Milestone week

As you know I went to the AZ vs LAD game on Sat. I made the mistake of bringing 2 friends. Usually I only bring one friend that isn’t as interested in snagging than me but still has a good time. I think going alone is the most preferable for snagging but i have to take a nearly 3hr bus ride through downtown LA. So, we entered the stadium with about the first 20 fans. Right when we got there my friends were screaming and yelling obnoxious things to the players-_-. Great just what I need. Miraculously, when Rafael Furcal was feilding a grounder instead of throwing it to 1B he threw it to my friend halfway up the box seats near the dugout. When the Dodgers were on their way in form BP the GREAT Manny Mota threw my friend who got the previous one and I a ball. After that we headed to RF to see the snakes. There were some young pitchers playing catch and I asked one if he could throw me the ball when he was done and he said yes. After getting #2 I went over to where the BP balls in RF were going. Soon enough a hard grounder came towards me and i inverted my self on the wall and made the catch. I was very happy to do so because i did not expefct to get it. This is where it gets worse. The glove trick always seemed impossible to use at DS but I decided to try it. So i tied a string to my glove and started swinging it out to bring in out of reach ball in. Once the ball got close enough my friend stupidly held the shorter one’s legs while he reached down for MY ball. While my friend was reaching down the other one lost his grip. This resulted in my friend sitting dumbfounded on the feild while security rushed over and threatened to kick him out. Normally when an adult falls on teh feild they get escorted immediatly but I guess sometimes they let teenagers off the hook. When my friend fell he picked up the two balls that had fallen out of his pockets but forgot about MY ball. The security promptly threw him back in the seats like they were taking out the trash. Shortly after Jose Valverde came over and picked up the ball i was trying to get. He gave it to my friend because he had fallen on the feild and then later got it autographed. I also got my ticket stub autographed. During the actual game i had no luck with foul balls despite having front row loge tickets. Derek Lowe for the dodgers is famous for his 80 MPH curve, not his 88 MPH heater. Livan Hernandez also hurled his smoking 84 MPH fastball. No batter was swinging late because of the slow pitching so there were not a lot of foul balls. Later in the game i snuck back down to feild level and got a ball from the umpire. 4 balls is successful for me at DS but i may have been able to get 5 or 6.
Evan

I was interested to see that the guy who cuaght the ball was negotiating with a Yanks rep., not A-Rod. And it lokked like the fight for 500 and 755* was not that ohysical, but you have a good point.

Kerry: You got 8 balls!! I got 2. Then agin there was no BP for me, and I wasn’t really trying?

How’d you get all of them?

So the Yankees negotiated with that guy that caught #500 and offered him a signed A-Rod jersey. I bet it wasn’t even game worn. The guy obviously turned it down. He should just tell them that he’s going to Christie’s or Sotheby’s auction house, and that A-Rod can feel free to bid on it.

It makes things interesting when the highest paid player in the league hits a monumental ball like that. The fan isn’t stupid, he knows A-Rod has TONS of money. We’ll see what happens!

Great win for Glavine last night. I’m proud of him. If they lost, I was about to buy tickets to the Mets/Marlins on Saturday night though!

I had an idea about the Bonds #756 ball that I would love to see happen. It looks like it will happen in SF, against my Nats none the less… groan… but if I were to catch the ball, I would surely sell it to the highest bidder, but not before doing one thing to it. As soon as I caught the ball, I would take out a ball point pen and male an * right on the sweet spot or on the MLB writing on the ball. That way, once the ball eventually gets to the HOF, my * will always be on Bonds’ *756 ball. Until A-Rob comes around.

I am happy to see all the milestones made! When you going to your next game Zack??

Chris

As I said in the last post, I’m going to be there tonight (hopefully in RF) for (hopefully) the record breaking home run!

Yeah, I’ll be at Shea tommorow. Will you?

Pigpen – Awesome! Glad I could help. You’re right, most cup-tricks don’t look good (or graceful), but they get the job done.

Zack, I don’t think of it as a defacement. I’m not talking a big mark on the ball, just a tiny little mark, something that will stay with the ball forever. I would make an * on the Bonds ball, but if I had caught A-Rod’s, I probably would have done some sort of a smiley face. Just something to denote that the ball had crossed my hands. I would count on you to put a number on it that denotes its life as part of your collection, even if it ends up in another collections. It may be Bonds’ or A-Rod’s homerun ball, but it is also not part of of your legacy. I would especially do it if I am planning to give it back or sell it. I understand not making a mark if you are keeping the ball, but if you catch it and intend on passing it on, it should be known that you caught it.

