Tagged: Cleveland Indians
Bats games with Bri
Louisville Bats vs. Columbus Clippers/Toledo MudHens (International League)
Louisville Slugger Field-Louisville, KY: I’m combining a couple of games we went to before our trip up to Michigan. After battling rain for the first few months of the season, we have been battling extreme heat since then. I miss when the Bats played their Sunday games at 6:00 instead of at 2:00. Makes the heat a little more bearable.
The game against Columbus featured a nice comeback from the Bats. Down 6-1 in the bottom of the sixth, Louisville’s offense kicked in, scoring five runs to tie things up. The Bats scored one more in the seventh, then held on for the win. Leading the way was Narciso Cook, going 2-4 with a pair of RBI’s. Cassidy Brown added a two RBI’s himself, while Nick Longhi got two hits and two runs scored. Eric Stout picked up the win pitching one scoreless inning, while R.J. Alaniz earned the save. FINAL: Bats 7, Clippers 6.
Louisville’s game against Toledo took place the day we left for our trip north. It’s always good to see the Tigers’ affiliates play, also. This one was close early, but Toledo would score two runs in back-to-back innings to take the lead. The teams made the last two innings interesting also, but the Mud Hens would get 16 hits off Louisville pitching, en route to the win. Christian Colon lead the way for the Bats, going 2-4 with two RBI’s. Blake Trahan also went 2-4, and contributed one RBI. Vladimir Gutierrez took the loss, giving up five runs on eight hits in five innings of work. The Bat’s relief pitchers didn’t fare much better. FINAL: Bats 4, Mud Hens 9.
Photos property of Minoring In Baseball
Back to the Bats
Louisville Bats vs. Columbus Clippers (International League)
Louisville Slugger Field-Louisville, KY: After the long drive back from Michigan, you’d think we’d take it easy for a bit, but no, not while the Bats are in town. We took the weekend to recover and unpack, however, and then took in a Monday night game. Despite the weather actually being pretty nice, there was a pretty sparse crowd at Slugger Field. That would come into play later, as Brian was lucky enough to take home a couple of game balls.
The first ball he got was thrown to him by right fielder Rosell Herrera. After the third out, he tossed the ball to Brian as he was coming off the field. We were really surprised that this was a Major League ball in play here in the minors, but I’ll explain that momentarily.
As for Herrera, he went 1-3 on the night, driving in the lone Bats run. Louisville didn’t have much in the way of offense this game. Oh, and the reason why the game ball was a Major League one was because the Reds’ Brandon Finnegan was on the bump in a rehab stint, and that’s what the rehabbing pitchers use (thanks to Jeff Perro/@MiLBClubbie for that info off Twitter).
Ok, and speaking of Finnegan, he took the loss for the Bats, throwing five innings while giving up eight hits, four runs, and striking out two. On a lighter note, Brian got another game ball, this time just a normal International League one, from the Clippers relief pitcher Jeff Beliveau, who threw him a foul ball that came his way while warming up. As I said, there wasn’t much of a crowd, and there was a group of kids who got way more than Brian! Final: Bats 1, Clippers 7.
A rough outing for our first Bats game of the season, but we’re still looking forward to more to come. The weather turned a little cool once that sun went down, but I’m sure we’ll have some hot days at the ballpark this summer. Don’t forget to follow me on Snapchat: @MinorBaseball for live game action!
Photos property of Minoring In Baseball
Bats double-header Game 2
Louisville Bats vs. Columbus Clippers (International League)
Louisville Slugger Field-Louisville, KY: Brian and I settled in for the second game, and were pleased with this one, also, as we were looking for another Bats victory. To start the game off right, though, we had to get ourselves some ballpark treats. Brian went with some Flavor Ice and I settled for some simple ice cream in a helmet.
Pitching for the Bats in game two was lefty Ismael Guillon. He pitched three and two thirds of an inning, giving up four hits and one run, but never allowing a base on balls. Louisville did most of their damage in the fourth inning. Beau Amaral hit a bases loaded triple, scoring Sebastian Elizalde, Brandon Dixon, and Rob Brantley. The Bats lead 4-1 after the fourth and hung on for the victory. Final(7): Bats 4, Clippers 3.
