4/27/13 at the Oakland Coliseum
On this particular day, I got out of bed late. I had set my alarm for 6am, with the hopes of being in Oakland around 8 or 8:30, but I woke up around 8am. For me, this reminded me of this game last year.
We left at 8:25, and arrived at the Coliseum around 9am. This was going to be my first Orioles game since Last September, and I was hoping that they would still be using commemorative balls.
Like my last game, I made a video with behind-the-scenes and vlogs, so check it out!
Once we had pulled into the parking lot, I headed to get in line at Gate MM.
The line was LONG!
But, believe it or not, this was the shortest line!
I walked around the Coliseum a bit to check out the scene, but I decided to get in line at 9:15.
Around 9:30, I decided to walk around the BART Plaza area and take some pictures.
The line at Gate LL was getting pretty long!
But I was in line at MM.
The A’s have these ticket kiosks everywhere around the Coliseum.
And of course, this banner! 4x > 2x (Just saying Giants fans)
Lines were just getting LONGER and LONGER.
I was chatting with a bunch of the bleacher folks, like Will.
When Will runs in to the bleachers, he carries these flags and banners.
I noticed these boxes… BOBBLEHEADS!
Around 10:30, Arlene invited Pascale and I to jump in line with the bleacher folks. Thank You!
Once I joined them, I noticed Ross’s shirt, which I absolutely LOVED!
Oaklandish is an Oakland-based clothing company. You can check out their website here.
Daniel, one of the bleacher guys had this little speaker.
Great sound quality for a device that small!
Guess what it was playing…
BERNIE LEAN!
At 11:07, the gates opened, and my sister and I sprinted inside, grabbing our bobbleheads along the way.
I was one of the first people in the bleachers, after of course, Will.
The run is actually somewhat tough, but it is MUCH harder for him, as he is carrying everyone’s flags and banners.
I headed over to the A’s bullpen, where the most action was taking place.
The players were all getting loose.
Stretching and such. (S/O to my sister for taking those last two pictures)
I was over there because Jarrod Parker was throwing a bullpen session.
Eventually, I decided to head over to the Orioles bullpen area, since the pitchers were arriving and the nearby stands were almost empty.
They started off stretching.
As the A’s players began to throw.
Pictured below are Grant Balfour (Upper Left) and Jesse Chavez (Lower Right)
Even though they were playing catch, it was getting a bit crowded.
And the Orioles began to toss.
I was all ready in my Orioles gear.
A’s pitchers that were running interacted with Orioles players when they were in that area.
Soon enough, it was 11:45 and there were only two guys playing catch, so I headed over there.
My parents were soaking up the sun in the RF Bleachers.
As the last two guys finished playing catch, I called out to Darren O’Day “Hit me here Darren!”
With that, he submarined me the ball!
If you want to know why I am smirking, I have NO clue at all.
Here I am with my Reggie Jackson bobblehead.
BTW, remember when I mentioned the RF bleacher shirt in my last game entry? That’s the one I’m wearing! Do you like it?
After grabbing a quick pizza lunch, I got back to notice Rollie Fingers in the bullpen. Oh yeah!
There were lots of players from the 1973 A’s gathered around the dugout.
Each current player or coach walked out with the player or coach that held the same position in 1973. Curt Young, the A’s pitching coach walked out with the pitching coach of the 1973 A’s.
Nate Freiman,the A’s first baseman is HUGE! 6 foot 8 inches.
Brandon Moss and the 1973 first baseman.
I seriously got chills watching it all.
Brett Andersosn
John Jaso was out in the bullpen, warming up with AJ Griffin.
Ray Fosse was on the field with Derek Norris.
The 1973 team started to line up.
Soon, Norris walked out with Ray Fosse and the Coliseum exploded!
I could tell all of the current and past players were enjoying it!
Eric Sogard walked out with Dick Green.
Vida Blue and Blue Moon Odom were standing out by the pitching crown.
Josh Donaldson walked out with then-3rd Baseman Sal Bando, along with manager Bob Melvin, who wears the number 6 in honor of Captain Sal.
Jed Lowrie was going to walk out with Bert “Campy” Campaneris.
Chris Young was out in LF with Joe Rudi.
Coco Crisp was out in CF with Billy North.
Do you recognize that name or face? Check out this photo. I got my picture with him, Sal Bando, and the 4 A’s World Series trophies at 2013 A’s FanFest.
As this all was taking place, AJ Griffin and his golden locks of hair were warming up in the bullpen.
There was a large group of photographers gathered on the field.
Almost all of the players were on the field.
Except for 1. Mr. October, Reggie Jackson, as presented by Josh Reddick.
It gave me chills. I could yell Josh was soaking it all in.
The field was now full with the 1973 World Series Champion Oakland A’s!
Everyone was taking pictures.
The coaches were gathered up behind home plate.
It was crazy to see such a talented team on the field.
There was a presentation of a check of some sort on the mound area.
As this was all taking place, players were warming up and mingling.
There was a group photo on the mound.
Then, the National Anthem was performed.
The people holding signs representing players that are no longer with us walked in the CF tunnel.
They gathered for one last group picture.
And then I took my focus to the players warming up.
As usual, the LF Bleachers were rocking. (Not like Right Field, but still cool!)
At 1:05, they all took the field!
The home plate meeting look place.
And we were ready to go!
AJ Griffin was on the hill for Oakland.
Adam Jones got to the plate in the top of the 1st.
And flied out to right field.
Coco Crisp led off for the A’s.
And popped out to the catcher…
John Jaso was due up after Coco…
And singled to right field.
Seth Smith was hitting in the 3-hole for the Green and Gold.
With a runner on first, the bleachers were getting pumped up.
After Jaso advanced to 2nd base on an error, Agent Smith flied out, bringing Jed Lowrie to the plate.
I can’t tell who this hitter is, but I LOVE his face!
This person had a ticket from the 1973 WS in Oakland.
In the bottom of the 2nd, Josh Donaldson doubled in Brandon Moss, giving the A’s a 1-0 lead.
Josh Reddick walked in his at bat in the 2nd inning.
Everyone was feeling good!
Coco Crisp then grounded out to end the inning.
Griffin took the mound in the top of the 3rd and he was dealing!
The bullpen was enjoying the game.
Around the time, my dad gave me the camera, and I had some fun taking pictures.
Here is the ball smacking into Brandon Moss’s glove on a foul popup.
Donaldson had another RBI hit, bringing the score to 2-0, before Reddick popped out to end the inning.
In the 4th inning, Chris Young doubled. But, it wasn’t before the Orioles scored 4 runs in the top of the inning.
Like I mentioned earlier, I had a blast taking pictures.
Jed Lowrie flied out in the 5th inning.
Josh Donaldson singled in the 6th for his 3rd hit of the game.
Even though the A’s were down, everyone was still confident.
This row of fans did a mid-inning trivia contest, where everyone got shirts.
Ross was drumming it out.
In the 7th inning, Ryan Flaherty grounded out first baseman Brandon Moss to pitcher AJ Griffin.
Sean Doolittle started to get loose in the bullpen. Note the balls above and below the bullpen phone on the left side of the picture.
Brian Matusz came into the game for the Orioles in the bottom of the 7th.
Josh Donaldson and Chris Young were sitting at the top step of the dugout.
Throughout the day, both the A’s TV and Radio booths brought in players and coaches from the 1973 A’s team to talk.
For those of you who don’t know… Josh Reddick makes a LARGE mess of seeds in RF. This photo doesn’t do it justice.
Jerry Blevins came on to pitch in the top of the 8th.
This is where things got interesting…
If you didn’t click the link, Nate McClouth hit a home run to Right Field. Shin, one of the bleacher folks caught the ball. He then tossed it to Jorge.
Guess what he did? He threw it back!
Believe it or not, that did not go over well with security. He got up on his seat and the ENTIRE stadium started chanting “LET HIM STAY! LET HIM STAY!”
He was getting everyone riled up, everyone was on his side.
Except for security…
Ross (Left) and Anson (Green Shirt) were pleading their case to security to let Jorge stay.
Then the cops showed up and more or less led him out of the bleachers.
He DID NOT want to leave.
But this guy meant business.
You could tell everyone was pretty pissed about the whole situation.
Like I said, the police officer “led” Jorge out of the bleachers.
Everyone was entranced.
I could tell the players were kind of confused.
Oh… And there was a game going on. The solo home run made the score 5-2. Then, a Chris Davis sac fly made it 6-2.
Jed Lowrie came up in the bottom of the 8th.
Then guess what happened?
Jorge was led back!
That made everyone pretty happy!
I think he was pretty happy.
Spencer got a picture with him.
You have to give the man props though.
Oh, and it was a ROCKET throw! He threw it from 3 rows back in the RF bleachers, in the middle of the row, to 2nd BASE! It was like I was watching the movie Rookie of the Year!
Everyone was cheering for him.
In the 8th, Josh Donaldson doubled for his 4th hit of the game.
Josh Reddick stepped to the plate.
He then flied out center field, but Brandon Moss came in to score, making it 6-3.
Not many people were paying attention to the game though.
Then Chris Young stepped to the dish.
Where he struck out…
Jorge was getting into it. Everyone had a good feeling about the game!
Omar Gonzalez was spending quality time with his young daughter Rhema.
Chris Resop took the mound for the A’s in the 9th.
Rodrigo was enjoying the game.
So was Anson!
The Orioles scored another run in the 9th, brining the score to 7-3.
Adam Rosales stepped into the box to lead off the 9th for Oakland.
And on the 6th pitch of the at bat, the pitch was thrown inside.
Hitting him in the head, causing him to dive to the ground.
Wow. Look at the reactions of the people sitting right behind home plate, on the right side of the picture!
The training staff and Bob Melvin came out to check on him.
He was walked to first base.
But… He stayed in the game!
This brought Coco Crisp to the plate, where…
Pedro Strop threw a wild pitch juuuuuust a bit inside.
Coco Crisp showed off his sweet dance moves.
Adam Rosales advanced to 2nd on the pitch.
Then, Coco walked.
This put runners on first and second, with no outs, putting the tying run in the on deck circle. The stadium went nuts!
The Orioles brought in closer Jim Johnson as John Jason stepped to the plate.
After 5 pitches, he slapped the 6th pitch of the at bat to left field to load the bases.
Rosales was on 3rd, Crisp on 2nd.
Seth “Agent” Smith stepped to the plate with no outs and the bases loaded.
Where he flied out to right.
With one out, Jed Lowrie came up, representing the tying run.
He found a pitch he liked…
Made contact with it…
Ran the ball out…
But he grounded into a game ending double play.
And that was the ballgame. 7-3 L to Baltimore.
Ah frustrations…
I got a picture with the 1 ball and my bobblehead.
And then Spencer photobombed me!!’
W
We gathered everything up.
And everyone started to file out.
Drew, one of the right field bleacher guys has an AWESOME mustache. Appropriate facial hair and shirt for the day.
After gathering our stuff, everyone filed out of the bleachers and gathered out in the concourse.
I was planning on attending the A’s game on Friday, May 17th, which is the 3rd Annual BACON FRIDAY, and I was planning on ordering a shirt, so I needed to give Omar Gonzalez, one of the RF Bleacher folks, my money for the shirt.
While I was talking with him, Rhema was being awfully cute!
I got one last picture of the field before we left the stadium.