Sadly no, not commemorative balls for RFK this year. I caught two gamers so far this year and both are just OMLB balls. I hope they do it for the last series or something along those lines, but if you figure the Nats are using training balls for BP, I think they are on a budget and would not pay the extra necessary. I’ll let you know if I hear otherwise.

Alex

Zack, actually, I read that A-Rod hasn’t spoken to the guy yet. Some Yankees rep is doing the negotiating. But you’re right, a signed jersey is a joke. What person in their right mind would make that deal.

ESPN.com has a question about the ball that they’re having people vote on. What should A-Rod give the guy, is basically the question……

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2962844

Okay, forget what I said about writing a short report.

My trip started out with a great day in Milwaukee. After taking an early morning flight, we landed in Chicago and made the hour-long drive north. We found parking within five blocks of the stadium and my father and I walked around the place and bought tickets for the Miller Park tour, which was a great way for me to scout out the ballpark from every angle before the gates even opened. The tour was amazing. The guide took us onto the field, in the dugouts and bullpens, up to the (unbelievable number of) exclusive clubs, and into Bob Uecker’s broadcast booth – which is so close to the field that the wall behind his chair is peppered with gashes caused by hard-hit foul balls. We were allowed to sit in his seat (a very comfy swivel chair) and read all his pre-game notes. The tour ended at about 2:50 and I hung out in the Brewers (air-conditioned) clubhouse shop next to the Friday’s Front Row restaurant in left field.

As soon as the Brewers started taking BP (at about 4:20), we asked for an outdoor table at the restaurant. I didn’t think many people knew about this opportunity (let alone cared enough about baseballs to take advantage), so I was really surprised when there were only two empty tables outside. Not only was the place crowded, but almost every table had at least two young kids, and everybody (and I mean everybody) had a glove. Not much was happening in left field for the first 20 minutes or so, which gave me time to eat my club sandwich in peace. A few Brewers pitchers came out to left and started shagging all the baseballs that came near. I eventually convinced Chris Spurling to throw me my first ball of the day.

When Spurling went over to right field, Kevin Mench and Brian Shouse tossed me balls within five minutes of each other, just as a fly ball bounced over the wall and into the narrow gap behind the outfield fence. I quickly reeled it up with my cup-trick and gave it to a kid.

I was pleased with having four balls before the gates opened, but I was more excited about running around the rest of the stadium. Several Mets position players had just come out to throw in shallow left field when the gates opened. As I waited patiently behind them, Lastings Milledge overthrew Rickey Henderson (who I swear still thinks he’s a player). The ball rolled right to me and I reached over the short wall to pick it up. Rickey said he’d give it back to me when they finished, so I casually tossed it to him. About two minutes later, they completed their warm-ups and Rickey had clearly forgotten (which I actually anticipated). I had to yell his name a few time to catch his attention, and eventually he remembered me and tossed it my way. A few minutes later, Jorge Sosa flipped me his warm-up ball (my sixth of the day).

Then things got interesting. Not much was happening in left field, so I headed over to right. I spotted a ball sitting in the middle of the Mets bullpen, but it was too far away for me to reach with my cup-trick. But then I realized I might be able to get it from the second deck, which hangs further out and extends more towards center field. I was about 35 feet high (and it felt higher) and the light wind caused minor swaying. The ball was too far out to just land the cup on the ball, so I swung it out and tried to hit the ball closer. Instead, as the cup was swinging out, I released too soon, which turned out to be a great thing because the cup landed perfectly on the ball and I pulled it up. A small crowd had gathered around and cheered politely. I heard somebody comment “He must be practicing for the state fair!” An usher in the concourse below had been cheering me on the whole time, but when I finished he said “no more”.

Then I went up to the second deck in left field, where I encountered the lowlight of my trip. I looked down in front of Friday’s and saw two balls close to the same spot where I first used the cup-trick earlier in the day. I quickly set it up again and had the first ball easily – but then some jealous fans in Friday’s below reached out and pulled on the string as I reeled the cup (with the ball inside) up. One guy held on to the string while another guy reached for the cup. I tried to jerk it away from them, but they pulled harder and knocked the ball back down and onto the warning track. I started going for the second ball, and the two guys started spitting on the cup and ball and throwing garbage into the gap to clutter the area. I decided it wasn’t worth it to possibly ruin the device over one ball, so I pulled it up and went to the Mets dugout in a sweaty rage. No balls were tossed into the crowd there, and some guy yelled at me for standing in an EMPTY space in the first row behind the dugout next to his two young kids as the team came off the field.

