Justin Morneau 5, Josh Hamilton 3
1. Get there when the gates open. I sauntered in around 6 PM, but by then, my usual BP spot in the right field bleachers were covered. In fact I couldn’t even walk up the ramp to get to my usual spot. So I headed over to the visitor’s bullpen side where I easily slid into a space between a couple of kids. In the meantime, I missed most of the AL’s batting practice but did get to catch all of the NL’s. However, the difference between being over on the right side and the left side is about seven rows of covered seats and the bullpen as opposed to just the right field wall. (Proximity kids!) I thought that there wouldn’t be much for me to do if I got there early and that I could get a great spot easily. I was wrong, so if you get a chance go early and hold your position!
2. The Homerun Derby is not neutral. Being at Yankee Stadium it should come as no surprise that the Boston players got the loudest boos. But they weren’t just reserved for Red Sox players, Chase Utley of the Philadelphia Phillies got his own boo paraded which he famous responded with “Boo, F--- You.” So eloquent Chase. And Evan Longoria who got the final vote in spot over Yankee first baseman Jason Giambi was not spared either.
3. New Yorkers are not fans of 3 Door Down. Partly because some people had gotten to Yankee Stadium when the doors opened at 4:30 and partly because everyone was so hyped to watch 8 Major Leaguers shower balls across the stands, people booed 3 Doors Down unmercifully from when they hit the stage to when they left.
4. The popo will chase you down. It’s not like I haven’t seen morons jump over the railing in the bleachers and chase balls that land in the batters eye (the black part of the bleacher’s section.) But I’ve never seen some one try to dodge the popo run down the tunnel and get arrested. That my friends was a first but I’m hoping it’s not a last.
5. Josh Hamilton can drive the ball deep. The crowd went insane for Hamilton who was receiving cheers even before he drove 28 deep in the first round. But when you start hitting things off the Bank of America sign in right field, people tend to get even more excited.
6. If you take a homerun away, 55,000 fans will start chanting “@$$----” If this were a playoff game against the Orioles, then things would have been different, but it wasn’t and some dope grabbed a fly ball out of the air before it had sailed over the right field railing making what could have been a homerun for Josh Hamilton into an out. Luckily it was the first round, so he made up for the loss.
7. How to waste a good hour with filler. The Derby started late due to ESPN’s filler and that continued the whole night. I get having the Aquafina group parade around throwing t-shirts (without a launcher may I add) during TV breaks, but there was loads of other crap that took what should have been a two hour fun fest and made it three hours. Although, even with the filler, it was still an awesome time.
8. If everyone does it, then you don’t look so stupid. As a free gift to fans that were lucky enough to score tickets to the Derby, All-State handed each person their very own lanyard to stuff their tickets into. I have to admit, I loved the idea when I first saw it at a race in Daytona. Gone are the days of scrounging through your pockets or your purse to show your ticket to the usher. It’s just around your neck. However, they aren’t the hippiest things to wear, but when 55,000 other people are doing it, you don’t feel quite as silly.
9. There are actual Rays fans. You always hear about how Tropicana Field is constantly half full on a good night and how fans don’t really support the team. Well times may have changed because of the team’s new fortunes, but I actually saw at least four Rays fans sitting in front of me. They cheered loudly for Longoria and discussed how the team released Josh Hamilton. They even corrected someone who pointed and said “Look, Devil Rays fans.” “No,” one replied, “We’re Rays fans!”
10. Don’t waste all of your energy in the first round. Hamilton made the papers because of his record breaking 28 homers in the first round. But by the second you could tell he was slowing down. He took a few balls to stay loose, but by the third he seemed very tired. Also his 71 year-old pitcher Clay Council seemed a little beat as well. In the end, Morneau saved just enough energy to beat Hamilton, but Josh literally stole the show!
For my photos from the derby, click here.
