Results tagged ‘ tigers ’
UPDATE – All the missing posts from April 14, 15, 20, 21, 22 & 26
I finally got ball #5000 but that’s not all, it was an awesome day at the ballpark!!
The day started off with me arriving at the ballpark around 1:30. A little before 2 Carlos Guillen walked up and I got him to sign a ticket stub from last season. Around 2:15 or so the first team bus pulled in and went around to the back of the stadium. The buses usually always go down the ramp so it is nearly impossible to get any autographs from players getting off the bus. I walked around just to see if anyone else had gone in the back and found that only Scott(?) Sizemore had gone in that way. I then walked around to the Angels player parking lot area and saw that there was about 10 people back there. Usually any more than 5 people and the players tend not to stop and sign. At this point I decided to walk back around to the front and what a great choice that was!!
all of the sudden about 8 people walked out the gate. At the head of the pack was Jim Leyland, manager of the Tigers. So I pulled out a ball and got him to sign it!�
8/25/09 – Disneyland and Tigers vs. Angels
Today was my birthday and it turned out to be one of the best birthdays I have had in a long time! I woke up around 9:30 in the morning and we sat around the house. It’s so nice to have time off from work! We decided that around Noon we would take off and head off to Disneyland.
For those of you that don’t know Disneyland is giving guests a FREE ticket to any Disney park for their birthday this year. On Monday at the game I got a ball signed by Torii Hunter and traded that to my friend for a second ticket to Disneyland for my wife so I didn’t have to go alone.
We got to Disneyland around 12:45 after running some errands. Once we got in the park we headed straight for It’s A Small World. Why? Because it is a nice air conditioned ride and it was 90 degrees and humid!
From there in the next 2 1/2 hours we walked around the park and went on Pirates of the Carribean, Haunted Mansion, Pinnochio, Snow White and then we saw the Honey I Shrunk the Audience show as well as going in the Innoventions thing.
At a little before 4pm we started to head out of the park. Yes, I was thinking I could squeeze it so we would go to the game and make BP. As we got towards the main gate we noticed a place to sign up for a credit card so we walked over to see what the FREE item was. You could get a Mickey Mouse blanket or a $10 Disney Gift card. We signed up, got the gift cards and then proceeded to go eat inside the park. After we were done eating we left Disneyland and headed on our way to Angels stadium.
So far so good, 2 people into Disneyland and 2 meals for a total of $16 (parking and a little over the $20 gift cards for food). Now it was off to Angels stadium where we hoped to get a couple of the $5 summer special tickets. As we walked up to the stadium the wife took this goofy picture of me.
We got up to the ticket windows and asked about the $5 tickets and there were NONE LEFT!! The cheapest ticket was $20 and there was no way we were going to pay $40 to get in the park. So we walked away from the window and I was going to call a friend to see if he had an extra ticket or two. Just as I started to call him a woman sitting on the planter asked if we needed tickets and we said we are just looking for the cheap seats. She said well FREE is cheap isn’t it? She had her season tickets with her but only came to get the coasters that they were giving away. She said she could get us in but we would not get the coasters. Ummmmm …….. OK …………getting into a game FREE is always good with or without coasters.
So now we were in the stadium and Angels BP was just ending. During the first group of Tigers BP there were a few balls hit into the right field stands but nothing close to me. There had been a few balls hit along the wall so I walked down there to see where they were. Shortly after I got down there Magglio Ordonez walked by and I asked him for one of the balls. He looked up and tossed one right to me for BALL #1
We moved over to the Left Field Pavilion section for the remainder of the Tigers BP session. There were a couple of balls hit into the section but nothing really close to me. In the meantime Andy Van Slyke was hitting balls to the outfielders against the left field wall. Occasionally there was a ball that went over the fence. In fact the bullpen had about 15 balls in it. This is where BP took a bizzare turn ……………
Van Slyke hits a ball that clears the wall, it then hits the astroturf home plate area in the bullpen and bounces in my direction. I try to make the grab as the ball is coming down but it hits the bullpen fence and falls to the steps. As I reach down to grab it some jackass puts his foot on top of it. He NEVER tried to pick it up he just put his foot on top of it. The only problem with that was that my hand was around the ball when he stepped on it!
If he even made an attempt to pick the ball up I might have even let it go but the guy was a complete jackass about it. Saying he wasn’t going to move his foot and then said I was the idiot. He said he was getting it for his kid who had just gotten a ball from the usher in the area. There was simply no way I was going to let go of this ball especially since I am raising money for MADD with every ball I grab this season!!
