Sandy Wihtol 1979-1982 Cleveland Indians

Sandy Wihtol spent parts of 3 seasons pitching for the Cleveland Indians.  In 1980 he made 17 appearances for the Tribe, collecting 1 win and no losses.

He sent a note recently about Kentucky!

He said that he greatly enjoyed Kentucky, and he just came back from a trip to Lexington and Louisville!

He says that these days the Giants are his team.

Sandy mentions that the fans in the Midwest and South are awesome!

Casey Barnes- 2012 Washington Wild Things

Casey Barnes has spent most of the last 2 seasons pitching for the Washington Wild Things in the Frontier League!  He was originally drafted by the Phillies and played for a couple of their minor league teams.

Casey signed a photo I took recently, and talked a bit about his young career.

He says he is biased, but he loves playing in Washington for the Wild Things because of the great fan support!

He says that if he had to pick another team's park to play in, it would be one of the parks belonging to the Beach Bums or the Miners.

Concerning affiliated baseball, Casey says that he likes the Phillies because they drafted him.  He says that they were a first class organization.

He says that he feels the Frontier League and NYPL are about the same.

West Virginia Power

I realized I didn't put any photos from West Virginia up this year!

I really enjoy catching the Power in Charleston.  Sure, there is a happening mall and other businesses near by, but the team and the park still have a very rural feel.

With the curvy green scenery close by, and the friendly locals, you know you are in West Virginia!

And I love everything that this team is doing.  The park is small, and cozy and the staff is friendly.

Omaha Storm Chasers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While in Omaha, we visited Werner Park, home of the Omaha Storm Chasers!

 

Like the park in Davenport, Werner is a very unique park with some features you can see only in Omaha.

 

The park is out in the middle of a cornfield.  Seriously. 

 

To be totally honest, it is actually a bit of a drive outside of the main Omaha area.  There is a nice shopping area close by though, so you still feel like you are close to the urban action.

 

I do like the trend now of having parks in a downtown area.  In Omaha Nebraska, having the park a bit out in the middle of a field seems more appropriate.  It works.

 

I liked a lot about this place.  The team shop had cool items and helpful staff.  I LOVE the fact that they actually sell lineup cards from previous games!

 

On the day we were there, they had a few players in the dugout signing autographs!  I wish more teams did promotions like this because autographs are cool, and getting to actually walk in the dugout is a bit of a treat!

 

They have a great concession selection!  Lots of variety and good quality!  We had a couple of dogs that we both felt were some of the best dogs we have had this season.

 

The park is AAA and has a AAA feel, BUT, it also has a lower league feel too- and I mean that in a very positive way.

 

The feel is casual and friendly.  You can credit some of that to the cool vibe all of Nebraska has, but it just seemed a lot more casual than a lot of other upper level parks I have visited.

 

The staff was friendly and helpful, and seemed genuinely interested in the fans experience.  I didn't see any ushers chasing people off, or any of that stuff.  In fact, I asked several staff people about seating, food, promotions and other stuff and ALL were very helpful.

 

You can walk all the way around the park, and there is plenty of grass space for kids to run around, and for additional seating.

 

 

 

Bob Feller Museum

On our recent trip through Iowa, we made a point to make a stop in Van Meter, to visit the Bob Feller Museum!

 

As former Clevelanders, we felt like this was a must stop.

 

We were actually fortunate enough to meet the legendary Bob Feller on a couple of occasions while we lived there.  He seemed tough as nails each time, even for the old timer he was.

 

I admired him for the fact that he took time out of his career as a very successful baseball player to VOLUNTEER to join the Navy and help out in WWII!  They don't make ballplayers like that anymore.  Heck, they don't make humans like that anymore.

 

Luckily, the nice little community of Van Meter Iowa has a museum going devoted to their hometown legend.  I hope this museum keeps going forever.  Bob deserves it.

 

The day we went the museum was having a bit of a "garage sale" selling some old signed photos and other items they had around.  I was very excited about this.  My wife was not as excited.

 

Still, I found some bargains, and simply enjoyed checking out the museum.

 

http://www.bobfellermuseum.org/

 

 

 

 

 

Quick Change

 

When it comes to promotions at a park, I have my favorites.  I will pretty much take a bobble head night over anything anytime.  I love leaving a park with one.

There are a few acts making the rounds that I really enjoy.  I think Noodleman is a lot of fun.  The Zooperstars are great.  And the San Diego Chicken is a must see anytime you can.

I read about Quick Change some time ago and just thought that the idea sounded unexciting.

I am not a big fan of dancing, and the whole thing sounded slightly novel at best.

Well, I did get to catch them for the first time at the Quad City game I went to this year.

This is actually a very fun act.

They dance- and during the dancing, there are very quick costume changes.  VERY QUICK!  In fact, I couldn't follow them at times.

They did use a cover a time or two, but there were some moments when a dress literally seemed to change color instantly.  I might compare what they do to a magic show in many ways.  You sort of set and wonder how they did it.

Anyway, this is a MUCH more interesting act than I expected! 

Quad City Wedding

Before the Quad City River Bandits game we went to, there was a wedding!  I think weddings before a game are so cool!

Check out my photos!

Quad Cities River Bandits

We had a very similar experience in Davenport Iowa to the one we had in Peoria.

That section of the country just has a very cool, relaxed, casual feel.

And, just like in Peoria, we found a great ballpark!

Modern Woodmen Park is the home of the Quad Cities River Bandits.  This is one of those parks that I really wanted to get to and catch a game.  Some of the photos showing that great bridge in the background really impressed me!

That bridge really looks spectacular.  What a unique view over the outfield wall for fans in Davenport!

In fact, I can't saw enough about it.  It might be one of the most impressive views in all of baseball.  That view, along with the nice, small size of the park, instantly makes this one of my favorites!

Kids riding their bikes across the bridge stopped to catch some of the game.  The bridge lights up at nice.  There is almost something unreal about looking at it.

The staff at Modern Woodmen Park do a great job too.

We bought foot long hot dogs at one of the stands near the entrance.  The guys cooking and selling the dogs were full of character.  The locals seemed to love these guys.

They charge $2 to park, but then they give you $2 in "Bandit Bucks" to use inside of the park!  I can handle that!

As I mentioned, the park has a very small feel (it reminded me in some ways of NYPL parks).  All of the seats are good.  AND you can walk a complete lap around the park (I love that at a minor league park).

If you are a baseball road tripper, this is a trip you have to make.  The park is amazing.