AL 4, NL 3
1. Where to stand to watch some of the greatest players in major league history. As I had mentioned in the Derby post, I was locked out of my usual right field viewing station, but on Tuesday that turned out to be a very good thing. When I walked up to my seats I noticed players congregating over by the home bullpen to take the AL team photo. I stayed to watch the NL do the same and when I went to walk over to the visitor’s bullpen I realized it would be too packed to actually see anything. So I stayed over in sec. 51. Hanging out, I watched the NL run through batting practice until I heard people start yelling. I ran over to the railing and noticed Willie McCovey sitting in his wheel chair in Monument Park. Then Cal Ripken, Jr. came out to wonder through. I then saw Whitey Ford and Reggie Jackson, Don Sutton, Jim Palmer and George Brett walk into a tent placed in the visitor’s bullpen. When my friend arrived I told her to take pictures while I took video. Unfortunately, my camera had other ideas, but I did witness all of the Hall of Famers that later took the field in the pre-game line up in Monument Park for a moment I will never forget.
2. Canada gets no respect. Poor Canadians who were in attendance and playing in the game, instead of getting their country’s anthem sung by a world famous Canadian, they got an innocuous rendition done by what sounded like a computer with a picture of the Canadian flag on the scoreboard.
3. Water is more expensive at Great Adventure. $4.75 for a bottle of water is kind of expected when you shell out at least $150 for tickets to something. But the water guy had a blast telling people that the water is even more expensive at Great Adventure, oh and if you want your quarter let him know ahead of time, not when he’s walking away. As he said he was “adding entertainment on top of entertainment.”
4. New Yorkers don’t all love Sarah Jessica Parker. Sex and the City fans aren’t exactly the demographic that attends All-Star games, so it was a little odd that she came out to talk about cancer with Sheryl Crow (cancer survivor and singer of the National Anthem) and Commissioner Bud Selig. I get that she’s a true New Yorker but I’m pretty sure if they had replaced SJP with say Megan Fox, the reaction would have been a little different. And when Parker mispronounced Bud Selig’s name the boos turned to laughs. Come on lady, this isn’t a congressional hearing; at least know how to pronounce his name!
5. There are actual Marlins Fans. Well on Monday I discovered there were real live Rays fans and Tuesday I saw some Marlins fans. Even when Dan Uggla put up the astounding three strike out, three error game, the fan still cheered on his second baseman through every at bat and error.
6. Dioner Navarro is a really slow runner. The game did hit extra innings, but if not for slow running Navarro, the game could have ended in the 11th, not the 15th. Navarro lumbered around third as centerfielder Nate McLouth threw a perfect strike to catcher Russell Martin who easily tagged out Navarro sending the game into the 12th…and then the 13th…and then the 14th… and then the 15th until Michael Young’s sac fly drove in Justin Morneau to give the AL the one run win.
7. Never say never. Originally Brandon Webb was not supposed to pitch after going over a 100 pitches on Sunday. But as the game continued on, Webb’s services were needed along with all 62 other players. (Tim Lincecum was the lone player who did not get into the game because of an earlier hospitalization for dehydration and flu-like symptoms.) Later I learned, had the game continued past the 15th, David Wright and J.D. Drew would have come in as pitchers for the AL and NL respectfully. I would have stayed into the 16th for that.
8. Chris Berman is a bunch of fun. When a game runs 4 hours and 50 minutes the fans tend to get a little delirious. Sitting next to the ESPN broadcast booth in left field the fans started screaming for Berman who turned, smiled and waved to the adoring crowd. Steve Philips on the other hand did not get such a nice welcome.
1. Get there when the gates open. I sauntered in around 6 PM, but by then, my usual BP spot in the right field bleachers were covered. In fact I couldn’t even walk up the ramp to get to my usual spot. So I headed over to the visitor’s bullpen side where I easily slid into a space between a couple of kids. In the meantime, I missed most of the AL’s batting practice but did get to catch all of the NL’s. However, the difference between being over on the right side and the left side is about seven rows of covered seats and the bullpen as opposed to just the right field wall. (Proximity kids!) I thought that there wouldn’t be much for me to do if I got there early and that I could get a great spot easily. I was wrong, so if you get a chance go early and hold your position!