Eventually he moved his foot just enough for me to roll my hand between his foot and the ball so I could roll his foot off of it. He was pretty lucky that the stand-off only lasted only a minute because my wife says AND I QUOTE, “I was about to come down there and to KICK HIM IN THE NUTZ!!” She added later that had it been a kid that I was fighting with she would have kicked me in the nutz! That was the adventure of BALL #2.
We stayed for the first 4 1/2 innings of the game and then decided to take off and head home. It was a pretty good day for sure ………………..
2 tickets to Disneyland cost us 1 Torii Hunter autographed ball
Dinner for 2 cost us $4.00 after using the $20 in gift cards
We did spend $20 on parking between Disneyland and the stadium
So my entire birthday cost us $24!! WHAT A BARGAIN!!
It looks as if I will be going out to bake in the sun on Wednesday for the day game!
Unlikely they will take BP but a game HR could be a chance!
By the way ……. I have the best WIFE in the World!!
August 24, 2009 – Angels vs. Tigers6 Balls – 6 Autographs
Today would have been Nick Adenhart’s 23 birthday!
Today I left for the ballpark around 1:00pm and got there right around 1:30. I went up and bought a ticket for today which was $5 with using the password , SUMMER. I also bought a ticket for Thursday which was $3 using the password, Vlad. Thursday’s game is the game that was cancelled after the accident that killed Nick, Courtney Stewart & Henry Pearson.
After I picked up the tickets I decided to go out back and get some more Angel autographs on the team ball that I have started. The first guys to walk up to the ramp in the left field corner were Robb Quinlan and Kendry Morales. Both of these guys were nice enough to sign for the 7-10 of us that were there when they arrived.
Shortly after that it was over to the players parking lot. Kevin Jepsen came in and signed for everyone and shortly after that Jason Bulger came in next and signed for everyone as well. Then it was time for Torii Hunter to come in and as he does a couple of times each homestand he too stopped and signed for everyone that was waiting. There was close to 30 people out there when he came in and he smiled and signed everything! I got him to sweet-spot a ball that I am trading with a friend for a park hopper ticket to Disneyland for tomorrow.
For those of you that don’t know, tomorrow is not only Gary Matthews Jr.’s birthday but it is MY BIRTHDAY TOO!
The only 2 guys left to come in at this point were Bobby Abreu and Jered Weaver. I figured that since it was now close to 3:45 that Abreu would be in shortly. I was also sure that Weaver would be close behind but then again maybe not since he was the starter tonight. A few minutes later Bobby drove up and stopped to sign and like the others earlier he signed for everyone!
After this I was ready to walk over to McDonalds for a restroom break and to get a drink. While I was there a Father Son duo that was getting autographs broke the news to me that Weaver came up as I walked away ………. go figure!
After McDonalds it was time to head back to the Stadium. I got back to the stadium just as Joe Morgan (ESPN) was walking in. Morgan signed for a decent sized group of people which was cool to see. As I was sitting under the Big Hats I saw a black Lincoln Town Car pull up. A small group of people got out and I recognized 1 of the people, it was Frank Robinson. I knew better than to go ask him for an autograph. Frank is a guy that is simply mean. He rarely signs anywhere or for anyone, at least in my experiences with him. Hell, my father chased him for 3 years and he had field access back in the day. Not a big deal, I have no desire to obtain a FR autograph regardless.
Now it was time to get in line for the park to open. It had already been a big day but I had a feeling that it was going to get better. While I was in line I saw Matt (http://bloggingboutbaseball.mlblogs.com) and his wife of 3 months, Michelle. Rob another of the regular Ballhawks walked up about 2 minutes before the gates opened as well.
So the gates opened and I ran to the gate, but wait, I’m missing something!! I left my damn glove sitting on the garbage can!! Had to turn around and go grab it and I was still one of the first ones into the park. They handed us Home Depot Mystery gift cards and I ended up with 5 of these by nights end! I got out to my favorite spot in the right field corner and it was time for the fun to begin!
The first ball I grabbed was a one hopper into the seats off the bat of Chone Figgins. I watched it go off of the top of a girls glove and then it rolled through the seats. The ball basically rolled right to me and I scooped it up! BALL#1
The next one came shortly after that and it was another ball that bounced around in the seats although this one was hit on the fly by Kendry Morales and then ricocheted all over the place. I scooped it up for BALL #2 of the day!
BALL #3 was a grass cutter that was smoked to the opposite field by Angels catcher Mike Napoli. It slowly rolled across the warning track and I leaned over the wall and grabbed it!
