Worchester

On Running on Luck

Just an average game

Friday, April 29, 2022
Vernon, CT

 

Outside the Game: 
It was a long, stupid Friday at work, as well as other unwanted memories. This was the first week of my father's birthday and wedding anniversary since he passed, and I was in a fog most of the week to begin with and needed to get away to get my head straight. I was not in a good mental place, so I decided to put the first new notch in my belt in two years and see the new AAA-affiliate for the Red Sox up in Worchester ("Woo-stah"), MA.

The process didn't begin swimmingly, as I found at that every, single hotel within five miles of Worchester was sold out for the weekend. There are tons of colleges in the area, but none of them were graduating yet, and the sports teams were all done with their seasons, so I could never quite find out why this was the case, but a couple of people at the hotels I called acted like I was an idiot for not knowing without actually telling me why. So, you know.

I gave up trying for hotels nearby and just decided to stay outside of Hartford. It would be a two-hour drive up, and then a manageable one-hour each way to Worchester, with an easier two-hour drive home on Sunday. I booked my hotel, and then just stopped working at a little after 6 PM to grab a Lyft to my parents' house. The traffic wasn't too bad, but an accident held us up for a little bit, though the Rasta-man driving me helped me keep a cooler mindset on things.

Once I arrived at my parents' house, I did all my weekly things for my mom before heading out around 7:30 PM. I put the game on the radio, the address in the GPS, and headed out. I thought that I had checked the GPS and it was taking me the 84 route, but I was unfamiliar with my mom's GPS and found out much too late it was taking me via the dreaded 95. There was, of course, tons of traffic as I slogged across Manhattan, but at least the game was on, and I didn't have too long a drive through the sludgy--but moving--congestion.

After breaking out into mid-Connecticut, the traffic thinned out, and I was just night cruising, with the curious situation on the game following itself through, as the Metropolitans were pitching a combined no-hitter, the potential second game allow no-hits in their history. The time just flew by as I was driving. The further I went, the more I tried to change as little as possible so as not to effect the karma. I arrived at the hotel at the eighth inning. I left the car and radio running to check in, and then put the car around back into the last open parking spaces before settling in for the ninth. The victory in hand, I ran upstairs to my room with my stuff, stopping to grab some snacks in the vending machine, and then watched the post-game live on TV before getting ready for bed and amping down as much as possible, given the circumstances.

 

The Accommodations: 

Holiday Inn Express, Vernon, CT

I was staying at the Holiday Inn Express in Vernon, CT, on the east outskirts of Hartford. It was almost exactly what you'd expect of a Holiday Inn Express just past its prime. The facility was still nice, but rough around the edges. I wasn't paying too much attention on the way in due to the game, but it was a standard king bedroom, with the bathroom with tub and vanity sink to the right of the entrance, with the bed and nightstands in the main room opposite a wall with a desk, entertainment center, and appliances.

The bed was actually quite nice, and I appreciated it the most in all of the lollygagging I did during the mornings on this trip.

On Woostah

Polar Park, 2022

Saturday, April 30, 2022
Buffalo Bison (Toronto Blue Jays) vs. Worchester Red Sox (Boston Red Sox)
Polar Park
International League (AAA)
Worcester, MA
4:00 PM 

Outside the Game: 
I didn't have to get up early today, and I knew it. Upon waking up the first time, I realized it was almost time for the breakfast buffet to open, so I threw on some clothes and went down to eat, the first patron to dare the morning. I put together a decent spread of food while I scrolled my phone, and then stomped back up to my room to nap and flop about until I headed out around noon. I acquired some gas, snacks, and a newspaper of the previous night's events at a gas station around the corner, and then headed out into the early Connecticut afternoon.

It was an easy drive out to Worchester. Once there, I wasn't quite sure what to do. The parking decks for the stadium were still very much under construction, and not having anything else to go by, I paid to park in a small mini-mall right underneath an overpass from the stadium. Parked up, I went out to stadium to do my photographs, though I was thwarted in going to the team store because they closed it well before the gates opened for the game. I found out gates were supposed to be at three, so I did my extended walk-around outside, and then ambled aimlessly around Worchester until the gates opened, putting in a call to my mother as I wandered. By the time I got back to the stadium, even though it was well before 3 PM, they were already letting people in, so I took the opportunity and went in myself.

After the game was over, it was just after seven. Having nothing else to do in Woostah, I decided to drive back to the hotel. Outside of dealing with some truly confounding New England streets, I was off and flying when I rejoined the highway, and stopped for some McDonald's snacks before arriving at the hotel. I made a quiet evening of things, getting all packed up and then soaking in the tub for a long time, increasingly worried about my neighbor across the hall coughing up a lung for hours. Brave new world.

I eventually settled into bed and was asleep at a reasonable hour.

The Stadium & Fans:

Home plate to center field, Polar Park

"Polar Park" is quite the edifice, carved out of some downtown space in Worchester. Though the park opened last year, the construction is far from done outside the park, with the most notable issue being the lack of complete parking lots. Several blocks around the outside of the park remain a construction zone, but everything in the immediate confines of the park are at least in working order.

