Kansas City Royals-Petco Park June 27-June 29th

The Kansas City Royals were a dominant team when I was a kid, and it sad now to see them as a team that can't keep their star players. With that said, I can say that they were a wonderful team for the fans. Pitchers Kyle Davies, Bruce Chen, Louis Coleman, Jeff Francis, Felipe Paulino, and Blake Wood took time to sign during the 3 day visit.  I saw Joakim Soria Wednesday and he said he would sign after he warmed up, but the Padres had the Boys and Girls Clubs walk on the field before the game, preventing Joakim from coming back over (although it didn't stop Kyle Davies from breaking through the kids and coming over).  The position players who signed were Eric Hosmer, Chris Getz, Mike Moustakas, Alex Gordon and Jeff Francoeur.  Former 2B and current Royal announcer Frank White signed a few autographs.

Of all the players I have met, Jeff Francoeur was one I will never forget.  He walked onto the field Wednesday and saw an older lady, who he quickly ran up to and hugged.  He put his leg up, and she pulled his pants leg up and felt his calf!  He then gave her a hug, signed a jersey and walked over to where we were standing.  I asked him about the lady he was talking to and he said it was his grandma who took the train from Los Angeles to San Diego to see him play.  He was so happy that she came to see him and it was great to see how happy it made him.  He stood for 10 minutes taking pictures, signing autographs, talking to fans and generally being an all around nice guy.  He told me he collected cards as a kid and that his favorite player was Dale Murphy.  He was the epitome of what The Casual Fan looks for in a player: A guy who looks like he's enjoying the game as well as the fans who come to see the game.

One last shout out goes to a mascot...The Friar.  A young boy with the Boys And Girls Club came down to the rail with the head of the group he was with.  It was this young boys first baseball game.  He stood on the rail asking for players to come over, but by this time, they were all warming up and getting ready for the game.  The Padres mascot came by and took a picture with the young boy and was told it was his first baseball game.  The Friar picked up the boy, and took him on the field and had him wave to the fans and then walked him out to Kansas City 3B Mike Moustakas, who then shook the  young boys hand and give him a baseball.  It was all I could do to not start crying seeing the joy on this boys face and to know that this young boy will never forget it.  I hope @SDPadres reads this so that they'll know that the kindness that The Friar showed this young boy.

Washington Nationals-Petco Park June 2nd-4th

The Washington Nationals are a young team managed by veteran manager Jim Riggleman (who recently stepped down as their manager).  Each night, we entered early, and were treated to some very classy players.  Danny Espinosa signed each night, taking time to talk to fans.  The biggest surprise was veteran catcher (and future Hall of Fame) catcher Ivan Rodriguez sitting down for 20 minutes Saturday night signing anything anyone brought to him.  He used an usher to organize a line and took time with each person who came to him.  Jayson Werth signed a couple of baseballs as did Drew Storen.  The only guy who ignored the fans was Tyler Clippard.  Overall, the team was wonderful and to be able walk up to a future Hall of Famer was great.

The night was capped by running into a legendary manager/scout named Dave Garcia.  Formerly a manager for the Indians and Angels, he is now a scout for the Chicago Cubs.  He sits down during batting practice talking to friends and fans and answering questions.  As he walked off, I walked over and asked him to sign my ball.  I asked for him to sign the sweet spot and he did.  He said he was sorry his signature wasn't clear, but I told him I loved it and it was just fine.

It was a wonderful 4 game weekend, even though the Padres lost 3 of 4.  We got to see Anthony Rizzo's debut and got his autograph and saw how organized he is (read Rizzo's Rules below).  Best part of baseball is spending time with your friends and I'm blessed to have been there with my kids as well as my best friend Rebecca.

Gotta love baseball :-)

Rizzomania and Rizzos Rules for Autographs

I was able to attend the first 4 games of Anthony Rizzo's career against the Washington Nationals.  During those 4 days, he was very poised on and off the field.  When it came to signing autographs he has a system, which I am calling Rizzos Rules.  The rules are as follows:

1) Be polite when asking for an autograph.  No pushing or shoving and if there is, he won't sign for the person that does either.
2) One autograph per person, no exceptions.
3) Will sign for kids before he'll sign for adults.
4) Will sign on the sweet spot of the baseball ONLY if the ball is personalized to you.
5) Will NOT sign a blank piece of paper.

As a fan, I loved watching how organized he was and the fact with all the hoopla surrounding his first games here, that he would take time to sign.  I understand players not wanting what they sign sold on EBAY or to card collectors, so personalizing is excellent! The Casual Fan loves Rizzos Rules and I would hope more players would take a few minutes of their time to remember the people who pay their salaries.

