Tale of a Tiger: Princeton's Bill Clarke

In honor of Princeton starting its baseball season tonight in Baton Rouge, here's a photo of legendary Tigers coach Bill Clarke that I picked up in an auction earlier this year. Clarke worked with the team on and off from 1897 to 1901, when college teams often wouldn't have full-time coaches but would invite professional players to work with the teams early in the season before reporting to their clubs. In 1909, Clarke became Princeton's first full-time coach. One of the players under his charge during his long tenure was shortstop Moe Berg, a 1923 graduate who went on to catch in the Major Leagues and spy for the United States during World War II. Clarke stepped away from coaching from 1927-34, then resumed for another 10 years before retiring. When at home, the Tigers now play on Clarke Field.

The erosion of The Sandcastle

A mural at the entrance to the Sandcastle

Things are not looking good in Atlantic City. In some ways, that's true of many aspects of the Boardwalk Empire (great show, by the way), but it's especially true of the old ballpark where the Surf used to play.

Just two seasons after the club folded, The Sandcastle (I always preferred that moniker to its corporate-jeweler name) is fading fast. This great article (and video) in the Press of Atlantic City documents the stadium's heartbreaking decay, including graffiti on the murals (one of which is shown above) that line the main stairway. I'm amazed that the pictures of the park just 21 months into its hibernation are quite similar to those of Paterson's Hinchliffe Stadium. Perhaps the salt air accelerates the damage when the structure is not regularly maintained.

I visited The Sandcastle just once, in August 1999 during my "Summer of Dan" -- the eight weeks I spent visiting and reviewing minor league ballparks in New Jersey, Staten Island and Fayetteville, N.C., where I looked at the state of the Cape Fear Crocs, who had been sold and would become the Lakewood BlueClaws in 2001. The Sandcastle was my last stop, park eight of eight, and I loved ending the series with the southernmost team in the state after all my previous trips (other than North Carolina) had taken me north.

The series appeared in the paper I was working for at the time, and while some of the headlines on the columns were a little to heavy on the puns for my tastes, the one used for the Atlantic City column now seems rather apt: "Traveling to Atlantic City for baseball is worth the gamble." Even though the team didn't make it in the end, I think it was worth the gamble. Atlantic City, once a more family-friendly resort, is now an adult playground, the place for bachelor parties and senior-citizen day trips by the busload. The baseball team provided an option that allowed the kids to come along.

From 1998-2006, the Surf played in the Atlantic League, winning the circuit's inaugural championship. In 2007, they moved to the Can-Am League, in part because the shorter schedule -- which runs from Memorial Day to Labor Day -- would better fit the tourist season in A.C. (and would cut operating costs). Despite increased attendance and a playoff appearance in 2007 and Cecil Fielder managing the team in 2008, the organization ceased operations in March 2009, just two months before the start of the Can-Am season.

Perhaps baseball can't last in Atlantic City, despite overwhelming support for other clubs across the Garden State. Or maybe independent baseball was the problem. Unfortunately, the unaffiliated ranks are likely the only option for another go at it in the Jersey Shore's southern capital. Though I can't find a reliable source, I would presume that Atlantic City lies within the Phillies' territorial rights, so they would have to approve any affiliated team that moved into the region. The best fits among the affiliated ranks would be the South Atlantic League, with the BlueClaws as a rival, or the Eastern League, of which the Trenton Thunder are a part. But the Phillies already have affiliates in those leagues, in Lakewood itself and Reading, Pa., respectively, and they're not likely to change.

So Atlantic City's Sandcastle will likely continue to decay until the economy improves and some enterprising developer buys the ballpark and the land and turns it into a strip mall or go-cart track or some other attraction. And I'll have just that one night at the yard and the photos in the slideshow below, presented with the melodramatic crooning of Ol' Blue Eyes. A bit cheesy, yes, but it feels appropriate this time. Or you can just view the photos here.

Photo Flashback: Meeting the Mets home and away

Night at Oriole Park

I'm finally catching up after a whirlwind weekend. After working long into the morning on Thursday, I went to that afternoon's Mets-Padres game before going back to work that night. And who would've thought that of the two matchups -- Mat Latos vs. Johan Santana and Jon Garland vs. Jon Niese -- that it would be the Niese game that would turn out to be nearly perfect?

