Insane Random Ramblings

I haven’t decided if I’m going to a local game or if I’m going out of town for a game. Both Cleveland and Cincinnati aren’t that far from me. I can also do a Washington, Baltimore or even a Phillies game without having to miss a day off of work. I love watching baseball games whether it’s time to raise the feather flags for the national anthem, watching the concession workers or even the opposing teams fans. I do have to admit that I’m not fond of the 7th inning stretch and “take me out to the ballgame”. Other than that, I love going to the games.

It’s just too bad that none of my friends really likes baseball.

This is the year the Pirates play the AL East for inter-league play. That’s a good thing, they don’t play the Yankees but they do play the Red Sox at home. I probably won’t go to that game but I really want to go when they play the Blue Jays in Canada. I have a few issues to work through though:

• My passport is expired and I probably won’t have the money to renew it until the middle of May. That means I’ll be pushing it to have it back by the end of June.
• I don’t want to make the 6 hour drive by myself since none of my friends really likes baseball.
• I’ll have to pay for at least one night in a hotel. Since it’s baseball season and my preferred hotel chain is the preferred chain of MLB, I may not be able to get a room and if I do, I’m sure it will cost a lot.
• I don’t want to pay that much in gas and tolls. I could take the new MegaBus but that’s something I’ll plan last minute.
• It’s the week before the 4th of July so I’m sure a lot of Americans will take that week off. The roads will be crowded and I’m wondering if a lot of people will flock to Canada for their time off.

Hopefully I can work something out because I would really like to go.

I was reading the paper and trying to see what’s going on with the baseball races. I did notice that the Pirates had been on a recent winning streak, then lost a game or two. They did end their season at home with a win which is a good thing. I also saw that Pedro Alvarez won the NL Player of the Week. That’s something that no player had done since 2008.

It seems that Pedro is playing better recently and I think that has something to do with the fact that he’s slimmed down. It doesn’t seem like he suffering from phenphedrine side effects either. He seems to be getting into a zone after only half a season in the majors. That seems to be a good omen for next season.

Hopefully the Pirates will end the season with a winning streak. You gotta take the small victories as they come.

Not real trouble but the trouble we’re gonna cause when we go to the game in a few weeks. My coworkers from my old department invited me to come to their Pirates tailgate party. They’re real partiers. They already have kegs, food and games planned. I have to email them to ask what I can bring. I don’t think anybody is taking a eczema treatment but I still may take a umbrella to protect us from the late day sun. I know personally I burn extremely easy and I don’t want that to happen and ruin my day.

The whole day is gonna be a blast and I can’t wait.

The Pittsburgh Pirates. That’s right they are officially a joke. Yesterday they traded Freddy Sanchez to the San Francisco Giants. They also traded both Jack Wilson and Ian Snell to the Seattle Mariners. A man who’s so depressed (Ian Snell) that he asks for a demotion and then admits that he contemplated suicide. Then you trade him to the city with the highest rate of depression in the country (Seattle).

I don’t even know who they have left on the team. I’m sure by the time Pedro Alvarez is ready to come to the big leagues, they’ll be ready to trade him away.

What a joke.

I am really hoping the weather cooperates for us on Saturday but especially on Sunday. Saturday I want to go see the Pirates vs the Phillies here in Pittsburgh. I don’t have the tickets yet but I have a gift card that I bought back in March that I can use. If it rains I won’t go but I’m hoping it’s nice so I can go. This is the only time the Phillies come to Pittsburgh this year. They usually only come once a season. Last year their trip here was in August and I was on vacation.

Sunday we’re going to Cleveland to see the Indians vs the Yankees. Guess who I’m rooting for? We got those tickets the day they went on sale. I’ve been waiting for this day for what seems like forever. It’s supposed to rain on Sunday and I’m really hoping it doesn’t. If the game is rained out we might not be able to go to the new game, especially if it’s a weeknight. We would have to take half a day the day of the game and be tired the next day because we wouldn’t get home until after midnight.

If it rains and they have the game anyway, we’ll have to sit in the rain and that doesn’t sound appealing. I just hope the rain stays away.

Right now Comcast is showing the baseball preview. It only lasts for 7 days. They start with opening day. I’ve mentioned before that I’m a Yankees fan so it’s great being able to see their games.

John has decided that he’s going to root for the Indians so we can watch their games too. We don’t see half as many Indians games as Yankees games so we’re going to take full advantage of the preview. You can always see the Yankees because Fox Sports and ESPN just love them and the Indians. We also have a local station that shows the Pirates but I don’t watch them most of the time.

For the next few days, I’ll just relax like I have one of those adjustable beds and enjoy the games. I just wish I had an extra $180 to buy the package for myself so I could watch baseball all summer. It would be cheaper than paying to go to the games once you factor in gas and food. But I’m sure that once summer really gets here, I won’t be in the house much anyway.

I only care about the series vs the Yankees. I don’t care if we go to any other games. I know John will want to go to see the Mets during their series. Especially since one of the nights is a fireworks night. I don’t really understand how people can get excited to see the Pirates. They aren’t very good. They haven’t had a winning season in 15 years so it’s pretty hard to get behind them.

We’re already planning on going to Cleveland for several games. Cleveland’s tickets go on sale March 1st. We’re going to drive up there and get tickets for the a game or two. John said he always got better tickets by buying them at the box office instead of ordering them from the internet.

I love baseball season. That means summer is on the way!