Arizona Fall League Baseball

Tomorrow is the championship game for the Arizona Fall League. Sadly, we can't be there, but we certainly enjoyed the game we saw at Surprise Stadium earlier this year. The Surprise Rafters players were some of the best prospects from the Cardinals, Mets, Rangers, Royals, and the Yankees. They were hosting the Scottsdale Scorpions--Diamondbacks, Giants, Phillies, Pirates, and Rockies prospects.

We chose this game to attend because Joe Martinez (of hit-in-the-head-with-a-line-drive fame) of the Giants was the starting pitcher, and Buster Posey the starting catcher. It only cost a total of $6.00 for both of us to get in because some nice lady gave me a free ticket. Heck, the beer cost that!

We sat behind the plate--there are no assigned seats--about four rows up. The only people in front of us were in the front row. The only section off-limits was directly behind the plate, where the scouts were sitting with their speed guns. It was a fairly quiet crowd, execpt for one woman who had designated herself a cheerleader to everyone on the Scorpions. The only stir during the game was when it was announced that the Phillies had beaten the Dodgers. Naturally, we whooped it up a little, and a guy nearly two sections over heard us and introduced himself as a Giants fan from Berkeley.

I got lots of autographs on the very nice $2.00 full color Fan Guide. I didn't really know who the players were other than the Giants guys, but all the other autograph seekers were guys loaded with multiple copies of each players baseball cards. The players (other than Buster) happily signed everything put in front of them.

It was a grand night and perfect weather for the game. I wouldn't mind having season tickets to this league!

Arizona Rookie League - Goodyear

We headed over to Goodyear to check out the progress of the new Cincinnati Reds facility, co-located within the Cleveland Indians new park. It was going along pretty well, despite the fact that the Reds logo sign was taped onto the building over the entrance. We didn't look really closely, due to the "No Admittance" signs, but there was a Rookie League game that night between the players from the Indians and the Kansas City Royals.

There weren't many spectators. The metal grandstand held the official MLB scorekeeper, a few players, and a scout for the Oakland A's. We could hear the scorekeeper calling in the starting lineup and the game details after every inning. The scout was unfamiliar with just about everything, including how to get to the following night's game at Scottsdale. He didn't even know if the game was to be played at their stadium or at Indian School Park. We offered him advice on the best routing to Indian School.

Just before gametime, one of the Indians players brought us folding chairs and as you can see in the photo, we had great seats--and they were free! We adopted Trent Baker as our player to root for--sharing the same surname, after all!

Shortly after the game began a lovely young lady with long blonde hair was offered a chair near us. She asked various questions about the game, and at some point, we asked if she was either related to a player, or knew a player. She said that she was Trent Baker's girlfriend--how cosmic! He is from Australia, and according to her, used to be a pitcher (now a centerfielder), but they want his bat in the lineup. She is from South Africa originally, living in Orlando now.

The only odd things were that there was no scoreboard--this was the only field in the complex with lights--and the lights for the warmup pitchers was being produced by a noisy gas generator behind us. We think the final score was 4-3 in favor of the Indians. We know that Baker hit the game-winning RBI on a sacrifice fly. However, his girlfriend was perturbed that he made the out, and had made an error in the previous half inning.

One of the pitchers was someone that we apparently should have known (had we been Indians fans) who was making his first appearance after surgery. His fans seemed pleased, and we may have been ignorant, but we had fun anyway.

Goodyear? Great day!

Friday was our last day in the Phoenix area. We wanted to get a good look at the Cleveland Indians new home at the Goodyear ballpark (The Cincinnati Reds will be moving from Sarasota next spring to join them.) Luckily it was half price day and we got in for $6! A nice lady at the side entrance gave me a special ticket for autographs—two rookies, Wes Hodges and Trevor Crowe, would be giving autographs outside the team store at noon.

It was nearly 12:30 until the visiting team, the Oakland A’s, appeared through the center field area. Kurt Suzuki was the first one to approach the fan throng near their dugout. He made sure all were accommodated, even asking “Anybody else?”

More players were soon to follow, including Mark Ellis, Jack Cust, Bobby Crosby (whose #7 had been left behind, and he was wearing #82 until game time), Sean Dolittle, Chris Denorfia. And they posed for pictures. Look at Bobby Crosby, how cute is that?

