"It's Spring Training for Us, Too..."

I finally went through and edited my photos from the Twins vs. Braves exhibition games.  Unfortunately, in spite of the fact that we had some pretty solid seats, I was unable to get more than a handful of decent photos.  I've been re-learning how to use my camera (shutter speed, aperture, white balance, ISO, etc.) and I finally got the photos to look the way I want them to look... but not until the second home game of the season.  And yes, I was a total amateur/n00b before, and I used the pre-settings on the camera.  I think my photos look better now...

Right.  That's neither here nor there.  You're not here to listen to me talk about my camera settings.  You're here to see the results and maybe read some little vignettes.

And here we go.

So this is one of the photographers that work at Turner Field.  He asked to take our (Lauren and my) pictures, but we refused.  Thing is, they have to take a certain amount before they leave, and they don't make very much.  So if you don't mind your picture being on the photo website thing, then you should definitely get your picture taken.  :)  He was also nice enough to smirk for my camera for when we took his photo.  

29 March 2011 Photos

Not very many photos, I'm afraid.  They all turned out blurry or too dark, etc.  This was the day when the seven relievers in the bullpen pitched.  Here are the ones that I can remember off the top of my head (not in order):  Cristian Martinez, Tim Gustafson (PARKVIEW ALUM, BABY), Peter Moylan, Eric O'Flaherty, Craig Kimbrel, Jonny Venters, and.... crap.  I can't remember.  Number 96.  

The Braves were down a few runs, if I remember correctly, and JC Boscan was used as a pinch hitter... and he drove in the tying run!  I was beside myself with happiness when I heard them announcing his name.  And the thing was, I remembered thinking to myself, "Who is Fredi going to use to pinch hit?  We've used everybody already... JC?  Nah, he's probably already in Gwinnett..."  But, lo and behold, they announced his name!  Anyhow, Mario Gomez hit a pinch hit walk-off 2-run home run.  It was beautiful.  

Jonny HugAttacked Tiny Matt Young.  Awesome, right??

Beardy Rossy:  the best kind of Rossy.  :D

We were in the outfield.  I was too busy cheering.  And I was way way way excited.  So game pictures were TERRIBLE.  Lauren got some good ones though.  As usual, I'll include a link to her corresponding post.  And no, I didn't get any good photos of Joe Mauer or Danny Valencia, before you ask.  It's too bad, but that's just the way these things go sometimes.

30 March 2011 Photos

In contrast to the exhibition game before, I didn't get any good BP photos.  In fact, I don't think I even made BP that day... whoops.  Brandon Beachy and Rodrigo Lopez pitched.  And JC Boscan caught the whole game.  Did I mention that I think he's wonderful?  Because I really do.

Anyhow, I met friends Lauren, Chris, and Bun there.  Bun is a Yankees fan (who grew up in the Bronx; I don't care) who I like to give a lot of crap.  HE EVEN WORE HIS YANKEES HAT TO TURNER FIELD.  SACRILEGIOUS.  And Chris is a Chicago White Sox fan, but not a huge baseball fan--this was her first Braves game.  I hope she keeps going to games with us.  Bun, too.  But no Yankees gear this time.

Strike a pose, Fweddie!!

HI MARTIN.

Justin Morneau

Take your base, Nate

Joe Mather, Chris' new favorite Brave

JC with all of his angry red gear.

R.Lopez

I think it's pretty obvious which players are my favorites.  I try not to play TOO favorites, though.  

ED LUCAS!  Love this guy.  Did SO well during Spring Training!

Smiling Kimmie

Lost this game.  Not to worry though.  We got to see some spectacular plays, some socks up (that weren't Jonny), and just... baseball.  Sweet, sweet baseball, how I've missed your columns of stats, your bajillion games a day, the freshly cut grass... the cracks of the bat, the whooshes of the balls...  Now let's make the most of it.  

LAUREN'S POSTS:  Game 1 and Game 2.

Gwinnett Braves vs. Charlotte Knights (25 August 2010)

At long last, I have finally gone through my photos from the G-Braves game.  I like Cool Ray Field.  It's super mellow, tickets are cheap, and it's totally easy to eavesdrop shamelessly on the players if you really want to.  (I sort of wanted to.)  I thought about sitting along the first base line so I could get Freddie photos, but I figured that I'll have plenty of opportunities to take photos of Freddie throughout the years and not necessarily all that many chances left to take photos of Troy Glaus (who was rehabbing and playing 3rd base).  Plus, the G-Braves dugout was actually on the left side rather than the right side.  No photos of dugout antics (le sigh) but nice photos of the players walking back to the dugout.  The photos that didn't turn out blurry, I mean.  I don't understand how I can be so close to the field, and still manage such blurry shots.  My hands are entirely too shaky.