2. The Homerun Derby is not neutral. Being at Yankee Stadium it should come as no surprise that the Boston players got the loudest boos. But they weren’t just reserved for Red Sox players, Chase Utley of the Philadelphia Phillies got his own boo paraded which he famous responded with “Boo, F--- You.” So eloquent Chase. And Evan Longoria who got the final vote in spot over Yankee first baseman Jason Giambi was not spared either.
3. New Yorkers are not fans of 3 Door Down. Partly because some people had gotten to Yankee Stadium when the doors opened at 4:30 and partly because everyone was so hyped to watch 8 Major Leaguers shower balls across the stands, people booed 3 Doors Down unmercifully from when they hit the stage to when they left.
4. The popo will chase you down. It’s not like I haven’t seen morons jump over the railing in the bleachers and chase balls that land in the batters eye (the black part of the bleacher’s section.) But I’ve never seen some one try to dodge the popo run down the tunnel and get arrested. That my friends was a first but I’m hoping it’s not a last.
5. Josh Hamilton can drive the ball deep. The crowd went insane for Hamilton who was receiving cheers even before he drove 28 deep in the first round. But when you start hitting things off the Bank of America sign in right field, people tend to get even more excited.
6. If you take a homerun away, 55,000 fans will start chanting “@$$----” If this were a playoff game against the Orioles, then things would have been different, but it wasn’t and some dope grabbed a fly ball out of the air before it had sailed over the right field railing making what could have been a homerun for Josh Hamilton into an out. Luckily it was the first round, so he made up for the loss.
7. How to waste a good hour with filler. The Derby started late due to ESPN’s filler and that continued the whole night. I get having the Aquafina group parade around throwing t-shirts (without a launcher may I add) during TV breaks, but there was loads of other crap that took what should have been a two hour fun fest and made it three hours. Although, even with the filler, it was still an awesome time.
8. If everyone does it, then you don’t look so stupid. As a free gift to fans that were lucky enough to score tickets to the Derby, All-State handed each person their very own lanyard to stuff their tickets into. I have to admit, I loved the idea when I first saw it at a race in Daytona. Gone are the days of scrounging through your pockets or your purse to show your ticket to the usher. It’s just around your neck. However, they aren’t the hippiest things to wear, but when 55,000 other people are doing it, you don’t feel quite as silly.
9. There are actual Rays fans. You always hear about how Tropicana Field is constantly half full on a good night and how fans don’t really support the team. Well times may have changed because of the team’s new fortunes, but I actually saw at least four Rays fans sitting in front of me. They cheered loudly for Longoria and discussed how the team released Josh Hamilton. They even corrected someone who pointed and said “Look, Devil Rays fans.” “No,” one replied, “We’re Rays fans!”
10. Don’t waste all of your energy in the first round. Hamilton made the papers because of his record breaking 28 homers in the first round. But by the second you could tell he was slowing down. He took a few balls to stay loose, but by the third he seemed very tired. Also his 71 year-old pitcher Clay Council seemed a little beat as well. In the end, Morneau saved just enough energy to beat Hamilton, but Josh literally stole the show!
For my photos from the derby, click here.
AL 4, NL 3
1. Where to stand to watch some of the greatest players in major league history. As I had mentioned in the Derby post, I was locked out of my usual right field viewing station, but on Tuesday that turned out to be a very good thing. When I walked up to my seats I noticed players congregating over by the home bullpen to take the AL team photo. I stayed to watch the NL do the same and when I went to walk over to the visitor’s bullpen I realized it would be too packed to actually see anything. So I stayed over in sec. 51. Hanging out, I watched the NL run through batting practice until I heard people start yelling. I ran over to the railing and noticed Willie McCovey sitting in his wheel chair in Monument Park. Then Cal Ripken, Jr. came out to wonder through. I then saw Whitey Ford and Reggie Jackson, Don Sutton, Jim Palmer and George Brett walk into a tent placed in the visitor’s bullpen. When my friend arrived I told her to take pictures while I took video. Unfortunately, my camera had other ideas, but I did witness all of the Hall of Famers that later took the field in the pre-game line up in Monument Park for a moment I will never forget.
