylor Buchholz

Mike Gallo

Eric Bruntlett

The highlight of the trip was seeing Yogi Berra on the field at Al Lang. It was 21 years since someone in my family had snapped a picture of a Spring Training game in St. Petersburg and Yogi was there both times. Also spotted Don Zimmer, Joe Torre and Reggie Jackson.

The itinerary:

Eight days/Nine Games. I saw the NY Mets Five times. (4 Home/1 Away). The Devil Rays three times. The Yankees twice. The Braves twice, Astros twice. I also saw the Blue Jays, the Reds and the Orioles. I also drove to the Phillies minor league complex for a few hours.

Here's the pix from that year's trip

1975 (a look way back/old stuff from my .mac website)

2008-11-03T22:34:00.004-05:00

Spring Training 1975. I was 7. My dad took me to see a baseball game at Al Lang Field in St. Petersburg, FL. At that time Al Lang was the Spring Training home of the NY Mets and St. Louis Cardinals. It was picture perfect day. A kid could go on the field and have his picture taken with their favorite NY Met. I was so shy I wouldn’t ask. My dad got pictures of Rusty and Yogi. Twenty-one years later my dad and I went to a Spring Training game at Progress Energy Park, home of AL Lang Field. Yogi was there.

Here are the pix from 1975.

First Home Game of 2008 for the Charleston Riverdogs

2008-04-12T14:56:00.005-04:00

Here's a link to the pictures I took at the Charleston Riverdogs Home opener against the Savannah SandGnats.

Totals

2008-03-24T22:13:00.003-04:00

The numbers are still coming in. I keep updating as I think of things.

Total mileage=2061

Total # nights in motels = 8

Total # ballparks visited = 8

Total # foul balls caught = 1

Total # of fans with face painting that I talked to = 1

Total # of errors A-Rod committed = 2

Total # of games seen=10

Total # of sports stars seen in bars = 2

Total # of Hall of Famers met = 1

Total # days until next years visit= approx. 360

Total # of pictures taken = 714

Total # programs bought = 8

Final Day A Rainout

2008-03-22T17:00:00.003-04:00

The day started great, but was cloudy. Rain was forecast. We arrived at the ballpark early and were able to watch TB Rays take BP in the back field. Carl Crawford and Evan Longoria were there. Later in the ballpark I got autographs from Joe Maddon (manager), Matt Garza (pitcher), Rocco Baldelli (OF) and a few others. Unfortunately, the rain wasn't able to hold off and the tarp came out after the second inning. That will probably be the last game I get to attend at Al Lang since the Rays are moving Spring Training to Charlotte county. That's a bummer.
I also got a great picture of one of my favorite players, Cliff Floyd.

Here are the pics

Day Eight and the Best Stadium in Grapefruit League

2008-03-21T19:29:00.002-04:00

Dad declared that the Tigers field was the best we've been to so far. I liked it alot, too. I still think the Phillies have the best, mostly because you can still see the field from the concessions. I will say that the Tigers have the best announcer. His introductions of the Tiger's players was great. Each name was announced as if they were going to do battle in the Thunderdome. Then when he announced the line-up for the visiting Jays he says each name and position, quickly. Very funny. Dad and I talked to a nice guy from Toronto who's visiting with family. He was in Myrtle Beach recently and was telling me how much he liked it. I like the Blue Jays fans. Even more, I like the Tiger's line up. If they get some good pitching, they are the team to beat in the AL. Jim Leyland was there. Gary Sheffield hit a frozen rope over the left field wall. The D-Train was derailed and he was pulled in the fourth inning. The Jays were knocking him around.

Here's the link to the pics.

Go Tribe!

2008-03-21T19:01:00.004-04:00

Yesterday I met and got an autograph from Hall of Famer, Bob Feller. Very nice man. He talked to everyone that he signed for and shook their hand. I'm not sure how old he is but I do know that he went into the Hall of Fame in 1962. He also served in the US Navy in WWII. He pitched a no hitter on Opening Day of the 1940 season against the White Sox (sorry, Skip). Here's a link to the wiki about HOF'er Bob Feller.
Chain of Lakes park is losing the Indians to Arizona after this year. Very sad. The park is old but has a ton of character. Who ever designed it said, "Hey, let's face it this way and give it a cover so the fans can sit in the shade." I would like to shake that person's hand.
Later, that night I met golfer John Daly. But, that's a story for another time.

Link to pics.

Doubleheader

2008-03-19T23:41:00.006-04:00

Long Day. Started early with laundry. Met this guy who's 16y/o kid has a one day contract with a group of prospects and will play in a game with the Phillies minor leaguers. This was one proud pop.