We moved from our outfield foul-ball territory seats down the left field line to something a little shadier. Hall of Famer Bob Feller had a table set up directly behind us where he was giving autographs and chatting with fans with a “Welcome to the Wigwam!” He would autograph his book for free; if you wanted a signature on anything else, it was $10, which went to the Bob Feller Museum. He had an array of photos available. One showed a Navy vessel, and he and my husband got into a lively, extended conversation about the Navy and all things related. He also posed for photos. He spent hours doing this. We left at 2pm to get on the road for home, and there was still quite a sizable line. The announcer said that he does this at all the Indians’ games here at the park. It was a great day and a great trip this year. See you in Arizona next spring!

Scottsdale Stadium & Indian School Park

Today, just a couple of thoughts for Giants fans hoping to see their guys. Since the Giants had the day off last Thursday, we went to Indian School Park to see if anyone was working out. We spotted Nate Schierholtz and Clay Timpner taking some batting practice, but saw no one else that we recognized. We hadn’t been to the park in several years and the changes were quite remarkable. I’m sure the Giants are proud of them, but they just serve to further distance their fans and erode their fan base. We had to park on the street and follow the signs for “Field Access”. There is a new building between the field and the batting cages, and a new façade on the clubhouse. The batting cages are not approachable, and there is a double green tarp that is impossible to see through on the parking lot side. We had to be satisfied with the sound of the bat on the ball.

The fans are restricted to the upper level just outside the new building and clubhouse. All stairs near the backstop are labeled for Giants personnel only. We may have been able to go down one unmarked stairway that led to the farthest field and park, but it didn't seem worth the effort. See my photo--that's as close as you will get!

Friday morning, we went to Scottsdale Stadium, since the team was playing in Tucson. We got there at 8:45, but were informed that the bus already had left. We saw Randy Johnson as a passenger in a Ford SUV, on the way for “treatment” somewhere east of the stadium. The newspapers later reported that he had thrown a game against the minor leaguers we had seen at Indian School the day before! Could it be that the Stadium personnel were misinformed? Or do they not want fans at Indian School Park at all?

About 9:10, we saw the Stadium gates being opened, but were informed by a Giants representative that only a few guys were going to be practicing and the public was not allowed inside the park.

My recommendation is to see your Giants on the road in one of the fan-friendly parks. We had almost no access to them here in Scottsdale. Save money and stay, eat, and play elsewhere!

A's Player at PF Chang's identified!

In my post on Monday, March 9th, I mentioned that we had had dinner at PF Chang's and we were seated next to an A's player who was with a gentleman who was having him sign some papers. At the time, we couldn't figure out who he was. We just overheard snippets of their conversation--"small market team", "1999", per diem, "Are you staying at the team hotel?", but couldn't quite figure out who it was. As I was watching the A's-Giants game on CSN Bay Area this afternoon, this same player was being interviewed in the dugout. It was Matt Holliday!!! And here I thought that being in the same restaurant as Kyle Farnsworth was exciting. We are home now, and still unpacking, but already missing the 80 degree temperatures! My next post will be about the game on Friday between the Cleveland Indians and the A's at the new park in Goodyear.

Will is still a thrill--and the Nuschler face lives!

We went to Surprise to see the Giants play the Texas Rangers today. The parking is free--the only park in the Cactus League that doesn't charge! The Kansas City Royals minor leaguers were practicing on their back fields with some interesting equipment.

We needed tickets and were approached in the parking lot by an older gentlemen who wanted to sell us tickets. He said that they were front row behind the dugout and that he was a season ticket holder. We were skeptical (the tickets said "Row D"), but he seemed sincere, so we sprang for the tickets at face value. They were right behind the giants dugout, right where the players go down the steps--the prime place for autographs! Will Clark emerged from the player tunnel and signed my mini-bat. I have pursued that autograph for 20 years!! He also threw me a ball that had been fouled off by Fred Lewis at the end of the fifth inning.

There were only about 4,500 people in the stadium, so nearly all of the Giants willingly signed. Aaron Rowand, Buster Posey, Bruce Bochy, Fred Lewis, John Bowker, Eugenio Velez, and more. We saw Omar Vizquel chatting with some of the Giants prior to the game. Seeing him in blue was a little disconcerting, but he seemed to be the same smiling Omar...

SpringTraining 2009--the first three days!

We spent Saturday getting settled in--just checked out the new ballpark in Goodyear. We expect to see a game between the Indians and A's there on Friday.

