On a Smashing Evening
Petrova Field, 2022
Saturday, July 2, 2022
Japan Islanders vs. Saranac Lake Surge
Petrova Field
Empire League
Saranac Lake, NY
4:00 PM
Outside the Game:
I was in no rush to get up the next morning, but after a sound sleep, I awoke relatively early. I sleepily walked down to the McDonald's by my hotel to find it not yet open even though it was supposed to be, so I walked back up the hill, retrieved my car, and drove to a deli in town to order up some breakfast sandwiches and head back to the hotel.
Still groggy, I went out on the patio to eat my greasy breakfast and was surprised by a seaplane taking off nearby. I finished eating and enjoying the view and went back inside to wash up, pack up, and plan my day. I booked another hotel just north of Albany to stay for the night, decided on my activites for the early afternoon, and headed out. After a friendly check out, I was off to an antique store half-way to my other destination for the day. Letting me in a well-stocked antique store is never a good idea under the best of circumstances, but especially when I don't have a plane ride between me and home, it is a recipe to spend a lot of money. At one point, I was actually measuring the trunk to see if I could fit a speaker's podium in there. As it was, I was buying things as diverse as a dummy grenade and an antique nutmeg grinder, but it all packed up nicely in the trunk, and I was off the rest of the way to Lake Placid.
Eschewing the Winter Olympics attractions, I went to the John Brown Farm. In addition to the monument and the grave, there is his restored house and barn that holds more exhibits. I had known of John Brown, but I hadn't really gone in depth, so this was a great opportunity to learn about his life, his homesteading efforts for African Americans, and other tidbits. (And learning things is important, kids, because--I kid you not--another patron was upset at the BLM banners that were located near the John Brown statue, and how my brain didn't just completely explode at the irony is lost to me.) After my tour, I made use of one of the several walking trails on the grounds (which did go right next to the Olympic ski jump) for a nice summer walk before relaxing for a bit in a shaded Adirondack chair, as is tradition.
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| John Brown often opined on the Olympic Ski Jump |
I went back to town, stopping at the "Tail of the Pup" barbecue place for lunch. As luck would have it, I received an email from the previous day's restaurant--who apparently owned both establishments--offering me another free beer for eating at that restaurant, thus compiling the most beer I've drunk in the last decade or so, all for free. A one-man band played for the patrons, and I wolfed down a brisket sandwich and beer before heading out to the park.
I parked in what I was sure was a safe spot, walked around and called my mother prior to the game, and then headed in.
On coming out, I felt something wrong. As I going to the car, I couldn't quite figure it out until I realized that a foul ball had somehow smashed my sunroof. The angle was literally impossible. A grand total of three balls had even been fouled this way all game. An inch in either direction, and it would have been a dent in the roof. But nope, bullseye. A player parked next to me was horrified, but quickly disappeared. I cleared out the glass as best as possible, and then drove to a gas station and bought some duct tape to secure the roof closed and pray for no rain.
With nothing else to do for it, I got out on the highway and drove south to Albany and my hotel. I made it without further incident, was delirious with stress upon checking in to the point I was scaring the hostess, and then just showered the day off of me, tried to calm down, and did some research before collapsing on the bed.
The Stadium & Fans:
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| Home to center, Petrova Field |
There's no two-ways about it or any way to sugar coat it--Petrova Field is a high-school baseball field that seems to be an appendix to a football field. There's no scoreboard, no concessions, and nothing to indicate any professional baseball except for a small Empire League sign facing the field and a small collapsible table and chair that they use to collect admissions.
The field itself is mostly chain-link fenced, with a "viewing area" of netting on the first-base side of home. The dugouts are two plexiglass-covered benches on either side of the field. The seating areas are a main metal bleacher behind home plate, and two satellite bleachers down first and third. The football field in far left field is clearly the senior partner of this two-field set-up, with a broadcast tower and football scoreboard out there, but the two seating areas also serve as outfield seating for the few brave souls that stayed out there towards the end of the game.
The crowd was small to non-existent, but did pick up steam towards the end of the game, with a smattering of people coming to see the outcome. Otherwise, the attendees were the players and the minimal staff.
At the Game with Oogie:
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| Bleacher scoring |
I parked myself with my water bottles (purchased for just such an occasion) in the "window" on the first-base bleachers to get a relatively unobstructed view of the game. In my area sitting in lawn chairs were a smattering of true-believer fans of Saranac Lake who cheered on through the entire game. Outside of helping me when a water bottle fell down from my perch at the top of the bleacher during the game, there was no real interaction with anyone else. I sat, cooking slowly in the late afternoon, watching a ballgame, as god intended.