We exited the stadium.
And we headed back to our car.
Overall, it was a great day!
BALLHAWKING STATS:
- 7th Game this Year
- 1 Ball at this Game
- 5 balls in 5 MLB games this season = 1 Ball Per Game
- 20 Balls in 7 Games this season = 2.86 Balls Per Game
- 6 Consecutive Games with at least 1 Ball
- 4 Consecutive MLB Games with at least 1 Ball
- 33 Lifetime MLB Baseballs
- 63 Total Balls
Nick Badders is a unofficial reporter for MLB.com. He writes the blog, 7000 Coliseum Way, and you can follow him on Twitter @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay. You can also LIKE his blog on Facebook or follow him @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay on Instagram. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
It all Started in 203…
So I’m sure you all have noticed the February, March, and April MLBlogs Latest Leaders, right?
February was an amazing month to say the least! Then came APRIL!
Towards the end of February, my math teacher decided it was his mission to get my blog to #1. He told EVERYONE in the school about it, telling everyone to check out 7000 Coliseum Way!
My view count EXPLODED when he did so!
In March, he did not do this, but in April, he picked back up again, making sure EVERYONE was reading EVERY post I put up!
After finding out that he was such a huge baseball fan, I talked with him a little bit.
Quick Intro:Room 203 is my math class. My math teacher is Mr. Hahn. And he is kind of a bad-ass.
Warning. This entry has nothing to do with Math and my performance in this entry does not have any affect on my grade in Math or any other classes.
First, his math classes have a Facebook and Twitter page. As readers of the 7000 Coliseum Way MLBlog, I request that you go follow him on Twitter and Like his page on Facebook. I know you guys don’t care about my math HW, but I think it will startle him enough to all of a sudden get a lot of followers!
Oh, and Hahn, WHY HAVE YOU NOT SUBSCRIBED OR COMMENTED YET???? 
He’s also a baseball fan. Actually, he is a HUGE baseball fan determined to make it onto my blog! He has supported my blog so much this year, THANK YOU to him for supporting me and being VERY determined to get my blog to #1 at MLBlogs.
I talked with him a few days ago to understand just how much he is into baseball. He had some great stories to share and is a really interesting guy!
3) Are those the only games you make it to each year?
I love minor league baseball. I go to probably 5-10 Minor League games a year and maybe 5-ish MLB games a year.
4) What is your favorite stadium that you have visited?
My favorite MLB stadium is definitely PETCO. There are a lot of little nuances throughout the stadium that a casual fan wouldn’t even bother looking for. My favorite MiLB stadium would be Greensboro Grasshoppers (the ball boy is a dog named Babe…how can you not buy a tickets just to see that?!)
6) Of all the games you have been to, can you think of one MLB and/or one MILB game that stands out to you as a favorite game?
No question here. I was at the A’s streak game where they won, I think; it was their 20th in a row. Another game(s) that stuck out to me was the games we saw Mike (now Giancarlo) Stanton play in Greensboro. He was 18 and already a man amongst boys. He was HUGE and his numbers were ridiculous compared to others.
7) When you do go to a Major or Minor League game, at what time to you try to get there?
It kind of depends on who I am with. If I am with my cousins we always get there early especially to MiLB games because you can actually talk to players and coaches. If I am with my family it is usually an hour before the games starts.
9) Now tell me about these two balls that you were VERY KIND in giving me.
My cousin was a minor league umpire and he umped in the Southern Atlantic League and the Northwest League. Two of our baseball trips was out the see him work and I caught both of those at games. I have a few others from those leagues so I could spare a few to give to an avid fan.
10) How many balls have you snagged in your life?
Combining both MLB and MiLB balls I probably have close to 50. I have caught a ball at Safeco Field, AT&T Park, the Oakland Coliseum, PETCO Park, Dodger Stadium, Angel Stadium, and also Bank One Ballpark in Arizona. It is easy to get balls at the MiLB games and now I leave that to my sons who love to interact with the players before, during, and after the games. And of course they have come home with their share of their own balls.
11) Do you remember the first ball you caught?
I can’t specifically remember my first ball, but one of the first is when I was a beginning teacher and I saw a few of my students in the front row behind the visitors dugout at the A’s game. I went down there to say hi and I was there for about an inning. The last out we were there a right-handed batter with a very late swing hit a ball very fast at us. I stood up and caught it with one hand and sat down very quick. I was in amazement I caught it and kind of embarrassed by all the cheering afterwards. I was with a few of my buddies and they didn’t believe I caught it, so I had to drag my students up there to tell them the story HAHA
12) I have an account at MyGameBalls.com and MyGameBalls.com Minors, where I have logged all 68 baseballs that I have snagged. Now that I have told you about these websites, you could see yourself creating an account?
I am definitely going to look into it.
The other is a success is off of a homerun by lance Berkman during BP at PETCO. It was coming to the sandy part of PETCO when I and this old gentleman dove after it after it hit the sand. I came up with it. yep yep!14) Of the close to 50 balls that you have caught, would you say that more of them have been BP Home Runs, Player Toss-Ups, Easter Eggs (Random Balls in the seats), or In-Game balls?
I would estimate about 8-10 of them being foul balls or batting practice balls and the rest are player toss ups. I get a lot of player toss-ups!! I have seen the A’s in a few stadiums so it is always good when you are wearing an A’s hat and player walks by
16) Can you share with me some of your most memorable moments from going to baseball games?
My most memorable times were times when I was with family. Going to games with my uncle, dad, brother, grandpas, and now my family and sons is great. It is a game that just keeps on giving
17) I shared with you on the first day of class that I write a top MLBlog. What was your first thought when you heard that?
My first reaction was “we have something in common and I will definitely connect with that student.”
18) A few days ago in class, you were having people go to my blog for a majority of the period, and throughout the day. What was your motivation for this and if my blog did get to #1, what would you do?
I am very competitive. SO if there was a way that I can help someone get up the “ranks” I will do it. Having kids go to your blog is just one of those ways. If you got to be #1, it would be great!!!
Wow! I am constantly amazed with the support that I have been given! Thank You very much to Mr Hahn for giving me endless support and Thank You to everyone in my 1st Block Class in Trimester 2 and 4th Block Class in Trimester 3!
Nick Badders is a unofficial reporter for MLB.com. He writes the blog, 7000 Coliseum Way, and you can follow him on Twitter @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay. You can also LIKE his blog on Facebook or follow him @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay on Instagram. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
4/21/13 at Banner Island Ballpark
This game was going to be me, my dad, and Uncle Seth, who I have mentioned before.
We left our house around 10:50, so we got to Stockton around 11:45.
Throughout the course of the day, before the gates opened, I made another vlog, similar to what I did for this game.
As soon as we got there, we found that nobody was collecting money for parking. FREE PARKING!
I then immediately headed out back for BP.
As you can see from my tilted picture, there was little action, but the cages WERE set up.
The first batter to step into the cage for the Ports was Addison Russell.
About 5 minutes after I arrived, look what I had!
Yeah!
Only the Ports took BP, there were no Nuts players anywhere to be found.
And believe it or not, the Addison Russell ball was the ONLY one that cleared the bullpen area, despite strong swings.
Believe it or not, none of the bunts left the yard!
BP was VERY boring all-told.
Around 12:20, right when batting practice was coming to a close, the song Milkshake came on over the PA in the stadium. Wade Kirkland was patrolling left field. You know the app called Vine? Well watch this. He was kind of bored. Dance moves were not to bad.
BP came to a close around 12:25 or so, so I decided to walk around the Marina area and ballpark exterior.
Seriously, how awesome is this?
As I’m sure most of you know by now, the Stockton Arena sits right next door.
Basically, I wandered along the waterfront as far as I could go, before I reached the fence of the parking lot.
At this point, I decided to turn back. On my way back, I saw this…
I decided to wander around over towards the Pro Shop area.
In the windows, they have every Ports giveaway since 2005. I noticed these two bobbleheads…
Those will both be giveaways later on this year!
I headed over to the Suite Holder gate to get a better view of inside, where I saw this.
That lady was writing in the lineups for both teams on the whiteboard in the concourse.
I then decided to head back and get in line.
I seriously couldn’t wait to get inside!
There was a table being set up that had a turtle in a cage next to it…
I decided to get a picture with my uncle and the ball I got during BP.
Then, I got a picture of myself with the ball
The gates opened at 1:07, and after getting my ticket scanned, I headed over to where a few Nuts players were playing catch and stretching.
Just out of the frame was the glove of William Rankin. As he finished running, he tossed me his ball.
After I got that ball, I headed over to section 117. Why? It was on-field player photo and autograph day! When I got there, I met up with Will and Ross. At 1:15, we were all led into a roped off area. Players then lined up along the rope, with pens in hand. Remember the logo ball I got in my last Stockton game? I was ready to get some signatures!
The first player I got an autograph from was infielder Max Muncy, who tossed me a ball and hit me a foul ball in my last Stockton game. My dad and uncle were wandering around the stadium, so I was left to use my phone’s camera to get a photo with him.
Next in line was outfielder Dusty Robinson.
After getting a picture and autograph from Dusty, I moved on to pitcher Seth Frankoff.
After Frankoff was pitcher Jose Macias.
After Macias, I moved on to get an autograph and picture with pitcher Jonathan Joseph.
Then, I got to talk with Blake Hassebrock.
After Hassebrock was outfielder Bobby Crocker
Then, came infielder B.A. Vollmuth (One of the coolest names EVER if you ask me).
The next guy I got a photo with was outfielder Josh Whitaker.
The 10th person I got a photo with was the starting pitcher that day, Deyvi Jimenez.
Then, my dad came down to get a few shots, including this one of me with SS Addison Russell.
I had an absoluste blast with all of this.
It was a small space with LOTS of people.
I couldn’t get pictures with or autographs from all of the guys, so I spent a few minutes talking with Will and Ross, who got lots of photos themselves.
I also go to talking with Eric and Bridget, who are A’s fans that I believe made the trip with Vanessa.
As you can see in the picture above, Vanessa joined us on the field. Remember her from my last game in Stockton?
She, Will, and I then got a picture with Max Muncy and Ryan Delgado.
Do you see the phone in the picture above taking a picture of us? That is Vanessa’s, and here is the picture she later posted on Instagram.
About halfway through the event, I took this panorama of the event, which hopefully captures the chaos of it all.
Around 1:45, they started wrapping things up, at which point Will had a short conversation with Ports manager Webster Garrison.
He and Vanessa then got a quick picture with Webby.
Around 2, I headed over to watch the Ports starting pitcher for the day
Once he was done warming up, I got this panoramic shot from the LF foul pole.
Then I headed over to RF to get the same.
The Ports let a Little Leaguers run on the field with players in this game, for the National Anthem, and it was a very cool sight!
The National Anthem, as always, was great!
The Ports sent Deyvi Jimenez to the mound.
While the Nuts countered with Ben Alsup.
For the Top of the first, I headed over to behind the Ports dugout in hopes of getting a third out ball.
I was unsuccessful, and on my way back, I snapped this panoramic.
For most of the game, I sat down with Will, Ross, Vanessa, Bridget, and Eric, near the first row, chatting.
In the front row, you have Will, Ross, Eric, Vanessa, and Bridget.
I did, however, spend some time sitting up with my Uncle and Dad, where I was able to get shots of people like this one.