At the home plate entrance plaza, you have grouped the team store, the ticket booths, giant faux-autographed baseballs of Red Sox greats, and giant World Series rings that you can stand and take pictures within. There are also various paintings on the park, the largest being a mural on the outfield wall detailing "Legends of the Canal District." A big yellow bench honors Harvey Wall, the local artist that came up with the "smiley button." Gate A in the outfield leads into a closed-off pedestrianized street entrance with a number of concessions.

The main entrance curiously takes you into a lower level with the team store where you have to walk up two flights of stairs or take an elevator to get to the main concourse. The stairway holds a great deal of Ted Williams memorabilia, as well of the Hall of Fame stolen from the previous AAA home of the Red Sox, sorely missed McCoy Field. The main promenade circles the entire park, with the main seating bowl descending from it. The seats taper off into a berm in left to center field and a "blue monster" in right field, for some strange reason. A giant new video board rises above the berm in left field, with  a second small video board in the wall of right field. A second luxury box level extends first base to third base behind home plate, and special areas include the Hanover Deck in left field, the Flexcon Landing in right-center, the County Bank blue monster, and Shaw's Terrace by third base. The park did also have pitch clock displays that the pitcher, umpire, and players could see. I'm not sure how much an effect it had on the game, but the game did go along at a good clip--so progress, of sorts.

The outfield area by left field is a long street that has several stationary vehicles and two buildings for pubs. Directly behind the big batter's eye is an extensive playground for the kids that is patrolled by the likes of a clown making balloon animals and a stilt walker. In dead center, a Harpoon Taps Bar marks the distance from home plate, should a ball make it out there. There is an extensive patio in right field with concessions and a history panel on local pie-makers Table Talk, whose factory is a few blocks from the park. A grab-and-go Woosox Market is also nearby on the concourse.

The mascots are Woofster the dog and Smiley, literally a giant foam Smiley pin. The between-inning events are about what you expect from the minor in a post-Covid world, with contests and games, and a perhaps too on-the-noise giant inflatable ball wrestling match. The crowd, while not near capacity, was active in the game, with the regular amount of New England scorers in attendance.

The highlight of the game, really, was an usher who was either too into or not into enough the t-shirt give-away he was roped into doing. He specifically looked for people who weren't paying attention and whipped the shirts into the back of their heads. That man is my spirit animal.

At the Game with Oogie: 

Back on the scoring horse at a new park

I was in the gates as they opened, and exploring the new park with my usual efficiency. It felt both familiar and weird to be going through these motions again after two years that seemed more like a hundred.

I walked about and poked and prodded and took my pictures, stopping to grab some Coney Island hot dogs along with a Table Talk pie (which seemed appropriate). I eventually trekked back downstairs to the team store for some shopping, and then occupied my time with more snacks and whatnot before settling into my seat by the home dugout on the first-base side before the start of the game.

The early-season game wasn't terribly crowded, but there was a family of men sitting next to me, and the oldest, with a gravel voice from the hoary depths of New England, started talking with me about what happened during certain plays, as he saw me scoring. He was super-disappointed at "tha Sawx blowing it again," and unbeknownst to him, he would have to go home and watch his beloved parent team get thumped in a walk-off by the Orioles, of all people. A family with a lot of surly and loud kids was in the rows behind me, but you can't get too mad at kids. A family with fraternal twins several rows in front of me took shifts keeping score for the game, so all was balanced in the world.

The Game: 

First pitch, Bison vs. Red Sox

I wasn't quite sure how well the AAA teams related to their MLB counterparts, because if then the Bison would wipe the floor with the Woo Sox (honest-to-god their real nickname), but what turned out on the field was even more inexplicable.

The Bison struck early, converting a leadoff walk, single, and sacrifice fly into a first-inning 1-0 lead. Worchester answered right back in the bottom of the first, turning two doubles into the evener at 1-1. The second inning was uneventful, with both teams going in order. Buffalo continued their woes in the third, but the Red Sox took a leadoff double, a triple, and a single to put two more on the board and grab a 3-1 lead after three.

The Bison came right back in their stead in the fourth. An error got the leadoff batter on, and a single and hit batsman loaded the bases. A double cleared those bases right up, and the Bison were quickly up again, 4-3. Not letting sleeping dogs lie, Worchester hit a two-out homer to tie it at 4. The Bison stranded a leadoff walk and two-out baserunner that reached on an error in the sixth. In their half, Worchester had a one-out single reach third base after a stolen base and errant throw, but there he stayed.

The action picked up again in the seventh, as Buffalo strung together a leadoff double, a walk, and a two-out double into two more runs, taking the lead again at 6-4. Coming right back, the Red Sox turned a walk and a homer to left field to knot it up again. Things slowed in the eighth with the Bison going in order and Worchester stranding a walk. Both sides rather unclimactically went in order in the ninth.

