Reading

On the Best Damn Park in the Minors

FirstEnergy Stadium, 2013

Saturday, August 10, 2013

New Britain Rock Cats (Minnesota Twins) vs.
Reading Fightin Phils (Philadelphia Phillies)
FirstEnergy Stadium
Eastern League (AA)
Reading, PA
6:35 PM


Outside the Game:
And off we go on the road for another August weekend. In my continuing conquest of Pennsylvania, I was traveling to "Baseballtown" in Reading to catch a game with the grammatically challenged "Fightin Phils."

The drive itself was a rather straightforward run west. Get out to 78, switch to 222, and essentially I'd be there. Since not many people are heading in that direction on a summer weekend, especially in the middle of the day, it looked to be clear sailing and about a two-hour drive-time. And it pretty much was.

Things got a little weird after I got on 78 and started driving a bit, as everything suddenly became eerily familiar. It eventually dawned on me that this was the way I drove out to college in central Pennsylvania about twenty years ago. Once I hit the bit of 78 west of my parents' house, it started to come back in fits. It got quite real when I made the dump over to 222 and everything started to flood back with the details: the speed trap in where 222 goes through that one town, the unexplained expressway right after it, the no passing zone where one so-and-so can keep traffic backed up for miles.

So it was with great relief when I eventually peeled off to the side route that got me to Reading. The park was just off the county road, and there were numerous free lots. I ditched the car and went out to do my business.

Leaving before the start of the fireworks and the post-game concert, I got to see its beginnings as I packed into the car and set out. This late in the night, my only delays were getting stuck behind slow pokes in the no-pass parts of 222, and I was home in under two hours.


The Stadium & Fans:

Home plate to center field, FirstEnergy Stadium

If you're going to call your park "Baseballtown" (as Reading started doing a decade ago), you better bring the goods.

It's a bold move, Cotton. Let's see if it pays off for them.

And bring the goods they have. Regularly winning "best ballpark in the minors" honors, FirstEnergy (nee' Reading Municipal Memorial) Stadium is one of the oldest ballparks left in professional ball, opening its doors in 1950. The Reading franchise has been aligned with Philadelphia since 1967, marking the longest such association in the minors. Not content to just rest on those laurels, the organization has renovated the park multiple times, the last being a $10 million revamp two years ago.

And the stadium is just fantastic. They kept the soul of the original grandstand and have just improved every aspect about it. A veterans memorial sits out in front of the entrance plaza, covered in commemorative bricks and plaques. The main ticket office sits at the front of the park, along with the VIP entrance. The municipal sidewalk surrounds the park, and the only other entrances are along the left field bleachers (where you can upgrade your ticket to include the all-you-can-eat buffet just beyond that entrance), and the 67 Club picnic area by third base. Before the game, the live mascot ostriches Ruth and Judy sit in a cage by the main entrance. You read that correctly.

Doors are two hours before every game, which is rare in the minors, but makes all the sense in the world at FirstEnergy Stadium, where there is just a ton of things to do before the game. The area outside from first to right field is a large plaza that they added on to the original stadium. It is the only thing opened two hours before the game, as the seating grandstand behind home remains closed until an hour before gametime.

But the plaza will keep you occupied. A stage in the center hosts live bands, plus the mascot band, which is exactly what it sounds like: a band of guys in mascot uniforms playing songs for the crowd. The team store is just inside the entrance, featuring a kid-sized door for younger patrons. And every last inch of the space in the plaza is crammed with everything that can fit. The Yuengling Hometown Tap Bar dominates on side of the plaza and two huge concession stands (one for adults, one for kids) are on the opposite wall. The area next to each is filled with "Phunland" activities for the kids. You can buy tickets to play the ring toss, speed pitch, mini-golf challenge, or air slide, or just line up to get a free mascot autograph or buy some cotton candy or Italian ice. Oh, and the entire area is covered in netting to protect from foul balls since the whole affair is right behind the right-field bleachers.

In the back in the right field corner is the Reading Eagle Company Pool Pavilion, which is also just what it sounds like: a picnic pavilion with a giant pool from whence you can watch the game. You can also go out to the left field bleacher seats until the main grandstand opens.

When it does, you can funnel into the bowels of the original stadium, with its claustrophobic walkway behind home plate that is livened up with colorful wall murals showing the history of the park and the franchise, as well as a number of classic baseball concession stands. The 67 Club area is right behind third base and has its own entrance for ticket-holders only. You can walk behind it to get to the left field area, which leads you on with a display of Fightin Phils that made it to the Phillies World Series team. Left field is dominated by Bunbino's Tailgate, the all-you-can eat buffet that is flanked by a large picnic area. Out in left itself is another patio with concession stands and bars. A small walkway lets regular folks stand and watch the game from center, but most of the areas out there are special seating areas, including the Launch.com Pub in center, the Coors Light Deck from center to left, and the Weis Foul Porch in the left field corner.

The main grandstand behind home plate is a rainbow of color-coded seats. The press box is the only thing in the top level of the old grandstand, defying the convention of luxury boxes. If you walk to the top of the grandstand, a couple of concession stands flanking the press box can serve you some snacks without missing any of the game, and a ledged row lets you eat while watching the game from the lofty perch.

Disco Brisco

And that was just the physical park. Places can boast about a "cast of thousands," but you easily lose track of all the characters at FirstEnergy Stadium: the five-piece mascot band (Bucky, Changeup, Screwball, Blooper, and Quack), the Crazy Hot Dog Vendor, the 11-member Fightin Phils Dance Squad, Disco Brisco (a short guy who performs this inexplicable arm-pumping dance that is a huge hit with the kids), The Candy Man (the pro-wrestler washout-looking guy dressed up as a hard candy who is the bad guy in the vegetable race), the four Vegetable Race characters, the Tooth Fairy (who brushes off the bases with an assistant from the crowd every game), the Bunbino (the hot dog mascot of Baseballtown), the guy in the T-shirt artillery train (you also read that right), The Traveler (a guy in an inflatable suit sponsored by a local travel agency who fights with fake umpires), and the Singing Ticket Taker, not to mention the Fan Crew.

Crazy Hot Dog Vendor

Needless to say, the crowd was huge and into everything. The paid attendance was over 9,000, and there were actually over 8,000 in the seats. Everyone stayed involved for the entire game, and it was a crowd that most major league stadiums who love to have. Both the seats and the plaza were packed for the entire game, and most people stayed around for the post-game fireworks and concert as well.

Up until now, I had always said that Keyspan Park (or whatever it is called these days) was the best minor league park in the country. It doesn't come close to Baseballtown. Heck, it might even make the top ten ballparks I have seen in the world.


At the Game with Oogie:

Baseball Town Scoring

After hearing how popular a venue this was, I bought a ticket earlier in the day before I went down for as close as possible behind the home dugout. This turned out to be the last row of the "blue" seats, which came with their own cup holders in between seats. It was all rather nice, except that there was a tiny blind spot in the furthest corner of right because of the right field bleachers extending out. But from where I was sitting, I could look into the right field plaza during the game as my interest dictated.

There were a lot of food choices at the park, but how could you pass up the churger? This was a hamburger and a chicken patty separated by slices of cheese. So, technically, I still ate healthy. Except for the fries and pretzel twist I added in. But I'm in central PA. You have to get a pretzel.

