Game 1 - Hello, Old Friend

First of all, I want to give a big Thank You to Kyra, my fantastic photographer for the day. She put up with my unrealistic expectations and didn’t complain one bit. Without her this whole entry would suck.

However, you can’t expect perfect teamwork on the first outing. There are a lot of good pictures, even some great ones, but also a couple missing that I hoped I would get, and some blurry ones I’m not going to include. This entry is pretty decent, but I hope future entries are even better!

I was anxious to say the least when the Cubs opened their season on April 5th. Most of that was due to my excitement to start going to games, and I didn’t waste much time; I had tickets for the second game of the season that Saturday. Unfortunately, I had to suffer through the Cubs first game blown lead in Normal, BUT I wasn't worrying about that on my bus ride back to Schaumburg the next day.

It was a pretty early morning. Gates opened a little after 10 AM, and I wanted to get there extra early for the first one. I woke up at about 7:15 and threw a bunch of stuff together in a bag. For most of the morning, I was very uneasy. I couldn’t think of a situation worse than starting this blog, telling you about my ballhawking, then being shut out the first game. That being said, I over prepared juuuuust a little bit:

The Cubs were playing the Nationals, so in addition to the normal rosters of players and list of coaches, I printed out ESPN screenshots of relief pitcher’s faces, and put names to them. First names work best when trying to get a ball!

We took off at 8 AM sharp. Since we expected no traffic and there are no street parking restrictions for day games, we decided to drive the whole way. It’s quite a bit faster, and you can only take the same El route so many time until it becomes boring.

We wanted to grab some breakfast and had some time to kill, so we stopped at one of my favorite places to eat-the Salt and Pepper Diner.

I got the standard breakfast; eggs, sausage, pancakes, and hash browns. I wasn’t too hungry; my stomach was still turning from being so nervous. After we ate, I was running short on time, so Kyra and I split up. I reserved my spot at the front of the line while she ran to 7/11 for a water bottle and the always necessary sunflower seeds.

I did, in fact, get the very first spot in line next to the left field foul pole. Now is when I let my mind wander. What did this season hold for me? For other fans across the country? There’s one team out there that’s going to win the World Series, and their magical season is just beginning... (and other sappy baseball stuff like that). I snapped this photo while I waited anxiously:

It's kind of hard to see here, but did you notice the new team name on the scoreboard? (Try the third game down on the NL side).

Also, check out these flags:

What a great day to be out in the Bleachers. One of the only games I’ve been to with the wind blowing out, and during BP no less. That wouldn’t help or hurt me since I wouldn’t be out there, but at least I would see a show from Ryan Zimmerman and Jayson Werth.

The ushers were getting ready, and last minute preparations were being finished:

Just a couple minutes after that, it took me 5 seconds to get my ticket scanned and walk inside. Some stupid usher stopped me and made me go the long way around. (Does it even matter? I was the first person in sight. At the second game of the season. Just let me in, I obey your un-fan friendly rules 97% of the time). 

Eventually, I took my normal spot on the left field wall, the side the Cubs dugout is on.

My heart was racing. I was trying to stay calm and relaxed, but my stomach was in knots. I was ecstatic to be back at Wrigley, but I had to focus on my goal.

I first noticed this lonely guy standing in straight away left:

I realized I had no idea who the hell he was. I slyly pulled the Cubs roster out of my back pocket, and saw his name was Shawn Camp, who is best known for middle relief in Seattle. I looked around, and realized I was the only person within 100 feet to know who he was. He was my best shot.

At this point I was worried the Cubs would clear the field without Camp even picking up a single ball. Luckily, the first one came a few minutes later. It was about 15 feet from the wall, and Camp started to jog over. I waited for the right time, and then asked for a toss-up for the first time this season. I don’t have a picture to document it, but…

SUCCESS!!!

Ball number one of the season was in my hands, and it felt great. I was immediately put at ease. I met my goal of one ball per game at Wrigley, and was still had plenty of time for more. I figured he wouldn’t toss me another one before the Cubs portion of BP ended, so I moved over to the area by the Cubs dugout. My hope was I could find someone with a ball looking to toss it to the fans, but I had no such luck. Once the majority of the Cubs started heading inside, I snuck over to a spot right behind the dugout where I wasn’t allowed to be.

If you don’t have a ticket for these sections, you’re not allowed to be there. This off limits area starts at the end of each dugout and wraps around home plate. This is the closest I had ever been to home plate on a game day. Was it karma for having to deal with that usher earlier?

I searched for guys that had balls in their gloves or back pockets, but to no avail. I didn’t even say a word, thinking the usher would hear me and turn around. I stuck around for a few more seconds. I had never been there, and probably will never be again, so why not just enjoy it? As soon as I told myself that, these morons showed up:

And we were all kicked out. By this time the Nationals were taking the field and started to hit. I briskly walked around home plate:

And stopped to put my Nats gear on:

No, I’m not so obsessed that I have a hat for every team (yet). I saved all my Little League hats, and I picked this up on the 8th grade trip to Washington. Best $7 spent that weekend.