My Dad was interviewed and photographed for a story that the St. Pete Times will be running in the beginning in April when the season starts. It is about the end of Spring Training baseball at Al Lang field. The Rays won the game 4-1.
The night game at McKetchnie Field was like stepping back in time. Except for one thing. It was a night game. This is the first night game ever played at McKetchnie. It was supposed to have happened earlier in the week, but was rained out. This game was a slugfest from the start. The first Pirates batter hit a homerun off Phil Hughes. They slugged it out with the Yankees for the rest of the game. The Yankees ended up winning 12-9. There was a total of 29 hits, four errors, (A-Rod made 2) and a beautiful bunt made by CofC alum Brett Gardner who started in Centerfield for the Yankees. He also scored a run and struck out. Go Cougars!

Here's the link to the pics. And Here

Clearwater, FL

2008-03-19T08:49:00.002-04:00

Here I am on the West Coast of sunny Florida. Phillies and Rays played yesterday. Phillies won 4-1. Great seats, in the shade.
Today is a double header for us. Phillies and Rays at Al Lang in St. Pete. Tonight is Yankees and Pirates in Bradenton. Chance of rain tonight/tomorrow morning is 60%. If a game has to be rained out at least it's a game with Yankees. Although, I've never been to the Pirates facility so I was kind of looking forward to it. Even if it rains I'm going down to check out the stadium.

Here's the link to the pics.

First...A Word about Viera, the Nats and Ron D's huge head

2008-03-18T21:15:00.004-04:00

Monday was a trip to Viera, which is near Melbourne. An even wider view would include Cocoa Beach and Canaveral. The "Space Coast." Home to Maj. Nelson, Jeannie, and Spring Breakers. Viera is on the eastern side of I-95. At one time, in the not so distant past it was probably wetlands. Now, expanding out from the center of the outdoor mall it is a golf community. Homes are large, brown and expensive. Space Coast Stadium sits in the middle of an empty field. Almost an oasis for the weary baseball traveller. It is almost an hour north from Port St. Lucie. I arrived there at approximately 10am and went to the local Panera for coffee, bagel and some time to check e-mail, etc. Normally, the ball fields open two hours before game time. This gives the fans a chance to see the home and visiting teams take batting practice. This is an almost essential activity for Spring Training. For some reason, the Nats didn't(wouldn't) open the gates until 11:40. By then the Nats were done with BP. When I went in and staked out a spot for Mets autographs and pics, I was told that I couldn't stand in the first three rows. They directed me to a place near the dugouts. It was a walkway in front of bullpen, directly to the right of the dugout. I decided I would have a better chance of a few autographs near the Nats bench as opposed to the Mets side. I did get three signatures (Austin Kearns, Aaron Boone and Justin Maxwell). Ryan Zimmerman, the Nats star third baseman was reaching for my baseball when the announcer said, "Ladies and Gentlemen, please rise for the singing of out National Anthem." Dohhh. Ryan is a good American. I didn't get an autograph.

My seat was third row, directly behind homeplate. Great for watching baseball, but because of the net, hard to get photos.

The hamburger I ordered was excellent. It was fresh, not frozen, on a big bun with lettuce, tomato and onion. The basket is served with fries. 8$ is not that steep, considering the amount of food you got and what I've seen at other parks. And it leaves you satisfied.

Oh and one last note, Oliver Perez pitched great! The Mets won. The only Mets win I saw on this trip.

Okay about Ron Darling's head. I was in Duffy's which he had (coincidently, not ironically) mentioned the week before during a game. (The secret's out, he said). So there is Ron D. in Duffy's. I've seen him on a few occasions at the games but he's normally a ways away. Monday night he was 5 feet away, he's a big guy, but his head is HUGE. It has it's own weather system. People would stumble when they walked past because of the gravitational pull. They had to open both doors so he could get out. Okay, that's a little cruel. Ron could squash me like a bug. I like Ron. He seems to want to give some insight to the game being played and recognize what the NY Met fans want. He was very nice to everyone that approached him and shook thier hand and thanked them for being a fan.

So that's the Monday report, being written on Tuesday night. One day I'll tell the story about the girl snorting coke in the booth at Denny's. Oops that's the story. Another story is about the guy from Canada who wants to be a golf pro. He stays at a place where he's met a number of players, ironically he doesn't know anything about baseball.

Here's the link to the pics.

Dr. Petersen calling

2008-03-16T15:39:00.007-04:00

This Mets are tied 4-4 right now in the seventh inning. They were leading until they called out Brian Strokes. Up until then Pedro pitched 4 shutout innings. Sure he loaded up the bases but walked away with no runs scored. He's Pedro. He probably loaded the bases on purpose so he could practice pitching out of a bases loaded situation.

In the 5th Matt Wise came out and pitched a 1-2-3 inning.

Then up came Brian Stokes. Former D-Ray. He gave up four runs. Now the score is tied. Looking at the carrer of Stokes the best I can figure is that Dr. Petersen thinks he can help Brian find what's missing.

