Three days of Texas fun

[Legend_Of_Joey]

Growing up, I was a Texas Rangers fan. The first game I ever remember my parents taking me to involved the Rangers and the Orioles. Some guy named “Nolan Ryan” was pitching for the Rangers and he seemed to be an ok player.  Not long after, I got started with playing baseball and was mainly the catcher and took after Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez. Ever since it was built, one of my goals (dreams, really) was to go to the Ballpark in Arlington. Thanks to some great MLB scheduling and some luck, I was finally able to. Here is my story…

Before MLB announced the league wide schedule, I was determined to go to the Orioles at Rangers series, no matter when. However, once the schedule was released, it appeared like fate was stepping up. The Orioles were scheduled for June 4-6, with my birthday falling right in the middle. Whoever was making this schedule a reality, I hope you got a nice pay raise for something. Since the schedule was announced, this trip was the main focus for me. I didn’t care if the Orioles were 0-season at that point, I was still going. Yeah, the Orioles decided to throw a giant wrench into my idea for fun when they sent Austin Wynns and Stevie Wilkerson to Norfolk before they left for Texas. A gut punch for sure and for a brief moment, I thought about switching the trip to the Raleigh-Durham area, since that is where Norfolk was going to play. The look on my wife’s’ face when I even jokingly mentioned it made me realize we were going to Texas, or she was ending up at the prime suspect on The First 48.

Leading up to the trip, the weather kept looking like it was going to be bad. For a bit, all three games looked like rainouts with thunderstorms. Then alternating storms before having Tuesday be the only game that wouldn’t have storms all day.

An early morning flight and some rest at the hotel room gave me an idea. So what if my birthday was the 5^th? If the game was potentially going to be rained out, celebrate a day early! So on the way to the park, I stopped by Walgreens and picked up a poster board and created a sign, hoping for the best. Pulling up to the ballpark, it was like pulling up to a lifelong dream. Finally, after all these years, I get to experience one place I have always wanted to go. Who cares if the heat and humidity made me want to sit in a tub of ice the entire trip? I was finally there!

We got there before the gates open and we were actually first in line on the left field side. After getting in there, the Rangers were still taking batting practice while bullpen catcher Joel Polanco was just lounging near the tarp. I have a card of his from Bowie and made my way through the seats and asked if he would sign the card, please. A hand wave and a “no” later, and I’m suddenly wishing Jett Ruiz was still around.

After a bit, the Orioles come out and start playing catch before batting practice for them. While walking back a few rows to avoid getting drilled with an overthrow, an overthrow hits the seats right in front of me and rolls to me. Fine, if you all insist on giving me a ball here…No one was asking for it back, no kids were around (except one who had 3 baseballs already in his hand), so “Welcome To Texas.”

Right after that, I decided to unleash my sign in all of its glory, towards the intended target. The results were successful!

 

For a quick backstory, I have enjoyed Paul Fry’s work since he was acquired from Seattle and was in Bowie. He gets results. During batting practice earlier in the year in Baltimore, I had my “Papa Frita” Players Weekend Jersey with me. He saw it and offered to sign it, but I didn’t have a pen. He grabbed a batting practice ball and signed it instead. A few weeks later, I finally went back for batting practice with the jersey and had a pen. He immediately came over and signed the jersey, gave me a ball, and gave my wife a ball (which he signed for her.) He is definitely one of the nicest players, Orioles or otherwise.

Anyway, back to the main story.

Watched some batting practice (or as I call it at times, “kids yelling ‘BALL’ after a hitter even makes contact) and realized the ball is going to carry a lot that night. Mancini and Nunez were launching things into the second deck with ease. Severino was peppering the bullpen (go figure.) Walked around a bit after batting practice to get some food and something cool to drink, which was the main goal. Ended up finding out that the Rangers have a special “Soda Stein” to commemorate the final season at Globe Life Park, which cost $20 but had $1 refills. It is made of plastic, but the detail that is carved on it is tremendous. The price is great too, because the wife and I went through the drinks pretty quickly during the few days we were there.

Took our seats for the first night, right over top of the Orioles bullpen, which was great. The view was awesome, Fry spotted me and waved, and the people next to me were pretty cool. The only issue we had was a drunk group that sat behind us in the 7^th inning that were making some inappropriate comments, including trying to hit on my wife. Luckily, they got up soon after, as they heard some of my comments that I whispered very loudly.