When Wednesday's game was rained out and the doubleheader announced for Thursday, I was psyched that Johan drew the afternoon start. I would've enjoyed seeing Niese -- I've seen him before, as far down as the Class A Sally League -- but I'm never disappointed when I get to go to a Johan game. As it turned out, I did get to enjoy Niese's performance on SNY, watching much more closely than if I'd been at the ballpark.

Padres vs. Mets, 6/10/10

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On Friday, my wife and I hit the road at 1 p.m. -- an hour later than we'd hoped, but I needed to sleep in a little -- and got to our Inner Harbor hotel a little before 5. Even though we were an hour behind schedule, we still trudged up through the Mount Vernon neighborhood for cold beer and good food at The Brewer's Art (make time for it the next time you're in Baltimore), even though it meant missing the start of the game when the light rail took forever to come afterward. We waited for about 20 minutes and watched three northbound trains pass by.

Once there, we entered at Eutaw Street and walked around to our seats on the third-base side, behind the Mets' dugout. It had been nearly eight years since I'd been to Camden Yards and I think almost 18 since I'd been anywhere but the Eutaw Street concourse, so I didn't recall the layout of the main concourses. While Oriole Park began the retro ballpark trend, one significant change in most of those that followed is the open concourse that allows fans to see the game as they're circumnavigating the stadium. It doesn't detract much from the experience for me, and I actually found it quaint and another retro aspect of the design. The concourses are still wide, but they open through vast wrought-iron gates to the surrounding streets and as you walk to your section, you notice the immense support poles holding up the slanted structure above you. Writing now, I wish I'd paused to take a few pictures (though it's not like there aren't any out there, or like I'll never go back there), but at the time, we were weary and late and eager to get to our seats. Then once there, we didn't move until the Mets had wrapped up their 5-1 victory.

Mets at Orioles, 6/11/10

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Photo Flashback: Take me back to the aughts

Chance Corgan

Not much time for a more in-depth post because I'm off to the Mets game today (Johan!) and have to catch my train in less than an hour. [Expanded below.] Yesterday morning I drove up the road to see the Pittsfield Colonials face the New Jersey Jackals at Yogi Berra Stadium mainly to see the Pittsfield uniforms. The former American Defenders of New Hampshire in the Can-Am League moved from one old, historic ballpark to another, taking up residence in Pittsfield, Mass., at Wahconah Park. If nothing else, the uniforms -- which harken back to Pittsfield's long, 100-year baseball history -- are a 180-degree improvement.

Bonuses yesterday? Former Met Argenis Reyes playing for New Jersey and Pittsfield starter Chance Corgan (above) playing the part with the moustache.

Off to the Citi. This is going to be an extended run of in-the-ballpark fun, so there should be more posts in the next few days.

Update:

I sat in the first row next to the Pittsfield on-deck circle and had a great view of the uniforms. I considered trying to strike up a conversation with one of the hitters, but even though it's a small independent league, I figured these guys still take their work pretty seriously and might not be open to an extended conversation while preparing to bat.

Among some of the highlights (all included in the gallery below):

Love how the collar flares out as the pitcher delivers.

The pant cuffs have drawstrings -- but it would look better if they wore true stirrups.

The long sleeves are a great touch, as is the deep collar and lacing. That's a team logo on the sleeve. All of the players seemed to be wearing generic blue batting helmets -- and not the new, S1000, either. I don't know if that's simply a cost-cutting measure or if an order with a Pittsfield logo has yet to come in.

The numbers appear to be felt, which is cool.

All of my Pittsfield-tagged photos are here.

I'm so intrigued by this concept that I may delve into it further in the future. I'd hoped to make a more definitive declaration, but recent unforeseen events that may necessitate auto-buying research have put leisure pursuits on hold.

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Photo flashback: Present and future Phillies

Jonathan Villar

On a gorgeous spring day, Casey and I and a friend from work drove down to Philly to see the home team down the Cardinals, 7-2, with Roy Halladay on the mound. (RIP, Robin Roberts.) From there, we made our way over to the Jersey Shore (area) to see the Lakewood BlueClaws top the Charleston RiverDogs by the same 7-2 score.

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Photo flashback: Enjoying the meat of the sweep

Frenchy's follow-through

A busy weekend has made this look back at Saturday's win over the Braves a little outdated by now, but it's still fun to look back on the middle of a sweep sandwich involving one of the Mets' biggest division rivals -- especially when one Larry Wayne Jones Jr. played such a big part in two of the losses.

