Batter up? But this is football season
Are you ready for some … baseball?
Yeah, I said it. Baseball. Sure we’re deep in the heart of football season. Football is my favorite sport. By the time you read this, the Houston Astros will have had their last out for the season and the Sugar Land Skeeters will still be months away from their inaugural season.
Last weekend, however, I got to experience the Big Leagues like never before. Being a native Coloradan, it was hard to resist when the Rockies came to town. My two favorite teams went head-to-head in a meaningless series of games that only served to drive each of them lower in the rankings (they split the four-game series). Sad as that may be, it didn’t really matter to me.
With special thanks to HCN photographers Patric Schneider and Juan DeLeon, I was able to photograph the games on Thursday and Saturday evenings. It’s one thing to watch the game from the stands. It’s quite another to experience it next to the dugouts. With tickets that I can usually afford for ballgames, I’m close enough to the action that you can read the numbers on the jerseys and sometimes even see the ball.
From the photography pits, not only can you see the numbers, but you can see the stitching on them. You’re close enough to see the stains and patches on the uniforms, smell the Icy-Hot, hear the clicks when the players pop their gum and see the sweat on their faces. I got to listen in on a few conversations and even had to duck a couple foul balls. That’s not something the average person gets to experience from the stands.
It was very interesting to see the difference in attitudes of the various players. Even though both teams had significantly bigger numbers in the “L” column than the “W” column, the players still competed with the intensity of a contender. The minor league call-ups were clearly enjoying their moment in the sun … er, under the lights with the roof closed, at Minute Maid Park. The games seemed to matter to some of the veterans. That competitive drive never seems to rest in a professional athlete. It was the players who are sitting the bubble for a return to the roster next year that had a laser-sharp intensity.
One of the players I really enjoyed watching was Juan Altuve. The second baseman is the only player on the Astros roster shorter than me. He is also about the same age as my oldest child. I felt my age when I realized I am old enough to be the father of a Major League player. Altuve was always smiling and very friendly and cordial. I think this kid is going places.
In the games I photographed, I saw some of the best and a lot of the worst professional baseball I’ve ever seen. I’ve watched a lot of baseball, mostly at Coors Field in Denver. (I once worked very briefly as a ticket taker for the Rockies and even then never had the kind of access to the game that I had in Houston.)
It is very disappointing to see the Astros finish as the worst team in the Majors with triple-digit losses. On the upside, there are many advantages to a lousy season. For one, the Astros were practically giving away tickets just to get butts in seats. Merchandise was slashed in price. Another advantage is player access. Without huge demand, it’s easy to get close and get autographs from many of the players. And when the time comes and the Astros are a contender again, you can honestly say you were with them through even the worst of times. For me personally, if the Astros were gearing up to play in October, there is no way I would have scored press credentials.
An unexpected bonus came Saturday evening when it was verified for the record books that the game was the 200,000th regular season game in MLB history.
Still, any fan worth his salt would give all that up all those bonuses to root for a winner. Perhaps now that baseball is over we can fully turn our attention to football and for the first time root for a winner with the Houston Texans. I’d love nothing more than to see my Denver Broncos go all the way, but this season looks more like they’ll be jockeying for a good draft pick.
The Texans might actually give fans a reason to stand up and cheer this year. That would certainly be a grand slam for longsuffering Houston sports fans.
Yeah, I said it. Baseball. Sure we’re deep in the heart of football season. Football is my favorite sport. By the time you read this, the Houston Astros will have had their last out for the season and the Sugar Land Skeeters will still be months away from their inaugural season.
Last weekend, however, I got to experience the Big Leagues like never before. Being a native Coloradan, it was hard to resist when the Rockies came to town. My two favorite teams went head-to-head in a meaningless series of games that only served to drive each of them lower in the rankings (they split the four-game series). Sad as that may be, it didn’t really matter to me.
With special thanks to HCN photographers Patric Schneider and Juan DeLeon, I was able to photograph the games on Thursday and Saturday evenings. It’s one thing to watch the game from the stands. It’s quite another to experience it next to the dugouts. With tickets that I can usually afford for ballgames, I’m close enough to the action that you can read the numbers on the jerseys and sometimes even see the ball.
From the photography pits, not only can you see the numbers, but you can see the stitching on them. You’re close enough to see the stains and patches on the uniforms, smell the Icy-Hot, hear the clicks when the players pop their gum and see the sweat on their faces. I got to listen in on a few conversations and even had to duck a couple foul balls. That’s not something the average person gets to experience from the stands.
It was very interesting to see the difference in attitudes of the various players. Even though both teams had significantly bigger numbers in the “L” column than the “W” column, the players still competed with the intensity of a contender. The minor league call-ups were clearly enjoying their moment in the sun … er, under the lights with the roof closed, at Minute Maid Park. The games seemed to matter to some of the veterans. That competitive drive never seems to rest in a professional athlete. It was the players who are sitting the bubble for a return to the roster next year that had a laser-sharp intensity.
One of the players I really enjoyed watching was Juan Altuve. The second baseman is the only player on the Astros roster shorter than me. He is also about the same age as my oldest child. I felt my age when I realized I am old enough to be the father of a Major League player. Altuve was always smiling and very friendly and cordial. I think this kid is going places.
In the games I photographed, I saw some of the best and a lot of the worst professional baseball I’ve ever seen. I’ve watched a lot of baseball, mostly at Coors Field in Denver. (I once worked very briefly as a ticket taker for the Rockies and even then never had the kind of access to the game that I had in Houston.)
It is very disappointing to see the Astros finish as the worst team in the Majors with triple-digit losses. On the upside, there are many advantages to a lousy season. For one, the Astros were practically giving away tickets just to get butts in seats. Merchandise was slashed in price. Another advantage is player access. Without huge demand, it’s easy to get close and get autographs from many of the players. And when the time comes and the Astros are a contender again, you can honestly say you were with them through even the worst of times. For me personally, if the Astros were gearing up to play in October, there is no way I would have scored press credentials.
An unexpected bonus came Saturday evening when it was verified for the record books that the game was the 200,000th regular season game in MLB history.
Still, any fan worth his salt would give all that up all those bonuses to root for a winner. Perhaps now that baseball is over we can fully turn our attention to football and for the first time root for a winner with the Houston Texans. I’d love nothing more than to see my Denver Broncos go all the way, but this season looks more like they’ll be jockeying for a good draft pick.
The Texans might actually give fans a reason to stand up and cheer this year. That would certainly be a grand slam for longsuffering Houston sports fans.
posted by Joe Southern | 11:08 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home