On to extra frames with that stupid, stupid ghost runner. Buffalo started with a walk and a double to bring in two runs, getting to third on the throw. He then executed a delayed steal of home that shook the pitcher so much that he threw the ball clear to the backstop. Another double followed and was left on the basepaths, but the damage was already done, with the Bison up 9-6. Worchester got a run back on a leadoff single (tell me how that makes any sense--seriously, just think about that sentence), but couldn't manage any more, losing 9-7.

The Scorecard:

Bison vs. Red Sox, 4/30/22. Bison won, 9-7

To my great surprise, the program didn't include a scorecard, nor was there one on offer. Say what you will about New England, they like to score a game more than your average fan. I can only conclude that they expected so many people to be scoring on their own books that they didn't see a need to have their own branded one, and that did seem to be borne out by all the people at the game scoring with their own scorecards. I whipped out the old reliable BBWAA scorebook for my purposes.

The sombrero vendor got rich off this game, with four total golden sombreros to go around and one with tassels, along with the 26 total strikeouts. There were several plays of literal note, but they were only at the end of the game. In the top of the tenth, after a double, the runner was clearly out 9-6-5, but was somehow called safe. I made a note of the steal of home that followed, which I believe might be my first one in person ever. In the bottom of the tenth, there were arguments, recriminations, and ejections after a 6-4 putout call on a fielder's choice.

The only other scoring of note was the stupid extra inning ghost runners. I think I had my notation worked out for it going forward, but I still hate it.

The Accommodations:
I was at the Holiday Inn Express in Connecticut again. Not much to report on that front, although I did have a nice soak in the tub when I got back. Did I mention the soak in the tub? Because it was awesome.

On a New Month of Possibilities and Danger

Sunday, May 1, 2022
Jersey City, NJ

 

Outside the Game:
I had another slow morning, just braving the outside world enough to get some breakfast before collapsing back in bed for a while. I eventually got up the gumption to finish my packing and head to fill my car and check out of the room. I was quickly back to the highway and had a largely uninteresting drive back to my parents' house, as I went the 84 to Tappen Zee route instead of slogging through 95 again. I dropped off the car, checked in on my mother, and then called a Lyft to take me home, which was arrived at after a brief drive.

I did laundry and sorted out my items before going to bed early for another week of work.

The Accommodations: 
Home, sweet home, sweet Jersey City

Click here to see all the photos from this trip.


Stand-Alone Trip, 2022

North Port

Okay. Let's talk a little, shall we? Things got weird. Things got really, really weird. I went to see Spring Training games the first week of March, and then the world exploded. Like, a lot. Since that weekend, I have spent every weekend since then in my apartment, and that's a lot of weekends.

I haven't even really been able to force myself to look at the materials from this trip until the resolution of the labor dispute, Summer "Spring Training," and the promise of the shorterned season opening. With the way the covid epidemic is running in the country currently, we'll see how long it lasts, with many of southern teams located in states that are seeing murderously high new infections.

I hope anyone reading this is safe and healthy. We're all in this together, even if we don't want to be. Wear your damn mask outside, stupid. If you're too sick to wear a mask, you're too sick to be outside in a pandemic. If you're too selfish to wear a mask, you're too selfish to live in polite society.

On Ducking the Weather and Transit Problems

Terminal C, Newark Liberty 'Merica Eagle Airport

Thursday, March 5, 2020

Boyton Beach, FL

 

Outside the Game:

Work was stressful and annoying, and I was unfortunately getting nowhere looking for a new job, so I was in an unpleasant mood to begin with. But I managed to get all my work for that day done before having to leave, and I was out in the world at 5:30 PM for a quick subway ride up to Penn Station.

As luck would have it, I just missed a train to Newark Airport, so I called my parents, and as I was watching the big board, all the trains after the one I just missed changed to "DELAYED," as I would find that there was a train stuck in the tunnel out of the city. Fan-tastic.

I managed to scrum my way on the next train out and make a passive-aggressive Karen move so I could get the empty center seat in a packed car, and I was even able to take a short nap on the way to the airport. Except when we got to the airport, the monorail was out of service, because of course it was. After more delays, I got to the terminal, and actually had a quick run through security for once to balance out some of my karma. 

With a little time, I had a quick dinner at the diner and then rushed off to board my flight. I got in first with my group and was able to secure an overhead space and slump into my window seat. I spent most of the flight reading and doing Duolingo and watching pieces of movies, including Rise of Skywalker, which was even more awful than I imagined it being.

As we were approaching our destination, we had to detour around a large thunderstorm for a half-hour, putting us in late at West Palm Beach. People in general don't know how to exit a plane, but they were especially annoying this time, with multiple human blockages causing multiple-minute backlogs in the aisles before I was able to escape and meet my father for the short drive back to the condo.

I was about done for the day at this point, so I set up all my stuff for the game the next day, downed my pills, and went to sleep in the guest room in my parents' condo.

The Accommodations: 

I was the sole resident of the guest room in my parents' condo again. It hadn't changed.

On Satan's Nice New Home

CoolToday Park, 2020

Friday, March 6, 2020

Boston Red Sox vs. Atlanta Braves

CoolToday Park

Grapefruit League (Spring Training)

North Port, FL

1:05 PM 

 

Outside the Game: 

I had another crappy night's sleep. To be honest, I don't really remember why; it could just have easily been travel stress, and work stress, or just general stress. Either way, my alarm clock nearly gave me a heart attack when it woke me up, and my beleaguered ass took way too long to get moving, with me not heading out on the road in my mom's car until 7:15 AM or so.

