Spring Training, Day Seven

Day 7, Spring Training. Ed Smith Stadium, Sarasota. Game 2 of 4 to see the Cincinnati Reds. There’s no substitute for knowing what you’re doing. Now that I knew where the entrance to the overflow lot was, I mapped out a way to get there from the other direction, so I had little trouble getting to the lot and parking. There is one potentially troublesome left hand turn, but if it’s backed up, I can just go past it a throw a U-turn, Florida’s most popular traffic maneuver.

According to the program, “The Ed” as the announcer calls the stadium, was built for the Chicago White Sox. But after training in Sarasota for 38 years, the White Sox up and left for the Cactus League in Tucson in 1997. The Blue Jays were the most likely successor, as they were looking to leave Dunedin. After seeing shitty Knology Park, that’s understandable. But the City of Dunedin demanded the Jays buy out the remaining two years on their lease.

The Jays balked, so instead the Reds moved to Sarasota from Plant City. The Plant City facility must be a real pigsty since the Jays could have moved there after their lease ran out. So for want of a few bucks, the Jays are stuck up at Knology. Serves the cheap bastards right. The Jays were also the Reds’ opponent today, so I saw them for the second game in a row.

“The Ed” has not improved since my last visit. The seats are worn, the paint is chipping off the armrests and the hardware holding the seats down is all rusted. It’s better than Knology, but that damns it with faint praise. The field is in good shape and fairly spacious at 340’ down the lines, 375’ in the power alleys and 400’ to dead center. The clubhouse is not connected to the dugout, since when the Reds’ regulars are taken out the game, they have to tote their gear and walk down the right field line and out the park.

My seat was almost the same a last time – four rows up from the field down the first base line a little past the infield. Parks with little shade are now worse with daylight savings time. The games essentially are starting an hour earlier so it takes lengthening shadows an hour longer to arrive. But today there was a mix of sun and clouds with a mild breeze, so it was pleasant throughout the game.

They played the game with three umpires. That happened at the Yankees game too. What’s the deal with that? Did one of them get the shits right before the game? They also played with the DH. At the two other NL home games I attended, the pitchers batted. Both of those games were against NL opponents, so it looks like when the visiting team is AL, they use the DH

Reds win 3-0 in a fast two hours, seven minutes. Even though most of the pitchers were minor leaguers, Jays manage only two hits and the Reds seven, with the sole extra base hit an RBI double by Reds’ sub Norris Hopper. The “Big Skirt” and Vernon Wells didn’t play for the Jays today. Griffey is still a no-show.

Tomorrow, it’s up to St. Petersburg to see the Devil Rays.

Dad