We can’t forget that the Zooperstars were still on hand to put on a show. We were able to see Peyton Manatee, Nomar GarciaParrott, and Whale Gretzky. Harry Canary sang ‘Take Me Out To The Ballgame’ during the seventh inning stretch, but I wasn’t able to snap a photo of that.
And we ended the day right by hanging out with Buddy Bat! More posts to come in the next couple of weeks.
Photos property of Minoring In Baseball
Bats double-header Game 1
Louisville Bats vs. Columbus Clippers (International League)
Louisville Slugger Field-Louisville, KY: Well, we finally made it back to Slugger Field for some Bats baseball. Usually with us the rain is a pain, but last weekend it actually helped, as Saturday nights game was rained out, so we were able to enjoy a double-header on Sunday. The first game moved by quickly, but we enjoyed it and cheered on our team.
As is with most minor league double-headers, they are a seven inning games, and this one was a pitchers duel. For the Bats, starter Jackson Stephens pitched all seven innings for a complete game shut out. He gave up seven hits, but gave up no walks in his outing. And while we were watching all of the non-offense, Brian was enjoying his free kids meal of a hot dog, nachos, and root beer.
The Zooperstars were also on hand to entertain us. We saw CentiPete Rose, Tommy LaSwordfish, and Tim TeBull during this game.
We finally saw some excitement in the final inning. The Bats had back-to-back singles from Sebastian Elizalde and Tony Renda to open the inning. Then Brandon Dixon came to the plate and hit a walk-off single for a 1-0 Louisville victory! Final (7): Bats 1, Clippers 0.
Between games Brian and I went out to the West Wing to get out of the sun for a while. As Sunday is Kids Club day, they had plenty of activities for them. Brian was lucky enough to interact with some of our veterans, and made a poppy flower that will go on a Memorial Day parade float honoring our fallen heroes!
Photos property of Minoring In Baseball
The San Diego Chicken
Louisville Bats vs. Columbus Clippers (International League)
Louisville Slugger Field-Louisville, KY: I know nobody is reading this post because they care about the game, or to look at my game photos, so I’ll mostly just show the greatest mascot of all time, the Famous San Diego Chicken. That being said, it was another hot and sunny day here in the ‘Ville, so we bought seats up in the shaded portion of the stadium. As we were in the shade, though, and it being so sunny, I didn’t even get the field to show up in our selfie below (but you can see that Brian did have his Chicken and Buddy plushies ready for action). I did get a good shot of the field once the game started, though.
Ok, more of the Famous Chicken! He puts on a fantastic show, and if you’ve never had the pleasure of seeing him perform, I highly recommend it. He’s had many years to perfect his craft, and does some of the greatest skits I’ve seen at the ballpark. Some of them have the umpires and players involved, also, and it’s so much fun. I think the fact that Ted Giannoulas has played the one and only Chicken since 1979, adds to the aura of one of the first, and the greatest, mascot in history. Every time he’s on the field, he has the fans attention at all times. You just never know what this guy will do next.
Ok, there was a ballgame going on through all this, so I will give a short re-cap. It was a pitchers duel for sure, but we did see some great defensive plays throughout the game, also. The Bats took a 1-0 lead in the third, when Jose Peraza base hit scored Juan Perez. Unfortunately in the eighth inning, Peraza’s throwing error allowed the Clippers to tie the game. On the hill for Louisville, right-hander Tim Adleman pitched seven innings, allowing six hits and striking out a season high eight batters. Into the 10th inning, Kyle Waldrop made one of those amazing defensive plays when he slammed himself into the wall making an amazing catch with two-outs to save the game. Also in the 10th, Peraza would find himself up to bat once again, and he atoned for his error with an infield base hit to score Perez for the walk-off win. J.J. Hoover earned the victory only giving up one hit and striking out two. FINAL in 10: Bats 2, Clippers 1.
Even with the Chicken in the house, we still have much love for Buddy Bat!