The first challenge for my sleep-deprived self was that the address for the new stadium didn't show up in my GPS, probably as the stadium was brand-new on brand-new roads in a brand-new development. At any rate, I found a golf course near the stadium location, put that in the magic talky box, and I was on my way.

Outside of some traffic heading to Alligator Alley, there was not many people as all as I crossed through the abandoned heartland of this misbegotten state. It seemed as though I was on 75 forever, though in a small mercy I found a commercial-free block of music on some classic rock radio station that carried me through most of the ordeal, accompanied by a sad little light rain for most of the transgress.

As we got nearer, I started looking for signs for the stadium, which were nowhere to be found. In my earlier research, I saw that the park was right next to a local college. Seeing signs for the college, I decided to follow them and hope for the best, and I was finally able to stumble upon the well-hidden stadium.

I had just enough time to park up, take pictures outside, and get into the game at the opening of the gates. 

On the way out, I took it slow. I was in no rush to get anywhere, and arriving at the hotel early did not afford me any great opportunities in the area, so why bother? Especially since there was a jam-packed parking lot that wasn't moving anyway. I visited the little boy's room, called my parents to tell them my plans, and by then, most of the traffic jam was gone.

I had an uneventful drive to my hotel where I checked in and dropped off all my crap. I drove around the area a little bit looking for dinner, eventually settling on a Five Guys. I stopped for gas for the car on the way back (as my mom's car had a busted gas gauge, and you can't be too careful) and headed back to the hotel.

The room sort of fought me the rest of the evening. Well, with some help from me. I tried to make some tea, and then forgot about it, as I always do. I warmed it briefly in the microwave, which must have been some Bruce Banner-related contraption, because in under 10 seconds, it took that tea to nuclear hot. I then had to jury rig the bath tub to be able to take a proper bath to soak out the travel troubles.

But I soak I did, and caught up with some TV on my tablet, and then had a relatively early evening.

The Stadium & Fans: 

Home plate to center field, CoolToday Park

CoolToday Park, except for the awful, awful name was--like many parks in the Braves' organization--well-thought out, appreciative of its past, modern but not obnoxious, and an all-around wonderful facility, which made me hate it even more. They seem to be trying down here to pull the same magic they did with the new commercial zone around their park in Atlanta, rising "North Port" out of the ashes of suburban Venice Beach. Their success in that endeavor was much more muted than their triumph in Atlanta, with just an unfinished mini-mall and a bunch of empty condos to show for their efforts so far, but I wouldn't count them out just yet. Stupid, sexy Braves.

The outside of the park is well-designed, with the centerpiece being a hall of fame plaza before the home plate entrance that has sculptures of all the braves' retired numbers, right next to a giant green area where there are cornhole games and the like. The park has three numbered entrances, as well as VIP and press entrances, with Braves' players lining the rises around the park. In the under-construction parking lots (currently a damp, dirt field), there is the entrance to the league-standard training area, with its scout tower around all the practice and skills fields.

Once you get in, you go up stairs respectfully decorated with Braves' luminaries and are dumped out on the main promenade that circles the park, all the while being serenaded by a guy in a Braves' uniform playing the accordion. You read all of that correctly. And it was somehow fun and not cringeworthy. I seriously hate the Braves. The single seating bowl descends from the promenade all around the park. There is the standard minor-league second level that runs from third base to first base around home plate that hosts the press boxes, luxury boxes, and a second deck of seating.

Seriously, how is this charming?

The outfield is littered with special areas. The left field corner is anchored by the Tomahawk Tiki Bar, which is next to a picnic berm that extends out to center field. Just in left-center is the main digital scoreboard, above the "Budweiser Bench" for some reason, and the batter's eye in dead center. A raised area of seats called the Truist Pavilion hangs over the home bullpens in right-center, next to the Centraui Insurance Super Suite built into the right field corner wall. All the ads on the outfield wall are in white on green, and it all looks out to a backdrop of blue sky and palm trees.

Regular and specialty concessions ring the park, along with more player tributes and a now de rigueur POW seat. Baseball quotes are scrawled across the buildings in the park, and they even found a way of making the area behind the batter's eye useful, turning it into a huge bank of bathrooms. The team store is also airy and well-organized. Christ, do I hate the Braves.

It being an early Spring Friday game in a new park with the Red Sox visiting, the place was packed, and the crowd was into the meaningless contest. Ambiguously fuzzy mascot Blooper ran the on-field entertainments. Mostly he spent his time wandering the stands and interacting with fans. The on-field between-inning stuff was kept to a minimum, with giveaways and contest and the like.

The only real criticism that I can wield against the place is that their scoreboard operators were awful. Now granted, it is hard to keep up with all the late-inning changes in a Spring Training game, but at one point, they had two people playing first base and the same guy at two positions. That, my friends, is just slop.