And of Will…
With 2 outs at every half inning, I would head behind the dugout of the team on the field and try to get a ball. I was unsuccessful ALL DAY.
As always, my dad got AMAZING pictures.
The Ports scored their first run in the bottom of the 2nd.
Every time Webster Garrison, the Ports manager, walks past the visitng dugout to go coach 3rd Base, Will and a few other fans stand up and yell “WEBBYYYYY!”
Here he is coaching third base.
The Nuts manager is Lenn Sakata.
As I mentioned earlier, I was very unsuccessful with 3rd out balls, so I enjoyed getting to relax and take lots of pictures!
I then took these two pictures…
When I got home, I went into Photoshop and created my first “real,” (And poorly done) panoramic photo.
One memorable play was when Dusty Robinson came to the plate…
And there was an interesting play at first…
Here is Josh Whitaker.
For me, it was awesome to just sit back, relax, and take pictures.
In the 8th inning, Bernie Lean came on…
Can YOU Bernie Lean?
Also in the 8th inning, Juan Crouset stepped to the plate for the Nuts.
He popped a ball foul a few rows behind me. I misjudged it, but immediately picked it up off the ground. Ball #4! It was my 5th lifetime foul ball, 4th at a MiLB game, and 2nd MiLB game in a row with a foul ball!
Right after I picked it up, I heard a young girl (7 years old maybe) quietly say “Dangit.” Without thinking, I handed the ball to her.
Yes, of course, I would have loved to have kept the ball, and I got PLENTY of backlash for it on Twitter, but it was all worth it to see her so happy with it.
When the Ports came to bat in the bottom of the 8th, Nelson Gonzalez went into his second inning of work out of the bullpen.
But, he blew the lead…
Ryan Ortiz had hit a go-ahead home run!
And it was high fives all around!
Jordan Ribera and Taylor Featherston watched as a new pitcher took his warm up tosses.
Modesto called upon Kenneth Roberts to get the final two outs of the inning.
Thankfully for the Nuts, he was able to escape the inning, but not before allowing another run!
In the top of the 9th inning, the Ports were ahead 4-2, so I headed over to my ticketed seat for the first time all game, located right next to the Nuts dugout. At that point, I was hoping to get the lineup card after the game, so I put on my Nuts hat. Will was VERY disappointed in me. He then took this picture of me.
That is my “I know I’m a Ports fan but I have to do this” face.
Jonathan Joseph came on for the Ports to lock down the save.
And the Ports had won!
Some people were getting pictures…
… But I was sticking my head into the dugout to try and get the lineup card.
As soon as I got there, I asked the Nuts manager for the lineup card, but he ignored me and left. Then, Brian Humphries walked over, saw a pile of balls on top of the bat rack and tossed one to me without saying a word. He then tossed out 6 more to other kids that were crowding around the dugout.
Soon, I saw a clubhouse attendant in a rockies hat, shirt, and shorts (The Nuts are a Rockies affiliate) walk over. I asked him for the lineup card, and look!
I thanked him and headed up the stairs, where everyone else was standing. Vanessa snapped this picture of me on her phone of me with the lineup card.
We then got a group picture. From left to right… Bridgett, Will, Vanessa, MEEEEE, Ross, Eric, and my Uncle Seth.
As we were heading out, I noticed it was “Kids Run the Bases” day.
Once we left, I headed to Ross’s car to pick up my 2013 RF Bleacher shirt (To debut in my next game entry) and then headed back to meet up with my dad and uncle.
Cool stuff. Great game.
Thanks for reading!
- 6th Game of the Year… 2nd MiLB Game of the Year
- 5 balls at this game
- 19 balls in 6 games this season = 3.16 Balls Per Game
- 15 MiLB Balls in 2 MiLB Games = 7.5 MiLB Balls Per Game
- 4 MiLB Foul Balls
- 5 Lifetime Foul Balls
- 5 Consecutive Games with at least 1 Ball
- 8 Consecutive MiLB Games with at least 1 Ball
- 5 Consecutive MiLB Games with at least 3 Balls
- 2 Consecutive MiLB Games with 1 Foul Bal
- 30 Lifetime Minor League baseballs
- 62 total balls
Nick Badders is a unofficial reporter for MLB.com. He writes the blog, 7000 Coliseum Way, and you can follow him on Twitter @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay. You can also LIKE his blog on Facebook or follow him @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay on Instagram. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
4/13/13 at the Oakland Coliseum
It was 2012 AL West Champs fleece blanket day. Oh Yeah!
My dad and I left our house around 8:30, I picked up my new glasses, and we headed off to Oakland.
I would say it took about 25 minutes to get there. Quickest it has ever taken either of us to get to Oakland. We arrived around 9:15 am or so.
Anyway, once we had parked, we started walking towards gate MM, when I realized that I had left my rosters in the car. My dad headed back to the car to grab them for me, and I headed to get in line at MM. I was SHOCKED to see that there were over 50 people in line an hour and 45 minutes before the gates were supposed to open.
Who was at the front of the line? Will is on the left, Ross is on the middle, and Daniel is on the right.
Why were they doing the Bernie? The guy on the right had one of those mini portable speakers and it was playing Bernie Lean.
Once my dad got back, he got in line and I decided to walk around a little bit, as I always do.
As you can see, they had the lines set up to double back and forth, like they did for Scott Hatteberg bobblehead day.
The lines were pretty long…
I had to walk around a lot. Since we were up against the wall, they were attempting to squeeze us in pretty tight!
At this game, my school’s Jazz Band was going to be playing the national anthem! As I was walking around, I saw them getting their tickets.
I stopped by and talked with some of them up until 10:30 or so, at which point they headed inside for a sound check, and I headed back to get in line…
Yeah… it was PACKED! I didn’t get in line right away, I just walked around in the BART Plaza, as I didn’t want to stand in that line for 30 minutes.
I decided to just get in line 15 minutes before the gates opened. Right after I got in line with my dad, Will popped over and asked me which seats I wanted him to save me. I asked him if he would be able to save my regular seats for my dad and I, and he was happy to do so! How awesome is he!?!?
I got out of line again, as this was the scene at 11 am…
I was just wandering around near the front of line, when Will asked if I wanted to jump in line with him. OF COURSE! Thank You very much Will!
At 11:07, the gates opened and I ran in, grabbed my blanket and was off! A lot of people don’t know how to get to the bleachers from MM, but I have it down. You run straight, turn right, and run down these stairs.
Make a turn into that tunnel, and you’ll be at the entrance to the bleachers!
Obviously, I was already there as my dad was heading down.
The A’s were stretching when we got inside.
Doug Fister was throwing a bullpen.
And Tigers players were playing catch.
Like I said, the A’s were stretching.
Without looking at the next picture, can you tell me wh- HEY! I SAID DON’T LOOK AT THE PICTURE.
Awesome. You looked at the picture. But, yes, I headed over to where the Tigers were playing catch.
As the A’s continued to stretch.
AJ Griffin and his luscious hair were jogging along the warning track.
I would have headed over to the A’s bullpen area, but as I mentioned, they were just stretching.
I was trying to get a ball from one of the Tigers players. There was one sitting barely out of my reach on the field, and I was determined to get it.
The seats were pretty empty.
Miguel Cabrera was showing lots of love for the RF Bleacher crew.
One of the Tigers players that was playing catch overthrew the ball and pitching coach Jeff Jones walked over and tossed me up the ball!
Right as he picked the ball up, my phone started to ring. It turned out, it was my dad!
Here I am talking with him. Yes, he did take this picture.
Once I got that ball, I decided to take the rest of the day off from ballhawking and relax. I headed back to the bleachers just to chat with people, even though the A’s were playing catch.
Sean Doolittle used to be a power-hitting first baseman, Now he is a pitcher.
Here is Tommy Milone.
Jerry Blevins.
Running drills…
Sidewinder Pat Neshek and pitching coach Curt Young.
Neshek running.
Evan Scribner running
Blevins, Scribner, and Chris Resop running
A’s bullpen catcher Casey Chavez
Hiro Nakajima is still rehabbing, he played a bit of catch with a team assistant.
Here was my view for the game.
This is the 1 ball I snagged during pregame.
The field cleared VERY quickly, so I had a lot of time to relax and such.
As he was coming from the indoor cages to the clubhouse, Miggy and the Tigers gave the RF bleachers some love.
Octavio Dotel was one of the few players left on the field.
He was playing catch with this guy.
I have no clue what is going on here.
Players were still walking in from the indoor cages.
Eventually, uniformed players and coaches started coming out to stretch and get loose.
Derek Norris usually does some drills near the bullpen.
Justin Verlander was taking the bump for the Tigers.
Brett Anderson was going to counter him for the Green and Gold.
The grounds crew worked on Watering the field.
This guy was catching for the Tigers.
Then, these people walked onto the field.
My school’s Jazz band was playing the national anthem for the game!
Here they all are!
It was pretty cool to see!
My dad got a video of the performance.
How awesome is that?
The Tigers bullpen catcher, Scott Pickens, warmed up Verlander.
Derek Norris warmed up Anderson.
How cool is this photo?
Jeff Kunkel is the Tigers 2nd bullpen catcher.
While my dad was out and about wandering around, I got this really cool picture of Verlander.
Chris Young was rocking the stirrups.
Most of the position players began to filter onto the field.
Verlander took the bullpen to get warm.
Here are 3rd Base Coach Mike Gallego, middle infielder Jed Lowrie, Manager Bob Melvin, and 1st Baseman Brandon Moss sitting in the dugout.
Anderson took to the bullpen mound to warm up.
Tigers position players got loose on the field.
Chris Young seemed pretty entertained by it all.
Verlander finished up in the bullpen.
The A’s took the field.
And Brett Anderson took the hill.
Brandon Moss was starting at first base.
I know this isn’t anything new, but my dad took AMAZING pictures.
The BIG MAN, Prince Fielder.
V-Mar looking at a pitch.
Swinging…
And making contact!
Popped up…
Torii Hunter was in RF for the Tigers. More on that soon.
John Jaso, the A’s catcher was LEADING OFF.
As expected, Verlander was dealing.
Jaso rounding first base.
Chris Young running with the bat in his hand.
Now he is running down the line.
Josh Reddick stepping to the plate.
Looking at a few pitches…
Just a bit outside.
Foul Ball
On top of his head!
Matt Tuiasosopo at the plate.
Sogard and Reddick running into the dugout.
The Tigers bullpen.
The A’s bullpen and a unicorn.
Back to Torii. Remember this last year when he was on the Angels? He delivered Popeye’s Chicken to the RF Bleachers. As one might expect, he now has a great relationship with them.
All day, the umpire was making TERRIBLE calls behind the plate. See anything special here?
Look again.
HIS EYES WERE CLOSED! I’ll have more proof, don’t worry.
Torii was enjoying chatting it up with RF.
Seth Smith swinging…
And running.
On 1st base, Verlander tried to pick him off a few times.
Josh Donaldson made GREAT contact with the ball today.
Well the umpire had his eyes closed more when Eric Sogard came up.
See?
I know the ball has already made contact, but STILL.
As always, Right Field was lively.
Of course the umpire ALWAYS had his eyes open when the Tigers were up to bat.
I take that back…
Everyone was just chilling in the A’s dugout.
And Torii was all smiles!