Brian and Buddy Bat
And the Chicken was awesome, he met with his fans and signed autographs for free! I got Brian a photo to have signed, and the Chicken even signed his plushie. As most mascots seem to be mute, the Chicken was more than happy to chat with his fans. I told him that I was a big fan, as I used to watch The Baseball Bunch every Saturday morning as a kid. He was great with Brian, and we got a couple of nice photos with him. A great day, a great ballgame, and another reason to feel blessed and lucky.
Here are a couple of videos of the Famous San Diego Chicken and his antics. Brian filmed the first part of this one, but he did his best:
Another short one:
Videos and photos property of Minoring In Baseball
RubberDucks, you’re the one!
Akron RubberDucks vs. Erie SeaWolves (Eastern League)
Canal Park-Akron, OH: After spending the morning in Erie, we had a pretty easy drive over to Akron. Akron is a nice town, but not much parking in the downtown area. They have the university, hospital, and ballpark all close together. We were in town pretty early, and some lots won’t let you park there until after 5:00, so we settled for a parking garage, and took a little nap. We had a three hour drive back to Michigan after the game, so a little rest couldn’t hurt. After our rest, we got a little hungry and went hunting for food. Canal Park has a resteraunt attached to it called The Game Bar and Grill, so we decided on that. Not only was the food very good, but you can see inside the park (after the gates officially open, you can access it from inside the ballpark), and we could watch the Erie SeaWolves warm up and take some batting practice.
After our meal, it was time to head inside the park and get ready for the game. Canal Park is just a beautiful ballpark, and we would plenty of time to explore it. We decided to get our shopping over with, and I picked up a nice t-shirt for Trevor with his name and number customized on the back. Due to the new name and logo, however, they were sold out of many items, such as pennants. We found our seats, and they were awesome right behind the SeaWolves dugout. The dugouts are pretty open, also, so you can pretty much see everything that’s going on. We also got a visit from Akrons mascot, Webster the duck, who looks pretty Disney like.
There was also a Vintage Base Ball game taking place in the outfield, so we watched that for a bit, also.
I then went out to the right field area, where the ballpark entrance to The Game is located. There is lots of room out that way, and not only holds the kids play area, but they had a live concert also, with Wild Ave belting out some classic ’80’s rock tunes.
Back in our seats, I was ready to enjoy some great Double-A baseball, as the clock was turn to 7:05 pm. And then the rain came. And it didn’t stop. Not for two hours. The grounds crew was able to get the tarp on the infield pretty quickly, and the outfield looked like it was draining pretty well. I really give the RubberDucks credit, that they don’t jump the gun and cancel games too early, and they do their best to keep the fans entertained during the rain delay. Both mascots were available for pictures with the fans (the old Akron Aeros mascot Orbit joined Webster), the had games for the kids, and used the video board for entertainment. My favorite is the ‘Baseball Bugs’ cartoon, where Bugs Bunny plays every position. Classic… We are also able to watch some of the College World Series live. And did you notice all of the rubber ducks on the tarp? Awesome!
After a mere 2 1/2 hour delay, we finally had baseball! The teams still went through their pre-game routine which took some time, but eventually the RubberDucks took the field, and the SeaWolves went to bat. The home team finally did some ass-kicking, but unfortunately, we were kind of rooting for Erie in this game. Third baseman Corey Jones lead the way offensively for Erie, going 2-3 with his teams only RBI. Outfielder Jason Krizan went 2-4, also. On the hill, Tommy Collier took the loss for the SeaWolves. For the hometown Akron squad, DH Bryan LaHair had three RBI’s off of his only hit, which was a double. First baseman Jake Lowery went 3-4 in the game, also. The winning pitcher was Joseph Colon for the ‘Ducks. Due to the weather delay and our long drive ahead, we only stayed for about five innings before hitting the road. I’d love to make another trip back to Canal Park. It’s a wonderful place to watch a game, and they treat the fans well. Final: RubberDucks 7, SeaWolves 1.