On Sunday, we stopped at Scottsdale Stadium to buy a Giants spring training shirt for Tracy. Along the way, we noticed a number of Giants players practicing on the field behind the stadium under the watchful eye of Carney Lansford--Steve Holm, Kevin Frandsen, Guzman, and Juan Uribe who in turn noticed us and called out, "Hey, baby! How's it going?" Then we moseyed over to the players' parking lot, where a Jaguar pulled up. Gino Espinelli and another player autographed my mini-bat.

Then we hit the road, since we had tickets to the game between the two new resident teams at the Camelback Ranch ballpark in Glendale, the Dodgers and the Chicago White Sox. The park has a 50's western style with lots of stone and with metal painted brown to look like wood. There is a large pond just outside the ticket area, and legend has it that a Giants fan has already fallen into it. Sunday featured a steel band on the plaza outside the park, and it was Kids' Autograph Day. They had dozens of players from each team along the railing on both side of the park allowing kids to step up for autographs. I managed to get autographs from Manny Ramirez and Matt Kemp on my Louisville Slugger Museum mini-bat before the "event" started. Then, since only a few of the players had a line of kids, I just tagged along and when all the kids had gone through, I asked the usher, "Do I look young today?" Most of them winked and said, "Go ahead, kid!"--only one lady gave me a little grief--"I could get in trouble...", but the Dodger player said, "It's OK--it's all good!"

Tracy had gone off to find our seats which were in section 117, row 1, right behind the plate close to the Dodgers' dugout. Until I joined him, he chatted with a gentleman one seat over who introduced him to his son. Tracy said he was certain that the man we were sitting with was the actor who played the father (Red) on That 70's Show, Kurtwood Smith. I had worn my "Beat L.A." shirt given to me by Matt Johanson (who wrote San Francisco Giants:Where have They Gone?). Wearing it got me a lot of attention by the partisan crowd, but in a joking way--I think! After a number of innings of dozens of people asking "Red" to pose for a photo with them, I finally asked if he would object to posing with me. He did make a point of covering a portion of the shirt with his hat!

Monday was a low-key day in which we did a lot of shopping for collectibles and found a few Snoopy items for our collection. We stopped at P.F. Chang's in Scottsdale for an early dinner and managed to sit in a booth next to an A's player who was with someone who was having him sign some contracts. (Maybe someday we will know who he is!) Also right outside on the patio sat Kyle Farnsworth with his family. Why he was eating here and not at the one in Peoria--much closer for Royals players--we never figured out.

Going South

Labor Day weekend took us south to two stadiums--Petco Park and Angels' Stadium. We left here at 9am plenty early for a 7:15 game we thought. We didn't think that it would take 4 1/2 hours to get through LA on a Saturday afternoon. Even the car pool lanes were ridiculous.

We only had time for a brief look at Petco before the game began. We got our free SD caps (made in China) and walked past the beach and the berm, the statue and the band, the mini-park for the little kids. Tracy bought his official SD cap (that was made in the USA) and we took the elevator to the top level. We had a great view of everything--even the large screen TVs in neighboring buildings (where people were watching football) and the Icon "Skybox".

There was a fan photographer who came through the stands, some prize giveaway in the sixth inning, and our section was the lucky section to win Lotto tickets! In six years of being at season ticket holder at the Giants park, we were never the lucky section!! Oh, and there was a semi-streaker who ran from right field to the shared bullpen in the outfield, and fireworks! They did play a game--Padres lost to the Rockies. There were many rookies, some of whom got their first "whatever".

We spent the night in Carlsbad and got to Anaheim way early, so we made a shopping trip to Camp Snoopy at Knott's Berry Farm. We still got to Angels's Stadium in time to see many of the players on the field, and I got a few autographs (though I don't know who they were really...) It seemed like the entire stadium was season ticket holders--all of whom were very nice to people like us with San Diego caps and Giants scorebooks. Their fans are very knowledgeable and congenial, and I had a great time chatting with them. Lots of foul balls touched down in the section to our left, but none landed in our section. I really liked the exterior of the stadium with the haloed "A", the baseball bat entrance, and the size 649 1/2 metal baseball caps!

Dodgertown--"Tell it good-bye!'

Here are some photos to give you the essence of the Dodgertown experience. Tommy Lasorda, Manny Mota, Jason Schmidt and Brad Penny were just a few of the people we talked to.