Also, I'd like for everybody to note:  SOCKS UP.  That is all.

JC Boscan & all his gear

Matt Young, who is a pocket person (he's "listed" at 5'9"!)
I want to make friends with him.

Scott Diamond, the game's starter.
He's a cutie.

Mike Dunn.  Check out those calves, Lauren!

Freddie Freeman!

Mighty Mouse & Freddie

Seriously.  The eyebrows are intense.

The big man.  Also, the only person who didn't get the "SOCKS UP" memo.

Joe Thurston
Psst--Lauren... look.

I cannot, for the life of me, figure out who this is! :

EDIT:  I have discovered his name!  He is Wilson Ramirez, of the Dominican Republic.  We got him from the Tigers at the Trade Deadline, just before they finalized the Gregor Blanco trade to Kansas City.  In other words... none of our center fielders in the Bigs can hit are hitting, we're still platooning in the outfield, and we traded away my dollfaced Gregor who consistently hit, and restocked his spot with Wilson here.  Well.  At least he's cute?

Natey getting to CF

Giant Troy signs for teeny kids

Freddie looks like he feels awkward.
Crap, did he catch me taking photos of him too?

:)

Troy about to throw a ball to a fan

I realize that the preceding three photos were somewhat awkwardly cropped.  But Charlotte's third base coach was in my shot, and trust me, the back of his helmet wasn't really all that interesting--just a shiny black blob in the right hand side of my photos.  He, like the Mets' Hale, kept moving into my shots.  /grump

Brent Clevlen, looking intense, yet goofy.

Natey aka Mighty Mouse next to the Knights' catcher,who is a giant.

Nate looks like a Little Leaguer--that helmet is too big!!

FREDDIE!  He looks supremely confident, here, doesn't he?

Yep, THIS guy.

"Hmm.  Have I forgotten something?"

"I know, right??"

 I noticed something just now, after going through these photos.  Look at Troy's batting helmet.  Look at everybody else's batting helmets.  Troy's wearing his Atlanta helmet!  Maybe the G-Braves didn't have one in his size?  Natey should have brought his from Atlanta, too.  His head looks like it's swimming in the one he has in Gwinnett.

Natey playing with the ball

J-Stamina of the Heavy Hitters... and one of the ushers, plugging his ears!  ;D

"Showtime" of the Heavy Hitters

HOME RUN TROY GLAUS

Rounding the bases

Michael Broadway

CRAIG "KIMMIE" KIMBREL
(Just TRY to mess with this guy...)

Good game!  The G-Braves won against the Knights, 9-6.  Joe Thurston and Freddie Freeman turned a triple play in the 1st inning (FF caught a liner, fired to Joe, who stepped on 2B, fired back to Freddie, who touched 1B).  BEAUTIFUL.  Stephen and I really wanted a replay.  Buuut... oh well.

Troy Glaus and Joe Thurston both homered... this was very exciting.  :)

OH.  So there was this guy about 4 rows behind Stephen and me, who had a very thick, almost unintelligible, Southern accent, who would sort of heckle Troy very loudly.  It wasn't particularly mean, just "COME ON, TROY!" (+ some stuff I couldn't even comprehend, just some syllables jammed together) even when the ball had been NOWHERE NEAR Troy Glaus, or the play had nothing to do with 3rd base.

Of course, I suppose I can't talk because every time Nate McLouth got up to bat, I'd cheer VERY loudly, "LET'S GO MIGHTY MOUSE!!!"  No, I was not inebriated... No, he probably didn't appreciate my cheer.  Yes, I got stares.  No, Nate did not react (nor did my cheer work... le sigh).  At least Stephen thought it was funny.

There was also this little boy behind me, who kept getting very irritated about the lack of balls being hit in our direction.  "I want a ball, I'm gettin' mad."  Well, kid, maybe you could ask nicely instead of shouting at the players?  He was grumping about it the entire game, and I admit it, I wanted to slap him upside the head and tell him to shut his trap and watch the game.  It was to that point that, if any ball had come in our direction, I was going to get it, and deliberately not give it to him because he was so obnoxious.  (Yes, I am spiteful.)  If you wanted foul balls, you should have sat on the first base line... nobody hit any foul balls near us.  And good.  Because my camera was there.  And also... my face.  :P