Ready to Play . . . Centerfield

In a previous century I played quite a lot of centerfield, and I managed to collect these images in that location at Fergie & Friends. One is a father with his son, tossing a ball and running in the grass, looking a lot like Eric & I would have looked in the early '70s. The other was Rick Miller, for Red Sox and Angel, whom I had spoken to at length before the game, who was the subject of a story earlier in the day, and who is one of the subjects of a poem written later that night. I had a bit of fun turning the image into what appears to be the sort of picture I would have taken back in the '70s -- a color slide.
The Rick Miller story is a highlight of the trip for me. For details, just read the poem:

FUNGO STORY TOLD TWICE

Watching a minor league Cub coach hit fungo, a long slim bat in his left hand,
A ball tossed in the air by his right hand which then grabs the bat and hits a grounder
One and then another and another for the purpose of practice and instruction.
We talk about him, my new acquaintance Jack and I, about the lost art of fungo as
I tell him at length about Jimmie Reese, the greatest fungo-hitting coach of all time,
Recalling a time when I saw Reese, then 77, working Angel center fielder Rick Miller,
Hitting balls to the left and the right nearly off the wall unless Miller caught them.
Miller would win a Gold Glove that summer after that workout, skilled at both ends.
Recalling that Reese was able to pitch batting practice by fungo batting strikes.
Mentioning that Reese had been roommate to Babe Ruth’s suitcase in the Twenties.
Recalling that Reese worked for the Angels until death retired him at 92.

Later at a different ball park, I told much of the same story to Rick Miller, now 61,
Retired and playing as much golf as possible, pleased that others remember Reese.
The story was the same this time but with the difference that Miller helped tell it,
Asking me if I knew that Jimmie Reese had been able to fungo-pitch BP.
Thanks for the help and for listening, Rick, you now have a bigger role in the story.

Back to Baseball

On Opening Day, we return to the night of the Fergie Jenkins charity baseball game during spring training. Some humorous moments included the zany Jay Johnstone playing first base quite well (after sitting in the stands in uniform during the game) and Ozzie Virgil Jr. avoiding a dangerous collision at home plate by, shall we say, embracing the moment? All in good fun at the ballpark.

Blessed Easter

One of the stained glass windows from our Church, Bethlehem Lutheran Church of St. Charles, IL [ELCA] features a perfect image for my wish for a Blessed, Happy Easter to all!

Fergie & Friends

Fergie Jenkins is well-known for hard work raising money for various great causes. For the third straight year, Fergie and his Friends offered a celebrity Old-Timers' Game along with on-field opportunities to take photos and visit with the stars. It was my second time and it was great, highlighted by a chance to share a memory about former Angel Rick Miller and his coach, Jimmie Reese -- sharing it with Rick Miller.
But for this old Cub fan, seeing Fergie pitch two innings, allowing a run and being credited with a win was on of two highlights worth the price of admission. The other was a chance to see Billy Williams hit again, getting a single and scoring a run. He is 2-for-2 in the two games I have seen, and it was wonderful to see him hit again after more than 35 years.

Future Cubs?

One of the highlights of the practices and games at Fitch Park is the up-close view you get of the players who will be the Cubs of the future. Three of them, seen here, are young 3B Josh Vitters (a former first-round draft choice), P Todd Blackford, and the young catcher seen here with the shortest name in Cub history. If you say the two or three times in a row, it will also be the funniest.
Once I watch players up close this way, I tend to look for their names in minor league box scores and I root for them to climb the ladder to Wrigley Field.
Good luck, Josh and Todd; I will be waiting when you get there, guys!

Fitch Park

Spring Training games are generally at bargain prices, with box seats affordable and berm locations quite inexpensive. But on a morning of a day when no game was scheduled, I went by the minor league camp a half-mile away at Fitch Park. I knew I could get some close shots of pitcher Jeff Samardzija who would start a minor league squad game just to get his work in. While I was at it, I got some shots of pitcher Carlos Zambrano, enjoying his day off by practicing one of his favorite hobbies: batting.

Getting Late

Light thickens and the crow makes its way to the rooky wood . . . No, wait, that was in Scotland. Here I saw no crows, but I did see a lizard.