2. Canada gets no respect. Poor Canadians who were in attendance and playing in the game, instead of getting their country’s anthem sung by a world famous Canadian, they got an innocuous rendition done by what sounded like a computer with a picture of the Canadian flag on the scoreboard.
3. Water is more expensive at Great Adventure. $4.75 for a bottle of water is kind of expected when you shell out at least $150 for tickets to something. But the water guy had a blast telling people that the water is even more expensive at Great Adventure, oh and if you want your quarter let him know ahead of time, not when he’s walking away. As he said he was “adding entertainment on top of entertainment.”
4. New Yorkers don’t all love Sarah Jessica Parker. Sex and the City fans aren’t exactly the demographic that attends All-Star games, so it was a little odd that she came out to talk about cancer with Sheryl Crow (cancer survivor and singer of the National Anthem) and Commissioner Bud Selig. I get that she’s a true New Yorker but I’m pretty sure if they had replaced SJP with say Megan Fox, the reaction would have been a little different. And when Parker mispronounced Bud Selig’s name the boos turned to laughs. Come on lady, this isn’t a congressional hearing; at least know how to pronounce his name!
5. There are actual Marlins Fans. Well on Monday I discovered there were real live Rays fans and Tuesday I saw some Marlins fans. Even when Dan Uggla put up the astounding three strike out, three error game, the fan still cheered on his second baseman through every at bat and error.
6. Dioner Navarro is a really slow runner. The game did hit extra innings, but if not for slow running Navarro, the game could have ended in the 11th, not the 15th. Navarro lumbered around third as centerfielder Nate McLouth threw a perfect strike to catcher Russell Martin who easily tagged out Navarro sending the game into the 12th…and then the 13th…and then the 14th… and then the 15th until Michael Young’s sac fly drove in Justin Morneau to give the AL the one run win.
7. Never say never. Originally Brandon Webb was not supposed to pitch after going over a 100 pitches on Sunday. But as the game continued on, Webb’s services were needed along with all 62 other players. (Tim Lincecum was the lone player who did not get into the game because of an earlier hospitalization for dehydration and flu-like symptoms.) Later I learned, had the game continued past the 15th, David Wright and J.D. Drew would have come in as pitchers for the AL and NL respectfully. I would have stayed into the 16th for that.
8. Chris Berman is a bunch of fun. When a game runs 4 hours and 50 minutes the fans tend to get a little delirious. Sitting next to the ESPN broadcast booth in left field the fans started screaming for Berman who turned, smiled and waved to the adoring crowd. Steve Philips on the other hand did not get such a nice welcome.
9. You can still buy a hot dog and soda a 1 AM. I figured after the 10th inning they must have stopped selling consessions, but then I forget that baseball and the all-star game are also a business. Around 1 some kid came up with two hot dogs and 2 sodas. Although I'm not too sure I'd want to eat a hot dog that probably was made around the 7th inning. But when you're hungry...
10. There is such a thing as a second 7th inning stretch. Since I have never attended a game that has gone 15 innings, I learned that come the 14th you get a second seventh inning stretch with a singing of “Take me out to the Ballgame.” We also got a second helping of “Cotton Eye Joe.” I will say this; the Stadium itself did a great job of keeping fans amused in between innings all the way through the 1:37 AM finishing time.
For my photos from the All-Star game, click here.
10. There is such a thing as a second 7th inning stretch. Since I have never attended a game that has gone 15 innings, I learned that come the 14th you get a second seventh inning stretch with a singing of “Take me out to the Ballgame.” We also got a second helping of “Cotton Eye Joe.” I will say this; the Stadium itself did a great job of keeping fans amused in between innings all the way through the 1:37 AM finishing time.
For my photos from the All-Star game, click here.
(Thanks Niki for Derby photo)
It's been fun blogging with you,
Kate
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