Chris Young had some great swings
And of course we have Josh Reddick…
Here we had Josh Donaldson (#20) and Andy Parino (#12)
As I was out of my seat using the restroom, Prince Fielder stepped to the plate.
Guess what da BIG MAN did?
Yep, He hit a homer. Dead center.
Curt Young paid Anderson a visit to the mound.
The A’s were hitting the ball hard and making great contact.
As displayed by Derek Norris.
I got this cool photo of Josh Reddick (and his beard) warming up in right field.
Derek Norris was performing his usual magic tricks behind home plate.
Then, Pat Neshek came on the mound. Boy oh BOY did I have fun taking pictures of him! Back to that soon…
The A’s bullpen was thoroughly entertained. So was the unicorn.
Back to Neshek. It continually amazes me with how accurate submariners and sidearmers are.
It also sometimes looks painful.
It is, however, AMAZING to watch.
All of these pictures were taken by me, and it was A LOT of fun!
It was a beautiful, sold out day at the Coliseum!
But, seriously! HOW DOES HE DO THIS?
I honestly don’t know.
Away from Neshek for a bit, here is Eric Sogard. #NerdPower
The Bill King broadcast booth was looking lively as always.
Rick Porcello began to warm up in the Tigers bullpen.
Along with Phil Coke.
The bleachers were rockin!
As Phil Coke took the mound for Detroit.
I swear, this is my last picture of Pat Neshek.
Josh Reddick was very nonchalant about his warmup tosses with Coco Crisp in the outfield.
In the middle of the 8th, as always, the A’s played Call me Maybe. Will was not impressed.
Oh, and Bob Melvin was ejected.
Why? Andy Fletcher had his head up his a** all game long.
Here is a very short video my dad got of the incident.
Joaquin Benoit took the mound for the Tigers in the late innings.
Eric Sogard was taking some mighty swings.
Like I mentioned, you CANNOT umpire a game with your eyes closed. It is UNACCEPTABLE.
Believe you me, I have about 50 more pictures where Andy Fletcher has his eyes closed. But I have chosen not to not bore you to death.
Evan Scribner took the hill for the A’s at the end of the game.
A majority of the crowd was still on hand, despite the score that had the A’s behind.
HIS EYES ARE CLOSED AGAIN
That’s all. The A’s lost. Here I am with my 1 ball and the fleece blanket. The end.
Thanks for reading!
- 5th Game of the Year
- 1 ball at this game
- 4 balls in 4 MLB games this season = 1 Ball Per Game
- 14 Balls in 5 Games this season = 2.8 Balls Per Game
- 4 Consecutive Games with at least 1 Ball
- 3 Consecutive MLB Games/Games in Oakland with at least 1 Ball
- 32 Lifetime Major League baseballs
- 57 total balls
Nick Badders is a unofficial reporter for MLB.com. He writes the blog, 7000 Coliseum Way, and you can follow him on Twitter @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay. You can also LIKE his blog on Facebook or follow him @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay on Instagram. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
4/5/13 at Banner Island Ballpark
On April 2nd, I wrote a short email to the Ports, asking for a Press Pass for the game on Friday, April 5th, and I got a quick reply back saying yes! I emailed them back, asking for one for my dad, since he would be accompanying me to the game, and they agreed to that as well! Thank You very much to the Ports organization for giving me this opportunity!
After the game, on the drive home, I got a quick photo of the pass.
This was going to me my first MiLB game of the 2013 season, and my first one since last September in Modesto. It was my first Ports game since May 2012.
We arrived at Banner Island Ballpark around 4:45, just under and hour and a half before the gates were supposed to open.
As soon as we parked, I ran out to the area behind left field. On my way, I peeked in to make sure there was BP, a what do you know? The Ports were taking batting practice!
I immediately sprinted out to the area behind left field. Here is an ariel view of Banner Island Ballpark. I’ll let you guess where I headed.
LOOK at that area behind LF.
As I was running, I heard someone yell “GO! NOW!” I looked up to see a ball heading towards me. I tracked it into my glove, and I already had my first ball on the day.
Ports BP was pretty boring…
I mean, as a fan, it was lots of fun to watch!
If you go back up a few pictures, do you see that kid holding on to the fence? Well he was there with his dad and 3 brothers and I felt bad for him and his brothers. Every time a ball was even hit remotely close, the dad would yell “Go! Now!” and his kids would groan and take off running.
I could tell none of them wanted to be there, or for that matter enjoyed baseball. They not only retrieved hit balls for their dad, but after being told what to say and who the player was, would call out to players on the field for toss-ups…
Yep…
The Blaze players were beginning to stretch and warm up along the LF line.
As I continued ballhawking, my dad began to walk around the stadium to get some pictures.
The Stockton Marina was looking gorgeous
Absolutely amazing.
Ryan Delgado and Sean Murphy were talking it up in the outfield
Everyone gives Stockton a bad rep, but it is an amazing city.
This is the walkway between the ballpark and water.
There is this outdoor seating area right behind the stadium.
There was this ball just sitting under the table…
See?
Once the Ports BP had ended, I only had one ball, but an employee walked by and tossed me that ball for ball #2 on the day.
Yep! It was a Major League Baseball!
Once Ports BP came to a close, that dad and son that I had mentioned earlier ended up walking away, giving me Blaze BP all to myself!
On their way out, I noticed this ball in the employee parking lot for the Stockton Arena.
I never found a way to get that ball…
In between the next few pictures, I will explain how I got the rest of my BP balls, during Blaze BP.
Ball #3 was a sharp line drive that hit the concrete and slowly rolled out of the stadium, right into my glove.
This guy hit a ball that cleared the bullpen, bounced in the seats behind the bullpen, and out of the stadium, right into my glove for ball #4 on the day!
One of these guys, I can’t remember who, tossed me my 5th ball on the day.
If I am not mistaken, it was Sean Buckley, a first baseman on the Blaze who I tweeted earlier in the day!
He just turned around, asked me if I wanted a ball, and tossed it to me!
Pretty awesome that he actually kept up on his word! Go check him out on Twitter @seanbuckley08!
The Blaze had a lot of lefty power, so they were pulling a lot of pitches out to RF, where it is almost impossible to get a ball outside of the stadium.
At 6, BP was still going strong, despite the gates opening at any moment.
Since the gates were going to be opening at any moment, I ran over to get in line with my dad. He had already gotten in line, so there were not to many people in front of us. That gave me 5 balls in Batting Practice alone. My previous MLB and MiLB high for a single game was 6, which I did in July 2012 in San Jose and August 2012 in Oakland!.
I looked inside to see the cages all the way down and the Blaze taking infield.
The giveaway for the game was a ball with the Ports new alternate logo on it.
At 6:09, when the gate finally opened, this was the scene behind us.
I immediately sprinted down to our seats, where I ran down to check out our seats.
Do you see the person walking towards the dugout, from home plate? He had a few balls in his glove and tossed me one for ball 6 of the day, which I failed to photograph.
I then decided to do a little ballpark exploring…
I started out in the LF corner…
And moved on to Left Field
Where I walked past the bullpens and seating area.
I walked around the rest of the outfield before making it to the RF corner.
In the right field corner, there is a small set of stairs that go up and then over and down this utility tunnel that is where the cages, etc.. are kept.
This is the RF corner
And then I made it to the Ports dugout, on the first base side.
My dad got this really cool picture of a member of the grounds crew adding extra dirt to the base lines.
They were also raking the lines.
Up behind the Ports dugout is the indoor batting cage. The Ports were all suited up in their new Friday alternate unis, never before worn!
In order to decide the hitting order, some guys were playing rock, paper, scissors.
On my way back to my seat, I saw this little baseball-card dispenser, that I thought was really cool! I WILL be bringing quarters to my next Ports game!
Once we got back to our seats, I posed with my 6 balls so far, right next to our seats.
Yep. That’s how short the fence is. You can see I was standing right next to the dugout. Our seats were in the first row, the one that my glove was sitting next to, and the seat next to it. Isn’t that awesome!
Here is a quick peak into the dugout.
Here is a panoramic shot from our seats
Here was my ticket from the day.
Soon enough, after a bit of relaxing, both teams started to take the field to warm up.
I immediately headed over to where the Ports were warming up, with one goal in mind: Get Addison Russell‘s autograph!
SUCCESS! I got him to sign my ticket! (Which I forgot to photograph)
*Note that the Ports wear WHITE belts with these uniforms*
Once I was finished up there, I put on my Reds hat and Blaze shirt and headed over to where the Blaze were warming up.
My dad headed over to where the Ports were beginning to play catch.
Even when I was on the opposite side of the stadium, I had an eye on 19-year-old Addison Russell.
There was lots of autograph signing taking place.
Then my dad headed over to where the Blaze were playing catch.
I didn’t get any balls during warm-ups. That’s all.
Look who was sitting just to our right…
It’s Will! For those of you who don’t know (WHY DON’T YOU KNOW HIM BY NOW?), that is bleacher regular Will MacNeil, the man behind the Balfour Rage!
Around the bottom of the 1st inning, Benjamin Christensen (Who I saw on Opening Day and April 3rd in Oakland and was one of the 9 MLB Fan Cave Dwellers in 2012) and Vanessa Demske (Who was a Top-30 MLB Fan Cave contestant in 2013) arrived!
I probably spent 2/3 of the game sitting and talking with the 3 of them. Great people!
Since we were sitting so close to the field, my dad was able to get some really cool close-ups of players, like this one..
And this one…
And this one…
And this one…
The game was just about to get underway…
The National Anthem was performed…
And we were ready to go!
Blake Hassebrock was on the mound for Stockton.
And he escaped the first inning relatively unharmed.
With two outs in the top of the first, I jogged over to the Ports dugout, where I was tossed the 3rd out ball by Maxwell Muncy. It was my 7th on the day.
I had officially broken my record for not only most balls snagged at a MiLB game, but most balls ever snagged at a baseball game.
Addison Russel lead off for the Ports
There was a pitch thrown high and tight to him…
I liked this picture a lot.
Carlos Contreras was on the bump for the Blaze.
Josh Whitaker was batting in the three hole for Stockton.
This is Maxwell Muncy, who tossed me the ball in the top of the 1st.
The bottom of the 1st ended with a strikeout, and catcher Chris Berset tossed the ball to me on his walk in to the dugout. Ball 8 on the day!
This is the umpire…
Here are the infielders standing around in the infield during a pitching change…
In the top of the 7th, I headed back over to the Ports dugout once again to try and snag a third out ball. 2nd Baseman Wade Kirkland had recorded the final out of the inning, and tossed me a ball that I had to jump pretty high for, but caught it. (There was nobody near me) Ball 9 on the day!
Then, in the bottom of the 7th, Wade Kirkland fouled off a ball that skipped over the railing right next to the dugout, straight into my glove for ball 10 on the day!
Once the game came to a close, I rushed over to the Blaze dugout in attempts to get the lineup card, but I was shoved out of my way by a 30-year old man who yelled out “Ken! Can I get dat lineup card pleazz?” Griffey Sr. smiled, pulled the tape off the card, and walked towards the clubhouse, lineup card in hand.
From there, I headed over to where Ben, Will, and Vanessa were, where I snapped a picture of the three of them.
Then, I got a picture with them, each of them holding two of the balls I snagged.
It was a great game! If you remember from my Opening Day entry, Ben has a blog of his own, called Hats and Tats: A Lifestyle.