The biggest highlight was Severino’s 3^rd home run of the game. The ball was hit directly at me and if he hit it another 3 feet, I would of caught it on the fly. Instead, it bounced up and hit the wall, causing it to spin a little towards center. It came up high enough for me to get it, but it was just a little too far away. This was the closest I have ever come to a MLB home run and it was both awesome and frustrating.

 

In the bottom of the 9^th, we decided to make our way towards the Orioles dugout so I could check off the second box on my sign. Little did we know the adventures the 9^th inning would bring. I was finally able to check it off, but I think the look on my face says how it went.

Day 2 brought out some more fun, but mainly more sun. After catching up on some much needed sleep, we grabbed a birthday lunch at Saltgrass Steak House. Could we have gone to a non-chain restaurant, or a more upscale one to celebrate? Yeah…But this was close to the hotel and I wanted a good steak, which I heard they had. They were right! If you don’t mind a “chain,” I recommend the place. The prices were actually very good for the quality.

After a quick shower to try and cool off, it was off to the park again. I had bought tickets on Stub Hub but wanted a hard copy, due to it being my birthday, but they weren’t able to do that, saying I would have to call the next day. I wasn’t sure what was even going to happen the next day, so I bought another ticket from the box office for the cheapest seat they had. We got in again pretty soon after the gates open and headed down to the Orioles side, as they were warming up. The wife wanted John Means autograph, even though he was starting. Means ignored everyone on the way out to the bullpen, which was expected. She did get Richard Bleier’s autograph though and he chatted with her and the few people around for a while. He is DEFINETLY another one of the nicest players in all of baseball. If you want his autograph and don’t get it, you really did something wrong. Also popping out of the dugout to warm up was Fry. He saw me, waved, and came over and signed my ticket for the day. Talked for a minute before he headed out.

Funny story: While we were waiting for some more players to come out, a few had started throwing infront of us. I told my wife to move to my right, incase of an overthrow. She said “I should be fine.” *SMACK!* A ball that was overthrown missed her by about 8 inches and hit the seats. I made sure she was ok and went to get it, as no one was moving. Headed out to center field to see how that berm looks and realized I wasn’t going to hop the fence there to chase a ball on it. Keon Broxton did throw a ball into the crowd I was in and I ended up with it. After asking around, all the kids admitted to already having multiple baseballs already, so I got to play hero and give it to the wife.

The seats for the night were down the 3^rd base line, about 4 rows back. Luckily, the sun went down quickly and we only had to deal with the humidity. We also had to deal with this being the “Oriole’s Body Bag Game.” Severino, Villar, and Stewart, all going down with injuries. I didn’t realize Severino was hurt until the trainers came out after Pence was hit by a pitch. I thought maybe he was dehydrated or something. Heard on the tv while on the concourse about Villar and was in our seats for the Stewart play. Only saw Alberto sliding into him and didn’t realize he hit the wall a bit until later, but could tell they were working on his ankle. Could also tell Fry was exhausted in the 12^th and was wondering why Givens, who had warmed up a few times already, wasn’t coming in. We all know how that game ended.

Day 3 brought something we had been expecting all week. RAIN! But not when we expected it. There was no batting practice, even though the weather was the best of the three days. Sunny, but not super hot and there was almost no humidity. The Orioles players didn’t come out to throw either, except the starters right before the game. The wife finally got Means to sign her ball, so she was happy. Our seats were near the dugout, but it was packed around us. Once it started drizzling, we got up and hit the concourse just as the rain came down hard. Spent the weather delay and most of the rest of the game walking around, checking out different views of the field and different parts of the park. Hit up the Rangers Authentic Stand for a 3^rd day in a row. Picked up a Mancini hit from my birthday with an almost pristine “Rangers Final Season” commemorative logo on the ball. Talked with the employees for a bit before heading back to the field area. Once there, I decided to make one last attempt at something for the day. Once the game ended, we raced down to the box next to the Orioles dugout and waited for the bullpen to come towards the dugout. Spotted the man of the week, Mr. Paul Fry himself, and called out to him and motioned for a picture. He came over and seemed happy to take one with me, before asking if we were going to Houston with them. When we said we had an early flight home, I got a handshake and we got a “great seeing you here, have a safe trip and glad your birthday went well” before he went to the dugout.