I settled myself down and sat by the Brewers dugout, but I chose the wrong end because after J.J. Hardy and Ryan Braun played catch right before the game, Braun ended up with the ball instead of Hardy. I decided I would go for foul balls during the game because I LOVED the aisle in front of the press box in the Loge level. The ushers, however, wouldn’t let me stand in the aisle, so I grabbed a decent seat right behind home plate in the last row in front of the aisle. One ball hit the top of the press box (and bounced to a guy one section over) and there were a few other close calls, but nothing within my range.

The Mets won (and Billy Wagner made it interesting in the 9th). I went behind the Mets dugout and John Maine (!!) tossed me a (brand new) ball after everybody slapped hands and butts. Eight balls in a new stadium – not bad. My trip had begun in grand style.

The second game was a little less grand. The Mets didn’t take BP so the Brewers took their portion during the Mets time. Claudio Vargas tossed me his warm-up ball and I used the cup-trick in the same place where I was sabotaged the day before – this time successfully. I was cheered by the people in Friday’s below. (What is wrong with people? One day, they prevent me from getting a ball and the next, they cheer me? I mean, I know they were different people, but what the ****?)

Every part of the stadium was dead for the rest of batting practice, and there were NO foul balls to the aisle (which I was allowed to stand in this time) during the game. However, home plate ump Bill Miller made my day a little better by handing me a ball after the game (because I asked him by name). It was a frustrating day, but I really loved Miller Park, and I hope to go back some day.

The rest of my trip was an absolute NIGHTMARE. Wrigley Field is THE most annoying stadium with THE most annoying rules and security I have ever been to. Yankee Stadium is like heaven compared to this hellhole. I snagged just two balls at each of my two games there, and I was miserable the whole time. The first day, Billy Wagner and Guillermo Mota tossed me balls. The second day, Cubs coach Ivan DeJesus and home plate ump Tim McClelland threw me balls.

The most fun I had at Wrigley was actually outside the stadium. Both days, I spent some time on Waveland Avenue until the gates opened, and I came pretty close to one ball. It was hit to my right, and I didn’t have time to react and get over in time, but at least that was exciting. The problem with Wrigley is that there are ushers everywhere. Wrigley’s design is such that there are two main aisles that run through the seats on the field level. Ushers guard both aisles, and there are two ushers at every staircase. And these aren’t ushers who don’t care. They are as strict as it gets. During BP, you can’t go to the dugouts, so you’re stuck at the high walls along the foul lines. And during the game, ushers check your ticket everywhere you walk. There are even ushers checking your tickets at the ramps that lead to the upper deck, as well as at every upper deck section. At the second game there, I was kicked out of at least twelve seats. Ridiculous. I will never go back.

Anyway, I won’t be at Shea on Wednesday, but I may go to Philly on Thursday or Friday.

so here I am in the sro…. look for the guy in the cubs jersey!

ALEX-
I still don’t know. It seems too much like graffiti to me. But I like the idea of having a legacy. Thanks for letting me know about the non-commemorative balls.

TSWECHTENBERG-

Touché.

PSU532-

I don’t see why A-Rod can’t pick up the phone and call the guy. I bet that alone would help convince him to hand the ball over.

SGC90ACE-

Yeah, I saw it, and I’m completely jealous. Nice 8×10′s. Wow. That’s really an impressive bunch of names. Brian McCann looks so young without the beard. I think my favorite photo is the one of Edmonds laying out.

GREG-

Brilliant comment. If only you could’ve posted pics to go with it. Congrats on a great start to your trip. I looooooove it when I’m able to get a ball before the gates open. It helps me start the day with all the confidence in the world. But man, that really ***** about the fans who screwed up your cup trick attempt, and it ***** even more about the ushers at Wrigley Field. I was there for two games in 1998…I remember everyone was kinda strict, but I didn’t remember things being THAT bad. Imagine if Citi Field ends up being like that. Anyway, thanks for taking the time to set a new record for “longest comment” and good job keeping your streak intact.

PUCK COLLECTOR-

You mean they’re selling for 500 dimes apiece.

CUBS0110-

I’m looking for you, and for my friend Brad who’s also out there. So far, though, Bonds is 0-for-1 with a walk. Hmm…

no luck, bonds didn’t even try it seems….. oh well, the experience was fun (and the garlic fries were good)

where does (did) brad sit (stand)?

RAMONES-
Oh man, that’ll be a great game. Hope it works out for you, and GET THERE EARLY!!!

CUBS-

Aww, c’mon, he was trying. Didn’t you see that powerful rip he took late in the game? If he’d made solid contact, the ball would’ve gone 479 feet. Were there a zillion kayaks in the Cove? I didn’t get to see the whole game, so I might’ve missed the shots provided by ESPN2. Brad stands on the arcade, against the back railing, pretty much in straight-away right field.