You can click on the name of Will, Ben, and Vanessa to follow them each on Twitter.
Thanks for reading!
- 4th Game of the Year… 1st MiLB Game of the Year
- 3 MiLB Foul Balls
- 10 balls at this game
- 13 balls in 4 games this season = 3.25 Balls Per Game
- 10 MiLB Balls in 1 MiLB Game = 10 MiLB Balls Per Game
- 3 Consecutive Games with at least 1 Ball
- 7 Consecutive MiLB Games with at least 1 Ball
- 4 Consecutive MiLB Games with at least 3 Balls
- 25 Lifetime Minor League baseballs
- 56 total balls
Nick Badders is a unofficial reporter for MLB.com. He writes the blog, 7000 Coliseum Way, and you can follow him on Twitter @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay. You can also LIKE his blog on Facebook or follow him @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay on Instagram. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
4/1/13 at the Oakland Coliseum
This was shaping up to be a VERY fun day! Everyone in my family got Opening Day tickets on Christmas, and we were sitting in the bleachers and I COULD NOT be more excited! The four of us left our house around 1:45 and got to Oakland close to 2:20.
It was a beautiful day and there were LOTS of fans already there!
When we were parked, I first walked around the perimeter to see if I could find someone with information about whether or not Gate B would be open. Eventually, I found someone, and he confirmed that indeed, Gate B would be open.
I then went back to our car, grabbed my sister, and we walked around the Coliseum again, where she snapped this picture of me.
We stopped in the team store for a bit before heading back to the car. At this point, it was 2:40 and I wanted to start prepping for my BlogTalkRadio show at 3:00. Unfortunately I decided at the last minute to do it, and due to a lack of WiFi at the Coliseum, I was unable to publicize it, but thanks to Quinn for doing so! If you didn’t listen to the show, just click here.
At 3:25, I wrapped the show up and jumped back in line, where I found bleacher friends Ross (RF Bleacher Shirt) and Ralliney (Just out of the frame on the right)!
My dad then noticed this scaffolding… RANDOM!
But the four of us waiting in line got a quick picture together.
Then we got a quick picture of me, my dad, and my sister. AWWWWWWW!
It was seriously a beautiful day for baseball.
I then remembered that I needed to get a photo checked off the 2013 MyGameBalls.com Photo Scavenger Hunt list. Attempting to juggle 3 baseballs while in line waiting for the gates to open. Check!
No I can’t juggle. At least I made te effort!
More and more people started gathering in line and got pictures together.
Fast forward to 5 minutes before the gates open. This is the scene. It was INSANELY PACKED. Everyone was all ready to go in.
Then look who showed up! It’s Benjamin Christensen! He was one of the 9 Cave Dwellers for the MLB Fan Cave last year. Go hit him up on Twitter or check out his hat of the day blog. Good stuff!
But like I said, the line was PACKED
And LONG
When they let us in at 5:07, I was running in and slipped on a gatorade wrapper on the ground on my first step. GREAT!!!!
Then, when I was the 3rd person in at the turnstile, the person ahead of me wouldn’t take his ticket out of his ticket lanyard, so that resulted in being held up. Once I finally got past that and the giveaways, there was a line to get WRISTBANDED going into the bleachers. Wristbands suck. You have to get a wristband when entering the bleachers if they are sold out. Well I finally got in!
And Derek Norris was in the cages.
He wasn’t hitting anything to right field. After him, Nate Freiman was hitting in the cage.
A’s BP was going nowhere fast, so I headed down to where the Mariners were playing catch. Oliver Perez was throwing…
… With this guy!
I recognized this guy sitting near me during the game.
That is Tommy Bentley, who was one of the Top 52 MLB Fan Cave Dwellers. You can follow him on Twitter here.
Towards the end of his time throwing, Perez began throwing submarine.
And the Mariners began taking BP.
Kendrys Morales was hitting the ball pretty far, but he wasn’t hitting it out. Lots of balls off the wall.
I decided it was best not to be in the bleachers for BP. Why?
It was crowded. And there were at least a few people in every row, making moving around VERY hard. It was like that in every section of the Bleachers in LF AND RF.
It was a shame how packed the bleachers because Michael Morse was hitting BOMBS!
He hit a few 2nd Deckers in Center Field. He hit A LOT of home runs into the LF Bleachers as well. Nothing to RF. But, like I said, it was way too crowded to even have a chance.
You see those 3 guys? They must have thrown at least 10 balls into the bleachers if not more. Every time they threw a ball, it was a mad scrum to get it. Ridiculous.
Third Base coach Jeff Datz was throwing BP.
Around 5:40, there was a batter who I couldn’t identify that hit 5 or 6 balls in a row on the ground that were all right in front of me. Bullpen catcher Jaime Navarro walked over and without me asking, seeing as that I was wearing Mariners gear, he tossed me a ball!
My dad wandered around for BP, taking a lot of cool photos. It honestly felt like there were easily 15,000 people in the stadium taking in BP.
And for those of you that have wondered, this is what it looks like from above, looking into the Diamond Level seats in Oakland.
But, like I said, he got a lot of cool photos during BP like this one:
All told, BP was pretty calm. Other than Morse, there were few home runs hit. There were lot a lot of pull lefties either. Balls that were hit near me on the field were all tossed in. There was a ball that I called out for, but right before it was tossed to me, I noticed a little boy standing behind me and I moved out of the way so he could get it.
Once BP was over,I headed back to the Bleachers.
Where they were setting these things. That meant one thing… FIREWORKS!!!!
I then noticed this in Left Field. Hm…
My dad then headed off to get some food for my sister and I.
Helpful Hint: If you are ever in need of good-tasting (However EXTREMELY overpriced food), go to the Westside Club. They have THE BEST Pizza-By-The-Slice! There is also a Sandwich bar that I mentioned in entries like this one.
The A’s started coming onto the field and I pulled out my dad’s camera when I noticed this…
Do you know what is so special? For 5 points on the 2013 MyGameBalls.com Photo Scavenger Hunt list, you need a picture of… “At least three players standing in a group whose jersey numbers are visible and satisfy this mathematical formula: one player’s number equals the sum of the other players’ numbers.”
YES! 5 points checked off! 7 Points so far on the day! The I noticed this…
What is so special?
For 6 points on the 2013 MyGameBalls.com Photo Scavenger Hunt list is of… “Two players standing together whose jersey numbers are visible and satisfy this mathematical formula: one player’s number equals the square root of the other player’s number.”
2+5+6 = 13 Points on the Day!
Yoenis Cespedes was also stretching on the field.
So were the Mariners!
“King” Felix Hernandez was pitching for the Mariners.
Around 6:40, the pregame ceremonies got underway! The Bleachers were PACKED and READY TO GOOOOOOO!
The Mariners were introduced and stuff, then the A’s were introduced! The A’s were really focused on the fan interaction this day, so they chose 10-15 of their longest season ticket holders to greet the players on their way onto the field!
Remember that photo of the tarp over the outfield wall? Well they chose two more season ticket holders to pull it off and reveal this!
It was so cool to see the entire team lined up along the field!
The use of Pyro was really great in the pre-game ceremonies!
RF Drummer, Andy, was gettting into it! (His Twitter is here)
Felix finished his warm-up tosses.
And the boys in Green and Gold took the field!
Josh Reddick, of course was the A’s starting pitcher.
THAT BEARD!!!
I really like this next picture of him. I think it just looks really cool!
Coco Crisp, of course, was the A’s starting Center Fielder.
And the game was UNDERWAY!!
Like Game 3 of the ALDS, the starting pitcher was Brett Anderson.
He was pitching VERY well.
One of my favorite A’s players, Eric Sogard, was the A’s starting second baseman. If you remember, I got my picture with him at 2012 FanFest! NERD POWER!!!!
John Jaso, the A’s starting catcher doubled for the A’s first hit of the game, which game with 1 out in the 4th inning.
Michael Saunders was the Mariners starting right fielder. Poor guy. If you don’t know why I say that, I’ll leave it at the fact that visiting right fielders WILL get heckled in Oakland.
The TV Booth was popping as always, with Ray Fosse and Glen Kuiper.
Felix Hernandez was DEALING
He allowed 3 hits all game. No Walks. 8 Strikeouts. Yikes…
I got this picture in the 7th inning. No real reason. Just thought it was cool.
Then, in the 8th inning, guess who stopped by?
It’s Oakland mayor Jean Quan! If you have heard anything about Occupy: Oakland, then I’m sure you know about her. IF not, just click her name right ^^here^^ to read about her on Wikipedia.
In the bottom of the 9th, the A’s were down 2-0. But the stadium WOULD NOT stay quiet.
But, with Jed Lowrie in scoring position at 2nd, Brandon Moss popped out to Michael Saunders to end the game. Awesome…
Before we left, I got this picture with my sister and my 1 ball on the day.
After that picture right before we left, I spent a few minutes taling with 149 Die-Hard Omar G. He is one of the many A’s fans that has given me ENDLESS suport with my blog, so as a small thank you- can you all go follow follow him on Twitter HERE. Everyone go follow him. NOW.
He has two AWESOME sons, nicknamed Super J and the Champ. I HAD TO get a picture with the two of them! I posed with them and the foam Josh Reddick Wrestling Belt that my sister purchased before the gates opened.
Seriously. Those kids are REALLY awesome!
The lights then started to turn off, so we all slowly filed out. Even though the A’s lost, it was a good day!
Once we got outside, I remembered that I need this picture…
Why? ”BONUS 1: You with a stadium name sign in the background with you holding a baseball snagged that day at that stadium (1 point per stadium for a max of 30 points)” on the MGB Photo Scavenger Hunt list. 14 Points in the scavenger hunt on the day! That and the photo of me on Intentional Talk from this game, the next morning, this is what I saw at the scavenger hunt page:
Awesome!
Well that’s about all I have from this game. My next game was April 3rd, so I should have that post up tomorrow or the day after that, then a few after my post about the April 3rd game, I should have up and entry about the game I’m going to today (April 5th) at Banner Island Ballpark!
Thanks for reading!
- 2nd Game of the Year
- 1 Ball at this Game
- 1 Ball in 2 Games this season = 0.5 Balls Per Game
- 29 Lifetime MLB Baseballs
- 44 total balls
Nick Badders is a unofficial reporter for MLB.com. He writes the blog, 7000 Coliseum Way, and you can follow him on Twitter @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay. You can also LIKE his blog on Facebook or follow him @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay on Instagram. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
San Joaquin vs. East Bay High School Showdown at Banner Island Ballpark
Look where I am!
This past weekend, my High School’s Varsity baseball team played at Banner Island Ballpark, home of the Stockton Ports! I am keeping score for the team this year, along with stats and other such things, so I’m with the team for every game!
The first game of the day was at 10am, with our game scheduled for a 1pm start. My dad and I left the house around 10am, getting to Stockton 45 minutes or so into the game. The first thing we did was walk around the perimeter of the stadium, something I had never done in full before.
We first headed along the first base line, headed up towards the Metro PCS Home Run Hill, where I took this Panoramic picture.
I was absolutely pumped to be there!
I explored the outfield area a bit more before headed over to meet up with the team. I talked with the coaches for a bit, before I quickly snagged by first foul ball of the day! Of course, considering that this was a High School game, I had to return the ball, but it still felt good!