Iknow that I promised that I would be blogging my spring training experiences day by day. Two things have prevented from doing so. First, the motel’s wireless signal strength was too erratic, and secondly, it rained on Friday—the main day when most teams were in the Tampa area.

On Friday afternoon, we drove past two of the stadiums—the Phillies in Clearwater (playing the Braves) and the Blue Jays in Dunedin, who were away. The weather was in downpour mode, so we didn’t even consider attending. We ended up driving north to Tarpon Springs for some antique shopping and then south to St. Petersburg to the Dali Museum. That museum is a gem, and I wish we had had more time to spend there. Our tour guide was excellent in explaining the paintings and their intended symbolism, but we didn’t get to see most of the films. There were excerpts from Hitchcock’s Spellbound and an unreleased Disney film from 1946 called Destino.

On Saturday, we headed even farther south. The best place we went was the Rose Fiorelli Winery, where “Paul” gave a personalized tasting experience to each group—even offering a large selection of foods—homemade port wine cheese and buffalo salami (which tasted exactly like Oscar Meyer bologna—really!), Hershey’s dark chocolate, etc.—to compliment the wines he was pouring. He recommended Mixon’s Fruit Stand for an additional selection of Florida wines for tasting. We did make that our next stop, but we bought the Orange Swirl ice cream instead of more wine.

The Pirates were out of town, but we stopped at McKecknie Field for a photo op. To my surprise, all their spring training games but one were sold out! They probably have better attendance in Bradenton than in Pittsburgh. We headed for the beach and found some shells at Anna Maria Island. We drove south along all the Keys to get to Sarasota, where we took a quick look at Ed Smith Stadium, home of the Cincinnati Reds—who were also out of town, and thought we might get to the Ringling Museums, but it was too late. We had dinner and went to the greyhound races instead.

We needed to recuperate a little on Sunday. It rained a little in the morning, so we took a quick tour of the University of South Florida—much changed since I started my MLS there in 1979—and went to the Tampa Flea Market, since it was indoors. The rest of the day we relaxed and read the Sunday paper poolside, and went to dinner at Stump’s Supper Club which had authentic southern cooking. We tried the chicken-fried steak, pulled pork, and peach cobbler.

At last, Monday at Dodgertown! We are NOT Dodger fans, but any fan would wish for an experience that is typical at Dodgertown. The guys who show you where to park your car let you know the lay of the land before you even get onto the grounds. The players crisscross from field to field to cages to stadium by traversing the very walkways that actual fans use—oh, the humanity! Those who are playing in that day’s game must cross a little bridge to get into the stadium and the fans wait there for an opportunity to get a photo with the player or an autograph. Only two players would not sign (James Loney and Mark Sweeney claimed that they would sign after the game, not before, as they were starting), and Jason Schmidt signed until we thought his hand would fall off!! I didn’t know many of the players, but I got photos of and autographs from some of their hot prospects, apparently. Dewitt was given the top rookie of 2008 Spring Training during the game.

The National Anthem was played on the harmonica by Carl Erskine, and then Tommy Lasorda, who was coaching (because Joe Torre was in Japan or China) made a heartfelt speech about his experiences in Vero Beach and thanked the community. This was allegedly the final game at Vero Beach. The Dodgers are planning to move their operations to Glendale, Arizona for 2009.

We left after the fourth inning, having downed a couple of Budweisers in red bottle-shaped cans and Dodger Dogs. We had gotten really crispy, even with sunblock.

We drove north on A1A through all the beach communities on the Atlantic coast. Most of the beach is not visible from the road, and Disney even has a Vero Beach Resort! We stopped at a public beach access and found a few shells, then headed for Cocoa Beach. We are one block from the beach and from the Ron John Surf Shop (open 24 hours a day—never know when you’ll need a surf board!)

Broadcasters, Lots of Sunshine, Final Thoughts

Thursday was a low key day. We had breakfast at JB’s, then went shopping for books, toys, and looked at some new housing developments and zipped over to Glendale to look at the antique shops. We had dinner at P.F. Chang’s across from the Fashion Square Mall. The parking is now free in the underground garage and the place was nearly empty at 4pm. The lettuce wraps were as good as we remembered and I liked my Honey Shrimp and the Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc.