A few minutes later Angels BP was over and in just the first 30 minutes the ballpark was open I had 3 balls. When the Angels were done I decided to go up into the Right Field Pavilion seats and see what would happen. In the first group there were a handful of lefties and Clete Thomas was one of them. He ripped a shot that went about 7 rows into the RF Pavilion seats and bounced around. I got to it and trapped in between my feet then bent down and picked it up. BALL #4
After this group of hitters finished up I decided to go around to a spot that I have never been during BP before, the left field pavilion seats! I went there because Ordonez, Cabrera and a couple of other guys were crushing balls into the seats there last time Detroit was in. This time however it was a different story, they only got one ball into the seats and it bounced in!
A ball was hit close to the bullpen and I same #36 Edwin Jackson walking towards the ball. I yelled out his name a handful of times and he turned and tossed the ball right to me. It was a little bit short but I managed to make the grab for Ball #5
There were a couple of guys near me that had been yelling at a pitcher that was standing in left field during BP. I am still not sure if he was trying to get a ball to them or not but when I chucked it up into the seats it went 4 rows over their heads. I ran up and grabbed it and to my surprise it was an INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE BASEBALL!! Damn times must be tough if teams are using minor league balls! That was BALL #6 and the last ball I would grab for the night.
Bobby Abreu did homer late in the game but it was 25 feet to far to the right and into the open area between the corner and the left field pavilion.
Tomorrow it is looking as if I will be headed to DISNEYLAND for my birthday since you get a free ticket on your B-day. A guy that I work with, Jeremy, traded me a 1 day park hopper pass that he had for my Torii Hunter autographed ball. That was cool because it would have been pretty boring going by myself. This way I get to take the wife and enjoy the big 40 with her!
It is unlikely that I will make the game tomorrow. I might try to sneak away to go to the day game on Wednesday but then I will have to miss Fridays game because of an agreement I made with the wife 
Here is a picture of the 6 baseballs that I caught tonight.
Thanks for reading and don’t forget to check out BASEBALLS 4 MADD!!!
With tonights balls caught we surpassed the $600 mark and are on our way to $1000!!
A pledge can help save a life! It can be a penny or a dollar ….. everything helps!!
Upcoming milestones and more …….
As of today I am just 12 balls away from 2900 regular season MLB balls & 46 balls away from 5,000 total balls caught at professional baseball games over the past 33 years.
I should easily reach the 2900 mark early this week. The Angels are home and most with me being off of work I should get out to a few games. If I would have had a decent couple of days last week I might have had a chance at 5000 this week. I still might have a shot at it however I try not to BEG for balls and I can’t and WON’T us DEVICES (aka Glove trick) to get baseballs.
So we will just have to see what happens this week.
BASEBALLS 4 MADD update …………
I will be updating the totals and pledges this week for Baseballs 4 MADD. We are about to pass the $600 mark and we still have new pledges coming in!
Hopefully we can get over the $1,000 by the end of the week!
SATURDAY AUGUST 29th …………… Jon Wihilte, the lone survivor of the crash that killed Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart, Courtney Stewart and Henry Pearson, will throw out the first pitch at the Angels game vs. Oakland.
For me this is a big night because I missed Jon Wilhite night with the Orange County Flyers. I would like to finally get the chance to talk to Jon and his family. I am pretty sure that they are aware of Baseballs 4 MADD as there is a pledge from someone with the last name of Wilhite.
I lost a friend to a drunk driving crash when I was a kid, I also worked in baseball and even worked for a team that played on the same field that Jon’s college team played on. When the accident happened, only a mile from my home, this was the least that I could do. I still have a hard time when I drive past the crash site and I hope that anyone that goes out to drink will simply think before they get into a car and drive home!
Angels vs. Detroit – 4/21/09 – 5 Balls, 3 Autographs
Ok here we go ……………
The day started out with me getting to the ballpark around 12:45 in the afternoon. I figured that I would easily be able to get a few autographs outside underneath the giant baseball caps. After waiting about an hour Ramon Santiago, tigers shortstop, came in and he gladly signed for everyone.
Shortly after Santiago came in I ran into an old Ballhawking friend, Roger, who was getting tickets for Saturdays game. We spent almost an hour talking about how it use to be at the ballpark. How we miss the old family section seats that were in left field when the park was used for both football and baseball. We also share some of our favorite stories about getting baseballs as well.
Around 3pm Roger had to take off and I need to get something to drink so I walked over to McDonals. By the way no one else came in the front while we were talking. Every taxi, town car or bus went to the back of the stadium. When I got back I found out that I had missed nothing except Magglio Ordonez stiffing everyone on his way in.