At this point, I headed over to the cages, where some of the guys were starting to take swings.
The pitchers were just chillin’ watching the game.
Soon enough, the game before us came to a very close finish, as we watched the remainder of their game as a team.
Then we headed onto the field to warm up.
All of the guys were really excited to be there!
And they soon began warming up.
Our two starting pitchers, Anthony Olmo and Jacob Payne raced each other every time.
Notice anything funny in this picture? That’s Justin Cash, our backup catcher taking a spill while running!
I just stood there, soaking everything in on the gorgeous day!
They then started to warm up playing catch. This is Robbie McLeod, one of our relief pitchers.
This is again, Justin Cash.
Anthony Olmo was our starting pitcher in the game.
Ryan Flayler is one of the pitchers on our team.
JT Stori is our backup 3rd Baseman.
Matty Protel is our backup 1st Baseman.
Trevor Escover is our 3rd catcher.
I thought this was a really cool shot of everyone warming up.
Miles Mastrobuoni, our shortstop.
The dugout atmosphere was great!
My favorite quote from the day came around this time. You see that hose that they are using to water the infield?
Out of the frame, there are 2 other guys holding it up, and one of our assistant coaches, Coach Rankin yelled over to our manager, “Willis! That’s a real hose! It takes 3 people to hold it!”
One of the hottest guys on the team right now is 2nd baseman Kyle Campiotti.
This has to be one of my favorite pictures of the day. JT makes some pretty good faces!
Ryan Dearborn is our other 2nd Baseman.
JT and his faces…
Our team’s starting 3rd baseman, and one of our most consistant guys of late- Dan Whitney.
This was the view inside the dugout.
Shortly before the game got underway, guys started to get up on the rail of the dugout, ready for the game to start!
Then, the managers met at home plate to exchange the lineup cards.
It seriously could not have been a better day for baseball.
We were all ready to go!
This was my view for the first pitch.
Not too shabby!
We were the away team and facing Jonah Wesley in the top of the first. If you don’t know who he is, go google his name. He has committed to UCLA already and has very good chances of getting drafted this year in the MLB First Year Player Draft!
Our leadoff hitter is first baseman Matt Richards.
Our #2 hitter is catcher Jordan Thraikill.
In the top of the first, my dad got this picture, which I absolutely love!
He also got these pictures of the team:
Our cleanup hitter is Right Fielder Casey Soltis, who as a Junior, is committed to Oregon!
We didn’t score in the top of the 1st, but still were very confidant with Anthony Olmo on the mound for us!
One of the other team’s players reminded me of Jemile Weeks.
Anyone else see it?
But, like I said it was a BEAUTIFUL day for baseball!
Going into the top of the second, the score was tied at 0-0.
Our 7 hitter is our Shortstop, Miles Mastrobuoni.
In the Top of the 2nd, we scored a run on an error by Jonah Wesley, plating DH Craig Woolson.
Dan Whitney advanced on a Wild Pitch
And our #9 Hitter, Ryan Dearborn, flied out on a hard-hit fly ball to end the inning.
This is how the game was looking from the right field corner.
One place that my dad checked out (That I have never explored) was the Jackson Rancharia Porch.
Looks like a cool place!
My dad then got some pictures from up there.
In the top of the 3rd inning, we went down 1-2-3.
And as expected, Olmo was DEALING.
Out of curiosity, what would you expect a minor league dugout to look like? Well this is how we all watched the game.
Yep. There was a little ledge to stand on. I NEVER expected that.
Our team’s head coach is Corrigan Willis. He has a VERY smart baseball mind.
In the top of the 4th, we went down 1-2-3 again, despite the middle of the order putting up a fight.
The game was progressing nicely, and it seriously could not have been a better day.
The top of the 5th was a big inning! We scored 4 runs on 4 hits, with a few errors, putting the score at 5-0 at the end of 5!
That would be it for Tracy pitcher Jonah Wesley.
Olmo was back on the mound in the bottom of the 5th, settling the side down
The top of the 6th piled on to the 5-0 lead. Tracy sent out 4 pitchers in the inning, as we pushed 6 runs across the plate. Dan Whitney, our third baseman singled to load the bases.
The came around to score when second baseman Kyle Campiotti hit a bases clearing double, making the score 8-0.
However the scoreboard operator thought differently…
But it was soon fixed.
And Tracy continued to struggle on the mound
And with JT Stori on first, Senior Left fielder, Ryan Kirby, a UC San Deigo Commit, hit a BOMB to right field!
This brought the score to 11-0.
He jogged around the bases…
… To be greeted by Casey at home plate…
… And the silent treatment in the dugout!
Then, Casey promptly doubled to left field.
After that, we walked the bases loaded before getting the third out, so after 5 1/2, we were ahead 11-0!
In the bottom of inning number 6, we called on Senior Ryan Flayler to get us to the 7th inning.
And he did JUST that!
He struck out the first hitter to come to the dish, the retired the next two on a ground ball and pop up to end the inning!
In the top of the 7th, we went down 1-2-3, despite a hard line drive from Matty Proetel.
And a sharp grounder to second off the bat of Jordan.
We called on Casey Soltis to close out the game.
He did struggle a little bit, allowing 1 run.
But in the end, he settled down.
And closed the door shut!
On an 11-1 victory!
We all gathered on the field aftrer the game to discuss the win.
It was an absolutely great game!
And I had A LOT of fun!
Here is the final line score from the game:
And the Box Score (I recommend Clicking on it to zoom in if you want to take a closer look at it):
It was so cool to be in the dugout for this game, it was certainly an experience that I will never forget! Thank You very much to my dad for taking all of the pictures at this game, he really did get a lot of AMAZING shots!
If you haven’t already, check out my entry from yesterday about Game 1 of the Semifinals of the WBC in San Francisco. Then, come back tomorrow to read about Opening Day at the Oakland Coliseum! Then, the day after that, I should have my entry up abut the game that I attended on April 3rd in Oakland!
Tomorrow (April 5th), I’ll be at a Stockton Ports game, back at Banner Island Ballpark, so stay tuned for that entry to be up hopefully Saturday, and if not, Sunday!
Thanks for reading!
Nick Badders is a unofficial reporter for MLB.com. He writes the blog, 7000 Coliseum Way, and you can follow him on Twitter @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay. You can also LIKE his blog on Facebook or follow him @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay on Instagram. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
4/3/13 at the Oakland Coliseum
More Baseball! This was my 2nd A’s game in 3 days, and this was going to be just me and my mom! If you can remember, the last time it was just the two of us, I snagged a Fenway Park 100th Anniversary Commemorative Ball. The time before that, I snagged 6 balls. This was looking to be a very positive day!
Fromt the time that we left our house to the time we got to the Coliseum, to my lap around the ballpark, I filmed nonstop. I also filmed us getting out of the Coliseum. It was an ADVENTURE! I compiled it all into an 11 and 1/2 minute video for you to enjoy! After watching it, you can continue with your regularly scheduled blog entry.
My dad took my mom and I to the BART Station, and we left the house at 3:40, getting there at 3:54, catching the 3:58 train to Oakland.
Once we got to the Coliseum at around 4:25, we set our stuff down at gate MM, which is the quickest route to the bleachers.
Towards the BART Plaza, this was the scene.
It was very quiet, calm, and peaceful. I LOVED it!
At this point, I took the camera and documented my fifteen-minute trip around the Coliseum. Again, just watch the video to check it all out!
About 10 minutes before the gates were supposed to open at 5:35, the line wasn’t very long.
Beyond what you see, that was it!
Around 5:33, they checked our bags, which made the process SOOOO much easier. This gave me time to zip up my backpack and put it pack on. Otherwise, I would have to do this in a rush between running and scanning my ticket.
Usually, Will MacNeil (click his name to follow him on Twitter) will run in with all of the bleacher crew’s flags and banners. I actually sprinted ahead of him, but then let him lead the way, as this was my first time going this way.
Once in the bleachers (Where I WAS NOT wrist banded, which made everything so much simpler), I set my stuff down, put on my glove, and was ready to go. Less than 10 minutes into BP, a ball was hit to Mariner reliever Tom Wilhelmsen. He turned around and just tossed it to me. I didn’t even ask. Cool!
10 or so minutes later, a ball was hit off the wall that Mariner pitcher Stephen Pryor fielded and tossed up to me after I ask him for it.
After that, BP was more or less dead. Wilhelmsen and Pryor were fielding almost every ball hit to RF, so I didn’t bother asking either of them again, knowing that it was very unlikely I would get another toss-up from either of them.
Why did I not go to Left Field might you ask? Not a single ball was hit into the left field seats during BP. NOT EVEN WHEN MICHAEL MORSE WAS HITTING. There were not toss-ups into the LF bleachers either.
Around 6:10 or so, there still had not been a single ball hit into the outfield stands, however there had been many hit over the fence.
At 6:15, BP picked up, when Kendrys Morales stepped to the cage. The second pitch he saw was a bomb to RF, but I was on the opposite side, as he had almost just hit it out. As I was on my way in that direction, Morales hit another bomb in the same area, caught by the SAME guy. However, it was this guy.
Then, while I was over there, expecting him to hit another, on the LAST pitch of BP, he hit it around where I had just been standing. AWESOME…
I ended BP with 2 balls.
After BP came to a close, I went off in search of food and decided on a sandwich from the Westside Club.
When I got back to my seat, it was around 6:30, and players had started to take the field to warm up.
I looked into the dugout and saw Yoenis Cespedes with his hat backwards just walking around in the dugout.
Tommy Milone was tossing in the bullpen. I considered going down there to try and get a ball, but considering the fact that there were at least 5 ushers within 50 feet of him, I decided against it.
There was this group of people behind home plate, who looked like they would be singing the national anthem.
Scott Sizemore would be playing in his first game since 2011. If you remember, on the FIRST day of spring training in 2012 he tore his ACL.
The Mariners would have offseason acquisition Joe Saunders on the mound.
Newly acquired first baseman Nate Freiman was making his major league debut in this game.
About 10 minutes before the A’s took the field, Yoenis Cespedes had a nice, long conversation with Kendrys Morales, in the middle of the outfield. My guess is that they were debating who can hit the ball farther. My money would be on Yoenis.
The bleachers were quite crowded for this game, more than I had expected.
Tommy Milone finished up his warm up tosses…
… Josh Donaldson did some last-minute stretching …
… Stomper rode around the warning track in the Smiling Chevron Car…
… And we were all ready to go!
Offseason acquisition Chris Young was in the lineup, playing center field, making his debut in the green and gold!
Right before the first pitch, I went to the last row of the bleachers and took this picture
Then I took a panoramic shot on my phone. GORGEOUS.
As they announced the A’s line up, the right field guys all wave their flags.
I just thought those were two cool pictures.
Well you know how the bleachers were crowded? Guess what wasn’t?
Yep! How nuts is that? I would have tried to go down there, but the ushers in that area specifically have always been very strict about checking tickets.
Chris Young was playing center in his Oakland debut
With Josh Reddick playing right field
And Tommy Milone on the bump for the A’s.
Since both pitchers were lefties, both lineups were packed with righty hitters, which meant fewer balls to right field. Since I knew there was a slimmer chance of snagging a home run, I focused on taking some pictures, as did my mom. Pictures like this one.
And this one of Nate Freiman making his MLB Debut at first base.