We dare to mock god: The Churger

The season-ticket section I was sitting in was the only semi-sparse seating area of the park, as a number of people near me weren't at the game. There was an older couple sitting next to me, and a family in front and behind. One of the sons of the family behind me was named "Brian." I know this because his exasperated father kept using the name in sentences such as "Brian, sit down," "Brian, watch the game," "Brian, stop running around," and the ever-popular "Brian, stop bothering your brother."

A moth actually flew into my mouth in the eighth inning. I don't know why I mention it more than recording that it actually happened.


The Game:

First pitch, Rock Cats vs. Fightin Phils

I don't even know how to categorize this game beyond long balls, speed on the bases, and missed opportunities.

The Fightin Phils starter began the game by inducing two quick ground-outs before walking the next batter. The Rock Cats cleanup hitter lived up to his name and launched one approximately nine hundred feet to center, bringing in two runs before a third ground-out completed the interrupted sequence, with the Rock Cats up, 2-0. The Phils began their half with some hope, as a leadoff error by the third baseman got their first man on, and he promptly stole second. A one-out walk made it first and second with one out, but the Phils didn't have quite enough fight, and two flyouts ended the inning.

The Rock Cats kept it going in the second with a one-out single and a two-out triple that brought in another run, making it 3-0 in their favor. The Phils decided to do something about that in the bottom of the second. They got back-to-back, one-out singles to left, and then their number nine man crushed one to right to tie it up with one swing. The leadoff man got a single and stole second again, but was stranded there with two quick outs, leaving it knotted at three at the end of two.

The Rock Cats finally went in order in the third, and the Phils squandered a two-out walk and single in their half. In the fourth, the Rock Cats got a one-out single, and the next batter hit one to the deepest depths of center. And then he was off to the races. By the time the lead runner was at third, the batter had nearly caught him, and he motored around easily for the first inside-the-park homerun I've ever witnessed in person. A two-out single and stolen base was left on second with a pop to the second baseman, but not before the Rock Cats were up again, 5-3. In their half, the Phils only managed a two-out single that was nearly immediately gunned down trying to steal second.

Things went cool for another odd inning as the Rock Cats only had a walk to show for the top of the fifth, and the Phils went in order. The Rock Cats only had one hit in the sixth, but it was another monster homer to left, putting them up, 6-3. The Phils made another go of it in the bottom of the inning with a one-out walk that got brought in with a double to deep center. A two-out triple (that was nearly another inside-the-park home run) finally chased the Rock Cats starter, and his relief got a pop to short to stop the damage with the Rock Cats still up, 6-5.

Things came to a head in the seventh, as a single, walk and another single started the inning for the Rock Cats. Pitchers were switched to no avail, as the next batter brought two runs in with a double. The next three went in order, but not before the Rock Cats extended their lead to 8-5. The Phils responded with a leadoff double in their half of the seventh. He eventually moved over to third on a fielder's choice, but was stranded there.

Both sides went in order in the eighth. The Rock Cats had a leadoff single over to second on a stolen base, but the next three went down in sequence. The Fightin Phils decided to make it interesting in the bottom of the ninth. The leadoff batter got hit by the throw to first, making him out by interference. With two outs, they got a back-to-back single and walk to bring the tying run to the plate, but he didn't get all of his skyward blast, which was caught by the shortstop to end the game with an 8-5 Rock Cats victory.


The Scorecard:

Rock Cats vs. Fightin Phils, 08/10/13. Rock Cats win, 8-5.

The scorecard was a free pamphlet-sized giveaway on a big table by the main entrance. It was on decent paper, and although it looked a little cramped, it actually turned out to be actually quite workable, especially given the ads at the bottom. In one of the many small touches the park got right, they even have the "Bunbino" give the official scoring of every play on the auxiliary scoreboard in left.

There wasn't a ton of oddness in this game. There was the first inside-the-park home run I ever saw in the fourth, which got its own note. There were two fly outs to the catcher in foul ground in the top of the ninth (which were two of three total in the game) that is worth pointing out. Besides those, the only other oddness was the interference call in the bottom of the ninth. The batter was trying to bunt to get on first and was about to get put out 1-3 for his trouble, but the throw hit him before the first baseman got it, making it an "INT 3" putout (as the first baseman was the closest fielder to the play). It also got a somewhat lengthy explanatory note on the scorecard.


The Accommodations:
Plain ole' Hoboken

Click here to see all the photos from this trip.

2013 Stand-Alone Trip

Wilmington

On All the Baseball in Delaware

Daniel S. Frawley Stadium, 2012

Sunday, April 28, 2013

Winston-Salem Dash (Chicago White Sox) vs.
Wilmington Blue Rocks (Kansas City Royals)
Judy Johnson Field at Daniel S. Frawley Stadium
Carolina League (A)
Wilmington, DE
1:35 PM


Outside the Game:
Realizing that my main baseball trip to Taiwan was barely a month away, I decided to work in some domestic product. Thankfully, the great state of Delaware only has one professional team for me to conquer: The Wilmington Blue Rocks, an Advanced A-ball affiliate of the Kansas City Royals (for no good reason I can see).

Wilmington was strangely convenient for me, further south than Philadelphia, but located right off 95. I had originally planned to go to the Saturday evening game that weekend, but I was reminded that it was my father's birthday, so I was compelled to go to the Sunday afternoon game instead. I awoke bright and early on Sunday and headed out just as "Talking Baseball" was hitting the airwaves at 9 AM, and I managed to get where I was going just as it was ending two hours later.

I pulled into the ample parking lot, bought my ticket, and started to do my photography bit. With plenty of time before the game, I walked around. Like many post-industrial cities, Wilmington had revitalized its formerly factory-laden riverfront with arts and commercial entities, all centered around the park. It wasn't Broadway, but it was a pleasant enough place to spend some time, and probably offered families and patrons a lot of choices after the game. And it would be easy enough to park once (for free) and make a day of a game and one of the several museums, theaters, or eateries in the area.

After the game, I was able to quickly get back out on the main road (no thanks to some dodgy directions from my TomTom) and head back up 95. I wasn't so lucky on this leg of the trip, as construction congestion tacked on a good extra half hour or so to my ride back. I still got back to Hoboken at a reasonable enough time to catch the regular Sunday night nerd programming.


The Stadium & Fans:

Home plate to center field, Daniel S. Frawley Stadium

It would seem that the people who brought "Judy Johnson Field at Daniel S. Frawley Stadium" into being really liked naming things, as it is dual-named for the local Negro League great and the former mayor who got baseball back in Wilmington. Not content with those lauds, there is an additional (odd) statue of Johnson outside the front entrance, as well as numerous plaques and a small stand of monuments by the ticket office.

The park itself is nestled in the Wilmington Riverside redevelopment. Attached to the stadium itself is the Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame, but it wasn't open for my Sunday visit. Two stairways on either side of the entrance provide entry to the park, which has an encircling upper walkway that descends to the seating area below.

As with many low-minors parks, there is one split row of seating, extending around from left field to right field, with some modest luxury boxes in a second level behind home plate and extending to the dugouts. A special general admission bleacher section elevates above the regular seating ring in left field, offering the cheapest seats in the house.

The left field walkway ends in the kids area and the Top of the Rocks Picnic Pavilion (where a local jam band was holding court before the game), and the right field walkway terminates in the Blue Moose Grille and Bullpen Picnic Pavilion. Standard concessions are available around the main walkway, and the team store is nestled in the walkway above home plate blocked from field view by the press box.