At the Game with Oogie:

Fingers du Pollo

I got in with the first wave of the gates opening, bought my program and did my usual walk-around and pictures. My food stops were for a chicken basket and the world's tiniest brat. The brat guy was from Union City and saw my hat and we talked a bit. Jersey is everywhere, baby. A number of people thought I was press, and I increasingly think that is because only press people walk around with real cameras anymore now that smart phones are a thing.

Spring scoring

My seats were just to the right of home plate, and it was a packed house that day. There was an adorable old couple next to me and an two old guys on the other side, with a big family taking up the row in front. Nothing really to mention with them, although there were a lot of Red Sox fans in the house as well, although my section was pretty solidly Braves' fans. There was a gap in the protective netting where two nets overlapped that let them throw things safely out to the crowd from the field, which was another nice feature that I hated the Braves for having.

The Game: 

First pitch, Red Sox vs. Braves

The Red Sox faced the Braves in this "let's just hope the entire stadium burns down" meaningless Spring Training contest. Despite all the strikeouts, this wasn't a pitcher's game, with the home team eeking out a bit of a slugfest.

The game started quickly enough, with the Sox going in order in the first. Atlanta was quicker out of the gate, with a walk and a single turning into an early 1-0 lead. Boston stranded a leadoff walk in the top of the second, while the Braves had the same result after a single and an error. The Red Sox got going in the top of the third, with a leadoff single going to third on a one-out single and then scoring an odd double steal (see below), while a fielder's choice scored the trailing runner and gave the Sox a 2-0 lead. Altanta went in order in their half.

Settling in, Boston went in order in the top of the fourth, but in the bottom of the frame, the Braves tied it up with a home run to left, knotting it at 2-2. The Sox only had a double to show for the top of the fifth, while Atlanta left a double and a walk on the basepaths for their half. Boston erased a leadoff single with a double play in the sixth, while the Braves stranded a couple of walks for their part.

The Red Sox left a two-out walk on the bases in the seventh, while Atlanta manufactured a run with a leadoff single that stole second and a single to follow, edging them out to a 3-2 lead. The wheels came off the bus in the eighth. In the top, three singles and two walks quickly added up two runs, giving Boston a 4-3 lead. In the bottom of the eighth, the Braves did them one better, where a bunt single started a rally of a single, a walk, and a triple, bringing in four and giving the Braves back a 7-4 lead. 

The Sox did not going quietly in the ninth. A leadoff walk was followed by a single. Another single brought the run in, and another one-out single and E4 left it first and third. A walk loaded the bases, but a grounder to third led to the run being cut down in a force at home. A strikeout ended the game with the winning run on the bases, preserving a meaningless 7-4 Atlanta win.

The Scorecard:

Red Sox vs. Braves, 03/06/20. Braves win, 7-5

The Braves scorecard was a one-page cardstock insert in the $5 Spring Training program. In keeping with the parent club, the scorecard is just one page, cramming everything in somewhat efficiently. There is some whitespace around the card itself, allowing for notes.

The teams are stacked on top of each other, with player lines split in two for replacements, bracketed by player number and position. Eleven innings of scoring boxes are presented, with by-inning run/hit breakdowns at the bottom of each column. Each row ends in totals for at bats, runs, hits, and RBI. Pitching lines are underneath for five pitchers (pretty stingy for Spring Training), along with cumulative lines for pitching stats in each row. There is a totals box next to the pitching lines for errors, doubles, triples, home runs, stolen bases, and time of game.

There were a number of plays of literal note in the game. In the bottom of the first, a Braves' "single" was the ball falling between two fielders. The top of the third also had two odd plays. With one out and a runner on first and third, the runner on first stole second. The throw to second was late, and the runner on third broke for home. The catcher botched the throw home, scoring a run and moving the runner on second to third on an E2. The next batter hit the ball to third. He tried to make an unsuccessful play on the runner from third going home, but the catcher got the slow runner going to first in a routine 5-2-3 put out. The bottom of the second featured an RBI single getting gunned down going for two on the throw home in a blase' CS 8-2-6.

The Braves six pitchers combined for 15 strikeouts. Beside that, nothing else noteworthy.

The Accommodations:

Days Inn, Bonita Springs

I ended my day at the Days Inn & Suites in Bonita Springs. The area was a weird mix of tourist and golf resorts and nothing, and for the money, it was an okay situation, my inability to make tea correctly notwithstanding.

The entrance to the room had the smallish bathroom right off the entrance on the left. It had the big backlit vanity mirror, a wall-length sink, toilet, and the requisite shower and tub, which I would make good use of.

The bedroom area had two double beds split by dressers on one side, and a desk, small dresser, TV, and luggage rack on the other. It wasn't quite fancy, but it got the job done, especially as sleep-deprived as I was.

On Using Loneliness to My Advantage

I can fly, bitches.

Saturday, March 7, 2020

Naples, FL

 

Outside the Game:

I finally had a good night's sleep under me, so I was up early this morning. I went down full of hope for breakfast, but it turned out to be a sad little buffet with no hot food. I ate and returned to my room for a nap, disappointed by the whole experience and my stomach a little worse for wear from the experience.