Yoenis Cespedes was the A’s starting left fielder.
Jed Lowrie was in the game at shortstop
And Josh Donaldson was playing third
Tye Waller, who has tossed me two balls before, is the A’s first base coach.
Coco Crisp had been hitting the ball far so far, and he showed that, with a deep fly to center that unfortunately stayed in the yard.
Nate Freiman was hitting 8th in his MLB Debut
And on the 5th pitch of the at bat from Joe Saunders,
He singled into center for not only his first MLB hit, but his first MLB run batted in as well!
Since Josh Reddick was playing closest to me, and the lighting was just right, I tried taking some “artsy photos” like these.
I liked this shot of the Oakland sky at night.
During the inning break, I took a look up to the CSN booth to see that Scott Hatteberg was in the booth instead of Ray Fosse. I love Scott as a player and person, but he is not cut out for TV…
Mike Morse, the Mariners RF, was heckled plenty throughout the game.
Jed Lowrie had a BIG day at the plate.
Coco Crisp doubled in the 3rd inning.
Then after Jed Lowrie and Chris Young walks, Yoenis Cespedes flied out, however Coco Crisp came home to score, giving Yoenis a sac fly.
Like I just mentioned, Jed Lowrie was on second…
But Derek Norris struck out to end the inning…
I was enjoying taking pictures, so I got a few like this one of Josh Reddick
Or this one of Yoenis Cespedes.
Ot this one of Chris Young.
Around the 4th inning or so, I decided to try my luck with foul balls and headed up to sections 223 and 222. No foul balls for Nick.
I then headed over to 224, where I got this amazing panoramic shot!
I decided to head back to the bleachers in the 5th or 6th inning, as I was having no luck whatsoever with foul balls.
Tommy Milone was pitching a great game!
I enjoyed taking pictures like this one.
And this one…
Jorge, one of the members of the bleacher crew had brought balloons to the game. Here he is with one of them…
Everyone was having fun with them, including Tom Bentley, who put one in his King Felix foam crown.
The 7th inning was a very interesting inning for me personally. Here is Josh Reddick jogging off the field after the top of the 7th.
LOOK AT THAT HAIR!!!
Ready for the exciting story? Here it is… I was sitting on the end of the row, on the asile, giving me more mobility in the event of a home run. Well in this case, sitting ont the asile hurt me. In the bottom of the 7th, on the 3rd pitch of the At Bat, Jed Lowrie smashed the ball to right field. At first, I didn’t think it would end up in the bleachers. I was expecting it to clank off the bleacher railing or the tip of the out-of-town scoreboard and get back onto the field. I would then politely call out to Michael Morse for the ball. Click HERE to watch the home run.
So I first figured that nobody in my row had a glove, so it would make it harder for them to catch the home run. Keep in mind that my row was completely full, no room for me to move. Take a look at this screenshot that I drew on…
As you can see, I was on the end of the row, on the asile, while the guy that caught the ball (With His Glove, might I add) was smack dab in the middle of the row. He also reached over the railing a good 2 feet to make the catch.
Oh the frustrations. I couldn’t really beat myself up about this, as I am NOT about to push past a row of people, including my own mother to make the catch. It’s just one of those things that frustrates you…
Here is A’s bullpen coach Darren Bush answering the bullpen phone.
If you remember, I was the ONLY person that recognized him in the clubhouse at A’s FanFest.
In the middle of the 8th inning las year, the A’s played Call Me Maybe. Everyone hated it. Guess what song they played this year? I will give you four hints…
Yep. Call Me Maybe. And don’t worry, Ross is not the only one who hates it. Everyone to his left was doing the same thing, but I couldn’t get a good picture of any of them.
Oh, hey look who was back! It was @Shakabrodie! AKA, Benjamin Christensen.
In the 8th inning, Josh Reddick was hit by a pitch.
But the A’s didn’t score. Then, in the top of the 9th, Chris Resop came in and had a 1-2-3 inning to seal the win for the Green and Gold!
I got another picture with my 2 BP balls.
And we said goodbye to the Coliseum.
Like I’ve said before, I made a video that showed not only what it was like to get from BART to the Coliseum and to walk around the Coliseum, but in that video, I showed what it was like to get from our seats to BART. Check it out here and skip ahead to the 7:37 mark and that will put you right where you need to be!
In a day or two, I should have up an entry about the Stockton Ports game I attended a few days ago at Banner Island Ballpark. In the mean time, Check out my entries about the World Baseball Classic game I attended, the High School Game Baseball game I attended at Banner Island Ballpark, or you can read the entry I wrote up about Opening Day in Oakland. Enjoy!
Thanks everyone for reading!
- 3rd Game of the Year
- 2 Balls at this Game
- 3 balls in 3 Games this season = 1 Ball Per Game
- 2 Consecutive Games with at least 1 Ball
- 31 Lifetime Major League baseballs
- 46 total balls
Nick Badders is a unofficial reporter for MLB.com. He writes the blog, 7000 Coliseum Way, and you can follow him on Twitter @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay. You can also LIKE his blog on Facebook or follow him @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay on Instagram. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
2013 WBC Semifinal Game 1 at AT&T Park
Hell. Yes.
How much did you guys follow the World Baseball Classic? Who did you root for? Coming in, my two favorite teams were the US and Australia, but both teams were eliminated…
So the Championship round of the 2013 World Baseball Classic was at AT&T Park. Games 1 and 2 of the Semi Finals featuring Puerto Rico, Japan, the Dominican Republic, and of all teams, The Kingdom of the NETHERLANDS!!!
When I first found out that the WBC finals would be in San Francisco, of course I wanted to go! At the time, however, the idea seemed pretty unrealistic because I was expecting crazy prices for the games.
I soon found out that they would be using these commemorative baseballs for the classic. Of course, now I just wanted to go even more!
When ticket strips went on presale, I wanted to buy a 3-game strip, but my parents said no, as all three games would be school nights. After that, I didn’t really look at tickets until about the week before the game.
This was more just something I wanted to do, rather than something I honestly expected to be able to do. Despite my doubt, in the 3 days leading up to this game, I was constantly checking StubHub as well as the Giants website for a good deal.
When the US was eliminated, I would say at least 500 additional tickets went up for sale at very low prices.
A couple days before the game, I found some great seat options on StubHub, and my dad agreed to get them once I finished my weekend homework.
When I got back from baseball practice on Saturday, I was discouraged to find that all but one set of the tickets I had been interested in had been purchased.
At this point, I decided to check the Giants website to see if I could find a good deal on tickets. I get to the ticket screen and I see that there are 3 ticket sections that have $8 SEATS!!!! Those sections were the Bleachers (Left Field seats), Lower Box Left Field (The 5 sections on the foul side of the foul pole in the lower level), and the View Reserve Right Field (The 3rd deck nosebleed seats on the first base side). I say my mom and I spent 15 minutes on 3 different computers, determined to find aisle seats in the bleachers. I then found 3 seats on the aisle, in the 6th row of section 137, and my dad bought the tickets then and there.
I think a lot fo you saw my Tweet shortly thereafter…
So my mom didn’t want to go and my sister didn’t want to go. We just had an extra seat. But that was fine with both me and my dad! Here is what my print-at-home ticket looked like.
Not too bad, but I wish it was a real ticket…
At this point, I scoured Twitter, determined to get more information on the WBC balls. I then came accross a tweet from Andrew Miller, with this picture attached!
This made me even more excited! Oh, you all should go follow him on Twitter here!
But anyway, at this point I was beyond ecstatic for the game!
The night before, I found out that Clarence Darrow, a Giants season ticket holder that I have gotten to know on Twitter, was going to be at the game! As soon as I bought the tickets, I bombarded him with questions about ballhawking, and he gladly gave me lots of helpful advice! So, thank you very much! Go follow him on Twitter!
After informing my Twitter followers of the WBC fire sale, I found out that Bay Area ballhawk Max has just purchased $8 bleacher seats as well! You can follow him on Twitter here!
In all this excitement, I realized that neither of the two teams I would see, in Puerto Rico and Japan were English-speaking countries. I realized that I would have to learn to ask for a ball in Spanish and Japanse. I already knew that Spanish is “Dahme La Bola/Pelota Por Favor”, but I knew that I would have to figure it out for Japanese. I tweeted Zack Hample, asking for help, but Milwaukee ballhawk Shawn Bosman volunteered to help me! He DM’d me on Twitter and was kind enough to give me lots of advice not only there, but in the comments of his most recent blog entry as well! Yes, Shawn has a blog called The Inherent Dangers of Watching Professional Baseball, which you can check out right here!
I didn’t honestly get much vlogging in. I got everything right up to the point that we got there. Enjoy what I was able to put together!
So I thought of inviting my friend Greg to the game to use the extra seat a few hours before we left, and around 1:15, we picked up Greg from his house and we were on our way!
We arrived at AT&T Park exactly at 2:00, but we didn’t get out of the parking lot until 2:15, as cars were packed up. Oh, and parking was *$30*. And I thought the $17 in Oakland was expensive…
This was our view from the parking lot. Hell. Yes.
I couldn’t be more excited!
We walked from the parking lot to the bridge across McCovey Cove.
First, we stopped at the O’Doul gate and I got my picture with the Juan Marichal statue! (If you can see in the background, there are 5 people in line).
Holy leg kick!
And then we started to walk along the cove, past gates like these. The Giants open them up during games for people to get a free glimpse of the game. However, if I am not mistaken, you can only stay for a certain amount of time.
We continued walking, and look who I saw in the Cove! It’s Dave Edlund, better know as McCovery Cove Dave! He is the one in the Blue Kayak. You should all go follow him on Twitter here!
Past the other gates, I saw these inside the fenced area.
Flags!
While we were walking along the cove, they tested the Water Cannons in right field that go off whenever a Giants player hits a home run!
We then approached the “Marina Gate,” where there was no line AT ALL. At the Marina, tere was this sign hanging on the fence. I guess it was on a boat.
We continued walking, past the left field side of ballhawk, which is lined with palm trees.
You can see the giant glove and Coke bottle from this point.
We then saw the main AT&T Park Sign.
There was this gate.
And we found the media entrance!
We then walked up to the “2nd Street Gate.”
Where I got my picture with the Orlando Cepeda statue.
Along the entire ballpark, at various spots, there are commemorative bricks that people purchased, following the 2010 and 2012 World Series. Greg’s mom bought him a brick that was placed outside the 2nd Street Gate, so we stopped to look for it.
And we found it!
One thing that he had never noticed was the brick to the right of his.
For him as a huge Giants gan, how cool is that?
We then stopped at the Willie Mays Gate, which I believe it the main entrance to AT&T Park.
And of course, I had to get a picture with the Willie Mays Statue!
We then stopped in the dugout store, where I picked up a WBC Program. I then of course had to get this picture!
AUSSIE AUSSIE AUSSIE! Oi Oi Oi! (Go to an A’s home game when Grant Balfour is pitching, and you’ll get that reference)
Remember that bridge we crossed to get from the Parking lot to the Stadium? Here it is!
At the Lefty O’Doul gate, someone called my name, and it turned to to be one of my readers! I talked to him and his brother for about 20 minutes or so. Very cool guys!
We then continued on our way back to the Marina Gate to get in line.
This is that boat that the Pre-Game “Reception” was being held on.