We had a friend visiting from California for the weekend and four free tickets from my wife's dad, so we invited a fourth who was also making her Citi Field debut (more for Shake Shack and the company than the baseball, but I always enjoy explaining the game to others) and were treated to a gorgeous day and dozens of pooches for Bark in the Park. I couldn't help but think of the fans' criticisms of all the nods to the Dodgers while bringing Lauren, a UCLA grad like Jackie and Dodgers fan, in through the rotunda and snapping her picture in front of the big No. 42. To top it off, Steve Garvey -- who works with the Bark in the Park sponsor, Natural Balance Pet Foods -- threw out the first pitch.

This team sure isn't perfect and this run of six wins in seven games -- coinciding with Ike Davis' arrival -- could be little more than the yang to the yin of the first two weeks to put this team one game over .500, but it is nice to be one game on the good side than one on the bad. Another series win against L.A. would be a nice springboard into a weekend in Philadelphia and a Sunday night series finale with Roy Halladay on the hill.

And, hey, look at this: Monday's rainout, which pushed Oliver Perez back to the second game of today's doubleheader, means that both Ollie and Johan Santana will have four days of rest between now and Sunday. So it's Jerry Manuel's choice of who goes up against Halladay and the Phillies on Sunday night on ESPN. Had Ollie pitched on Monday, it would've been his turn in the rotation and Johan would've been left to open the series in Cincinnati on May 3. Hmm, which would you choose for Sunday night? [2:51 p.m. update: YES!]

Here's hoping the good fortune keeps coming.

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Photo Flashback: Opening night in Trenton

PItcher covering

I've been to 11 Mets openers and four or five Lakewood BlueClaws openers, but last night was my first opening night at Trenton's Waterfront Park. And while it may have only been April 8, with a gametime temperature of 75 degrees, it felt like July 8. A gorgeous night all around -- with the exception of Christian Garcia's injury.

It seemed like as many fans were there to see the Yankees' World Series trophy as for the game. The line on the concourse was longer than any concession line, Chickie & Pete's included. The roar of the crowd was a little subdued at times for the first game of the season, but that's not the fans' fault -- those in line reacted to those in the stands reacting to the play. Even the players and coaches wanted a closeup look.

I spent pregame on the field and the first inning in the photographers' box at the end of the Thunder dugout. Catcher Austin Romine, the No. 2 prospect in the Yankees' system, was the first player out of the clubhouse, stashing his gear at the end of the bench and getting himself loose for the game. He introduced himself to me and spent 15 minutes chatting with me and team photographer David Schofield. If first impressions hold, he's a good kid -- not many players go ahead an introduce themselves -- with the right level of confidence and cockiness to make it to the Majors. And though the only player ahead of him on Baseball America's list of Yankees prospects is also a catcher, it may not be Jesus Montero's career-long position, so Romine may be the heir apparent to Jorge Posada. Romine went 1-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored in his Double-A debut.

After back-to-back championships in 2007-08, the Thunder missed the playoffs last year, finishing three games under .500 and 13 1/2 out of first place. They started off on the right foot in 2010, though they may now have to replace their opening night starter. One way or another, there's going to be plenty to follow in Trenton this season.

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Photo Flashback: 1989 Exhibition Finale

Lineups lined up

I missed Friday and was never married to the "Photo Friday" moniker anyway, so I'm going with "Photo Flashback" for this one.

While thumbing through an old photo album the other day, I came across several shots from various trips to Shea Stadium and Cooperstown. They were all taken with my meager Kodak Disk camera, so they images aren't great. The players look like specs on the film, so you'll pretty much have to take my word that they are indeed from April 1989.

It was a Sunday, the final day of the exhibition season. The Mets and Yankees had agreed to resume playing Spring Training games against one other in '89, culminating with two in New York during the final weekend. On Saturday, April 1, 1989, they played in the Bronx. On Sunday the 2nd, they were at Shea. And so was I, along with my father, his brother and my cousin, the only Yankee fan in the bunch.

The Yankees won, 4-0, their fourth win in six exhibition games against the Mets. But it was the Amazin's who would have the better season, finishing 87-75, though six games behind the NL East-winning Cubs. The Yankees went 74-87, trailing the champion Blue Jays by 14 1/2.

What follows are the photos I found worthy of scanning from that day (you can see them individually on my Flickr account). In the second one, you may notice two hands in the air, reaching just above the foul line in the center of the photo. That's Mayor Ed Koch, who was on hand for the game. Oh, and those pregame shots with players in the infield? Not batting practice -- infield practice. When's the last time you saw that at a big-league ballpark?

