Results tagged ‘ Boston Red Sox ’
2011 BBT Day 2: A New Spin on Things
Lowell Spinners: LeLacuer Field-Lowell, MA
Seeing a ballpark without being able to watch a game is a little depressing, unless you never planned on watching a game there in the first place. On our way north for more baseball, we decided to check out LeLaceer Field, home of the Lowell Spinners of the New York-Penn League. The Spinners are a short season Single A team, so they don’t start playing games until June. We decided it would still be fun to check out the ballpark, and the staff was nice enough to let us in, show us the park, and let us shop a bit at the souvenir store. LeLacuer Field is very nice of Single A, and they share it with the UMass-Lowell college team, as the ballpark is right on campus. I’d love a chance to get back to here to see a game. Lucky for us we were able to get our baseball fix in later that day. Stay tuned…
Photos property of M.I.B.
2011 BBT Day 1: Pouting in Pawtucket
Pawtucket Red Sox vs. Scranton/WB Yankees: McCoy Stadium-Pawtucket, RI
Our 2011 adventure started out in Pawtucket, home of the International League’s Red Sox, or PawSox. I really liked McCoy Stadium, as it’s a throwback to the more classic ballparks. Walking through the gates at McCoy is like taking a step back into time. The fans and staff are extremely friendly, and are more than happy to talk about the history of the stadium and the team. Some of the older staff members had some great stories. With the rain delay, we had plenty of time to explore the ballpark and get our shopping in also. My favorite park was the mural of my favorite player as a kid, Mark ‘The Bird’ Fidrych. The ballpark has pictures from all sorts of historic events that have taken place there, especially the longest game in pro baseball history that lasted 33 innings. Despite the fact that it had not been raining for some time, the game was called and we missed our first game to rain in the seven-year history of our trip. Some of the fans thought that the teams just wanted to hit the road early, as they played in worse weather the two previous nights. Definitely disappointing, but you don’t have to see a game here to realize how special the ballpark is, but I’m sure since the PawSox were playing the Yankees, the atmosphere would have been great.
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Photos property of M.I.B.
Baseball Trip Finalized for 2011: New England Bound
There’s nothing like lookin to the future, and trying to come up with a trip that we can fit at least six to seven games into a five day span isn’t easy. Next May we’ll be heading east to the New England area, checking out the Minor League teams there, and even hitting a Red Sox game at historic Fenway Park. Our trip will start off on the Triple A level in Rhode Island, watching the Pawtucket Red Sox defend their home field against the Scranton-Wilkes Barre Yankees. It will be a small taste of the Sox-Yanks rivalry, anyway. Day two of our trip we will head up north to Manchester, NH. There we will watch a Double A matchup between the New Hampshire Fisher Cats and the Binghampton Mets. The third day of our trip will take us up to the great state of Maine for a pair of games. First we’ll see a night game as the Portland Sea Dogs face the Reading Phillies, and we’ll watch the same two teams go at it the next day at noon. After the day game concludes, we’ll head south for some Major League action. I know I don’t care to see baseball live at this level that often, but Fenway is a must for any baseball fan, and Boston is facing the Detroit Tigers, so it’s a chance to see our home team on the road. We also plan to take the tour of Fenway Park the next morning. Our trip will end later that night in Conecticicut, where we’ll watch the New Britain Rock Cats play New Hampshire, who we’ll be seeing for the second time. There will be plenty of other sites for us to see in this part of the country, and I plan to have a beer or two at Cheers in Boston.
Logo of the Month: Portland Sea Dogs
League: Eastern League (AA)
Home Field: Hadlock Field
Affiliation: Boston Red Sox
Location: Portland, Maine
Fun Facts: Team was establishing in 1994 as an affiliate of the Florida Marlins, which lasted until 2003. They won the Eastern League title in 2005 and 2006. Hadlock Field built the ‘Maine Monter’ in right feild to replicate Fenway. When a Sea Dog player hits a home run, a lighthouse raises in the outfield in celebration. Team mascot is Slugger the Sea Dog.
Notable Alumni: Josh Beckett, Ryan Dempster, Jonathan Papelbon, Dustin Pedroia, Edgar Renteria, and Nate Robertson.
Minoring In Baseball
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