Baseball 2010

[larryJ]

From my local paper today--------------

SPRING MUST BE HERE, IT'S TIME TO PLAY BALL!!!!!!!!!!!!

Written by Steve Lambert, Editor and Publisher of the San Gabriel Valley Newspaper Group.

It's years removed from its days as America's pastime.

Home run heroes and dollar hot dogs have given way to steroid scandals and $200 million payrolls

But as major league baseball opens its annual rite of spring in Arizona and Florida, I find myself again feeling that "one constant" James Earl Jones so eloquently spoke of in "Field of Dreams."

In times of war, in times of peace, recession or recovery, baseball --- in its purest form --- is a simple, consistent, welcome diversion from the real world, played out on dimensions that haven't changed in more than a century, supported by fans whose blind, irrational allegiance is passed down from one generation to the next.

More than any other "American" sport, baseball crosses all social, cultural and demographic boundaries.  My grandmother took me to my first game, teaching me the fine art of smack talk from the right field bleachers in Wrigley field.  I taught my oldest son the same, driving more than 1,000 miles to get there.

To this day, he hates the Phillies.

And loves the Cubs, which is the evil twin of this particular birthright  -- you can never shake it, no matter how many tears it causes you to shed or years it will cause you to waste.  Comforting my boy in his time of despair may have been the only thing that kept me from jumping off a rooftop during the Cubs' playoff flop of 2003.

We had tickets to that year's World Series -- a few rows back from the "Bartman" seat.  As in Steve Bartman, the fan whose attempted grab of a foul ball may or may not have kept left fielder Moises Alou from catching it and all but securing a must playoff win.

Bartman acted on instinct -- something any ticket-holder in any stadium would have done -- but was so vilified by rabid, championship-starved Cubs loyalists that he went into hiding.  Despite that, he is said to remain a fan of the team.

Again, there's no shaking it.  If you're a true fan, you don't really care that football's now the nations pastime or that AYSO soccer is more popular than Little League.  We're even willing to put those steroid scandals behind us (Sammy who?)

Spring has arrived, the grass is green and Manny's making a fool of himself.

It's time to play ball!!!!!!!!!1

Larryj

[Warph]

WhaaaaaaaHoooooo...... it's that time of year again to where this ol' geezer is a kid again.  Lets see now.... bubblegum, sunflower seeds, baseball mitt, sun block, sony walkman, nikon binoculars, umbrella.... forget breakfast so I have room for 3 hot dogs and gatorade, tickets.... uh oh... where did I put those damn tickets.  Got'em.... Let the GAMES begin!  Go Royals!!

Late afternoon: NUTS!  We Lost our first game!  Oh well, the hot dogs were great.
Rangers players celebrate following the team's 13-3 win over the Royals in Surprise, Arizona Thursday, March 4, 2010. The Rangers played the Kansas City Royals at Surprise Stadium in an exhibition game. Game #2 at 1:05 friday.
http://www.star-telegram.com/2010/03/04/2016027/rangers-and-royals-spring-game.html


http://www.surprisespringtraining.com/

http://www.springtrainingonline.com/teams/kansas-city-royals.htm

Surprise Stadium Photo's and K.C.Royals:
http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&rls=com.microsoft:en-US&q=surprise+stadium+photos&revid=895174318&resnum=0&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=qLSQS-e2J5T0sQPe57z8Aw&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CBMQsAQwAA


2010 Spring Training Schedule DAY at Surprise Stadium - Surprise, AZ.
DATE
TIME
Home Team
Visitor Team

Thursday
March 4
1:05 PM
Kansas City Royals -  3
Texas Rangers      - 13

Friday
March 5
1:05 PM
Kansas City Royals
Texas Rangers

Saturday
March 6
1:05 PM
Texas Rangers
Kansas City Royals

Sunday
March 7
1:05 PM
Kansas City Royals
San Francisco Giants

Monday
March 8
1:05 PM
Texas Rangers
Los Angeles Angels

Tuesday
March 9
1:05 PM
Kansas City Royals
Oakland A's

Wednesday
March 10
1:05 PM
Texas Rangers
Seattle Mariners

Thursday
March 11
1:05 PM
Kansas City Royals
Los Angeles Dodgers

Friday
March 12
1:05 PM
Texas Rangers
San Diego Padres

Saturday
March 13
1:05 PM
Kansas City Royals
Los Angeles Angels

Sunday
March 14
1:05 PM
Texas Rangers
Arizona Diamondbacks

Monday
March 15
6:05 PM
Texas Rangers
San Francisco Giants

Tuesday
March 16
1:05 PM
Kansas City Royals
Milwaukee Brewers

Wednesday
March 17
1:05 PM
Kansas City Royals
San Diego Padres

Thursday
March 18
6:05 PM
Texas Rangers
Milwaukee Brewers

Friday
March 19
1:05 PM
Texas Rangers
Cleveland Indians

Saturday
March 20
1:05 PM
Texas Rangers
Los Angeles Dodgers

Sunday
March 21
1:05 PM
Kansas City Royals
Colorado Rockies

Monday
March 22
1:05 PM
Kansas City Royals
Chicago White Sox

Tuesday
March 23
1:05 PM
Kansas City Royals
Chicago Cubs

Wednesday
March 24
1:05 PM
Texas Rangers
Chicago Cubs

Thursday
March 25
1:05 PM
Kansas City Royals
Seattle Mariners

Friday
March 26
1:05 PM
Texas Rangers
Oakland A's

Saturday
March 27
1:05 PM
Kansas City Royals
Oakland A's

Sunday
March 28
1:05 PM
Texas Rangers
Chicago White Sox

Monday
March 29
1:05 PM
Texas Rangers
Colorado Rockies

Tuesday
March 30
6:05 PM
Kansas City Royals
Cleveland Indians

Wednesday
March 31
1:05 PM
Texas Rangers
Seattle Mariners

Thursday
April 1
12:05 PM
Kansas City Royals
Arizona Diamondbacks