a day of baseball and fans of Angels
Yesterday was crazy, I need to write about it...
My good buddy Scott tipped me to a autograph signing in the Anaheim area. I wasn't sure that I wanted to drive an hour to get a few Angels to sign, but combining that event with the fact that the Indians were in town and my aunt Suze suggested I be a supporter, my wife being out of town, and my recent fascination with catching baseballs at games (check out this guy -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsF0mPONeZc ) all in all I thought it would make for a fun day.
Anyway, the morning started out kind of bad - I arrived at the furniture store an hour before Howie Kendrick, Jered Weaver, and Reggie Willits were to arrive however the line already extended down past two other stores, around the corner, and behind the building. I would say I was probably about person 1200 or so in the line and I was an hour early! Incredibly people continued to arrive and it didn't take long to realize that it wasn't going to be possible for everyone present to get what they came for.
After three hours of waiting I was a few hundred feet from the store entrance. Unfortunately that was about the time when the doors closed for good. The store owners understood that they suddenly had a ton of unhappy people on their hands and started handing out a ton of free stuff including tickets to a future game - so I guess my pain was not all in vain.
From there I headed over to the stadium to see if I could get some autographs the old fashioned way. I checked the players parking lot and found out that most players were already inside. I did see a few others drive in, and one player (former Blue Jay, Mr. Justin Speier) even pulled over to sign my ball.
Once 3:30 rolled around I headed in and began watching batting practice. Some people think that the posted time of a baseball game is when you should arrive but a lot happens in the two hours before then. Fans get the chance to be up close to their favorite players and you get to watch batting practice take place. It's also a great time to try and snag an official major league baseball and get more autographs.
I've been close on several ocasions, but yesterday I actually snagged a home run ball during batting practice! It even has some great green smudges from where it banged off the Angel Stadium seats.
The game was fun too. I changed seats several times and didn't sit in the seat I bought for more than an inning. I wore my Indians jersey and the visitors won 6-1 making the team I'm cheering for two for two when I'm there. Don't tell any Angels fans! All in all a great day.
My good buddy Scott tipped me to a autograph signing in the Anaheim area. I wasn't sure that I wanted to drive an hour to get a few Angels to sign, but combining that event with the fact that the Indians were in town and my aunt Suze suggested I be a supporter, my wife being out of town, and my recent fascination with catching baseballs at games (check out this guy -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsF0mPONeZc ) all in all I thought it would make for a fun day.
Anyway, the morning started out kind of bad - I arrived at the furniture store an hour before Howie Kendrick, Jered Weaver, and Reggie Willits were to arrive however the line already extended down past two other stores, around the corner, and behind the building. I would say I was probably about person 1200 or so in the line and I was an hour early! Incredibly people continued to arrive and it didn't take long to realize that it wasn't going to be possible for everyone present to get what they came for.
After three hours of waiting I was a few hundred feet from the store entrance. Unfortunately that was about the time when the doors closed for good. The store owners understood that they suddenly had a ton of unhappy people on their hands and started handing out a ton of free stuff including tickets to a future game - so I guess my pain was not all in vain.
From there I headed over to the stadium to see if I could get some autographs the old fashioned way. I checked the players parking lot and found out that most players were already inside. I did see a few others drive in, and one player (former Blue Jay, Mr. Justin Speier) even pulled over to sign my ball.
Once 3:30 rolled around I headed in and began watching batting practice. Some people think that the posted time of a baseball game is when you should arrive but a lot happens in the two hours before then. Fans get the chance to be up close to their favorite players and you get to watch batting practice take place. It's also a great time to try and snag an official major league baseball and get more autographs.
I've been close on several ocasions, but yesterday I actually snagged a home run ball during batting practice! It even has some great green smudges from where it banged off the Angel Stadium seats.
The game was fun too. I changed seats several times and didn't sit in the seat I bought for more than an inning. I wore my Indians jersey and the visitors won 6-1 making the team I'm cheering for two for two when I'm there. Don't tell any Angels fans! All in all a great day.
Labels: angels, autographs, baseball, indians
posted by ben wideman @ 8:05 PM
1 Comments:
At 11:45 AM,
Michele Patterson said…
Ben Wideman! This is Michele (Johnston) Patterson. I was Kendra's roommate at EMU freshman year. I can't believe I somehow found your blog! Blog world is a crazy place, for sure.
So, you and Meredith got married! How awesome. Tell her I said hello.
Our family has a blog, but we have it on the private setting. If you send me your email address, I'll add you to our list.
Glad you are enjoying California!
-Michele
jeremymichele@gmail.com
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