The Game:
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| First pitch, Islanders vs. Surge |
After the utter anarchy that was the day before's game, this was a pleasantly bland game between the Japan Islanders and Saranac Lake Surge that didn't threaten to eat my brain at any point.\
The game began with the Islanders only having a two-out single and stolen base to show for their half of the first, while Saranac Lake had the same sole single without the stolen base. In the top of the second, Japan had a two-out walk and single stranded, while the Surge went in order. The third saw the Islanders get on the board. A leadoff single stole second and made it to third on an errant play on the throw by the shortstop. A ground-out brought in the run, but a walk and a double-play stopped the scoring there with the Islanders up 1-0. Saranac Lake only had an infield single that got thrown away to get the runner as far as second before being stranded.
The fourth had a Japan batter reach on an error by the third baseman with two outs, but the runner was stranded there. The Surge went in order. The Islanders got another run in the fifth with a leadoff walk that stole second and third and was then driven in with a single. The trail runner was caught stealing and two outs followed, leaving the new Islander lead at 2-0. Saranac Lake again went in order. The Japanese sixth began with back-to-back walks, and then a wild pitch to move the runners up and a hit batsman to load the bases with two outs, but they were all stranded by a strikeout. In the bottom of the frame, the Surge finally got on the board with a walk and two steals and a thrown-away ball by the pitcher to close the gap to 2-1 after six.
The Islanders had a leadoff walk and nothing else in the seventh, while Saranac Lake just had a single and walk in their half. Japan had a one-out single and walk in the eighth, while the Surge managed just a walk. Going into the ninth, the Islanders had a potential two-out insurance run make it to second after a passed ball, but there he stood. Saranac Lake made a last stand in the bottom of the ninth, starting with a walk and--somehow-- a defensive indifference as he took second. A dropped ball by the left fielder made it first and third with no outs, but the runner on third got picked off for the first out. The runner on first stole second on another DI, then a walk made it first and second. A fly out to right advanced the lead runner, while the trail runner advanced on yet another defensive indifference with two outs. But the Surge couldn't make it work, with a lazy fly out to center ending the game with a Japan Islander win at 2-1.
The Scorecard:
Japan Islanders vs. Saranac Lake Surge, 07/02/22. Islanders win, 2-1.
There were two plays of literal note. In the bottom of the third, the Surge single and E3 noted that it was a clean infield single, but the throw got away from the first baseman on the play, allowing the runner to advance. In the bottom of the sixth, the scoring play was a delayed steal from second on the throw back to the pitcher, who promptly threw the ball to the next town over, allowing the runner to score from third easily.
The story of the game, though, was the three defensive indifference steals in the bottom of the ninth with a one-run lead. How bad is the catching in the Empire League? So bad that they don't even want the catcher to attempt a throw with the game on the line and would rather trust their equally awful pitching.
Not even mentioning getting the first out at third by getting picked off in the bottom of the ninth. Amazing.
The Accommodations:
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| Hilton Garden Inn |
The Hilton Garden Inn was attached to a mall that had odd business hours for a Saturday night. (The connection to the mall was closed because the mall was already closed for the evening--not what you want to do to have a thriving mall, but that's not for me to decide).
My room was everything I'd expect from a Hilton. The adequate bathroom was off the entrance to the right, while the bedroom was straight ahead, with two queen beds on one side, and a dresser, TV, and desk and chair across the way. It was boring, functional, and I stress-slept a ton.
On Limping Home
Sunday, July 3, 2022Jersey City, NJ
Outside the Game:
After the insanity of the last night, I at least got a decent night's sleep, no doubt thanks to the stress exhaustion. Up early, I just decided to head out straight away, checking up on the tape, filling up and grabbing food at a nearby gas station, and then heading south.
Thankfully, the drive back to my parent's place was as uneventful as could be, and early afternoon had me pulling in. I had to then explain the whole situation to my slow-to-follow mother before clearing out the garage enough to put her car in and then replacing my father's car in the driveway.
Thoroughly done with the weekend at this point, I finished up a bunch of check-in tasks, and then got a rideshare back to my apartment, for a fun afternoon of calling insurance agencies and glass shops, as well as laundry and unpacking and the like.
Life just gets you sometimes.
The Accommodations:
Home, sweet, home
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