Photo Friday: Vintage Spring Training

In some ways, I'm still not caught up from vacation, because I hadn't intended to skip two slide-show Fridays. The plan was to have this one in the bag for two weeks ago, then resume with the weekly collections the following week. Clearly, didn't happen.

At least it's still spring training, though these images fit more toward the beginning of camp. Back in February, I bought the March 3, 1958, issue of Sports Illustrated and the April 5, 1948 issue of LIFE magazine on eBay because they had photo spreads -- and covers -- dedicated to spring training. They're fun images to look at, especially because, until recently, Al Lang Field in St. Petersburg was still used (by the Rays) and Vero Beach was still the Dodgers' home. Now, both are retired, at least as spring facilities. More images can be found at the Google LIFE photo archive, LIFE.com and SI on Getty, plus 39 covers at SI.com.

I'll dig up something for next week and then hopefully will have fresh batches of photos throughout the season. I might not get to a game a week, but I definitely have the archives to come up with something to post each Friday, as long as I stay on top of things. I don't expect I'll choose to do any more that aren't my own shots. This was a one-off look back at what spring training used to be.

Photo Friday: Cactus League action

Fontenot flop

The vacation got off to a glorious start. Our flight arrived in Phoenix half an hour early and we got our rental car and headed over to HoHoKam Park in Mesa (with a pit stop at In-n-Out Burger in Tempe).

Moments after Randy Wells made the first pitch of the spring for the Cubs, it hit me and I turned to Casey and said, "We're at a ballgame!" Baseball is back. Thank God.

It was a great day for the Cubs, which made for a wonderful afternoon. We spent the first four innings in our seats on the first-base side, then got up to grab a beer, roam the ballpark and take in the atmosphere.

Upon reaching the left-field corner, Casey's eyes lit up at a sign advertising a group of former players signing autographs. "Rollie Fingers!" she said. "I have to see that mustache in person!"

Rollie was there, sitting next to fellow Hall of Famer Ferguson Jenkins. Joining them beneath the tent were Bert Campaneris, George Foster, Lee Smith and Pete LaCock. For a $30 donation -- as it was called -- I bought an autographed postcard of Jenkins' Hall of Fame plaque and an 8x10 color glossy photo of Fingers delivering a pitch in Oakland's glorious yellow jerseys of the '70s.

Sadly, this game is the only baseball stop on our Arizona/Utah vacation. From here, it's north to higher elevations and colder climes, to the desert and the national parks. I may have another update or two over the next week, but if not, this will have to stand for the time being.

Photo Friday: Miniature baseball

2004 Home Run Derby

I first started seeing photos taken with a tilt-shift lens a few weeks ago and was enthralled by the effect the distortion had on the photos. The small center of focus plays tricks with your eyes, making the photos appear to be minature models, yet in reality they're images of actual, life-sized people and places. So when a post on Gothamist featuring a fascinating time-lapse movie of tilt-shift photos included a link on how to create the effect in Photoshop, I spent an hour browsing my photos for suitable images.

Some images turned out better than others, but I like this inital effort. It's kind of a fun new way to look at some pics I'd grown used to seeing.

Photo Friday: Pure baseball

No. 44 takes a pitch

With the college season opening this weekend, I chose several photos I took in 1994. They're of baseball games at Trenton State College (now the College of New Jersey) and Brookdale Community College. This was still early in my SLR ownership, so I was psyched to take the zoom lens out to the fields, especially since I could pretty much stand anywhere along the fence at these venues. I have no idea who any of the players are, but that's the point for today -- this is junior college ball, guys playing mostly for the love of the game. With the exception of the metal bats, it's about as pure as baseball can get these days. With a few exceptions, these players have no professional aspirations, there are no stage parents complaining about playing time, ESPN and most newspapers aren't coming around looking for stories. They're just out there to play.

With the season beginning, Baseball America's preview content included a look ahead to the end of the season, which will feature the College World Series in its last year at renowned Rosenblatt Stadium. I never got there, and I won't this year, which is a shame. I don't know what the new ballpark will offer compared to Rosenblatt and whether the regular attendees of the annual tournament are looking forward to an updated, modern venue or if they'll be lamenting the old ballyard's loss. But I know it won't be the same to tune in each June to watch the college championship from TD Ameritrade Park Omaha -- which is among the top five worst sports venue names in America and may be at the top of the list. A shame.