I woke up again and puttered around the room until about 9 AM. I finished packing up, checked out, and then took the short drive to the zoo--which I made a little longer by missing the exit twice going in both directions, before successfully making a right turn like a normal person.

Managing to park with much less trouble, I was in the midst of a giant swarm of people, as I would find out today was free admission for county residents at the zoo. Realizing that time was not going to be my friend today, I made a bee-line for the monkey island boat tour as soon as I got in. The boat tour was the only real line in the zoo for a flat-bottomed boat ride around the various islands housing the various monkey species in the zoo. It was the only way to see the popular monkeys.

By the time I got there, the line was already pretty beefy, but it was moving, as they had three or four boats going at once because they were correctly expecting big crowds. My wait was even further abbreviated by being by myself. With such big crowds, they were looking fill every seat on every boat, so when they piped up for people by themselves, an older Asian lady and I were able to sheepishly cut half the line to get some pretty nice seats at the front.

We all took our nice ride around the monkey islands and then were set free to wander the zoo. I smugly noted the line for the boats had gotten quite epic in our short absence. I wandered around taking pictures, until it was time for the animal show in the arena by the entrance, where again I was able to slide in at the last minute by occupying an empty single seat.

After that, it was a leisurely wander around the zoo taking pictures before getting some cash and eating at the only option in the zoo, a sad little Win Dixie kiosk serving quick-stop food. I eventually made my way around the rest of the zoo before stopping in the gift shop on my way out. There was no WIFI in the zoo, and I was trying to get directions to another museum in town. Thankfully, when I got back to my mom's car, the GPS had the museum in its system, so I took the short drive downtown to see it.

The Naples Depot was a free museum--as you might guess--in the old train station in Naples. It is one of these places that I would never even think of visiting under normal circumstances, but that these trips give me the opportunity to discover. I found out some interesting history about the train lines that opened up central Florida, and even a little bit about dune buggy culture. So, you know, check mark for Saturday.

The museum also had two train cars open for visitors in the back on the remains of the tracks. One of them had a nice old man named Dan working inside. As can happen, Dan and I got to talking, and I found out that he had sponsored the restoration of the Lincoln hearse in the museum near his hometown in Illinois (he was a snowbird like my parents). He also had a son living in China at the time, and we had a long discussion about the stories we were hearing and how bad it was over there. His son was largely restricted to his hotel and was otherwise fine and looking to come back home where it was safe. (If only he knew what we know now. He'd probably be safer in China at this point.)

Seriously, I learned things.

I eventually took my leave and drove back to my parent's condo. It was a lazy afternoon of getting organized for the game the next day and a nap. Since the extended family couldn't get its act together on the traditional pizza party we have when I come down, it was just going to be my parents and I going out to dinner this night. As we headed out to dinner, we found that the car had died sometime in the afternoon. (It would turn out to be an alternator problem.) With this added stress, we took another car to dinner at a local Italian place. It was notable because the service was very slow, and I surmised (correctly, as it would turn out) that it was because a lot of staff had called in sick. If only we could have seen the signs ahead of time...

We eventually got back to the condo, changed all the clocks that needed changing, and I went to sleep as early as possible for the next day.

The Accommodations: 

I was back at the condo again, and really, really annoyed by the clap light that evening for some reason I can't remember.

Click here to see all the photos from this trip.

2020 Spring Training Trip

Winston-Salem

On a Much-Needed Vacation

Oh, good. Another Accent.

Monday, July 31, 2017
Raleigh, NC


Outside the Game:
Because of launches and other work, I had to push back my vacation this year until it coincided with the time off for my primary client's development team in Europe, who pretty much took August off. It was a long spring and summer of many 60-hour weeks, and, outside of a mini-trip for July 4th, not much baseball at all. I was saving it all up for this two weeks sprint towards the end of the season to make up for it all.

Most of this day was a blur of coverage meetings and other meetings, and meetings, but I eventually headed out exactly at 6 PM to catch the train to the train to Newark Liberty Eagle God Bless America Airport. I've had a complicated history of getting from the New York area to North Carolina, and none of my flights down have ever left on time.

Tonight would be no exception. As soon as I sat down to get dinner at the airport, my flight was delayed. And so I had a more leisurely dinner. It would turn out that my plane was delayed because they sent what was supposed to be our flight to Las Vegas, in a logic that still escapes me.

A short, little one-and-a-half-hour delay awaited us as we had to get a new plane, and after previous experiences, I called ahead to make sure that the rental car place would still be open when I arrived. The only good news about this is that I had put in for a free upgrade to first class that was approved, so I when we eventually boarded the plane, I didn't have far to walk, nor did I need to worry about having to check my one carry-on bag I had with me.

All stowed away, we eventually took off, and I spent most of my first-class flight watching Arrested Development reruns on the app they make you download instead of having seatback screens. It is an interesting tax on the poor, as a tablet is now essentially required to get any in-flight entertainment, so sitting with nothing to do for a flight will teach you to be poor. Or something.