To say the experiences at the games were great would be selling it super short. The staff we met was super nice, even if I had on Orioles stuff all 3 games. We were told to come back to the new stadium and find them again next season and they would take care of us. The people at the Authentic store were amazing and they had some pretty sweet stuff. Even gave a great price on the Mancini ball because of my birthday, along with a Mancini “one of a kind” autographed card and my wife got a “one of a kind” Adam Jones patch card. Picked up some earrings for my mom, a "Final Season" pin and an Ivan Rodriguez Number Retirement pin. Former Ranger pitcher Tom Henke was signing autographs on the first day and we happened to walk into the line when it first formed, so getting his autograph was easy and pretty neat. Told him I remember seeing him in the 1995 All Star Game there and he laughed, talked about how great it was to come back to Texas even as a member of the Cardinals and how it meant a lot to him and thanked me for bringing up that memory.

This trip was one of the best baseball trips ever. If you get a chance to go to see this stadium, please go. Yes, it will be hot, but the view is amazing. If the new stadium is better, then it might be the best stadium in MLB, right behind Camden Yards. Everyone was extremely friendly, the Uber rides were cheap and all the drivers were nice. Even though I wish Wynns had been able to be there, especially with his debut being on my birthday last year, things still worked out very well.  Once the schedule is announced for 2020, I will make sure to be at the Orioles series in Texas. Who knows, maybe I’ll get lucky with the dates again or even see some of you there.

 

 

[Ohfan67]

Happy birthday!! Glad you had a great trip and thanks for sharing. 

[bobmc]

10 minutes ago, Ohfan67 said:

Happy birthday!! Glad you had a great trip and thanks for sharing. 

@Legend_Of_Joey I second that emotion - very funny and super interesting!  Thanks for that - what a fan!  

[Frobby]

Great report, and I’m glad you had a great time!

Given your comments about what a nice stadium it is, it’s really a crime that huge public dollars are being used to replace it after only 26 years.    Frankly, that’s ridiculous.   And yes, I know it’s hot there.   

[HowAboutThat]

What a great story! So glad you were there. And I was across from you behind the Orioles dugout. I’ve seen Rangers/Orioles four times and Tuesday was the first Oriole win. Was a great game except for the horror of the B9.

congrats!

[Tx Oriole]

10 hours ago, Legend_Of_Joey said:

Growing up, I was a Texas Rangers fan. The first game I ever remember my parents taking me to involved the Rangers and the Orioles. Some guy named “Nolan Ryan” was pitching for the Rangers and he seemed to be an ok player.  Not long after, I got started with playing baseball and was mainly the catcher and took after Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez. Ever since it was built, one of my goals (dreams, really) was to go to the Ballpark in Arlington. Thanks to some great MLB scheduling and some luck, I was finally able to. Here is my story…

Before MLB announced the league wide schedule, I was determined to go to the Orioles at Rangers series, no matter when. However, once the schedule was released, it appeared like fate was stepping up. The Orioles were scheduled for June 4-6, with my birthday falling right in the middle. Whoever was making this schedule a reality, I hope you got a nice pay raise for something. Since the schedule was announced, this trip was the main focus for me. I didn’t care if the Orioles were 0-season at that point, I was still going. Yeah, the Orioles decided to throw a giant wrench into my idea for fun when they sent Austin Wynns and Stevie Wilkerson to Norfolk before they left for Texas. A gut punch for sure and for a brief moment, I thought about switching the trip to the Raleigh-Durham area, since that is where Norfolk was going to play. The look on my wife’s’ face when I even jokingly mentioned it made me realize we were going to Texas, or she was ending up at the prime suspect on The First 48.

Leading up to the trip, the weather kept looking like it was going to be bad. For a bit, all three games looked like rainouts with thunderstorms. Then alternating storms before having Tuesday be the only game that wouldn’t have storms all day.

An early morning flight and some rest at the hotel room gave me an idea. So what if my birthday was the 5^th? If the game was potentially going to be rained out, celebrate a day early! So on the way to the park, I stopped by Walgreens and picked up a poster board and created a sign, hoping for the best. Pulling up to the ballpark, it was like pulling up to a lifelong dream. Finally, after all these years, I get to experience one place I have always wanted to go. Who cares if the heat and humidity made me want to sit in a tub of ice the entire trip? I was finally there!