But back to more positive thoughts. Two things in particular I love in this gallery: the dandelions on the Brookdale infield in the shots of the pitchers, and Brookdale's classic-looking uniforms, which you can see in the image above: the blue lettering and red numbers on the jersey taken from the Dodgers' clean uniform design, and the helmet (and cap) "B" logo borrowed from the Red Sox.

And yeah, the music choice may be a bit cliched, and it won't be the last time I use a version of that song, but it just fit the photos for this one. It's an instrumental piece recognizable from the start, no words to worry about. And though you may not know the players -- no words, no names -- you know the game immediately upon seeing the images. It's just baseball.

Photo Friday: Braves vs. Mets, 1991

Out at first

This week's slideshow is another set taken before I got my first SLR (and, therefore, first telephoto lens), so the photos tend to be more of the wide-view variety. I cropped closer where I could, but for the most part, the view is what I saw 18 years ago.

A few highlights about this game. On a personal level, it was my first field-level game at Shea Stadium. We got a thrill out of being so close to the field, particularly during pregame warmups, when the players were so close. This collection of images also includes some personal favorites in terms of players: Howard Johnson, Gregg Jefferies and Todd Hundley. I also like how you can see the blue-and-orange racing stripe down the side of the uniforms, even at a distance. And one photo that's a particular favorite -- and I nealy used for the image at the top -- shows the outfield wall in left-center, with the old logos of the National League teams along the blue background. Those were so much more attractive to me than advertisements, which I prefer for the minor leagues, not the Majors.

Photo Friday: Memorial Stadium, 1991

Cal

I never got to see Comiskey Park before it was replaced by New Comiskey, and I still regret that a bit. But I was just 13 in the summer of 1990, and Chicago is a long way from New Jersey. There was no way to get there on my own, and our family trip that summer was to California, so Dodger Stadium was the ballpark away from home that I got to visit.

But a year later, I did get to see Baltimore's Memorial Stadium in its final year. As with the Rangers-Red Sox game at Fenway in 1993, the foursome of myself, my friend Matt and our fathers made the trip. It was a one-day jaunt down to Baltimore and back, about a 3 1/2-hour drive each way, not counting the time spent sitting without moving in the parking lot after the game. With the stadium jammed into a neighborhood, parking was limited, so cars were just lined up in the lots around the ballpark, as you can see in the photo on this page. We weren't in too deep, but we did have to wait for at least one car to move before we could depart, and the owner of it didn't leave the game as quickly as we did.

Other notable moments from the day: We saw Mo Vaughn's first Major League home run, I was definitely psyched to see Cal Ripken play (you'll notice his batting stance in one of the photos) and Wade Boggs struck out. I found this last one notable because, a week earlier in Boston, I'd seen Don Mattingly strike out, and neither did so all that frequently.

The next year, we went to Camden Yards in its inaugural season, and the differences were immense. Of course, Oriole Park is noted as the beginning of the "retro ballpark" trend, but in addition, it also marked a shift from building stadia on the outskirts of town to finding room in or near the heart of downtown. Or at least more accessible to the city itself and its public transportation. In some ways, it can be seen not only in Baltimore, but San Francisco, San Diego, Cleveland and Houston, just to name four off the top of my head that I've visited. The drive to Memorial Stadium on the city's east side included a civics lesson, while a visit to Oriole Park is as much a tourist destination as the nearby Inner Harbor.

Photo Friday: Padres vs. Phillies, 1994

Brawl at the plate

It was a Monday afternoon in May 1994 and I was a senior in high school. My dad was on the board of education in our town, so he knew the administration well, so when the principal of my elementary school called to say he had extra tickets for the Phillies game that night, Dad and I jumped at the chance, even though it was, for both of us, a "school night."

The big draw wasn't the defending National League champion Phillies or the visiting Padres, with future Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn (who actually struck out once during the game). It was the seat location. Through a friend, the principal had gotten seats six rows behind home plate at Veterans Stadium. I had never been so close to a Major League game, and I'm not sure I left my seat once.

The real excitement came in the fourth inning. Mariano Duncan came to bat for the first time after being hit by a pitch in the second and took ball one, which must've been high and tight. Duncan probably felt that he was being targeted, so he must've said something -- either to the pitcher, Andy Ashby, or the catcher, Brad Ausmus -- because Duncan and Ausmus then started shoving each other and the benches emptied.