The team proudly displays their pennants and championships along the luxury boxes, and in a nice tip of the hat, banners all along the walkway in the infield honor the players by year that have made it to the majors from the Blue Rocks. (Being a Kansas City farm club, advancement is no doubt swifter than with other franchises.)

The stadium is serviced by two scoreboards, the main one in left and an auxiliary one in right, that also features the team's retired numbers and a memorial to their long-time broadcaster. The second scoreboard could have been useful, but it was mostly used to play in-game video and ads the entire game.

As with any minor league club, there was plenty of between-inning entertainment to be had. The MC was dressed in some odd manner of super hero, and the mascot was a moose, Rocky Bluewinkle. I stand here before you not yet knowing if that name is awful or brilliant. The between-inning festivities were all the greatest hits of such entertainments: mascot races, dizzy bat races, musical chairs, ball tosses, and the like. A new one to me was a late-inning contest where a compact Kia was driven around the infield with its roof open, and fans had to throw their pre-purchased ball in the roof to win a prize. How there were no fatalities still eludes me, as an underpaid promotions intern speedily whipped around the infield while being purposefully pelted with projectiles.

Rocky Bluewinkle, get it?

The crowd was mostly families, as to be expected. They were quite catered to, as they had a pre-game "catch in the outfield" period, as well as running the bases after the game. The listless play didn't leave a lot to cheer about, but the fans were mostly into the game as to be expected. There were no more than a smattering of opposing fans in attendance, and the stadium itself was probably half filled when everything was said and done.


At the Game with Oogie:

Sitting with the scouts

I got a single seat in the second row behind the home dugout, for the outrageous game-day price of $11. (The extra dollar was added for not buying ahead of time.) One of the stadium workers reassuringly called these the "concussion seats" and cautioned everyone to pay attention, especially when right-handed batters were up. Most ignored the warning until a late swing shot a ball into the crowd a short distance away, and the staff guy tossed us all an "I-told-you-so" look.

As expected, I was utterly surrounded by families all around. Most with younger children sat down for the start of the game and then disappeared to get food or to take the easily distracted kids for food or to see mascots. One hilarious older couple behind me were judging how buzzed their various drinks were getting them throughout the course of the day.

When the home team scores, the unfortunately named "Stalker" the Celery comes out, and the crowd went absolutely nuts. God as my witness, I have no idea what the appeal was.


The Game:

First pitch, Dash vs. Blue Rocks

This was just about one of the oddest games I've ever seen, from the four caught stealings, to the sloppiest no-hitter attempt this side of Doc Ellis. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

The game looked to be shaping up for a long one, as the first Dash batter of the game worked a 10+ pitch at-bat, and then won the battle with a single to right. The Blue Rocks pitcher seemed shaken by the contest, and promptly walked the next batter. With two on and no out, the third batter laced a gap double to right, scoring the runner on second and pushing the other over to third. First and third with no one out seemed to auger a long first inning, but the Blue Rocks pitcher settled down and got the next three in order to leave it 1-0, Dash.

The picture didn't seem too different for the home team, as the first batter worked a walk. However, the next three struck out, grounded into a fielder's choice and struck out, respectively. Almost improbably, the Blue Rocks set down the Dash in order in the second, while the Blue Rocks got a two-out baserunner on a hit batsman, who was almost immediately erased on the first caught stealing of the day.

In the third, the Dash managed one two-out single literally off the pitcher. He then stole second, but was left stranded when the next batter grounded less violently back to the pitcher to end the half. The Blue Rocks looked to have something when the leadoff batter reached on an error by the third baseman. The next batter hit into a fielder's choice, and was himself erased on the second caught stealing of the day. The next batter reached when a third strike got by the catcher, but he was stranded by a groundout to end the inning.

The Dash fourth was a one-out walk erased on the third caught stealing of the day, before a strikeout ended it. The Blue Rocks went in order in the fourth, and it put a odd fact into stark relief: The Dash pitcher was working on a no-hitter, even though the bases had been littered with base runners up to this point. In fact, the no-hit Blue Rocks actually had one more base runner than the Dash up to this point in the game.

The Dash squandered plenty of opportunities in fifth. Back-to-back one-out singles were followed by a fly out, but another short single loaded the bases and finally chased the Blue Rocks starter. The relief guy got another pop-up to end the half with nothing across. The Blue Rocks went meekly in order again in their part of the fifth.

The sixth started with a point of contention. In the process of beginning a swing, the leadoff hitter for the Dash seemingly fouled a ball off. The Dash manager successfully argued that the ball hit the batter, but the Blue Rocks manager came out and likely counter-argued that since the batter was offering at the pitch, he can't get the base as a hit batsman. As far as I could tell, the Blue Rocks manager was in the right, but he got thrown out for his trouble. An errant pick-off throw allowed the runner to get second, but greedily, he tried for third and become the fourth caught stealing victim of the night before two quick outs ended the inning.

The sixth started more fortuitously for the Blue Rocks, who finally got their first hit, a single to right. He was promptly sacrificed over to second... and stranded by two ground outs. The Dash went in order in the seventh, but the Blue Rocks had a one-out single followed by a walk... and then a double-play to end the inning. A one-out home run to deep center in the top of the eighth seemed to remind everyone that scoring was a possibility, leaving the tally at 2-0 at the end of the half inning. The Blue Rocks managed a two-out walk, steal, and double to finally plate a run, closing the gap to 2-1 at the end of eight.

It all fell apart in the ninth. A new Blue Rocks pitcher did not hold things down, giving up three straight singles to bring in one run. A fielder's choice erased the middle runner but left it first and third with one out, and a sacrifice fly brought in another run before the inning was ended on an interference call (of all things). The Blue Rocks made one last go of it in the bottom of the ninth. A leadoff single was followed by a walk. After a pop-out to third, another single loaded up the bases with one out, but a strikeout and a weak grounder to first ended the nascent rally, and the game, at 4-1 Dash.


The Scorecard:

Dash vs. Blue Rocks, 04/28/13. Dash win, 4-1.

Common to the low minors, the scorecard was part of the free program handed out as you entered the park. Also typically, it was of low-quality magazine paper, and the scoring boxes themselves were wedged into the top quarter of the centerfold spread dominated by ads for a liquor store and a gold-buying establishment.

The glossy paper did not take to pencil writing very well, especially colored pencils, and any erasing took the entire scoring frame with it. There were just enough slots for all the players, and one extra inning allowed for. They did seem to take their stats seriously, as the scoring summary for each inning included runs, hits, and errors (though it was quite cramped in the tiny box), and there were printed lines for umpires, temperature, weather, game time, winning and losing pitchers, who picked up the save, and attendance. They announced all of these over the PA system during the game, except for the attendance, so you conceivably could keep up with it all.

As odd a game as it was to watch, it was also an odd game to score. I don't think I've written CS ("Caught Stealing") so much in one scorecard, ever. There were four instances of the event (and even two for each team), and three of them involved a pick-off by the pitcher catching the runner too far off first, or, even more bizarrely, a runner caught between first and second on a throw from the catcher trying to make it back to first (CS 2-4-3).

The no-hitter looked even more ridiculous on the score card, as the pitcher clearly didn't have a clean frame until the fourth. The idea that a no-hitter extended for two more innings seems implausible.

In this game of insanity, there were also more oddities snuck in, from the strikeout leading to a baserunner in the third, and, after an entire baseball-scoring career without seeing an interference call, I got my second in a row in the top of the ninth, as the last batter of the inning was punched out for impeding the catcher's throw to second to try and nail a stolen base attempt (BI-2).