Here’s a video from the last game of your 2014 Baseball Trip!:
All photos and video property of Minoring In Baseball
Aye, aye, Captains
Lake County Captains vs. South Bend Silver Hawks (Midwest League)
Classic Park-Eastlake, OH: All I can say about Classic Park, is that it is truly a classic! We still arrived at the ballpark plenty early, despite a busy day in Cleveland, so we decided to play a little catch in the parking lot until more cars started to arrive. I really like how the parking is set up, with the large parking area across the street, and the have a bridge so fans can walk across the busy highway. I took a photo from the top of the bridge above. There was a line up to get in because it was free hat night, so we waited patiently in line and finally made it into the park. The layout and concourse are very nice, but I was disappointed the gift shop didn’t sell any team pennants, as I collect those and decorate Brian’s room with them. Our seats were right behind the Captains dugout, so we had a great view of the action. The Captains mascot, Skipper, waddled by a few times. I’m really not sure what he is, but he seemed to be pretty entertaining.
The Captains were taking on the Silver Hawks, who the Whitecaps just edged out for Eastern Divisions’ top spot in the first half. The Hawks were still a pretty good team, so the home town boys had their work cut out for them. It was also raining lightly to begin the game, but both teams just played through it like it wasn’t there, and we were right there with them enjoying the action. This ballpark has such a great look and baseball atmosphere, that we really didn’t notice anything but the game going on anyway. Unfortunately for the Lake County fans, the Hawks were off to a 4-0 lead early, and the Captains couldn’t get anything going offensively.
The rain ended up letting up, and it became an extremely beautiful night. Since it was a free hat giveaway, I thoroughly supported the Captains, and took a quick selfie between innings, showing off the new lid.
With the score still a little lopsided, I decided to explore this amazing ballpark a little bit more. The concourse doesn’t go all the way around the outfield, but it’s pretty close, which allowed me to get some decent photos from out there.
In right field, there is a wall dedicated to all of the players who have suited up for the Captains that are now in the majors. I’m sure this includes the franchises time in the South Atlantic League!
Out in center field, the Captain himself was trying to rally his troops! Lake County did finally get one across the plate, when short stop Ivan Castillo scored on an Eric Haase RBI. Center fielder Clint Frazier went 2-4 on the night for the Captains, also. Too bad for Cap that South Bend answered their lone run with three of their own in the ninth.
In all, this was a great baseball experience. A great ballpark with some great fans. The Captains put on a spectacular show, and win or lose, it’s a very satisfying night. Along with all of our other adventures of the day, this was a perfect way to end it. This one’s highly recommended, also, baseball fans. Final: Captains 1, Silver Hawks 8.
Here’s another video from my YouTube channel. This one turned out a lot better than the last one.
All photos and video property of Minoring In Baseball
Progressive Field Tour
Progressive Field-Cleveland, Ohio: Ever step into crap and come out smelling like roses? Well, this is kind of what happened to us here in Cleveland (I am not implying at all that Cleveland is crap. In fact, everyone we interacted with was extremely nice, especially at Progressive Field). After enjoying the Baseball Heritage Museum, and getting a bite to eat in downtown Cleveland, we found that we had plenty of time on our hands before heading east for the Lake County Captains game. Noticing that we were only a few blocks away from Progressive Field, home of the Cleveland Indians, we decided to head over that way and poke around a bit. Outside the ballpark, we were greeted my none other than Bob Feller, himself.
Statue of Bob Feller
Upon further exploration, we found that the main gift shop was open, and I saw a sign inside that advertised the ballpark tours. Wow, this was too good to be true, here we are with extra time, and a big league ballpark to poke around! When I asked about the tour, I was informed that the last one of the day had just left. But hey, we’re in Cleveland, and these staff members were pretty cool. One ran out the door to hold the tour for us, while we purchased our tickets. I had forgotten my camera, so I used my phone for all the photos at the museum, and was now looking at just under 20% heading into the tour. We caught up with the group in the indoor batting cages. This was a pretty cool area, and it’s amazing to find out how many hours the players spend in here hitting the machine and off of the tee. We were at the tail end of the group while leaving, and I happen to see a little patch of white by the door. It was none other than an official Major League baseball. I, of course, did the noble thing, and shoved it into my cargo pocket.
We then made out way to the Indians dugout, which is a pretty fun place to hang out. We were able to sit on the bench and check out the phones used for calling the bullpen, and for a challenge. I have to admit the major league dugouts are very impressive.
Better get Vaughn up!
I was also able to get some good photos of the ballpark from ground level. Despite using my phone, some turned out pretty well.
