L 0-5
@ FirstEnergy Field (Reading, PA)
with Matt Dineen
note: Reading Phillies are the AA Affiliate of the Phillies, and the Akron Aeros are the AA Affiliate of the Cleveland Indians
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Lifesized Ryan Howard Lawn Gnome that some "lucky" fan won. |
"Revenge of the Carrot"
A nice trip to get your mind off your troubles. That's minor league baseball. Small town, or smallish post-industrial city anyway, fun can be had at your finger tips, with all the cheeseburger hotdogs you can eat. Being an extreme nerd, when I go crazy over something to obsession levels, I don't leave any stones unturned. You can't seriously follow baseball without keeping an eye on minor baseball, and particularly the progress of your team's farm system. Unlike other professional sports, there are several professional levels below the highest, and unlike football or basketball, they are paid while developing their skills. Luckily for Phillies fans like myself, four of the six farm teams are in the Tri-state area, with the other two being in Florida based at their Spring Training complex (if you don't include their Dominican or Venezuelan teams) So in order to get a sneak peak at the stars of the future, especially if you follow the farm system, its fun to take a short trip. Also, they give away pretty funny things in Minor League baseball to lure people out.
So myself and Shoe comrade Matt Dineen took a trip to Reading to see the Reading Phillies, or the R-Phils, the Phillies AA team, two levels below the majors. We sought the elusive Ryan Howard Lawn Gnome. The previous year, on August 3rd, we had sought the same thing and failed because we showed up nearly on time. This year, we left four hours before the game started and got there with plenty of time to spare in order to snap one up, guided by my new smartphone's GPS system. Success! Arriving around an hour and a half before game,time, the area was completely packed with a mix of locals coming out for the R-Phils home opener and Phillies fans who had treked in order to grab the same thing we had. Pretty intense.
Their stadium, FirstEnergy Field, just had some renovactions, (which they might want to fine tune, since the PA system kept shorting out during the game.) However, the ballpark itself is pretty cool. Minor League baseball teams often don't last more than a decade or two in the same town, and the Reading Phillies have existed since 1967. Their stadium is a tribute to all the future Phillies stars who have played in Reading over the years, including Robin Roberts, Mike Schmidt, Jimmy Rollins, and Ryan Howard. Its almost like a museum walking through the park, with tributes to previous ballclubs that existed in Reading before the R-Phils.
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Hall of Fame Pitcher Robin Roberts in his hurrah with the R-Phils in '67 |
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Jimmy Rollins and Ryan Howard when they were up and coming. |
So some quirky things that I noticed:
When we arrived and split off to explore a little, a mascot band was playing classic rock songs. I find that pretty impressive to be able to pluck strings in a bear costume. The R-Phils also have 5 mascots, a bear, a duck, a water drop, a dog. And a guy who's a "Crazy hotdog vendor", who is basically a nerd who rides around on a fake ostrich. What????
-I ate a cheeseburger hotdog. Apparently, I found out shortly afterwards, its a staple at 7-11, so I am less impressed than when I originally injested it. Perhaps its because I try to ignore any cooked meat at 7-11?
-The R-Phils employ a "Dancing Team" which looks suspiciously like cheerleaders. This is an abomination in my eyes. I really think cheerleaders or dance teams in football and basketball and sometimes hockey are really pretty stupid and have nothing to do with the game other than putting women in skimpy outfits and flaying around. The most you'll see that in baseball is "ballgirls" who grab foul balls and toss them into the stands, and they're usually at least also softball players of some kind.
-Kip Kalas, the late Harry Kalas's son, sung the national anthem, a really nice touch, and damn, that kid can sing. (No word on if he smokes Parliaments.)
-Anyone who goes to the games with me knows I am a habitual small stakes gambler. Last year, when Matt and me tried and failed to get a Ryan Howard Lawn Gnome, in between one of the innings, they have four teenagers dressed in vegetable costumes, Cauliflower, Lettuce, Carrot, and Cucumber. I guess they do this every game, because the same race was staged this game. I put my five bucks on Carrot, and Matt put his on Cauliflower, the same bet we made last year (he won). This year, when it appeared that Caulflower would win again, out of nowhere, a teenager dressed as Cotton Candy took him out with hard shot in the ribs. So I gladly collected my $5 from Matt, to the amusement of the locals.
-I caught a flush ball thrown into the stands. Not as good as a foul ball, but I'll take it.