As usual, we landed in the terminal at the furthest end of the airport, requiring a ten-minute or so walk to get to the exit and over to the rental car place. I had to get a car from Alamo, and I got to my white Honda Accent far too late in the evening. I checked everything out, loaded up, and took the short drive from the airport to the Microtel literally across the street from the airport, and managed to get a parking space right by the entrance.

I shakily checked in, dropped everything in the room, and was asleep by about 2 AM, which, given everything so far this evening, was a godsend.


The Accommodations:

Microtel Raleigh-Durham

As with previous trips, I stayed in the Microtel Raleigh-Durham Airport. It was relatively cheap, clean, close, and quiet, which is all I wanted for a stay this short. My room had a king-sized bed in front of mirrored wall with build-in nightstands on either side. A small couch was worked into the dresser over the air conditioning unit, and on the opposing wall was a small desk extending out from the wall.

The bathroom was almost as large as the tiny main room, with a tub, toilet, and sink all on top of each other.

But it was quiet, and had a bed and air conditioning, and I got some sleep, and that's all that really matters.



On Battling Salems

BB&T Ballpark, 2017

Tuesday, August 1, 2017
Salem Red Sox (Boston Red Sox) vs.
Winston-Salem Dash (Chicago White Sox)
BB&T Ballpark
Carolina League (A+)
Winston-Salem, NC
7:00 PM


Outside the Game:
I slept in quite late Tuesday, eventually coming to after breakfast had ended. I went back to bed for another nap before checkout, packed up, and had an easy drive to the park. I bought my ticket and took my pictures of the outside of the park, and then headed to the local tourist trap, "Old Salem."

"Old Salem," of “Winston-Salem” fame, was a Moravian settlement. The Moravians were one of the oldest and earliest Protestant sects from Bavaria, and the settlement here dates from before the revolution. They have peculiar practices, where all the single men and women live in gender-segregated communes until marriage. Speaking of segregation, they were a little progressive in that they let their slaves be part of their own "separate-but-equal" church, but, you know, they were still enslaved. After the Civil War, they let the African members join the real Church, and black members today don't seem to hold a grudge, so who am I to say?

The entire Salem community was entirely owned by the Moravians, and they still own most of the land in "Old Salem" today. Part of the land they sold to outsiders because Winston, and they joined up to form the hyphenated city just after the turn of last century.

"Old Salem" the tourist attraction exists in the same stripe as Colonial Williamsburg, except that all the original buildings exist. From a main visitor's center, you can buy a pass to visit all the old buildings that are still open and doing reenactments, or like the oldest continuously open bakery in America, still doing what they were originally built for. There are even a number of archaeological digs on the property.

Fresh sugar bread from a stale building

I managed to park in the wrong lot and had a long walk to visitors’ center where I bought my pass and headed out to the town. One of my first stops was the bakery, where I bought some fresh "sugar bread" (exactly what it sounds like) and a lot of other baked goods, because I had missed breakfast and was starving. I went around to the various historical houses and locations, such as the God's Acre cemetery, the art gallery, and the Home Moravian Church. The church was very beautiful, and the pastor who was greeting visitors that day was very enthusiastic about talking about the history if the church and the community. It was actually quite interesting, and I learned a great deal about the sect.

Home Moravian Church

Eventually, I headed back to the gift shop to buy way too much "old timey" crafts kits, and then headed off to my new hotel, where I checked in, dropped off all my stuff, and took a much-needed nap, to the point that I was very angry when the alarm clock on my tablet woke me up after far too brief a respite.

I headed out to the park for the game, parking in a lot across the street from the park that overlooked center field. I was down and in as the gates opened.

After the game let out, I was quickly back on the street through the thin crowd at the game and back at the hotel in no time. I hit up the Jacuzzi tub after my travel-interrupted rest the night before, did a little research for what I was going to stay for the next day, and then I was asleep fairly quickly.


The Stadium & Fans:

Home plate to center field, BB&T Ballpark

BB&T Ballpark is a fairly standard minor-league park design, but it did have a couple of flairs that made it stand out from the crowd. The park has a nice brick facade all around it, and the main entrance plaza is by the center field entrance, not home plate, where the marquee entrance for such parks usually is. The club level entrance is at home plate, while the ticket booth, a statue of children chasing a home run ball, and the main entrance is in a recessed plaza down a flight of stairs in the back of center field. In fact, the entire outfield area is open and viewable from one of the parking lots across the street from the park. Outside, there is also a memorial to the African American West-End area of town that was presumably torn down for the park.

As per normal, all the entrances to the park empty out onto a main promenade that surrounds the park on top of the seating bowl. The promenade circles the park, allowing a full circuit of the stadium. Regular seating runs from third base to first base around home plate in one level of seating down from the promenade. A picnic berm sits the outfield corners allowing general admissions seating. A second, covered, level run above the main seats for a slightly shorter distance, housing the press box, luxury suites, and party decks at either end. A Foothills Brewery party deck sits out in near dead center field, and kids’ area anchors the left field corner.