Selfie from the dugout
We then made our way around home plate toward the visitors dugout. Lucky for me, the visitors were the Detroit Tigers, and sitting in the dugout preparing for the game was Don Kelly. He was nice enough to sign some autographs for some of us fans, and I was lucky to have found that baseball! It would have nice to chat with him for a bit, but the staff giving the tour prompted us to keep moving.
Don Kelly signing the baseball I, uh, found…
Our next stop was the bullpen, and we were able to see the other end of the phone that was in the dugout. Back inside the park, the tour took us to the lower levels where the merchandise was unloaded and taken to the booths in the stadium. We were also in the area where the players make their way up from the parking lot, but we weren’t lucky enough to run into any more players, though.
The suites above home plate were pretty amazing, though. Here I took probably the best pic of the tour. We’ll definitely have to look into more ballpark tours on our future trips. The staff at Progressive Field treated us very well, and I highly recommend the tour to any baseball fans visiting Cleveland. Next time I’m in town, we might just have to take in a game there. By the way, still had 2% left on my phone when the tour ended.
Here’s a video from my YouTube channel. I’m not sure why, but it was filmed sideways. Maybe it was the low battery? Anyway, just tilt your head to the right, and enjoy…
All photos and video property of Minoring In Baseball
Baseball Heritage Museum
Baseball Heritage Museum-Cleveland, OH: With a little extra time, and us being so close to Cleveland, we decided to check things out for the day. Right in downtown, the Baseball Heritage Museum is tucked nicely inside the 5th Street Arcades on Euclid Avenue. This is a great little museum that contains many artifacts from the major league, minor league, and negro league. It’s run by two gentlemen who simply love the game of baseball and its history. These gentleman are more than happy to tell stories and talk baseball with all the fans that visit. They have a nice collection of old programs, pennants, photos, as well as game used paraphernalia. Being in Cleveland, there is a lot of stuff from Bob Feller, Satchel Paige, and other Hall of Famers who played for he Indians.
They have a row of seats from an old ballpark in Chattanooga, that I thought was very impressive, also.
I thought the display of the radio and broadcast equipment was pretty cool, too.
In all, this was a fun place to visit, and I highly recommend any in the Cleveland area to check it out. They only charge by donation, so it’s not like you’d have anything to lose, anyway. Most likely you’d finding a way to contribute, because this museum hosts many items you won’t see in Cooperstown.
Photos property of Minoring In Baseball
Game 2 Scrappers/Doubledays
Mahoning Valley Scrappers vs. Auburn Doubledays (New York-Penn League)
Eastwood Field-Niles, OH: Well, I guess this would be considered the fifth game of our trip, still counting the All-Star Classic, the partial game in Columbus, the full game in Toledo, and the half game we already saw. At this point, counting innings instead of games may make more sense. Anyway, standing in line to get the $1 hot dogs and beers took a little longer than expected. It seemed the crowd came out just for the specials, and not really for the game. The crowd itself didn’t seem to be real baseball savvy, and no one seemed to be paying attention much to the game. It was good to see kids and families there, but atmosphere just wasn’t as good as other ballparks we’ve been to. Maybe it was the crowd the promotion brought out, but I though the proximity to Akron and Cleveland would bring out some of the baseball nuts, but then again we’re deep in the heart of football country…. I thought for sure I’d get my first NY-Penn League game ball, too, being next to the Auburn dugout, but I was shutout.
The second game was another pitcher duel, with the visiting Doubledays getting the better of this one. They scored two runs on seven hits, and that’s all that they would need. The Scrappers could only muster two hits in the game, one by outfielder Josh McAdams, and one by short stop Drake Roberts. On the mound for Mahoning Valley, Juan Santana took the loss despite only giving up one earned run in five innings, and striking out six batters. I’m not sure when we’ll have another opportunity to see a NY-Penn League game, we in all we did enjoy our time here in Niles. Final: Scrappers 0, Doubledays 2.
Here’s a video of the game from my YouTube channel. Feel free to subscribe, since my son Trevor is my lone subscriber at this point:
All photos and video property of Minoring In Baseball
Minoring In Baseball 