There were these really talented drummers performing. It was a lot of fun to watch them play!
About 15 minutes or so before the gates were supposed to open, Greg and I headed over to the little fenced in area where fans can catch a glimpse of the game for free. I saw Japan was in full swing taking BP. I also saw this…
A 3 diget number on a uniform? I had never seen that before!
This was the scene in line 5 minutes before the gates opened.
Before the gates opened, since we were the first ones in line, they checked my bag before I ran in.
Then, before we could get our tickets scanned, we had to be “wanded” with a metal detector wand. YAY!!!
After my ticket was scanned, I was handed a little giveaway WBC pasport thing and I headed to the bleachers!
Japan’s Batting Practice was in full swing!
They were not hitting home runs and in fact, they weren’t hitting it even close to the fence. I was VERY bored. The front crossasile was filling up FAST with people/ballhawks, so it was almost impossible to move around.
I was kind of surprised how empty it was!
The Japanese media was SWARMING the Japan dugout.
Then, I noticed that Puerto Rico was starting to play catch. Given the lack of bleacher activity, I headed across the arcade, or Levi’s Landing and made my way over to the RF corner
Outside, the Marina was looking gorgeous.
McCovey Cove was buzzing with Activity.
And Dave Edlund was all ready to snag some home runs!
Like I mentioned before, the bleachers were very empty, but there were no balls hit into the stands, making being there pointless.
Note how a majority of the people are along the outfield fence. Almost all of them had a ball retrieval device of some sort. But I’ll get to that soon…
The Puerto Rican team was warming up, so that was where I headed.
I then noticed that over by first base, Intentional Talk was set up and they were doing an interview. The funny thing was, the show wasn’t set to air live for almost 10 minutes. So to all of you that thought Intentional Talk was 100% live, sorry for crushing your hopes and dreams…
But, more importantly, the Puerto Rican team was warming up and there were balls to be snagged!
Before I get to Puerto Rico’s BP, there are a few things that I want to share.
I would say that this was one of the most effective ball retrieval devices at AT&T Park. It was always successful, and it was very bulky.
Then… You know how Zack Hample has his big glove? Well shortly after I showed up in the RF Corner, I saw a familiar face. It was fellow MyGameBalls.com member Leiming Tang! This was his big glove…
Yep. One of the players saw it, then a coach asked to borrow it, then before I knew it, all the players were taking turns playing catch with it. I think he got a ball out of it.
Lastly, how many of you guys watch Intentional Talk? How many of you were watching it on Sunday, March 17th? Well a short while into Puerto Rico’s BP, a guy on the field with a camera and a jacket that said MLB NETWORK CREW walked up to me, Greg, and a few other fans.
He then told us that we would be live in 30 seconds! WHAT???
He then gave us a countdown and told us to get loud, which we all did! It was “officially” my live debut on Intentional Talk, which is probably my favorite TV Show!
A few minutes later, I received this Tweet from Todd Cook, of Cook & Sons Baseball Adventures.
This photo was attached…
YAY!!! Thank You very much Todd, for capturing this screenshot for me, so ya’ll better go follow him on Twitter, you hear?
Now… Look at this grainy picture that I took on my phone. Specifically look at the Intentional Talk set. Do you see anything special?
Look again…
No? Chris Rose was doing push ups! I never got a chance to watch the show back, so if anyone can give me information surrounding this, that would be great!
But, Puerto Rico batting practice was in full swing and SF Giant Angel Pagan was the star of the show!
There were very few home runs hit into the bleachers, and those that did were not worth going for, as it was a mad dash EVERY time.
I won’t say a whole lot. However, I will share that it was very hard to get balls. There were a few line drives that were simply too far away and I couldn’t get there in time.
It was also very hard to ask for toss-ups, as I was around almost all spanish-speaking people, who were having full conversations, and I could only ask for a ball in Spanish or say the very basic things I have learned in Spanish at school.
All told, I did not have any balls when Batting Practice came to a close.
I was kind of glad that it was all just over with. Greg and I decided to go hit up the MLB Tonight set and see what was going on over there.
This was my angle:
While we were over there, look who was signing autographs!
I have a few things to point out…
- He CAN grow facial hair.
- That is MY pen.
- His Facial Expression
Look what I walked away with!
Yep. He signed my WBC Program. How cool is that?
While he was signing autographs, there were a few things he said that I loved.
- “I’m not going to sign that ball. It will just de-value it!”
There was a dad who told him that his son watches Intentional Talk everyday…
- “You know what we call that here at the Network? Bad Parenting.”
Great guy! I have to say Intentional Talk is one of my favorite shows! So go hit up Chris on Twitter and send him a link to this blog entry! Ok? ALL OF YOU go tweet him a link to this entry. Spam the crap out of him!
Hey and Chris Rose, if you happen to be reading this
- Sorry for the Spam!
- Thanks for the follow a while back!
- Please DM me on Twitter, I have a question for you.
- You should comment down below in the comment section.
After I was lucky enough to get his autograph, I met up with Conner, who reads this blog! He’s a cool guy, so go check him out on Twitter!
The three of us walked around for a bit, where we saw this line to get into the stadium at one of the gates…
Greg wandered off and Connor and I got into a discussion about the likelyhood of me getting a ball from the Japanese team that was TAKING INFIELD PRACTICE!!!!
That’s just too cool.
After a short while, I met back up with Greg, then we parted ways once we got to our seats, and I went to go meet up with Max, who also reads this blog. You can all go follow him on Twitter here! We talked for a while about various things, such as ballhawking, baseball, and other such items!
I have to say, it was great getting to connect with so many of my readers at this game!
This was what the scene was like right before the pre-game ceremonies
The Giants mascot, Lou Seal was wearing a green Giants jersey in honor of St. Patrick’s Day.
The pre-game ceremony was really nice! They announced each member of the Puerto Rican team in Spanish and their lineup in Spanish and English.
And each of the countries represented in the classic had someone carry out there flag onto the field.
Japan’s pitcher and catcher were getting loose, but after hearing about strict ushers, I decided not to try and head down there.
Then, Sadaharu Oh, the all time Japanese home run king (868 Home Runs) and Orlando Cepeda each threw out a ceremonial first pitch.
It was so cool to see it in person!
The game finally got underway, and this was my view for the game!
I am only partly kidding. This lady was sitting behind us for the introductions and such but moved in front of us for the actually game. She was REALLY into it!
The game moved along pretty fast, with neither team scoring much. As expected, Angel Pagan got a large ovation at the plate.
Carlos Beltran- not so much!
The Puerto Rican team did score one run early.
Then, in the 7th or 8th inning, Alex Rios hit a home run a few sections to my left.
As soon as the ball and bat made contact, I took off running to my left, but it was hard to go fast in a crowded row. I didn’t come as close as I would have liked, so no, I did not snag the ball.
The seats behind us were pretty packed!
Shortly before the game ended, Greg and I walked around a little bit. We saw the Fan Cave trolly car.
And I got a few panoramic photos from the Arcade
And one of the Cove
This was our view for the final out
And, as all of you know, Puerto Rico won 3-1, overtaking powerhouse Japan.
As soon as the final out was recorded, Greg and I headed down to the fence.
I got this picture down there.
My dad got this picture of me.
And then the seagulls took over!
We then decided to head over to the MLB Tonight set to watch their post-game show.
They had a few interviews taking place.
Harold Reynolds and John Smoltz were the analysts at the table.
Greg Amsinger was the host for the show.
Harold has always been one of my favorite guys at the network.
On the main camera, there were two monitors mounted.
That top one shows the desk, while the bottom one shows what is live.
Eventually, my dad decided we needed to head out, as we had a long drive ahead of us!
Goodnight from San Francisco!
It certainly was a fun day. Even though I didn’t snag any balls, it was a memorable experience. The cultural difference was amazing and it will be IMPOSSIBLE to ever forget it all.
My next game is Monday (4/1) at the Oakland Coliseum, otherwise known as OPENING DAY!!!!
Tomorrow, I will post an entry about a game I attended in Stockton last weekend, then hopefully I can get my Opening Day post up within the next week! I have 3 games hopefully planned over the next week, so stay tuned!
- 1st Game of the Year
- 0 Balls at this Game
- 0 Balls in 1 Game this season = o Balls Per Game
- 28 Lifetime MLB Baseballs
- 43 total balls
Nick Badders is a unofficial reporter for MLB.com. He writes the blog, 7000 Coliseum Way, and you can follow him on Twitter @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay. You can also LIKE his blog on Facebook or follow him @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay on Instagram. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
Baseball is BACK!
Happy Opening Day to every baseball fan past, present, and future! Hands down this is THE single-most exciting day of the year.
Football, Basketball, Hockey, and Soccer. They all have first games of the season, right? Of course their fans get excited for the opening game of the season. But Major League Baseball is THE ONLY league to have their own LOGO for the first game of the season.
Opening Day in baseball is more exciting than the first game of any other sport. It is so hyped up, every baseball fan has something to do. Easily, baseball is the best sport in America.
I’ll be at the A’s game tonight, so expect a post up within the next week or two! (Yes, I still have the WBC to finish writing about)
Before I end this entry, I am here to give you my predictions for the season. Ready? LET’S GOOOOOO!
AL East:
- Tampa Bay Rays
- Toronto Blue Jays
- Baltimore Orioles
- Boston Red Sox
- New York Yankees
AL Central:
- Detroit Tigers
- Kansas City Royals
- Cleveland Indians
- Chicago White Sox
- Minnesota Twins
AL West:
- Oakland Athletics
- Seattle Mariners
- Lost Angeles Angels
- Houston Astros
- Texas Rangers
Wild Card: Kansas City over Seattle
ALDS: Oakland Over Kansas City
ALDS: Tampa Bay over Detroit
ALCS: Oakland over Tampa Bay
NL East:
- Washington Nationals
- Atlanta Braves
- Philadelphia Phillies
- New York Mets
- Miami Marlins
NL Central:
- Cincinnati Reds
- Pittsburg Pirates
- St. Louis Cardinals
- Milwaukee Brewers
- Chicago Cubs
NL West:
- Los Angeles Dodgers
- Arizona Diamondbacks
- San Francisco Giants
- San Diego Padres
- Colorado Rockies
Wild Card: Pittsburg over Atlanta
ALDS: Washington Over Pittsburg
ALDS: Cincinnati over Los Angeles
ALCS: Washington over Cincinnati
World Series: Washington over Oakland in 6 games.
Awards:
AL MVP: Yoenis Cespedes (OAK)
NL MVP: Joey Votto (CIN)
AL Cy Young: James Shields (KC)
NL Cy Young: Stephen Strasburg (WAS)
AL ROY: Wil Myers (TB)
NL ROY: Travis d’Arnaud (NYM)
AL MOY: Ned Yost (KC)
NL MOY: Clint Hurdle (PIT)
There you have it folks! Go ahead. Bash me in the comments. Feel free. You’ll only hurt my feelings a little bit. No, seriously. Tell me what you think! Obviously, everyone will not agree with me, but some people will! Let me know in the comments down below! Thanks as always for reading, and have a great day!
Nick Badders is a unofficial reporter for MLB.com. He writes the blog, 7000 Coliseum Way, and you can follow him on Twitter @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay. You can also LIKE his blog on Facebook or follow him @nickbatters or his blog @7000ColiseumWay on Instagram. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
Nick Badders