Today is Saturday and we are home now and resting up from the drive by listening to Jon Miller and Dave Fleming broadcast today’s game from Scottsdale. The best seats I was able to get for the Friday game against the Athletics (even though it was during the first few minutes they were on sale to non-Charros season ticket holders) was in section 130 row 3 near the right field foul pole. Those seats were way too sunshiny on an 88-degree day, so Tracy sought shelter in the shaded seats behind the plate. Jon and Dave were in the booth right behind our “illegal ticket holder” seats. I had Jon sign his book, Confessions of a Baseball Purist, and he joked about making a “low and outside” call whenever in doubt. Since Dave hadn’t yet written a book, I took his picture, printed it out and had him sign that, bribing him with smuggled in Tootsie Roll Pops—“Thank you for risking your life”. They don’t even let you bring in empty water bottles to Scottsdale Stadium because “you will fill them up”. If you come to spring training, bring enough SEALED bottled water for each person for each game, as one bottle per person is allowed. Most parks won’t allow food (exception Peoria allows a “bag lunch”), so check before you go to avoid a long walk back to your car!

The Giants players were rather stingy with autographs Saturday, and with 11,980 + in attendance, the competition was stiff. I was able to get Mark Sweeny on a photo I had just taken—“What was I saying there?” (“I’m taking fielding practice right now—I’ll catch you later”) Kevin Frandsen, Jason Ellison, and Dan Ortmeier in the Giants Spring Training magazine, and Nick Swisher, Eric Chavez, and Dallas Braden in the Athletics Spring Training magazine. (Each magazine costs $5. The A’s is 52 pages long, while the Giants’ is about 150 pages, and way more interesting and informative). None of the Giants big stars would sign—Zito, Bonds, Durham, Vizquel, Winn were all in the lineup, but they barely looked towards the sidelines while warming up. Willie Mays was there too, and ignoring the fans as usual. We saw Mike Piazza signing beyond the dugout just before the game started. Barry hit his first home run of the spring which went into the practice fields beyond the right field fence. I don’t know how far that is, but it was considerable.

We left the game at 2:30, at the point when the wholesale substitution of players took place. We listened to Jon and Dave call the game on XM radio in the car as we made our slow way home through early rush hour traffic in Scottsdale and Phoenix. We arrived home about 1:30am, even with stopping for a burger and some outlet shopping in Cabazon (near Palm Springs).

Vacations are always too short--we didn't get to Pizzeria Bianco or to Cowboy Ciao for some special meals this year--but it was fun to get a head start on baseball and our tans!

Barry Bonds arrived in a golf cart, zipping right past us. He got a double in one of his two at-bats.

Library, Sprinkles, Bonds

We had no specific plan for today, so we went to the Original Pancake House near Fashion Square Mall for the best pancakes on the planet. Lots of celebrities have eaten there over the years, and they signed the walls nearest the rest rooms. Some of the signatures were painted over, but my favorite celeb, Gene Siskel, was still there, as was Jon Miller and lots of sports figures.

We read in the newspaper that Barry Bonds was going to make a rare road game appearance and planned to go to Peoria to play in the Mariners’ game today, so we decided to go.

On the way to the park, we stopped at Scottsdale Library and I had a chance to see their Children’s Room and Teen Area. The children’s room is decorated with two themes—castle and “cat & mouse”, with tables that look like Swiss cheese, chairs that look like mice, and a “Cat’s Paw” slide that looks like a paw coming through a huge mouse hole. They have lots of games and puzzles, and kids who are "Cleanup Helpers" get a chance to win a prize. The Teen room has an industrial basement look, and has a magnetic poetry board, a snack machine, and a TV (the plasma is out for repair). There is a glass enclosed room that subdivides. Their foam cube furniture is cool and comfy, but I was told that it was only a year old and was mostly trashed. All the computers had headphones. There was some sort of "cone of silence" for music which also didn't really work out.

Out at the Peoria Sports Complex, despite information on the team website that said the stadium opened two hours before game time, we learned that it was really only open an hour and a half before game time. After being let in, there was still no one in the park until nearly 12:30. The Giants had taken batting practice at Scottsdale Stadium, and the Mariners had used one of the fields in the complex. Far right field is THE place to get autographs, as players from both teams come in there from the bus and/or clubhouse. My autographs today included Omar Vizquel—the first one at the park (he drove from Scottsdale Stadium instead of taking the bus)—Guillermo Rodriguez (who told us that “Bonds isn’t here”), Jack Tachsner (on a photo I took at Fan Fest), Billy Sadler, manager Bruce Bochy, and the elusive Benji Molina. A lady from Hawaii and I asked him for an autograph while he was warming up, and he said “When I’m finished” .We were both under the impression that he meant when he was finished warming up, and then when he was finished warming up the pitcher, Matt Morris. After waiting nearly a half hour for him to be finished, we were finally informed that he meant “I meant after I’m finished playing”. So after the third inning, I ran down to catch him before he could escape the park. He did sign two items—a photo I had taken during his warm-ups and a mini catcher’s mitt.

