Baseball Memories

My grandfather took me to my first ball game-Cubs and Pirates-1949. I was a great Ralph Kiner fan.
Took my son to Astrodome games between Astros and Braves, went 16 innings. Lemke hit HR to win it for Atlanta.

 

I wasn't very old when Dad took me to Crosley Field in Cincy. Seems we almost always ended up behind one of those support beams!

 

My brother took me to my first baseball game at old Comiskey to see the White Sox play the Detroit Tigers.

 

My dad took us to Atlanta where we saw Hank Aaron hit home run #500.

 

My uncle, a supervisor with a NASA related agency in Houston, took me to my first major league game in 1970. Joe Morgan, seen on ESPN's Sunday night games telecast, hit a homerun as the Astros beat San Diego, 4 to 1.

 

1997...only 2 outs needed...Jose Mesa comes into the game and looks like a deer caught in headlights...Charles Nagy gives up the winning hit...Indians lose game 7 and the World Series to the Florida Marlins. This will haunt me until the Indians win a world series.

 

PastorSBC...hope the Tigers won that game.

My dad never was able to take me to a game when I was young. But he was able to take me to the junior A "Windsor Spitfires" hockey games and the first time he took me he won a pair of skates in the intermission shoot out so that was cool. Now...in August I am taking him to see the Tigers play the Red Sox so that will be our first baseball game. Lookin forward to it.

 

Them dang support beams at old Tiger Stadium! lol
Do you like Comerica better?

 

Yeah I know what you mean about the nostalgia and history. Comerica will develop its own in time though. Yes every seat at Comerica is a good seat...I just hate the lack of shade in most spots. There was more spots for shade at Tiger Stadium. This is why I mostly like night games.

Hope it's a great game tonight. Did you go to the Yankees game a couple weeks ago? I had a great time and the Tigers won 10-2!

 

Who's your favourite player? Mine is Nate Robertson. Did you get to that thing back in May where he and Maroth spoke and shared their testimonies? He's a Christian and then when he signed a ball and gave it to a child at the pre-game clinic, I thought he is a cool guy. So he is my favourite player.

Yeah I hope they get the wild card. On a side note, when did they stop televising the games on UPN or whatever? I am not happy about this.

 

If you'll indulge me, here's my column for Baptist Press Sports that I wrote last year about taking my son to his first game:

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Son's first baseball game
By Tim Ellsworth
June 24, 2004

Last Friday I had the chance to do something I hope to do many times in the next few years -- I took my son to a baseball game.

We had great seats nine rows off the field, thanks to the generosity of a friend who wasn't using his tickets that night. It was the first big league game for my 1-year-old son, and he got to see the St. Louis Cardinals take on the Cincinnati Reds.

Actually, I'm not sure how much of the game Daniel actually saw. He was too busy with other things, and didn't seem too interested in the game itself. Surely it's just a phase he'll outgrow. It better be, if he wants to keep living in my house. I'll cut him some slack for now. Next year, however, I'll expect him to keep score and provide a brief play-by-play synopsis when the game's over.

For a 1-year-old, lots of matters are higher on the priority list than baseball. Among them:

-- Popcorn. It was Daniel's first taste of popcorn, and he quickly became hooked. Our friends we sat with broke off little pieces of the yellow treat, and he gobbled them right down. He couldn't get enough.

-- Sleeping. Lots of people think baseball's a boring game. They don't know what they're talking about, but for now, Daniel agrees with them. He fell asleep after about two innings, and slept for about an hour.

-- Flirting. A young girl was sitting two rows behind us, and evidently she kept making funny faces at Daniel. I couldn't tell exactly what was going on, because unlike my son, I was interested in the game on the field. But as I was holding him, he kept looking back at her and laughing. She kept him occupied for a good inning or so.

-- Diapers. My wife took Daniel to get his diaper changed during the top of the 10th inning. Unfortunately, she didn't make it back by the time Albert Pujols led off the bottom of the inning with a game-winning home run. My son's first baseball game, and he's not even there to see such an exciting finish. What a shame.

The game obviously wasn't that memorable of an experience for Daniel. He'll have a ticket stub and the photos we took as mementos, and that'll be about it.

But for me, the game carried much greater significance. It was the start of something that will probably become a regular event for my son and me. I'll be able to talk to him about missing such a dramatic ending at his first game. I'll tell him what the weather was like and where we sat. I'll tell him who was playing and what the score was.

And even though he won't remember any of it, I'll make sure he'll feel like he was there.

###

www.timellsworth.com

 

That is an excellent story Timothy. Funny too. I can't wait til I have a son to take to a game. How do you get to write for Baptist Press Sports? I'd love to do that.

Hey 4Hisglory, yeah Nate is a Christian. It was kinda cool...he pointed to the field and said "that's what I do...but it's not who I am". Mike Maroth is a Christian too.

Yeah I guess they pulled off a rally last night but it wasn't enough eh? I was gonna go tonight to see Nate pitch but figured the bus would be held up in customs for a while and I'd get there in the second or third inning.

 

Thanks very much, James. As for how to go about writing for BP Sports, I just kind of fell into it. I'd say the best thing to do would be to call or email the editor and talk to him about it.

 

No problem Timothy. I would love to write a story for them sometime. Maybe I will give it a shot.