All the concessions run along the promenade in the covered area. A Hall of Fame with plaques along the promenade wall runs the same area behind home plate, along with "Fast Feet Facts" from New Balance, middle-aged men’s favorite sneakers. There are also plaques for employees of the year on one pillar. A team store sits on the promenade in its own little building. The main digital scoreboard sits out in left-center field, and it had a bit of technical difficulties during the game, as it went out for an inning or two. The site line behind center field is mostly a hall and some trees and a couple of far-off buildings. The outfield wall is asymmetrical, with a low wall in left, a high wall in center, and a small, irregular section of wall in right-center field that tapers as it goes up. A batter was robbed of a home run during the game when they hit the very top of this wall, where a foot in any direction but down would have resulted in a home run.

Bolt, for some reason

Red monster creature Bolt is the mascot de jure, who worked with human fun team to run the entertainment between innings. Most of it was pretty standard stuff, except for a rug scoot race in the middle innings that was unique if for no other reason that the complete lack of dignity it allowed the contestants as they had to scoot across the top of the dugout as fast as possible. Also notable was how into the dance contest this evening that one of the contestants got, which is either funny or sad depending on how you look at it.

It was a Tuesday night game, so the crowd was a little scarce, but those that were there did seem to actually care about the game.


At the Game with Oogie:

Carolina Dog: Cardiologists don't go poor here

I got a seat right behind the first-base dugout for the game. After my walking around and shopping, I got a Carolina Dog (apparently onions and a ton of peppers) and a chicken fingers and fries to eat.

It was a thin crowd that night for a Tuesday night game. There were only two people sitting by me, and they left after an inning or two to move away from me. I wonder if it was something I said?


The Game:

First pitch, Red Sox vs. Dash

It was the battle of the Salems, as the Salem (Virginia) Red Sox faced off against the Winston-Salem (North Carolina) Dash. Despite the scoring, this was in many ways a game on fast-forward, especially for the Red Sox, who only scored in between clumps of consecutive outs.

To start, both sides went in order in the first. Salem struck out in order in the second, while the Dash got something started with a leadoff walk that made it to third on a ground-out and wild pitch. A single brought him in, and a two-out homer to left brought everyone in for an early 3-0 lead. The third was a scoring frame for the Red Sox, as they got a one-out homer to right, and then combined two singles, a passed ball, and a ground out into another run to bring it to 3-2, while Winston-Salem went in order in the bottom of the inning.

Salem kept going in the fourth with a single and two doubles leading to two more runs, to stake them to a 4-3 lead. The Dash had just a walk in their half, and Salem went in order in the top of the fifth. The Dash got a homer to dead center in the basement of the fifth to tie it at 4. The Red Sox scattered a walk and single in the top of the sixth, while Winston-Salem got a walk and a double and nothing across in the bottom of the frame.

In the top of the seventh, Salem only managed a walk, but the Dash manufactured the go-ahead run with a leadoff single, a stolen base, and two grounds outs to grab a 5-4 lead. The Red Sox went in order in the eighth, and Winston-Salem only managed a single. Salem tried hard to equalize in the top of the ninth and started with a leadoff walk that was bunted over to second. With one out, there was a grounder to third leading to a put-out at first, but the runner at second fell getting back to the bag, and was put out by a throw to the second baseman who tagged him out, leaving the Dash with the 5-4 win.


The Scorecard: 

Red Sox vs. Dash, 08/01/17. Dash win, 5-4.

The scorecard was a free giveaway half-tabloid on semi-glossy paper. Although the paper had some gloss, it was still relatively easy to write on using pencil. Most of the two-page centerfold spread was left for the scoring, with about an inch of the right margin advertising Dash social media. The card was cramped but useable, with the copious white space at least proving area for notes.

As is often the case with the minor leagues, there were a few scoring notes worth mentioning. A single in the top of the third fell between a bunch of fielders Bad News Bears style, although it was ruled a hit. A triple at the start of the inning missed being a home run by inches, hitting the very top of the outfield inset, which apparently was worth a note.

In the bottom of the fourth, an increasingly contentious relationship between the home plate umpire and the teams boiled over after an extremely late third strike call on a punch out was more than the Dash manager could take, it and resulted in an argument that saw him tossed from the game.

In the bottom of the seventh, there was a fielder's choice that left everyone safe when the throw 4-2 to get the runner at home was too late. And the last play of the game was a DP 5-3-4t. It was probably the first game I've seen end on a double play, and definitely with that double play. There was 5-3 putout on the grounder to third, but the runner at second stumbled and fell, leading to a 3-4t putout to complete the double play, end the game, and leave that runner on a long, long walk to the dugout to be yelled at by his manager for a good, long while.


The Accommodations:

Best Western

For this evening, I was staying at the Best Western at the mall in Winston Salem. I had very nice room with a bathroom with a jacuzzi tub just off the entrance. The main bedroom had a king-sized bed and a lounge chair on one wall and a dresser, desk, and TV on the wall opposite.

I put the jacuzzi tub to good use. Everything else was just some lying around in the evening before getting a solid night's sleep.

Click here to see all the pictures from this trip.

2017 The Carolinas II & Tennessee