The Accommodations:
Home on the Boken.

Click here to see all the photos from this trip.

2013 Stand-Alone Trip

Norwich

On the Fickleness of Rain

Dodd Stadium, 2012

Saturday, August 18, 2012
Aberdeen Ironbirds (Baltimore Orioles) vs.
Connecticut Tigers (Detroit Tigers)
Dodd Stadium
New York-Penn League (Short Season A)
Norwich, CT
7:05 PM


Outside the Game:
This day did not start under auspicious circumstances. Before I left home, the forecast for Saturday was a bunch of rain in the morning, and then it was going to clear up for the rest of the day. In an inverse of the previous week, the weather report kept getting worse as time progressed. By Friday night, it was rain until mid-day the next day, and by the time I woke up Saturday, it was rain until mid-day, then no rain, and then more rain later in the evening. It did not look good to get this game in, and it was the last time the Tigers were going to be home before Labor Day, when I was going to be out of town to see the new Miami park. The Sunday game was not scheduled to start until 4 PM, making it very problematic for getting in a game (especially with questionable weather) and then getting home at a decent hour for work the next day.

 I had a fine breakfast at my hotel, packed up, and decided to head to Mystic Seaport anyway to see what I could see.

Almost immediately upon getting my tires on the road of 95, I hit a ridiculous traffic jam that completely validated my decision to avoid 95 like the plague on the way out. What should have been an hour ride was taking over an hour and fifteen before I bailed and used the TomTom's "roadblock" feature to take me off 95 for the rest of the way to Mystic.

It seems that everyone where I live had visited Mystic Seaport as a kid, and when polling around for something to occupy my Saturday morning in eastern Connecticut, it came up multiple times that I simply had to visit it since I missed the experience earlier in life. Not having anything better to do, I acquiesced.

Seaside-y

It was raining hard for all the trip down, and it didn't look to be stopping much when I arrived. I don't mind rain all that much at places such as these. It thins out the crowds. Seeing the way things seemed to be playing out, I broke out my rain gear from my game bag and rain slickered up.

I went to the entrance, payed my way in, and headed off into the rain. The place was nearly deserted, so I had my run of the area to myself, which is always appreciated. I poked my way through most of the exhibits at my own pace, and only the indoors ones had any other people around. In addition to walking my way around on the various ships they had at dock, my favorite part of the museum was the row of craftsmen shops they had. Each place (blacksmith, printer, instrument maker, cooper, etc) was staffed by a person who actually worked at the profession and was there to give talks and demonstrations to the visitors. Since it was so sparsely populated with guests, I ended up having long and excellent conversations with all the craftsmen about their work. It was really engaging. Especially of note was the printer, who had a hand-printed "rules of baseball" framed on the wall that was available for purchase at some of the stores on the premises.

And that was it operating properly

I spent a quite enjoyable afternoon walking around the place. There was an antique marine motor exhibition going on at one end of the seaport, and talking to some of the people there, they said that the radar showed that the rain was eventually going to let up soon, and, more importantly to me, that the storm had been just hugging the coast and had already passed up north. This gave me some hope that I may still yet get the game at Norwich in, and, as was foretold, the rain shortly started to let up and stop.

Almost immediately, more people appeared out of nowhere, and the seaport started to fill up. I stopped at a restaurant in the park to get some late lunch (again), and then I hit the museum store to get my poster and a bunch of other things I don't really need, before heading back to the car to go up to see if a baseball game was being played that evening.

Things looked up nearly immediately as I left Mystic, the sun was out and pounding down, giving credence to the reports from the folks in Mystic on the weather. The drive up went quickly, but it turns out that Dodd Stadium was located in the back of a winding commercial park. At the very start, I was heartened by the "Game Today" sign I saw at the entrance to the facility, but I got less and less enthusiastic every couple of minutes of curving driving that led to yet another sign to the park. After about ten minutes of this process, I eventually made it to the stadium, cracked a bad joke about getting there to the traffic attendant, and then went about my business taking pictures until the park opened.

After the game, the temperature had dropped, and all the cars in the lot were covered in dew. It took me a while to find my car, as it was hidden behind a large van that parked next to me after I left. With the sparse crowd, it was pretty easy to get out of the stadium. Remembering my lessons on 95, I managed to trick my TomTom into going the northern route home by picking waypoints along the path to feed to it until the way I wanted to go back to the Tappen Zee was the most direct route. I encountered no traffic on the way back, although night driving on the Saw Mill was a little nerve-wracking. I managed to pull into Hoboken a little before 1 AM, the same time I arrived from New Britain two weeks earlier.


The Stadium & Fans:

Home plate to center field, Dodd Stadium

Dodd Stadium, besides its insane location at the very back of a commercial park that does not seem to have an end, was a nice enough A stadium. Outside, the facade extends between the outfield. A small walkway goes most of the way around the place, dead-ending in the back by left-center. All of the wood outfield wall is exposed, and over on the left field side is a narrow chain-linked path out to a gate in left.

There is an entrance in left field to the Manshantucket Piquot BBQ area, but the main entrance is behind home plate. The old Navigators mascot, Tater the Gator, stands outside in statue form, between the main ticket office and the team store. Directly inside the gate is the main fan services area, where the autograph signings and bat giveaway for the evening were set up.

The stadium has the standard alignment of a two-tiered row of seats from outfield to outfield around home plate. A second level of luxury boxes runs from third to first. Out in left field is an extensive picnic and barbeque area, along with a small kids' play area and a picnic berm. The bushes out on the top of the berm are spray-painted "Tigers 1" in a show of home-team support. In right field is a specialty burger concession, a "Hole in the Wall" bar, and a gazebo with deck chairs and a small garden on top of another picnic berm. Regular concession line the walkway around the seating areas, and the team store is located by home plate.

I've heard that the franchise gets good attendance overall, but on this rain-soaked day with dire predictions of nothing but more rain for the rest of the night, the crowd was sparse, and mostly located in the luxury boxes and on the Tigers' first-base side of the field. Those in attendance were pretty into the game.

There was the usual between-inning tomfoolery you expect in low A ball. There were skills contests, and races, and give-aways to the crowd. The Tigers had an odd mascot situation. There was the obvious CT the Tiger, but the old Norwich Navigator mascot (before the team changed affiliations), Tater the Gater, was so popular that he was apparently also brought back this season. In addition to these two, a giant chicken rounds out the extensive mascot parade.

Edgy

The mascots are joined by a rather sizable events staff that also dress up and throw out things throughout the course of the game, in addition to leading certain audience participation events throughout the evening.

Perhaps trying to evoke some of the mystique of Wrigley Field, the radio announcer for the team leans out of his broadcast booth and leads the fans in "Take Me Out To the Ballgame." Another Caray he is not.


At the Game with Oogie:

Jumbo Dog

As surprised as I was that the game was actually going to be played, I was still there prior to the gates opening up. There was some manner of pre-game prayer meeting going on near first base, but the regular folk would not be let in until an hour before game time.

In doing my regular walk-around the stadium, I came across one of the Tiger players walking back opposite to me from the back of the stadium. I didn't think much of it at the time, but it turns out that it dead ends behind the stadium, and the only way back is the way I came, so I started to wonder exactly what he was doing back there. A mystery it shall remain.