We got there before the gates open and we were actually first in line on the left field side. After getting in there, the Rangers were still taking batting practice while bullpen catcher Joel Polanco was just lounging near the tarp. I have a card of his from Bowie and made my way through the seats and asked if he would sign the card, please. A hand wave and a “no” later, and I’m suddenly wishing Jett Ruiz was still around.

After a bit, the Orioles come out and start playing catch before batting practice for them. While walking back a few rows to avoid getting drilled with an overthrow, an overthrow hits the seats right in front of me and rolls to me. Fine, if you all insist on giving me a ball here…No one was asking for it back, no kids were around (except one who had 3 baseballs already in his hand), so “Welcome To Texas.”

Right after that, I decided to unleash my sign in all of its glory, towards the intended target. The results were successful!

 

For a quick backstory, I have enjoyed Paul Fry’s work since he was acquired from Seattle and was in Bowie. He gets results. During batting practice earlier in the year in Baltimore, I had my “Papa Frita” Players Weekend Jersey with me. He saw it and offered to sign it, but I didn’t have a pen. He grabbed a batting practice ball and signed it instead. A few weeks later, I finally went back for batting practice with the jersey and had a pen. He immediately came over and signed the jersey, gave me a ball, and gave my wife a ball (which he signed for her.) He is definitely one of the nicest players, Orioles or otherwise.

Anyway, back to the main story.

Watched some batting practice (or as I call it at times, “kids yelling ‘BALL’ after a hitter even makes contact) and realized the ball is going to carry a lot that night. Mancini and Nunez were launching things into the second deck with ease. Severino was peppering the bullpen (go figure.) Walked around a bit after batting practice to get some food and something cool to drink, which was the main goal. Ended up finding out that the Rangers have a special “Soda Stein” to commemorate the final season at Globe Life Park, which cost $20 but had $1 refills. It is made of plastic, but the detail that is carved on it is tremendous. The price is great too, because the wife and I went through the drinks pretty quickly during the few days we were there.

Took our seats for the first night, right over top of the Orioles bullpen, which was great. The view was awesome, Fry spotted me and waved, and the people next to me were pretty cool. The only issue we had was a drunk group that sat behind us in the 7^th inning that were making some inappropriate comments, including trying to hit on my wife. Luckily, they got up soon after, as they heard some of my comments that I whispered very loudly.

The biggest highlight was Severino’s 3^rd home run of the game. The ball was hit directly at me and if he hit it another 3 feet, I would of caught it on the fly. Instead, it bounced up and hit the wall, causing it to spin a little towards center. It came up high enough for me to get it, but it was just a little too far away. This was the closest I have ever come to a MLB home run and it was both awesome and frustrating.

 

In the bottom of the 9^th, we decided to make our way towards the Orioles dugout so I could check off the second box on my sign. Little did we know the adventures the 9^th inning would bring. I was finally able to check it off, but I think the look on my face says how it went.

Day 2 brought out some more fun, but mainly more sun. After catching up on some much needed sleep, we grabbed a birthday lunch at Saltgrass Steak House. Could we have gone to a non-chain restaurant, or a more upscale one to celebrate? Yeah…But this was close to the hotel and I wanted a good steak, which I heard they had. They were right! If you don’t mind a “chain,” I recommend the place. The prices were actually very good for the quality.

After a quick shower to try and cool off, it was off to the park again. I had bought tickets on Stub Hub but wanted a hard copy, due to it being my birthday, but they weren’t able to do that, saying I would have to call the next day. I wasn’t sure what was even going to happen the next day, so I bought another ticket from the box office for the cheapest seat they had. We got in again pretty soon after the gates open and headed down to the Orioles side, as they were warming up. The wife wanted John Means autograph, even though he was starting. Means ignored everyone on the way out to the bullpen, which was expected. She did get Richard Bleier’s autograph though and he chatted with her and the few people around for a while. He is DEFINETLY another one of the nicest players in all of baseball. If you want his autograph and don’t get it, you really did something wrong. Also popping out of the dugout to warm up was Fry. He saw me, waved, and came over and signed my ticket for the day. Talked for a minute before he headed out.