It didn't go much further than the shoving in the photo, but both Duncan and Ausmus were ejected. It was a lot of fun for a high school kid sitting six rows behind home plate.

For the longest time, that was my lasting memory of this game. Until this happened. Mr. Merce was the principal who invited Dad and me to the game and I always remembered him as a die-hard Reds fan, but clearly one who loved baseball in general. I went back to visit with him a couple of times in college and at least once after I'd graduated and was living at home, working for the local newspaper. My big regret, though -- and isn't there always one of these when a tragedy like this happens? -- is that I didn't get back for a visit after I'd started working in baseball. I'm sure he would've enjoyed that conversation.

Photo Friday: Angels vs. Yankees, 1992

Donnie Baseball stands in

Didn't get around to today's slideshow as early as I have the past two weeks, so no attempt at a soundtrack today and no particular reason for choosing this set.

This was a late-August game between two teams going nowhere in 1992: the Angels and Yankees. California, as the Angels were known then, won, 7-3, and Tim Salmon hit his first Major League home run, which is why this particular game always stood out in my memory. Years ago, when I discovered Retrosheet.org and its archive of box scores, I wanted to track down every game I'd attended. Finding this one was easy, because I remembered Salmon's milestone. Same goes for Mo Vaughn, who hit his first homer about two months before this in Baltimore's Memorial Stadium (I'll eventually post my pics from that day).

Nothing particularly wonderful about this set. It was before I'd gotten my first SLR camera, so I'm using my mom's point-and-shoot, the first camera I'd used that had a zoom function. But the settings couldn't be adjusted, even if I knew what to do back then at almost 16 years old, so there is definitely some blurring that could've been prevented had I known what to do. So even though they might not hold up to my personal standards today, I've decided to include them for what they are: The memory and record of what I focused on and what I saw 17 years ago.

Photo Friday: Cardinals vs. Cubs, 1998

Mark McGwire, May 1, 1998, Chicago

With the way the week started out, I had to go with this set for Photo Friday. When I went through the negatives to find that photo of Mark McGwire I used on Monday, I scanned in the rest of the worthy images to use for today's slideshow. I had a fitting song picked out, "The Apologist" by R.E.M., but YouTube's gotten smart enough to recognize music tracks and disabled the audio because of copyrights. And I didn't even use the complete song. Anyway, here's the photo-only slide show.

Update, Feb. 19: It occurred to me that Blogger has a video uplink button that I'd never used. Maybe, I thought, I can upload the video with the track that way. I finally remembered to try it and it worked out, as you'll see below. The version without the song can still be seen here, where the photos are a bit larger as well.

Photo Friday: Rangers vs. Red Sox, 1993

Juan Gonzalez

Tonight I'm posting what I hope will be the first in a weekly -- or at least bi-weekly -- feature wherein I go back to my film negatives and scan in photos I've taken since I got my first SLR camera in high school. This is the first batch of those images.

I got the camera as an early birthday present in August 1993 because my friend Matt and I were about to go up to Boston for a couple of nights to see a game at Fenway Park and take a visit to Boston College as we prepared to enter our senior year in high school. I was much more stoked about the ballgame.

Nolan Ryan was one of my favorite players, so he was my focus during batting practice, but unfortunately, he kept to the outfield and didn't venture near us along the left-field line. So then I kept my eye on the young stars at the time -- Rafael Palmeiro, Juan Gonzalez and Ivan Rodriguez. Ah, so innocent then ...

I don't remember where we stayed, but I think we drove up on Monday, the day of the game, and went home the next day, after touring campus in the morning. We paid to park in a gas station close to Fenway Park. I don't know what it cost, but I'm sure it's double that now. I hear the gas stations and other lots near the park get $50 or more. When we went back in May, we walked from my college roommate's place about a mile away.

In my mind, I can think of several games I've shot as a fan -- a Padres-Phillies game at the Vet that included a brawl started by a hard slide to the plate, the first Devil Rays-Mets game that doubled as Hideo Nomo's Mets debut during interleague play in 1998, and my one and only visit to Tiger Stadium for a three-game series vs. the Red Sox in 1999. And even though the prints are scattered about the house in albums and frames, I can't wait to go through the negatives and see the pictures again for the first time in a long time.

I even went an extra step and put together a video slideshow. Not sure I'll take the time to do this every week, but I was inspired with the first try.