It was a free mini-bat giveaway at the stadium, so I suppose I was a little cautious of things, but nothing came of it. I had again sprung for seats behind the home dugout, but given the light turnout, I don't know if the ticket seller misunderstood me about wanting to sit right behind the dugout, or if there were a lot of season ticket holders who didn't come out because of the weather. I ended up with great seats in the second tier behind the dugout, but there were tons of free seats in the areas in front of me.

There was a small family directly behind me for the game who seemed to be season ticket holders, but there was no one else in my immediate area. The first-base side was the most filled area of the park, with the exception of the "luxury" boxes. It was mostly families, and given the weather, the light turn-out was pretty much expected.


The Game:

First pitch, Ironbirds vs. Tigers

Towards the end of the single-A short season, most of the players who have any real promise find themselves elsewhere, so it can be a crap shoot on what you get. Tonight's game was low offense.

The visiting Ironbirds went down in order in the first with two strikeouts, and the Tigers did only slightly better, scratching out a single. There was some activity in the second, however. The Ironbirds led off with a questionable single to second. A ground-out moved the runner over to second, and a straight steal got him to third. A strike out got us to two outs, but another questionable single back to the pitcher brought the run home before a ground-out ended the inning. Not to be outdone, the Tigers had a one-out walk followed by a single and another walk to load the bases. A wild pitch brought in a run, and a throwing error by the catcher let another run score and moved the man on first to third with only one out. The pitcher calmed down and got a strikeout and a liner to second to end the inning 2-1 Tigers.

The Ironbirds went meekly in order in the third, and the Tigers got only a single, erased on a double-play. The Birds went in order again in the fourth, but the Tigers got going. A lead-off walk scored on a triple, then two straight strikeouts looked like the Ironbirds may get out of it. The next batter, however, walked, and a new pitcher was brought in. The runner at first attempted a steal of second and drew the throw and a rundown, allowing the runner at third to score before he got tagged out, leaving it 3-1 Tigers at the end of four, with only one RBI to show for any of those runs.

The anemic Ironbirds went yet again in order in the fifth, and the Tigers only had one epicly plunked batsman (the ball bounced off the helmet and almost made it to first base) to show for their half. The sixth played out the same way, with the Tigers going in order as well. The Birds continued to get mowed down in order in the seventh, and the Tigers only managed one two-out hit.

The Ironbirds finally got on base in the eighth with a two-out walk and a single, and a passed ball got them to second and third, only to be stranded by a weak ground-out to the pitcher. The Tigers went in order in their half on three quick ground outs. For their last licks in the ninth, the Ironbirds got their lead-off man on with an E3 on the first baseman, but he was quickly erased on a double-play ball. The next batter struck out, and the Tigers secured their 4-1 victory.


The Scorecard:

Ironbirds vs. Tigers, 08/18/12. Tigers win, 4-1.

The scorecard was part of a free newsprint program. The cheap paper and inlaid logo made scoring with pencils difficult, but with experience, I was able to pull it off. The scoring boxes were also unnecessarily small, with wide tracts of land wasted on the pitching lines and the scorekeeping instructions.

There were a number of calls I disagreed with the official scorer on. In the top of the second, there were two infield "hits" that just had to be errors. It had real implications as well, as if those hits were rightly called errors, the Tigers had a no-hitter going through 7.6 innings (though with a myriad of pitchers), until a legit single in the bottom of the eighth.

A 3-6-3 double-play went down in the top of the third (always a welcome occurrence), and there was a weird one in the top of the eighth when the first baseman broke the webbing in his mitt on a throw over from the pitcher. This entailed a rather lengthy period where the first baseman tried to fix his glove and then had to rummage in the dugout for a replacement that was not readily available. As mentioned, the four runs for the Tigers had only produced one RBI, and only two of the runs were earned. Defense can be a killer, folks.


The Accommodations:
Late, but Hoboken

Click here to see all the photos from this trip.

2012 New England Weekend

Pawtucket

On the Beauty of the Unexpected

McCoy Stadium, 2012

Friday, August 17, 2012
Scranton-Wilkes Barre Yankees (New York Yankees) vs.
Pawtucket Red Sox (Boston Red Sox)
International League (AAA)
McCoy Stadium
Pawtucket, RI
7:05 PM


Outside the Game:
I decided to take my "Summer Friday" at work to try and knock off the last two teams left on my Connecticut/Rhode Island list: Pawtucket and Norwich. Since they were both over three hours from home (on a theoretical traffic-less trip on 95), I decided to do a sleep-over for them, bunking up after the first night, and then seeing how long the second game went before deciding on whether to drive home after the second night or get another hotel.

After getting another pep talk about how bad 95 was on the weekends from a colleague at work, I decided to take the "long" way around. Although the "northern route" up and over was another half-hour longer, there was at least a half-hour of traffic waiting for me on 95 (if TomTom and Google Maps were to be believed [and they were]), and I'd rather be driving for that time than sitting and stewing.

I was trying to get started at 10 AM , eventually was physically behind the wheel and driving a little before 11, and decided to chance a city crossing. I went through the tunnel, and then straight up the West Side, taking 9 up and out of the city before hooking up with 684. And from there, it was mostly straight east for the rest of the trip. Beside some minor congestion at some work sites or near cities, it was smooth sailing all the way there.

In fact, it was such smooth sailing that I forgot to stop for lunch. So when I eventually pulled into Pawtucket a little before 3 PM, I was seriously hungry. Some construction was going on in town that took me the long way to the hotel, but I eventually got there, checked in, and dumped my stuff in my room. I made a quick walk to a local fast food place to get some late lunch, and then went back to the room for a nap before leaving for the game.

It was only a mile to the stadium from the hotel, but I drove it anyway, since I didn't want to be walking around in the dark at night in an unfamiliar town, and I didn't know how tired I'd be. It only took a minute to get there, and I was one of the first in the free parking lots outside the stadium.

After the game, it was mostly the same in reverse, although the TomTom took me on 95 for no reason. I got back to the hotel before 11 PM, and spent the rest of the evening getting ready for tomorrow and working on the scorecard.


The Stadium & Fans:

Home plate to center field, McCoy Stadium

The home of the AAA affiliate of the Red Sox, McCoy Stadium is an old place that has been renovated a bunch of times, and it is absolutely great. It is probably on the small side for AAA parks, but it is an old bandstand park, with one large seating area under a classic overhang that runs from base-to-base behind home plate. An old-style broadcast booth lies parked up behind home plate, with honest-to-goodness restricted view seats located behind them.

All around the outside walls of the park was a "Walk of Fame," with big posters of all the major-leaguers of note who came through the "PawSox," with special note of the world series winners. There were also no less than three barbecue areas arrayed about the outfield seating for people with special tickets. You could walk all around the stadium, and there was a high-school track located next door. A family across the parking lot from the stadium decorated the back of their house to be a scoreboard, and they have lawn chairs and the like for, I guess, listening to the game, since they are staring right at a wall of the stadium.

The main entrance to the stadium was out in right field, with access to the team store on the ground floor before spiraling up in a staircase. It was located next to the main ticket window, the team store, and a number of baseball-themed statues out in a little park. A martial arts school was doing demonstrations next to the park for most of the time before the game, and would latter do a pre-game demonstration on the field.

