Baseball DIY

I got to watch the Cardinals whoop up on the Dodgers today on good old WB-11. It's the second Spring Training game I've seen this year. Albert and Larry Walker each hit home runs, and Suppan only allowed one run in the four-plus innings he pitched. Edmonds played, but Rolen had the day off. Notable broadcast notes included the sideline reporter interviewing Lou Brock and Bob Gibson (Gibson maintains that he had more power with the bat than Lou) and a Bruce Hornsby (not Rogers Hornsby or Bob Horner, Bruce F. Hornsby) sighting on the bench in between Tony and Dave Duncan. The game had a nice pace and fine defensive plays on both sides, and the Cardinals (even Bo Hart) did a good job at the plate. By the seventh inning, I couldn't resist: I had to go to the batting cage.

So, in 40 degree (Fahrenheit) weather, I drove to the local batting cage wearing shorts and a t-shirt. Needless to say, it stung a little bit, especially since I don't use batting gloves (how vintage would that be?). I hit quite a few pretty solid, but it's hard to tell where they'd have gone in a field populated with the opposing team. By my last round (six tokens for five bucks), I was getting tired. Lesson: I should take more time between rounds, just like resting between sets at the gym. I'm glad I went, especially since there's a joint Perfectos/Unions practice tomorrow.

Mike Shannon and Wayne Hagin called the game for me as I drove back home. Along the way, I heard sirens, but I couldn't see any approaching ambulances/fire trucks/cops. The sirens continued, but I still didn't see anything. Wising up a little, I turned down the radio, and the sirens miraculously disappeared. That's what I love about Spring Training games. You don't hear that kind of thing during the regular season.