I got in line to go into the park around 4:40 and was second in my line to get it. Once I got inside I took up my usual spot down the right field line. I was excited to be there with the new glove. A few balls came my way but the bounced off the wall in the wrong spot and bad angles and I couldn’t get to them.
Finally Gary Matthews JR. got in the cage and pulled a ball down the right field line. I leaned over the wall and scooped up the ball. As I was picking it up I noticed that it was a commemorative baseball. Of course all I could think of were the Yankees and Mets balls from last year but it turns out that it was a Metrodome Commemorative ball from the Angels series there last week. BALL #1
Shortly after that Matthews hit another ball right at me on the fly. If you have ever been down the right field line during BP at Anaheim you will know that the sun is right in your face. Thankfully I could block the sun with my glove and I made the catch on the fly. My first ball caught on the fly with the new glove. This ball was also a commemorative Metrodome Baseball BALL #2
The Tigers were now on the field taking BP and the pitchers were warming up down the right field line. There were a few Tiger fans down there and a couple of them had Curtis Granderson jerseys on. The people had one of the pitchers yell at him and he came over and signed autographs. I got him on a ball that I brought for autographs.
After that it was quiet for a little while and then Cabrera stepped in and as usual in the first round players hit to the opposite field. Cabrera hit one that bounced off the wall and rolled right to my spot so I leaned over and made the grab. BALL #3
Just after that Granderson was up and hit a ball over everyones head along the wall. It went up about 8 rows and two guys went about 2 rows to far above it. So I went about 4 rows below where it went in and it rolled down to me in the seats I did give this ball away to a little girl that was standing next to me with her father. BALL #4
Now onto the game …………..
In the first inning Curtis Granderson came up and hit the 3rd pitch of the game just over the wall in centerfield for a HOME RUN!! An usher named Chris ran down behind the wall and picked up the ball and returned it to the Tiger Bullpen. I was sitting in the left field corner and ran around to see if I could get one of the pitchers to give me the ball. I went down by the bullpen and motioned for the guy to toss me the ball. The pitcher next to him said, “Can’t thats the HR ball!” …. NO **** ….. that’s why I want it!
Anyway, the pitcher that had it played with it for a bit and then put it in his pocket. I kept my eye on him basically the entire game and every time he got up the ball was still in his pocket. The game went on and in the top of the 9th I made my way around to the Tigers dugout. I was hoping to get the line up card but it disappeared right after the game.
A couple minutes after the game ended the pitchers came in. I spotted the pitcher that had put the Granderson HR ball in his pocket earlier. As he was walking towards the dugout he pulled a ball out of his pocket. As soon as I saw this I held up my glove in the hopes that he would throw it to me. He spotted me and tossed it right to me. I grabbed it out of my glove and saw that it was a game ball. While I am 90% sure that this in fact was the Granderson HR ball obviously I can’t be positive nor can I count it as game HR #100. It was still pretty cool to get this ball!! In the pitcture the Granderson is the bottom ball. BALL # 5 – Side note on this ball – sometimes teams will used balls rubbed up like game balls in the bullpens. For those of you that have caught home run balls you may have noticed that the balls are a little lopsided or part of the seams were flattened out by where the ball was hit. That was the case with this ball, the seams were flattened a little from where a bat obviously hit the ball.
The two autographed balls in the picture above were ones that I brough with me for autographs which brings me to the final story of the night …………..
After getting stiffed by Ordonez during BP for an autograph we decided to wait after the game. Ordonez was one of the first guys out and he left the park with agent Scott Boras. As they first started out of the ballpark Mags said he was not going to sign anything. Many people went away but other followed. As we walked and walked and walked he gradually signed things. I was the 2nd to last person to get him to sign but it was HUGE for me. I had a 2009 World Baseball Classic ball that I wanted him to sign. Here is the ball and autograph …..
Overall a GREAT NIGHT at the Ballpark!!
2009 Balls Caught
WBC Balls 6
MLB Balls 8
MiLB Balls 0
Total Balls 14
Games Attended 2009 = 4 (2 WBC)
Career Totals
MLB Balls (RS) 2,837
MLB Balls (ST) 923
MLB Total 3,760
MiLB Balls 1,122
32 year total — 4,882
MLB Game HR balls* – 99
*includes MLB regular season, playoffs, world series and WBC games
Old ticket stubs & programs and other fun stuff!
My mom was cleaning out some old stuff and came across some old ticket stubs and programs. I have put them up for sale in my online store
http://mlballhawk.ecrater.com – or just click on the pictures at the top of my MLBlog!
You can email me at mlballhawk@gmail.com if you have any questions!
Recent Comments