The main seating area of the stadium is divided into a lower area by the field, a middle area, and an upper area. As mentioned, the upper area has some restricted-view seats, especially by the old press box. Due to a particular layout quirk of the stadium, the dugouts are actually inset into the stadium, under the lowest row of seats (probably due to one of the previous expansions). So instead of hanging on the top of the dugout to ask for autographs, kids "fish" for autographs, by tying books and whatnot on strings with pens and lowering them down in front of the dugout. Players will then sign throughout the game, and the seekers can drag up their catch at the end of the game to see what they got. The "luxury" boxes in the stadium are also all field-level, as opposed to above the action at most places.

The longest memorial in minor-league history

There is a main walkway that extends around the stadium between the middle and lower seats. All the concessions are arrayed throughout this area, as well as tributes to great moments in Pawsox history. A particularly large display is dedicated to the 33-inning game at McCoy field, the longest game in organized baseball history. There is also a small icy stand by the main entrance staircase dubbed "Paw's Pavilion." A small kids area sits in right. There is a walkway above the upper level that leads down to the upper-area seats. These are reachable by spiral ramps located sporadically around the circumference of the seating area. They are decorated with painted baseball cards of notable Pawsox alumni.

Tee-hee

The outfield seating is its own entity. In left, by the Pawsox bullpen, is the "berm" seating, with an open-seating picnic berm. In center to right are two BBQ areas around the bleachers proper. The "Red" BBQ tent sits out in right, with a large tented area for barbecue, and a small bleacher area out front for people who actually want to watch the game. (Someone managed to fall off of it at the game I was at, so there was a lot of paramedic activity in the area.)

There was less of the regular minor-league tomfoolery between innings. The main feature seemed to be "Pawsox Idol" where singers came on between innings to sing for the approval of the crowd. There were a few contests and a t-shirt toss, and the standard seventh-inning fair. The mascots (Paw and Sox) made their way through the crowd for most of the game, and were only on one or two on-field activities.

There was a large crowd for the game that night (especially, perhaps, because it had connotations for the league playoffs against the hated Yankees), and everyone was into the game. As with the case in New England, there were a lot of scorers in attendance that evening as well. What was surprising was the sizable contingent of Yankee fans in the house. Although they are everywhere, seeing them all in the park this deep in New England was a thing to behold. In the later innings, they even took up the "Let's Go Yankees" chant, and in some cases, drowned out the Pawsox fans. But the local crowd stayed in it, even to the bitterest of bitter end, though a lot of people made for the exits before the top of the ninth.


At the Game with Oogie:

Old-school scoring

On a fluke, I decided to take a look at what seats were available online when I was making my hotel reservation the night before leaving. There were precious few seats still available for the game, so it is lucky I did. I was able to get a seat in the middle section behind the home dugout since I was only a single, but all the non-handicap seats in the lowest section were already booked.

I was in an area right behind third base and to the left of the protective netting, so all in all, it wasn't a bad seat by any stretch of the imagination. It was in was sandwiched around several rows of some kind of social club for older gentlemen who were making a yearly trip to see the team. They were all on a chartered bus, so they were gassing up pretty heavily, but they weren't out of control by any means, just there to have a good time. Everyone was talking with each other, and, as the game progressed, yelling at the team and the umpire crew.

There was a group of two guys to my left who appreciated the two-pencil scoring style I was using. We had a brief talk about that, and then I became the go-to guy when anyone had any questions about what had happened earlier in the game.

The group perked up considerably when an in-game announcement about the major league match-up between the Sox and Yankees was given, with the Red Sox jumping into the lead. But the lack of updates and the particular kick when they were down would happen when the announcers confirmed the major-league Yankees had come back to win that game as well.


The Game:

First pitch, Yankees vs. Red Sox

When you out-hit someone 14 to 8, you'd probably expect to win. For this game, you'd be wrong, as Pawtucket got nearly double the hits of the Yankees, but had nearly triple the men left on base. But let's not get ahead of ourselves.

Pawtucket was the visiting team for this night's contest even while in their home park because of renovations at the Scranton Yankees facility that had them on the road for the entire season. The Pawsox were up first, and got it first and third with two outs with a couple of long singles, but killed their own rally when they tried to send the guy from third home on a wild pitch. He got gunned down by a mile to kill the half inning. This would set the stage for the entire game: questionable choices and men left on base. In the bottom of the first, the Yankees blasted a one-out homer to right that may have landed in Boston, ending the first up, 1-0.

The Pawsox got a single and walk before two straight fly outs, and what would have been the last batter in the inning struck out, but a dropped third strike led to a bases-loaded situation. But a weak ground out to the pitcher quickly snuffed the threat and left even more men on base. The Yankees had a single (erased on a double-play) to show for their half of the inning. In the top of the third, the Pawsox finally broke through. A lead-off single was followed by a double, leaving it second third with no outs. After a strikeout, a single brought in a run to tie it, but on the next play, they decided to test the left fielder's arm on a fly out, and the runner (not sliding for whatever reason) was gunned down by a mile in the second half of the inning-ending double play. The Yankees got a two-out walk and a double to quickly regain the lead, 2-1, at the end of three.

In the top of the fourth, the Pawsox again mounted a rally. Three singles in a row brought home the tying run and left the bases loaded, but a grounder to third for a put-out at home and a double play ball that followed left it tied. As if to show the Pawsox how not to leave men on base, the Yankees got their first two batters on with a walk and a hit batsman, followed with two quick outs, and then had the next batter hit a towering homer to left to clear the bases, with the inning ending with the Yankees up, 5-2.

Things settled down then for a while, with the Pawsox just getting a walk and the Yankees going in order in the fifth, and the Pawsox going in order and the Yankees just getting a walk in the sixth. The Pawsox went in order in the seventh, but the Yankees got a lead-off homer to make it 6-2 at the end of seven. The Pawsox scattered two singles in the top of the eighth to no effect, while the Yankees had a lead-off single, and then a foul out to third, and then the entire frickin' world ended.

The Yankees center fielder hit a ball out to the corner in left. It was called a foul initially, but after some yelling from the Yankee dugout and a huddle by the umpires, it was called a two-run home run. And that was about all the Pawtucket manager could take, as he came out and quickly got himself ejected, and the pitching coach soon followed, needing to be restrained by other players and coaches while still no doubt earning some fines as he bumped up a storm on the umps. The pitcher got out of the inning with the score 8-2 Yankees. But on the way back to the dugout, he had words with the home plate umpire, got ejected, and had to be tackled several times by teammates to prevent further altercation that may have ended in bloodshed.

Perhaps energized by the actions of the umpires, the Pawsox got a lead-off walk and then a homer in the top of the ninth (that lead the right fielder to go spout over teakettle over the outfield fence trying to corral it), and with two outs, they launched another homer to left, before a weak ground out to first made the final score a more respectable 8-5.

This win helped put some distance between the Yankees and the second-place Pawsox in their division race, and, coupled with the big team Sox's loss to the Yankees, the crowd did not leave happy in any way from this game.


The Scorecard:

Yankees vs. Red Sox, 08/17/12. Yankees win, 8-5.

This was one of the most pleasant surprises of a day of pleasant surprises. Say what you want about New England, but they are a people that take their baseball scoring seriously, apparently even in the minors.

Scorecards were for sale at a kiosk outside the stadium, right next to a printed standee that had the lineups for the evening. The scorecard cost $1, and was its own booklet on heavy-weight paper, with the scorecard proper as the centerfold of the booklet. It was a very appealing size, with no ads on the scorecard pages to scrunch up the scoring space, either. The paper was a delight to write on, and was clearly made to be used with pencils. It handled erasing and re-writing quite well, and had copious space to record everything. It used a standard pre-printed diamond boxes, but unlike my last foray with such things, it was easy enough to write over the diamonds legibly, even with pencils.