(This post has been updated after losing the wireless signal. I wasn't able to upload the photos yesterday. Here they are.
Here's a link to the pics

Day One Photos

2008-03-15T08:42:00.004-04:00

Follow the link below to see all the photos from Day One, St.Louis Cardinals at LA Dodgers.

http://picasaweb.google.com/stevebarry37/DayOneSTLLADVeroBeach

Jazz, Legends and Homeruns

2008-03-15T08:35:00.002-04:00

Day One. I left fairly early. 4:30ish. Traffic was light until I got to Melbourne, FL. In my last post I may have been a little harsh on the fine state of Georgia. I mentioned that they didn’t have rest areas on I-95. I have to say that was a slight exaggrasion. They have rest areas. But, at the first one the restrooms were closed. At least that’s what the sign on the interstate stated. I guess the other was open. Anyway, enough about that. I will give the State of Georgia credit on roads. They have three lanes of interstate for most of the drive. So, if you gotta go at least you can make pretty good time and not get stuck behind someone. The other thing I will mention is if you’re driving through Georgia in the morning look for a jazz program on 93.7 (I believe that’s correct). This cat played the best jazz tunes. I made great time through there and was sorry to hear the show end at 8:00am, which was about the time I got to Jacksonville. When I drive through Jacksonville I have to put on the Smashing Pumpkins. Having Billy Corgan screaming at me at 70mph helps me to stay focused.

The drive between Daytona and Vero Beach seems longer and longer everytime I make it. There are all these places that never existed until recently. Palm Bay, Cove Cay, Palm Cay, Cove Bay….These places pop up in former palmetto fields and become small enclaves of Spanish style stucco houses that all look exactly the same. Every time they build one of these eyesores it stretches Florida a little, thereby increasing the driving time down the coast. Of course, this could be useful. It’ll push Miami closer and closer to Cuba and one day we’ll just drive over a bridge and be in Havana.

Dodgertown and Holman Stadium was really a nice place to be. First it was packed. 7,000+ on hand. It’s also very intimate. I feel like I was practically on the field and I was in the second to last row. Second, the weather was great. Warm with a cool breeze and mostly to partly sunny. With most of the Dodgers in China, including Joe Torre, they asked Tommy Lasorda to coach. The fans are eating it up. Tommy’s getting up there in years and size. Maury Wills was on the bench also for the Dodgers. For you kids out there, Maury was the Jose Reyes of his day. Fast. I think I got a couple good photos of him.

Rick Ankiel hit a homerun in his first at bat. You could hear it. Crack. Later he put the Cards ahead with a three run homerun. The final score was 6-4. I didn’t know the starting pitcher for the Cards. Estaban Loaiza started for the Dodgers. Other highlights were two cold beers and a Dodger Dog. Burp.

Finally, on my way out this kid ran past me yelling “Mom, Mom” and he’s waving this piece of paper. He catches up to his Mom and says, beaming, “They gave me the line-up card for the Cardinals.”

On tap for tomorrow is Tradition Field. The NY Mets and the Cardinals.

2008-03-14T11:42:00.000-04:00

This was my schedule for Grapefruit League 2008. The links are to the home teams websites.

East Coast

Countdown

2008-03-13T19:00:00.002-04:00

I was able to get my packing done this morning. I'm traveling extremely light. Normally, I bring way too much. This year it's two-thirds of what I normally bring. This year it's just too much. The truck is ready. The new camera is packed. The tickets are stowed. I'll be leaving early. I hope to arrive in Vero Beach around noon. Maybe I'll have lunch with Tommy Lasorda.

I don't drive too fast and I like to make stops. Stop for gas. Stop for coffee. Stop for a bathroom break. Oh, look a Waffle House. Ummmm, waffles. More gas. More coffee. John told me about the Spring Training sign at the rest stop in Florida. I'll stop there.

Georgia doesn't have rest areas on I-95. Apparently, the Georgia state motto is "Pee in your own state." Anyway, who wants to stop in Georgia? I do wish I could miss Jacksonville. Many of you have heard me say, but it bares repeating; Jacksonville is NOT FLORIDA. It's South Georgia. You don't really hit Florida until you see the signs for St. Augustine and Daytona. And the signs for the New Yorkers (Miami - 456miles).

Tampa Bay Rays Spring Workout

2008-02-18T12:37:00.005-05:00

Pitchers and catchers reported last week. Dad took these photos at the Rays training complex in St. Pete last Friday (Feb. 15th). I can hardly wait to get down there.

2008 Spring Itinerary - East Coast

2008-02-01T00:28:00.004-05:00

March 14th - STL @ LAD

March 15th - STL @ NYM

March 16th - DET @ NYM

March 17th - NYM @ WAS

2008 Spring Itinerary - West Coast

2008-01-31T23:49:00.004-05:00

March 18th - TB @ PHI

March 19th(d) - PHI @ TB

March 19th(n) - NYY @ PIT

March 20th - TB @ CLE

March 21st - TOR @ DET

March 22nd - PIT @ TB