Funny story: While we were waiting for some more players to come out, a few had started throwing infront of us. I told my wife to move to my right, incase of an overthrow. She said “I should be fine.” *SMACK!* A ball that was overthrown missed her by about 8 inches and hit the seats. I made sure she was ok and went to get it, as no one was moving. Headed out to center field to see how that berm looks and realized I wasn’t going to hop the fence there to chase a ball on it. Keon Broxton did throw a ball into the crowd I was in and I ended up with it. After asking around, all the kids admitted to already having multiple baseballs already, so I got to play hero and give it to the wife.

The seats for the night were down the 3^rd base line, about 4 rows back. Luckily, the sun went down quickly and we only had to deal with the humidity. We also had to deal with this being the “Oriole’s Body Bag Game.” Severino, Villar, and Stewart, all going down with injuries. I didn’t realize Severino was hurt until the trainers came out after Pence was hit by a pitch. I thought maybe he was dehydrated or something. Heard on the tv while on the concourse about Villar and was in our seats for the Stewart play. Only saw Alberto sliding into him and didn’t realize he hit the wall a bit until later, but could tell they were working on his ankle. Could also tell Fry was exhausted in the 12^th and was wondering why Givens, who had warmed up a few times already, wasn’t coming in. We all know how that game ended.

Day 3 brought something we had been expecting all week. RAIN! But not when we expected it. There was no batting practice, even though the weather was the best of the three days. Sunny, but not super hot and there was almost no humidity. The Orioles players didn’t come out to throw either, except the starters right before the game. The wife finally got Means to sign her ball, so she was happy. Our seats were near the dugout, but it was packed around us. Once it started drizzling, we got up and hit the concourse just as the rain came down hard. Spent the weather delay and most of the rest of the game walking around, checking out different views of the field and different parts of the park. Hit up the Rangers Authentic Stand for a 3^rd day in a row. Picked up a Mancini hit from my birthday with an almost pristine “Rangers Final Season” commemorative logo on the ball. Talked with the employees for a bit before heading back to the field area. Once there, I decided to make one last attempt at something for the day. Once the game ended, we raced down to the box next to the Orioles dugout and waited for the bullpen to come towards the dugout. Spotted the man of the week, Mr. Paul Fry himself, and called out to him and motioned for a picture. He came over and seemed happy to take one with me, before asking if we were going to Houston with them. When we said we had an early flight home, I got a handshake and we got a “great seeing you here, have a safe trip and glad your birthday went well” before he went to the dugout.

To say the experiences at the games were great would be selling it super short. The staff we met was super nice, even if I had on Orioles stuff all 3 games. We were told to come back to the new stadium and find them again next season and they would take care of us. The people at the Authentic store were amazing and they had some pretty sweet stuff. Even gave a great price on the Mancini ball because of my birthday, along with a Mancini “one of a kind” autographed card and my wife got a “one of a kind” Adam Jones patch card. Picked up some earrings for my mom, a "Final Season" pin and an Ivan Rodriguez Number Retirement pin. Former Ranger pitcher Tom Henke was signing autographs on the first day and we happened to walk into the line when it first formed, so getting his autograph was easy and pretty neat. Told him I remember seeing him in the 1995 All Star Game there and he laughed, talked about how great it was to come back to Texas even as a member of the Cardinals and how it meant a lot to him and thanked me for bringing up that memory.

This trip was one of the best baseball trips ever. If you get a chance to go to see this stadium, please go. Yes, it will be hot, but the view is amazing. If the new stadium is better, then it might be the best stadium in MLB, right behind Camden Yards. Everyone was extremely friendly, the Uber rides were cheap and all the drivers were nice. Even though I wish Wynns had been able to be there, especially with his debut being on my birthday last year, things still worked out very well.  Once the schedule is announced for 2020, I will make sure to be at the Orioles series in Texas. Who knows, maybe I’ll get lucky with the dates again or even see some of you there.

 

 

I had no idea the Rangers were going to build a new Stadium. Glad you had a great birthday in Texas. 

[Going Underground]

1 hour ago, Frobby said:

Great report, and I’m glad you had a great time!

Given your comments about what a nice stadium it is, it’s really a crime that huge public dollars are being used to replace it after only 26 years.    Frankly, that’s ridiculous.   And yes, I know it’s hot there.   

Retractable roof and it is Texas.Also the stadium is not near much.Have the land unlike some downtown stadiums. 

[atomic]

Cool trip report!