Adventures in baseball 2007-2011

The last scorecard - Sept. 4, 2011

Last night was one of my favorite nights at Comerica Park. My husband had plans, so decided to venture into the city on my own. If the Detroit Tigers were going to sweep the Chicago White Sox - I wanted to be there. And boy, did the Tigers put the hurting on 'em - 18-2! I stopped taking score in the sixth inning when they scored SEVEN times. It was a lot of fun to sit back and enjoy though.

A couple thoughts crossed my mind as I reflected on the evening. The first was that I thought the Tigers were looking TOUGH. The bats are hot, hot, hot. Last Saturday the Tigers came back from a 8-1 deficit to beat Chicago 9-8 with a barrage of home run bombs. The pitchers are hurling great stuff. I'm listening to Doug Fister's 13 strikeout show on the radio right now. I'm finally ready to get comfortable with the idea of Detroit baseball extending into October.

It was the last night of summer. Last night was absolutely the most perfect night for baseball - a clear, 70 degree night, with a gentle summer breeze. It might not be the VERY LAST night of that nature, but there really is no stopping the fall now. Put the white clothes away and get your schoolbooks out. Today, Labor Day 2011, is 61 degrees and cloudy. And now start the Midwest prayers for an Indian summer, a warm harvest time.

I found friends were all around me. Some were getting hammered and trying to start the wave behind me. Others I was yet to meet. Ray, for example, was a very cool guy that had season tickets and brought his neighbor, Robert. They were absolutely amazed that I, a young, wise-cracking, newly-wed woman, would venture into Detroit alone to come to a ballgame. And on top of that, take score. It was the last scorecard in my book.

Rain delay in the 4th

The last scorecard resembled many before it. I scored many games against our Central rivals - Minnesota, Chicago White Sox and the Indians. I rarely finished a game. Often things were derailed because of a beer/food/bathroom break. Sometimes I just wanted to relax or get into the excitement more. Sometimes we left a bit early to beat the traffic. Sometimes Mother nature didn't cooperate.

The neighbor, Robert, asked me a question that for some reason I never considered and was a bit stumped when he asked: "So why do you take score?" He had wondered if I had season tickets because my score book was full. I realize now that it was my baseball diaries. It's not all of my memories because I started taking score long before I was keeping the book. My favorite baseball memory was Spring Training in 2006. I scored none of those games, but remember the experience fondly. But that was why, because I've always kept a journal and I'm obsessed with records. Also, my memory is bad, so I have to write.

Here's a gallery of some of my favorite memories I found in my scorebook.

Old Yankee Stadium

My first Mudhens game

The blown call, the perfect game that wasn't.

The Nasty, OH