The first weirdness to deal with was that the Sox were the visiting team in their own park this evening, as Scranton was playing all their games on the road. I made some notations to deal with that. There were some minorly odd or uncommon plays of note, like the 4-1 put out in the bottom of the first (when the first baseman got pulled so far off the bag to make an attempt on the ball that the pitcher covering first eventually got the throw from the second baseman who made the play), and the L-6-3 DP in the bottom of the second (which just doesn't happen all that often).

But the true oddness happened in the bottom of the eighth with the home run call. What looked (or at least hoped) to be just a foul ball was overturned after the ump huddle. I've never had one of those before, so I made a note of it on the play, along with the initial ejections of the manager and the pitching coach. I had to add a further notation at the end of the inning when the pitcher got the hook, as well. Certainly a record for ejections I've seen, and perhaps home runs as well, with a total of six for the game.

I also took issue with an official scorer's decision to call a grounder to third a hit instead of an error. I'm not sure if they hold people to lesser standards in AAA, but that was a routine grounder. I put an asterisk on the scorecard and left it at that, but sometimes I wonder about the people they have scoring games for real.


The Accommodations:

Comfort Inn

I was only able to find one hotel actually in Pawtucket itself, as opposed to the many in surrounding Providence area. I made my reservation for the Comfort Inn on the night before I left, and after my rather relaxing drive up, I pulled in during the mid-afternoon.

It was about as nice a mid-scale hotel as I expected. The room had its own desk and lounge chair, and parking was free. It was directly attached to a restaurant and right down the street from some fast food establishments that I partook of throughout the day. For some reason, I found the knowledge of a free breakfast the next day very exciting.

One other thing of note: The previous occupant of my room used the notepad, and at a quick glance, I noticed the word "password" embossed on the top sheet. Using my Encyclopedia Brown skills, I went over the pad with the side of a pencil, and I had the full login credentials for the back end of a company site -- left in a hotel room. Lucky I'm a decent person, but when people talk about "physical and human resources security" being the weak point of any system, they are not kidding.

Click here to see all the pictures from this trip.

2012 New England Weekend

New Britain

On a Lovely Day for Some Baseball

New Britain Stadium, 2012

Saturday, August 4, 2012

Altoona Curve (Pittsburgh Pirates) vs.
New Britain Rock Cats (Minnesota Twins)
New Britain Stadium
Eastern League (AA)
7:05 PM


Outside the Game:
It had been nearly a month to the day that I got home from Korea. Since starting these international trips, July has become a "recovery period," where I process everything from the trips (pictures, blogs, etc) and just get back to normal in living in America again. August, subsequently, has been when I realize how little time is really left in the baseball season and I get out on the road again.

Almost completely from the ether, I decided to finish seeing all the pro teams in New Jersey last year. As these things often do, I extended this out to try for all the teams in Connecticut and Rhode Island this August. There are only a grand total of four, although some of them are pushing 3.5-4 hours from my house, making day trips out on the weekend less likely, especially night games.

The way the gods of scheduling had it, the first one I could go see was one of the further out. New Britain, CT, is about 2.5-3 hours as the crow flies from Hoboken, but it seemed doable enough for a day trip out for a night game on a Saturday. I generally am bumming around anyway, and it is not like I have to get up early on Sunday.

After an abortive attempt to go into Connecticut in June (and the short version was after chancing a city crossing, a parade stopped me dead and sent me home), I decided to go the safer "up and over" route via the Palisades Parkway and the Tapen Zee Bridge.

I game myself plenty of time by leaving at 1:30, and off I rode. Outside of hitting a little bit of congestion at the bridge toll and due to an accident on 84 in Connecticut, the ride up was pleasantly uneventful. Even with stopping off for gas and lunch, I got to the stadium about two and half hours before the start of the game. I was able to get parked before they even set up the parking lot (which got me out of paying for parking), and I was the first one at the window to buy a ticket (though three other families showed up right after me). There was plenty of time for pre-game wandering about and the like.

After the game, most of the people in attendance were going back to their cars to get the gear for the Scout sleepover that night. There was no traffic at all getting out, and I was heading back to 84 in the other direction in no time, which was good given that I didn't get out until after 10:30.

Finally the West Coast swing by the Mets was working for me, as I was able to listen to the second half of the Mets-Padres game on the way home. I didn't make any stops, and outside of the TomTom trying to take me back into New York to take the West Side Highway down to the Lincoln Tunnel (because somehow that would be faster than the Palisades, in its mind), I had an uneventful ride home, the Mets won, and I managed to drag myself to bed a little after 1 AM.


The Stadium & Fans:

Home plate to center field, New Britain Stadium

The curiously uncorporatized New Britain Stadium lies at a particularly fortuitous crossroads: it is equidistant from Yankee Stadium and Fenway Park, making it a go-to destination for people in the area looking to see some baseball. This was my first game after Korea, and it was a continuation of that experience in a couple of ways. Firstly, the ballpark was located in a larger complex of stadiums. Secondly, it was largely wedged-in as well. Around the outside of the left field, there was a tiny path that let you get all the way around the stadium.

But that's where the similarities ended. This was very much a minor league American park. It was a nifty little design, and for the most part symmetrical. There were two rows of seats that only extended out the beginnings of the outfield. Each seating area ended with a special section (the events picnic area and kid's playground on the left field end, and the Comcast Patio on the right field side). Each area at the top of the park behind the bases had their own special area, as well (the MVP Seats on the third base side and the All-Star Terrace on the first base side). Even the "luxury" boxes behind home plate were symmetrical around the press box, with the Heineken Suites on the first base side and the Advance Copy Suite on the third base side. Two opposing stairwells led up to the seating areas on both sides of the field.

The interior of the stadium was one horseshoe around the stadium. At the main gate was the fan service desk and other booths. Concessions stretched down the first base hallway, and in addition to the concessions on the third base side was also the large team store. Right by the store and behind a bank of condiments were the placards for the "New Britain Sports Hall of Fame."

Beehive Field

The real gem was next door. "Beehive Field" was a nearly completely wooden park that was the former home of Rock Cats, and their earlier incarnation as a Red Sox minor league franchise. They left for the less green pastures next door in the mid-90s, but the town fathers had the wisdom to leave the old park standing. I can understand how minor league personnel must have hated Beehive Field, with its rudimentary facilities, but it was just everything an old park should be. Sadly, it seemed to be under repair during my visit, as large parts of the structure had warning signs on it, but it was still touted as hosting the New Britain high school team and other organized amateur ball. It makes me happier that old parks like this are still in existence.

Back at the new stadium, they got a pretty big crowd for the game that night. It was Scout Night, and registered scouts were going to do a sleepover in the outfield after the game that night. Though the scouts and families were perhaps a quarter of the crowd, the rest were families and baseball fanatics out to see a game. What was notable was that for a minor-league game, there were a lot less of the between-inning shenanigans than normal, as usually at this level of ball the between-innings periods are chock full of musical chairs, and spin races, and the like. Not to say that there weren't any, but just a lot less than I was expecting. This night was also a tribute to 30 years of pro baseball in New Britain, so there were a number of video presentations on that milestone as well, perhaps replacing some of the games.

Surprising

It was another case of a predictably named mascot, however. The New Britain Rock Cats had a rock cat as a mascot. You know what? Just based on that, guess the rock cat's name. Correct, it was Rocky.