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Squishy! |
-We sat on the Right Field foul side, where the bullpen sat in lawn chairs. I got to see Justin De Fratus, a member of the Phillies 40 man roster, and probable future member of the Phillies' pitching staff. I also yelled a future trade-bait first baseman Matthew Rizzoti, his first name over and over. "HEY MATTHEW MATTHEW MATTHEW!" He turned, and I waved, and he gave me a head nod. HOLY SHIT! I would of been happy if he cursed at me.
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An excellent shot of Matthew Rizzoti |
-On the actual game, it was a pitcher's duel between Reading's Ryan Edell (a minor league free agent pickup over the winter) and Akron Aeros' Scott Barnes, combining for 19 strikeouts. Finally, when Tyson Brummett relieved Edell, he promptly gave up 4 runs in 2/3rds of an inning. A kid behind me shouted, "C'mon Phillies, wake up and smell the bacon!" We upgraded our seats from the $6 seats all the way up to the top of the line $10 seats by moving up a few rows in the 9th Inning.
We got the Lawn Gnomes, though.
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Fans filing into Opening Day |
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Carlos Rivera, a free agent pickup |
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I only actually saw Yuengling and Coors there. |
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Me eating ice cream |
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Matt was an FBI agent in a previous life. |
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Sunset on Reading. The young couple and their kid ahead of us seemed nice. The guy informed me later that Cliff Lee had pitched a complete game. |
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Crowd Shots |
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The R-Phils bullpen |
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One of the R-Phils mascot, a bear or beaver or something, on patrol for a child to consume. |
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His handler, the blue yelled, "Stop before he kills again!" |
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The bluebloods in the $10 seats deserted them by the 9th inning, leaving plenty of food for pickup. Score! |
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The Prize! |
Next up: Dollar Dog Night on Monday April 18th. Million dollar question, will Sam ever post again?
Game Stats:
READING
Pitching:
Starter: LHP Ryan Edell (7 Innings, 2 Hits, 2 BB, 9 Strikeouts, 2.25 ERA)
Relief: RHP Tyson Brummett (.2 Inning, 4 Hits, 5 Runs, 1 ER, 1 Strikeout, 2.25 ERA) L (0-1)
Closing: RHP BJ Rosenberg (1.1 Inning, 1 Hit, 3 Strikeouts, 1.93 ERA)
Lineup:
1. SS Freddy Galvis (4 At-bats, 1 Hit, 1 Strikeout, .308 AVG)
2. 2B Harold Garcia (4 At-bats, 1 Strikeout, .286 AVG)
3. LF Michael Spidale (3 At-bats, 1 Strikeout, .214 AVG)
4. 1B Matthew Rizzoti (3 At-bats, 1 Hit, 1 Double, 2 Strikeouts, .448 AVG)
5. DH Cody Overbeck (3 At-bats, 2 Strikeouts, .355 AVG)
6. RF Tim Kennelly (3 At-bats, 2 Strikeouts, .167 AVG)
7. 3B Carlos Rivero (3 At-bats, .200 AVG)
8. CF Derrick Mitchell (3 At-bats, 2 Strikeouts, .208 AVG)
9. C Tuffy Gosewisch (3 At-bats, 1 Strikeout, .350 AVG)
AKRON
Pitching:
Starter: LHP Scott Barnes (7 Innings, 2 Hits, 10 Strikeouts, 1.64 ERA) W (1-0)
Closer: LHP Eric Berger (2 Innings, 2 Strikeouts, 0.00 ERA)
Lineup:
1. CF Jordan Henry (4 At-bats, 1 Run, 1 Hit, 1 Double, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 2 Strikeouts, .321 AVG)
2. SS Juan Diaz (5 At-bats, 1 Run, 1 Hit, 2 RBI, 3 Strikeouts, .200 AVG)
3. C Chun-Hsiu Chen (4 At-bats, 1 Run, 1 Hit, 2 Strikeouts, .280 AVG)
4. 1B Matt McBridge (3 At-bats, 1 BB, 1 Strikeout, .267 AVG)
5. 3B Kyle Bellows (4 At-bats, 1 Strikeout, .167 AVG)
6. DH John Drennen (4 At-bats, 2 Hits, 1 Double, 1 RBI, .300 AVG)
7. LF Tim Fedroff (4 At-bats, 2 Hits, 1 RBI, 2 Strikeouts, .350 AVG)
8. 2B Karexon Sanchez (4 At-bats, 1 Run, 1 Strikeout, .000 AVG)
9. RF Donnie Webb (3 At-bats, 1 Run, 1 Strikeout, .250 AVG)
James's personal stats for 2011
Starting Pitchers:
RHP Roy Oswalt 1
LHP Cole Hamels 1
LHP Ryan Edell (AA) 1
Total Games: 3
Minor League: 0-1
Phillies: 1-1
Overall: 1-2
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