I also got an autograph prior to the game from Mariner Willie Bloomquist. The lady from Hawaii told me later that she tried to get an autograph from Ichiro Suzuki when he left the game, but she couldn’t even get close—it was total chaos.

Bonds was there—he arrived in a golf cart so that he wouldn’t have to make that long walk past the pesky fans. He was the DH and only had two at-bats. His one hit was a double. Other highlights of the game included a slight sprinkle of rain despite the 80+ degree weather, and the multiple foul balls that landed in our section (210--which was shaded). I missed one by inches--it nearly hit the Japanese cameramen behind us, hit the wall, sailed over my glove on the rebound and a guy two rows in front of me got it. Oh well! The Giants won in the ninth inning, thanks to the minor league players.

Dinner was from Old Town Scottsdale’s Schlotsky’s Deli, and back to the room to watch the girls sing on American Idol.

Ace is the Place

American Idol contestant Ace Young just before he led us all in the 7th inning stretch "Take Me Out to the Ball Game".

George Brett

George Brett warming up his team before today's game--the photo that he autographed for me.

Hall of Famer, Future Hall of Famer & an Idol

Breakfast at JB’s again, and since it was a weekday, it was only $5.99 for the all you can eat buffet. We had tickets for the A’s-Royals game, but since the park didn’t open until 11:30 for the 1:05 game, we went to the two Antique stores closest to the motel, the Antique Trove and the Antique Centre, and found a few Snoopy/Peanuts items before heading out to Phoenix Municipal Stadium. It was the Royals, and it was a weekday, so the attendance was low—we estimated about 2,000. I really didn’t recognize any of the Royals players except for Reggie Sanders, since he had been with the Giants on their World Series team. I did recognize their batting coach, though—George Brett. I took a photo, printed it out, and was able to get him to sign it after his “meeting” with his fellow coaches in the dugout. He promised to "take care of everybody" requesting his autograph after the meeting, and he did, though he signed all the baseballs first, and the paper items, like cards and my photo last. He was amazed though: “You just took this! How did you do that?” Ahh, technology!

We had great seats in row 14 behind home plate, but we moved up to cheaper seats in the shaded area near the broadcast booth. It was 81 degrees, and we got crispy fast.

The A’s had most likely taken an early batting practice, since they didn’t even show up until about 20 minutes before game time. I was able to get autographs from coach Curt Young, Erubial Durazo, Adam Melhuse and Mike Piazza. I am told that American Idol contestant Ace Young threw out the first pitch, which I missed, as I was in the “get Mike Piazza’s autograph” mob. But during the seventh inning, he walked past our seats, and I grabbed my camera, followed him, and asked him to pose for a photo. Beautiful! I returned to my seat, and printed a photo while he was leading us in “Take me out to the ballgame” during the seventh inning stretch. When he returned to the concourse, I asked him to sign it, and he personalized it. “This is the one you just took? How did you do that?” I love my printer!

The game went into extra innings and the A’s lost. Both Piazza and Lou Merloni got hit by pitches and had to leave the game.

We went to the Olive Garden for dinner, where we are almost certain that we were seated next to two of the Giants young prospects (basing this conjecture on their build and their conversation, and their jewelry and clothing—I overheard them talking about what diamonds they were planning to buy, and one was wearing two big square diamond earrings).

Spring Training 2007--We have arrived!

We left Friday afternoon around 2pm, and except for traffic in the Pleasanton area, sailed through to Indio, just east of Palm Springs, before we stopped for the night at the Motel 6 there. Breakfast was at the Café Martinez or something next door, not recommended unless you enjoy rubber eggs.

Even with the time change, we got into Phoenix in plenty of time for the Giants-Brewers game at Maryvale. The consensus among my fellow fans was that if you wanted Giants autographs, this was the place. Everyone who made the trip was signing--Todd Linden, Rich Aurilia, Kevin Frandsen, Jason Ellison, Randy Winn, Dan Ortmeier, Pedro Feliz, and lots of unrecognizable minor leaguers. I missed a few, but only because their were too many to choose from. Matt Morris looked pretty bad, but was lifted after 50 pitches, and the Giants went on to win. We left in the 9th inning—it was cold and getting windy by then, and the highlight of the afternoon—the sausage races—was over.

