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I don't keep a blog or anything, but felt like writing tonight because I'm feeling talkative. The game tonight was the first Pirates game I've caught since they moved to PNC Park. I'm a White Sox fan first and foremost, but have also rooted for the Pirates (being they're the "local" team) since I was a kid. They're my NL favorite, if you will. A special thanks to FCBer mstng99tim for being the middle man and grabbing/mailing my tickets for me.
It was about a two hour drive there, and it was raining for about three quarters of it, so I was worried that there was going to be a rain delay, or a cancellation if it kept up through the evening. As we closed in on Pittsburgh, the rain stopped and it was about 5 degrees warmer than back home.
On the way through the gates, we got our free shirt and poster for the night, and headed to our seats in center field. It was pretty cold, especially when the wind blew. It felt more like a fall football game than a spring baseball game.
Boy did the crowd boo Jason Giambi tonight when he would come to the plate after doing that damage in the first (three run shot). I love the sound of a hearty boo in a stadium because it sounds pretty cool, plus adds a little more life into things. I really enjoyed that thunderous boo because, to put it bluntly, I highly dislike Giambi.
My night was partially ruined by Rockies centerfielder Dexter Fowler. How, you ask? In between pitches, I just glanced around the stadium to take in the sights of the ballpark. This of course included some times I'd look in his direction. On at least four of those occasions, he was either playing with his balls or picking his ass (and I mean hand in the pants picking, not just tugging over the pants). I believe he cranked one out, and I don't mean a home run.
Tabata's home run landed in the bushes maybe 15 feet from where I was sitting. I've never sat in the outfield, so this was the first time I watched a ball travel from homeplate towards me for a home run. It really made me feel like a kid with how I cheered for, neigh, willed the ball to keep going, hoping it was a home run, and watching it come closer and closer.
I'd have to imagine my eyes were the size of dinner plates and I had to of been sporting a grin from ear to ear the whole time, and I erupted with the rest of the crowd as soon as the ball landed. As I was cheering with the rest of the section, I about soiled myself when the fireworks went off. They were right behind us and it caught me off guard :lol:. What a great memory that home run gave me; just plain awesome.
We ended up having a group of five kids sitting beside and in front of us that thought they were at a barpark rather than a ballpark, because they were pounding down beers like it was the eve of prohibition. At $7.50 a can, I think they single handedly paid McCutchen's salary for the season. Every half inning, they'd run and grab two more. Not during the break in the inning though, oh no, but during the actual game. Two of them were eventually ejected because one was buying beer for the other, who was underaged :benson:.
For the price of one ticket, I got one and a half games worth of baseball because of extra innings. Can't complain about that! When it was the end of the first and the Buccos were down 3-0, I was a little worried that we were in for a repeat of the previous night's game.
The Pirates pulled together and took the game the distance...and finished with a win. Pedro barehanding the ball and getting the out, that most likely saved the game, is worth of a SportsCenter top ten. Later, as if the home run wasn't enough, Tabata cranked out a double to drive in the winning run. It just seemed fitting that he would be the one to get the walk off hit after going yard earlier.
If you made it the whole way through this post that turned into a full blown article, I applaud you, and hope you enjoyed my tale.
Grabbed a screenshot of the video on the Pirates site of Tabata's home run. I circled myself. I'm the guy who appears to blend in with the pole behind him, but that's what I look like after a Pennsvylanian winter
. Click the image for full size, as it was a little big for the thread.
It was about a two hour drive there, and it was raining for about three quarters of it, so I was worried that there was going to be a rain delay, or a cancellation if it kept up through the evening. As we closed in on Pittsburgh, the rain stopped and it was about 5 degrees warmer than back home.
On the way through the gates, we got our free shirt and poster for the night, and headed to our seats in center field. It was pretty cold, especially when the wind blew. It felt more like a fall football game than a spring baseball game.
Boy did the crowd boo Jason Giambi tonight when he would come to the plate after doing that damage in the first (three run shot). I love the sound of a hearty boo in a stadium because it sounds pretty cool, plus adds a little more life into things. I really enjoyed that thunderous boo because, to put it bluntly, I highly dislike Giambi.
My night was partially ruined by Rockies centerfielder Dexter Fowler. How, you ask? In between pitches, I just glanced around the stadium to take in the sights of the ballpark. This of course included some times I'd look in his direction. On at least four of those occasions, he was either playing with his balls or picking his ass (and I mean hand in the pants picking, not just tugging over the pants). I believe he cranked one out, and I don't mean a home run.
Tabata's home run landed in the bushes maybe 15 feet from where I was sitting. I've never sat in the outfield, so this was the first time I watched a ball travel from homeplate towards me for a home run. It really made me feel like a kid with how I cheered for, neigh, willed the ball to keep going, hoping it was a home run, and watching it come closer and closer.
I'd have to imagine my eyes were the size of dinner plates and I had to of been sporting a grin from ear to ear the whole time, and I erupted with the rest of the crowd as soon as the ball landed. As I was cheering with the rest of the section, I about soiled myself when the fireworks went off. They were right behind us and it caught me off guard :lol:. What a great memory that home run gave me; just plain awesome.
We ended up having a group of five kids sitting beside and in front of us that thought they were at a barpark rather than a ballpark, because they were pounding down beers like it was the eve of prohibition. At $7.50 a can, I think they single handedly paid McCutchen's salary for the season. Every half inning, they'd run and grab two more. Not during the break in the inning though, oh no, but during the actual game. Two of them were eventually ejected because one was buying beer for the other, who was underaged :benson:.
For the price of one ticket, I got one and a half games worth of baseball because of extra innings. Can't complain about that! When it was the end of the first and the Buccos were down 3-0, I was a little worried that we were in for a repeat of the previous night's game.
The Pirates pulled together and took the game the distance...and finished with a win. Pedro barehanding the ball and getting the out, that most likely saved the game, is worth of a SportsCenter top ten. Later, as if the home run wasn't enough, Tabata cranked out a double to drive in the winning run. It just seemed fitting that he would be the one to get the walk off hit after going yard earlier.
If you made it the whole way through this post that turned into a full blown article, I applaud you, and hope you enjoyed my tale.
Grabbed a screenshot of the video on the Pirates site of Tabata's home run. I circled myself. I'm the guy who appears to blend in with the pole behind him, but that's what I look like after a Pennsvylanian winter
. Click the image for full size, as it was a little big for the thread.