Houston Astros-Petco Park June 3rd

We arrived about 5:30 for the game and walked over to the Astros dugout.  I came with a friend who wanted to get a Hunter Pence autograph.  As we watched the Astros practice they were all business, but they took time out for the fans in the stands.  Carlos Lee was asked but has to run to batting practice, and didn't come back to sign.  He did spend some time with someone he knew in the stands.  J.R. Towels signed for several fans above the dugout.  Clint Barmes walked over and stated signing.  One kid asked him who he was and he politely said, "I'm Clint Barmes" and laughed.  Brett Wallace walked over next and signed for a couple of minutes, including for a young man who attends the same high school Brett attended.  Soon, Hunter Pence walked over and looked like he didn't want to stop, but he did.  He stood and signed for everyone above the dugout.  After he signed my ball, I asked him how the batting cages he owns in Houston are doing.  He smiled and said, "they are going well" and he smiled and thanked me for asking him about them.  No sooner had Hunter finished than Michael Bourne started signing and signed for everyone as well.  I was really surprised that so many Astros signed for the fans and how polite they all were.

Overall, The Casual Fan was impressed with the attitude of the players toward the kids.  Would like to give a special shout out to Hunter Pence @HunterPence9 for signing my friends ball.  He had been in the hospital for 3 days and wasn't feeling 100%, but you made him feel a lot better after signing.  I hope that your batting cages continue to be a success.

St. Louis Cardinals-May 24th

From Dizzy Dean to Joe Medwick, to Stan Musial to Bob Gibson, from Willie McGee to Albert Pujols, the St. Louis Cardinals have a rich legacy.  Their fans love good baseball and for the most part, are the friendliest fans I have come across.  Getting there early, we stood above the Cardinal dugout and watched them warm up.  No fewer than 7 players and coaches took time to sign autographs and talk to fans.  Jon Jay, Ryan Theriot, Dave Duncan, Jake Westbrook, Tony LaRussa, Skip Schumaker and Miguel Batista signed autographs and talked to fans.  Miguel Batista spent about 5 minutes signing for a line of kids and talking to everyone that came over.  Albert Pujols didn't sign, but said hi to the fans.  The only players who blew off the fans were Jamie Garcia and Yadier Molina.  Garcia looked at a fan who asked for an autograph and shook his head indicating no, and walked off.

Overall, the Cardinals were wonderful and have a 2 thumbs up from The Casual Fan.  A special thanks goes out to @JonJayU for signing for the kids.

Batting Practice on the Field

 So many times I have been to games and seen fans on the field getting autographs and wondered how they did it.  On Monday, May 23rd, I found out..  I was offered as a season ticket holder the opportunity to watch batting practice ON the field.  It was incredible to watch up close and hear the crack of the bat, and the chatter of the players.  I brought my kids to the game hoping they would have a chance to get an autograph of their favorite player: Albert Pujols.  We found out that while you're on the field, you can't ask the players to sigh, you have to wait and see if they'll walk over.  My kids left very disappointed as not 1 player even stopped over to say hi.  Several players talked in front of us, but kept their backs to us the whole time.  The ushers made a point to remind people, "no talking" and were constantly moving people down who got there early, giving better spots to people who were late!  All in all, no Albert (and he's a class guy), and not even a hi from any players.

If offered the opportunity to do it again, I would turn it down.  To get there early and be moved to the worst spots in the line was what bothered me the most.  People who take the time to get there early should be rewarded with better spots in the line, not moved down to accommodate those who got there late.

Hard Work+Talent=Ichiro

I attended 2 of the 3 games the Mariners played while in San Diego.  I've never seen Ichiro close up at practice and I decided to get there early and watch him.  There were about 10 people from the Japanese press there following him and keeping track of how he is doing.  Ichiro didn't sign autographs at all, but he didn't appear to be a jerk, he really honestly seemed focused on getting ready to play.  He took BP for about 10 minutes hitting at least 5 balls into the right field seats, displaying that he can drop the shoulder and turn on the inside pitch (the very thing Ted Williams told Tony Gwynn to do late in Tony's career).  When he was done with batting practice, he walked in, grabbed his glove and ran out to right field.  For 15 minutes, he practiced running in and scooping ground balls and tracking down flies. It was very impressive to see a 10 year veteran out there practicing like a young player playing for a starting spot.

The next time you get a chance, watch Ichiro prepare for a game.  It may not seem that exciting, but it explains why he has has a stellar career. The Casual Fan was impressed.