Our seats were great though—Box 100, row J seats 8&9—put us directly behind home plate. There were scouts to the left of us, scouts to the right of us, and what sounded like Kevin Frandsen’s hometown behind us. We could see that Brian Wilson was pitching 94 mph and Cortes was at 93 mph on their radar guns.

Dinner was Domino’s and a bottle of wine in the room. The dog show is in town, and there are lots of pooches here at the Motel 6 (on Scottsdale near McKillips in Tempe). I thought that there would be a hot tub here, like in the Scottsdale Motel 6, but there is just a pool.

Sunday morning we went to our favorite breakfast place—JB’s (Scottsdale Road at McDowell). On weekends the all you can eat breakfast buffet is $7.99 (even less on weekdays), and is so filling that we never need lunch! Then we headed down to Tucson for Arizona’s largest toy show, where we found items for our collections—Peanuts, push puppets, windups, and ramp walkers.

We thought about going to a baseball game in Tucson, but it was incredibly windy—not worth suffering for Seattle and the Dbacks. So back to Phoenix to the Brass Armadillo for some antique and collectible shopping. Dinner was at Applebee’s, as our neighbors were kind enough to give us a gift card.

Monday morning we got a late start and had a quick breakfast next door at Jim’s Coney Island Café, with lots of specials. My breakfast with 2 eggs, 2 bacon and a waffle was only $4.50.

Since the Giants were playing in Tucson, we went to Scottsdale Stadium to see what the guys who were left behind were up to. We got there at 9:30, but the bus was long gone—8:05, according to the Giants security guy.

Inside there was lots to see—stretching, warmup tosses, batting practice, and the batting cages. I took lots of photos, printed some of them out immediately on my HP portable printer, and asked the players to sign them when they were transitioning between activities. Tyler Walker, Rich Aurilia, and Matt Cain all did so. Omar Vizquel signed a baseball, and Jonathan Sanchez and Lance Niekro signed my team ball. After the practice was over, we waited near the players’ parking lot. Barry Bonds, Noah Lowry, Omar Vizquel, and Armando Benitez all claimed to be too pressed for time to sign. But Matt Morris and Steve Kline were more than accommodating (Steve Kline was so great that he is now new favorite player!). Brand-new prospect Tim Lincecum indulged me—he signed both a photo I took last August 5th in San Jose during his first start (pitching 96 mph), and one that I had taken during practice.

We got to see what cars the players were driving—many of them brand new this spring—Bentleys (Benitez), Escalades (Vizquel), etc. By noon, most everyone had left.

Then we did some more collectible shopping—in Mesa this time—and got back early for a dinner at Red Lobster (it was Lobsterfest).

Spring Training 2007 - the countdown

This year we will be trying a different Motel 6 - on Scottsdale Road in Tempe. In 2006 we stayed at the Motel 6 closest to the A's stadium, which was conveniently located, had a refrigerator, and was less expensive than the Scottsdale one. The Scottsdale Motel 6 was a great price for the neighborhood, though. Right next to Fashion Square mall, walking distance to the movies and restaurants like P.F. Chang's (Barry Bonds and family arrived soon after we did on a Sunday evening in 2005), and the Original Pancake house just steps away for breakfast.

We have tickets to three games, Giants at Maryvale (Brewers) on 3/3, KC at A's on 3/6, and A's at Giants on 3/9. We ordered the Giants and A's tickets the first day they were available and asked for "best available", so we shall see how good they are! Whenever we go to Maryvale, we always have the best seats, cause few people come out to see the Brewers. A shame, since it is such a nice park, and the Sausage Races are so fun.

Spring Training Trip Preparation

Vacations have been approved, and preparations are now beginning in earnest! We made reservations for the Scottsdale Motel 6 in December. We have tickets for the Giants-Cubs game at Scottsdale on March 6th, and the A's-Giants game in Phoenix on March 9th. Barry Bonds won't be playing until late spring, and the paper announced that Robb Nen had decided to retire, but we can get acquainted with all the new guys and rookies instead. We hope to include a couple of new parks on our trip. We have never been to Merryvale, nor to Tucson to see the teams that train there. Tips on best way to enjoy those parks and get autographs anyone?