At the Game with Oogie:

Chicken fingers and water

I arrived plenty early at the park that day, predating the parking guys to the point where I got free parking for my promptness, or at least, that is the theory I'm going with. (I did ask about buying a parking ticket after the ropes went up, and I got a shrug of complete ambivalence from the teen on duty.) As per usual for minor and indie games, I sprung for the "expensive" seats behind the home dugout, to the tune of $15.

With a lot of time to kill, I ended up doing the full circuit of both New Britain Stadium, and their previous home next door, the Beehive. I get the impression that not a lot of people walk around the back of the stadium, as it is just a grass field backed by some woods and the high school, but I was surprised to find someone else out behind center field with his mitt. We both were made extremely sheepish by being found by other human beings, and it seemed clear that we had to talk to each other. I figured he was out there shagging any balls that cleared the stadium during batting practice, and god only knows what he thought of me.

"Doing some fielding practice for BP?"
"Cheap way to get a suntan."

And we both smiled and wished the other person would go away, as I did passing around to the other side of the stadium in my circuit.

After doing my normal walkabout the stadium, I grabbed some chicken fingers and fries and had some dinner at a stand-up table by the left field entrance. My seat was right at the end of the dugout, in front of an indented area where the grounds crew apparently kept all their rakes and such. Either way, it let me stretch out my legs after the long drive up, and it was welcome.

There were tons of families around me at the start of the game. As it got later and later into the night, especially with the long game, the families eventually petered away, and kids made their way into free seat upgrades to try and get balls out of the home players on the way back to the dugout. Some later arrivals weren't as lucky, but the kids that were already there shared their bounty with them. It was straight up one of the nicest things I'd have ever witnessed. One of the kid's dads caught me scoring and we talked about it for a while.

Before the family exodus, when the rock cat mascot came out for the first time, the kids of the family in the row behind me took notice. Their approximately six-year old daughter said this, word for word: "My goodness, that is a big kitty. I must hug it." I wasn't quite sure what to do with that. She eventually went over to get his autograph, and presumably a hug. I wish her well.

The stadium seemed to be facing dead north, because the sun was absolutely pounding down on the first base side as it started to set. Usually teams will align their field so that the blinding sun will fall on their opponent's dugout, but for whatever reason, the sun was right in our faces until it mercifully set behind the trees on this sweltering August evening. I've never been happier to see the lights come on before.


The Game:

First pitch, Curve vs. Rock Cats

With AA ball, you never quite know what you are going to get, except that there is going to be a big old dollop of slop worked in somewhere. Maybe there will be all hit, no pitch. Maybe it will be all pitch, no hit, but you can be sure there will be an error or two to get you through it.

The visiting Curve went down in order in the top of the first, but the Rock Cats got their lead-off hitter home after a single with a stolen base (that got my section $8 off an oil change), and error on the first baseman, and a wild pitch, while the rest of team went in order, leaving it a 1-0 Rock Cats lead at the end of one.

The Curve lead off the second with a single, and then a walk made it two on with no outs, which is never good if you're pitching. After a strike out, the Rock Cats gave up another single to load the bases, and then things got bizarre. The next batter up grounded one slowly to short, who went for and got the sure out at first. The runner from third scored, but the runner going from first to second either thought it was a double play, or forgot how many outs their were, because he made for the dugout. The first baseman fired back to the shortstop who tagged him out, for a simple 6-3-6t double play to end the inning. I would not want to be that runner going back to an angry manager after that level of bonehead play. But the Rock Cats went in order, leaving it tied at the end of two.

In the top of the third, the Curve got a lead-off walk thrown out on a steal attempt and nothing else. The Rock Cat's lead-off runner got to first on a shortstop error, moved over after a sacrifice bunt back to the pitch was successful enough for an infield single, and then a ground out to short left it first and third with one out. Another single brought home the run, but a double play ended the third with the Rock Cats up 2-1.

A potent mix of a single, a walk, and an error brought in a run with no outs for the Curve in the fourth. A sacrifice fly brought another in, but they could do no better, taking back the lead at 3-2. The Rock Cats started off their half with back-to-back singles, but could do nothing with it. In the fifth, the Curve scattered a single and a walk to no effect, but the Rock Cats started the sixth with a line drive homer to left to tie it at 3. The bases got loaded with back-to-back singles and another E6 before a sac fly brought in another run. But they got nothing more, regaining a slim 4-3 lead.

The Curve went in order in the sixth (thanks in part to a superman catch by the Rock Cat's center fielder), while the Rock Cats rudely greeted a new Curve pitcher. A lead-off walk was followed by a single, and a wild pitch moved them both over. A one-out single brought them in, but a hit batsman and single got them nothing more before the end of the inning, with the Rock Cats having some breathing room at 6-3.

The seemingly deflated Curve went in order in the seventh, but the Rock Cats turned a hit batsman and three more singles into two more runs, opening it up to 8-3. The Curve only managed a single and walk that went nowhere in the eighth, and the Rock Cats coasted to the ninth with a walk to show for their half of the eighth.

Then things got interesting. A new Rock Cats pitcher promptly gave up a single, a double, and another single to chip off one run of the lead. A sacrifice fly brought in another. After getting a fly out to right, it looked like the pitcher would be able to finish it off, but he got pulled before he had the chance. The new pitcher then gave up two more singles, to make the score an uncomfortable 8-6, with runners on first and third with two out. The go-ahead run came to plate, and struck out looking, giving the pitcher a save, and the Rock Cats the far too close 8-6 victory.


The Scorecard:

Curve vs. Rock Cats, 08/04/12. Rock Cats win, 8-6.

For the first time since Washington, PA, I had a new score card to explore. The score card was part of the $3 program, and was just a separate double-sided copy of what looked to be an official scorer sheet. The xerox was also a little off, and some of the column headers on the left were cut off because of it. Certainly not the worst scorecard I've gotten at a minor league park, but certainly interesting.

The reason I surmise it was an official scorer sheet is because it had a section up top to prove out your card (which involves adding up at bats, walks, sacrifices, and hit by pitches and comparing it to the total for runs, left on bases, and put outs to see if they add up), as well as a tracking for every pitch outcome or throw to a base, as well as a section for pitch counts. Even after Pittsburgh, this was the most involved scorecard I have ever had to fill out, but even though it was labor-intensive, I had a lot of fun with it. The layout made substitutions very easy to handle, and I have to say how much I like the pitch count tracking system they had in place, which I'd never seen before. If the at-bat goes for more than ten pitches or throws to bases, however, you are going to run into big problems. Also, the score sheet only took into account nine innings, so if your games goes to extra innings, or a team bats around on you, you are also going to have some rather serious difficulties.

Scoring-wise, there were some doosies. I think if I live to be a hundred, I will never have to repeat the DP 6-3-6t double-play from the second inning ever again, and the 5U-5-2 DP in the sixth was also a rare one.

Tracking pitches also lets to ferret out some really weird patterns that you otherwise would have missed. In the forth, for example, the first three batters started with a ball and then put the second pitch into play. The next two after that head nearly identical "BBTBH" lines (ball, ball, taken strike, ball, in play), except that the pitcher walked the second guy. Not mind-changing insights by any stretch, but still fairly interesting.


The Accommodations:
After a long, late drive after a long game, Hoboken.

Click here to see all the photos from this trip.

2012 Stand-Alone Trip