I walked over to the right field wall, and immediately saw a ball hidden behind a protective screen, and right next to a security guard’s foot. Other fans were asking the guard to pick it up, but he said multiple times only players can do that. Just a minute later, none other than        Brad Lidge was walking back to the dugout in foul territory. I got his attention by asking for another toss-up. He nearly stepped on it, and couldn’t find it at first, but once he did, he bent down to grab it then flipped it right to me.

SUCCESS AGAIN!!!!

What a fantastic start! I was doing better than I thought I would, and over-achieved my goal for Wrigley. Two balls was my career high (I’ve done it twice), and it would make THE BEST start to my season if I could end up with my first career three ball game.

As soon as I got the ball from Lidge, I stepped back and moved farther down the line. I was only there for about 20 seconds, and hoped no other Nats players saw the exchange. I found a new spot and posted up here:

For once, I got to enjoy BP. All the pressure was off, and I took a mental breather for a second. Now is when I enjoyed the view and Wrigley experience. A group of guys in the Bleachers were having a lot of fun ragging on Henry Rodriguez and Ross Detwiler during their stretches:

The balls were absolutely flying out to left. Look at this guy motioning one clanked off the Toyota sign:

The ivy was surprisingly green for this time of year. Last year, I’m pretty sure it was the middle of June until the whole wall was covered, and I’ve never seen it bloom in April before.

Green ivy on Opening Day is like 3 feet of snow on Christmas- it never happens, but it just makes sense that it should.

I then had my first real look at the newest and most noticeable addition to Wrigley.

There is now a 7 by 60 foot LED board in right field to display stats, pitch counts, and as you can see above, create more advertising revenue. It kind of slaps you in the face when you’re standing right next to it, but it actually fits very well in the grand scheme of things.

The patio above it, put simply, is a rooftop INSIDE the park. Pay for your ticket, all food and drinks are free. I’m glad this area offers something different than a traditional seat, and even more glad it’s not dead space filled with more LEDs.

The rest of Nats BP was uneventful. There was one line drive off the bat of a lefty that sailed about 5 feet over my head, right to a guy 3 rows behind me. That was the closest I got to number three.

I mentioned the pictures were not the best, but this one I feel like I need to share:

Kyra was right on top of it, and for that, I thank her.

I picked up a scorecard on the concourse before we started the trek up the ramps:

After a long morning, I finally plopped down in my new grandstand seats for the year.

(Sorry about the obnoxious heads. Again, lots of pictures were near misses. Plus, we were running low on battery, and the game hadn’t even started).

The Cubs sent Matt Garza to the hill (who should have been the Opening Day starter over Ryan Dempster, but hey, I’m happy I got to see him), against the Nationals Gio Gonzalez, who was traded to them from Oakland this past offseason.

Besides the rather cramped nature of my new seats, I was having a great time. I was taking in all the sights, and enjoyed every second of it.

The Cubs got started quickly, with men on first and third in just the first inning. A wild pitch let Joe Mather, the schlub that essentially lost the first game by not knowing how to run the bases, slide into home. In the top of the 4th, Adam LaRoche got a hold of one that just made it far enogh to hit the foul pole. 2-1 Nationals. 

Reed Johnson tripled, grabbing 2 RBIs and the lead in the bottom half. Mather then singled him in, and we were lookin’ good; a 4-2 lead with one of our best pitchers on the mound. Garza went 6 innings, handing it off to Rafael Dolis who threw a perfect 7th. We still had the lead at the start of the 8th, and I was pretty hopeful this would be a completely awesome day.

Then shit hit the fan- better known as ‘the usual’ around these parts.

It was almost an exact replay of the Cubs first game just two days before. Kerry Wood blew the lead AGAIN, giving up 3 runs. Once he was Booed off the field, Carlos Marmol gave up 2 more. The worst part about this mess is that THEY DIDN’T EVEN MAKE IT OUT OF THE INNING. My new buddy Shawn Camp had to collect the final out.

The atrocious offense was nowhere to be found, and by the 9^th inning, most fans started the mass exodus early. This allowed me and Kyra to move up to the 400’s, and a get slightly better view.

We were in the perfect spot for pop ups, and I thought I had a feeling, but not even one came close to us. The Cubs laid down and struck out 3 times to move their season record 0-2.

Final Score: Nationals 7, Cubs 4.

Especially after that 8th inning meltdown, I didn’t take it too well:

On the field was a disaster, but I had a fantastic day in the stands. It was a great first day of ballhawking, and I hope there are many, many more like this to come. 

STATS

• 2 balls at this game.
• 2 balls total this season.
• 3 consecutive games with a ball.
• 12 lifetime balls.