Dodger Stadium

We are thinking that the last time we went to Dodger Stadium was before Magic Johnson and his crew took over. Our friends have a season ticket mini plan, and when they can't go to a game, they have given us their seats. The last time they did this, there were so few people in the crowd that we walked to our car and were eating at Phillipe's in about 10 minutes after the game ended.

Last night we enjoyed, once again, tickets from our friends who were camping on the beach. They texted us after Puig's home run and said they were glad we got to see it. 

So, thoughts about the game (besides the fact that the Dodgers swept the Braves and Kershaw pitched his second complete game in a row): 1) even when camping, you can follow a game with the way technology works these days. 2) This is such an American thing, going to a baseball game. I was trying to imagine how un-Swiss this form of entertainment is. First of all, even though the game starts  on time, people arrive at all different times during the game. The joke about Dodger Stadium is that people come in the 3rd inning and leave after the 7th Inning Stretch. I was lucky to sit on an aisle seat, but that also meant that the constant traffic of people going up and down the stairs next to me blocked my view. The people in our row who kept needing to leave their seats and make us stand up to let them pass. 

Oh, well, that was really okay with me. I had fun, and we stayed through the last out.

Quakes

Last night all the kids (L and C, C and B) and I went out to watch the Lancaster Jethawks beat the Cucamonga Quakes. Every time I go there is something a little different from the last time I went. Here are a few shots from the game.

All fans in attendance got a pack of cards of the players. Including cards for Tremor, Aftershock and Crazy J.

Dodger Justin Turner, in a rehab stint, walked twice, got on base on error and also got a base hit.

Tremor sprayed kids with water after it cooled off

Section 8 in the Club. Not many people behind to bother us.

The Ages and Stages of Mothering and Mother's Day

Back in the day when my daughters were very young, the bulk of my time was spent doing for others.  What I really wanted for Mother's Day was for someone to clean my house and for, perhaps, some time for me.

Now that my children are grown, and I spend my day doing pretty much what I want to, I have a completely different idea of the perfect Mother's Day. I just want to spend time with my children. For the past several years I have been most fortunate to have one daughter close by, and we've had some lovely times together. This year was no exception. 

She brought over breakfast and coffee, went shopping with me, and then we and our guys watched the Dodgers on tv. I had a lovely chat with my other daughter, too. Even though the Dodgers did not pull through with a win, we did enjoy this sweetness, baked by C.

 ** After I posted this, I went back to read last year's entry on Mother's Day. Seems as though I have had the same thoughts for the past several years!

Dodgers and Cable

As of today, I am okay with what's going on with the Dodgers on tv. We have lucked out, for now, with having Time Warner Cable since they are the only ones carrying the brand-new Dodger channel. If you have read my blog on this subject before, you know that the Dodgers are one of two reasons we finally caved in and got cable tv. (The other was the Oregon Ducks football team.) 

I have no idea what will happen in the future with the Comcast/Time Warner merger. I am not optimistic. But, for now, I enjoy tuning in to spring training games (and remember fondly our trip to watch some of those spring training games a few years ago).

Dodgers Magic Number - 2

Great to see Matt Kemp and Hanley Ramierez not only back in the lineup, but hitting and scoring!

Matt Kemp at the Quakes

On Wednesday the Dodgers confirmed that Matt Kemp would start a rehab stint with the RC Quakes on Thursday. We decided that we not only wanted to go to the game, but we also wanted to spring for the expensive tickets, so we bought the $13 Superbox seats in section 5 - just to the right of the section immediately behind the plate. There were still a few seats in the second row, so we snapped them up.

When we arrived at Will Call, we saw that our section was sold out, so we felt good about our purchase the night before. When we went to see the Quakes in July, there were so few people at the field, but with Kemp in the lineup (hitting DH in the #2 spot), we knew the crowds would be there. The Quakes website says today that tonight's game is already sold out.

Here is a photo taken from our seats with no zoom. I did, however, bring the good camera with the long lens. We also enjoyed the fact that the seats in the super boxes have padding!

Unfortunately, in Matt's 4 at-bats, he made 6 outs. He hit into two double plays, struck out and grounded out. Actually, we left after the 7th inning, and Matt had one more at-bat. He got out.

Here he is, hanging in the dugout, blowing a bubble.

We got a great view of the High Desert Mavericks when they were on deck. Several of them had these holes in their left leg. The minor leagues are a different beast than the majors.

This view shows a full crowd. Too bad the Quakes lost 14-3.

Gotta love minor league shenanigans - even easier to see up close....

Random Friday Photo

This week we received an Orel Hershiser bobblehead from friends of ours. My husband bears a resemblance to the 1988 Cy Young winner, or at least he did back then. Occasionally, during that year, people would do a double-take and look at H to see if he was that pitcher.

Camelback Ranch

View from Center Field

The main reason for our Arizona Spring Break trip was to catch a few spring training games.  The Dodgers and the White Sox share the stadium called Camelback Ranch in Glendale.  We saw the Dodgers play the Rockies one day and then the Sox play the Angels the next.  Our seats were up the 3rd base line in the first row of the second section of seats (as seen from the photos below).

We really enjoyed seeing games in the smaller venue which holds just over 13,000 spectators.  While we had a great time, it would have been advantageous to have more shade in the park as well as better concessions.  The second day we ate before we made it to the field and brought in our own water.

One great thing about spring training games which don't count, the crowd is pretty laid back, and I didn't hear anyone getting out of hand or swearing.

Dodgers warming up 

Matt Kemp coming in

Albert Pujols in a new red jersey.  He has lots of new fans.

Moving On

If LA is sad over the Dodgers losing the pennant, we can put our hopes and dreams into the newest LA phenom. Tonight I am watching the Gustavo Dudamel inaugural concert with the LA Philharmonic on PBS. We didn't make the actual concert, but are very happy to be watching it in HD. This guy is GOOD.

MLB on the Web

Last month I was bemoaning the fact that some Dodger games were not on network tv, and since we don't have cable, I couldn't watch, and therefore be a good luck charm for them. Now while the ALCS is on Fox, the NLCS is on TBS (cable). We decided to take the big splurge of $10 for postseason, and buy internet coverage. We've watched four games on my laptop (bringing the price down all the way to $2.50/game!), but this last game was a heartbreaker anyway.

Facts about watching baseball this way:

1) you get to choose up to four camera angles at once (we choose two)

2) no commercials (cameras stay on during breaks, but there is no sound)

3) no scoreboard keeping track of innings, strikes/balls, score, runners

If it's a Yankees/Phillies World Series, I probably won't watch it.

Quick Getaway

On Friday we hooked up the tent trailer to the car and headed to the beach - San Onofre near San Clemente. We spent Saturday taking a two-hour hike in the hills, doing a little shopping, and then closed the day with a sunset walk along the beach. We took along our old technology, a little AM/FM transistor radio and listened to the Dodger game. The Dodgers swept the Cardinals to win their NLDS!

There are a few more beach pictures at my Picasa Web Albums site.

The Dodgers

I am noticing a trend. The Dodgers seem to play much better when they are on local network tv and I can watch them, rather than following them on mlb.com. I am not going to get cable just to help the Dodgers out. Someone call Joe Torre (although he probably has nothing to do with the telecasts).

If I Was The Queen of the Dodgers...

• Juan Pierre would play more.
• Vin Scully would call every game on every station.