banana ball with the ex and a poodle

x1821
Hi there! Millie and I are going to watch the game with you.

1821
Major coolness! Was just leaving for the stadium!
[I had spent almost three hours doing vine pulling, tree cutting, and limb stacking in the front yard.

I was glad to have hotdogs waiting at Grayson...

and hoping for a parking space and a seat.]

 

1901
Start the clock!

x1902
The clock? Do the games finish at a prescribed time?
 

1902
2 hours
 

1903
Animals just scored, second man up.
 

x1903

I must be on a delay. Stand up triple just happened.
 

x1904
Ah, now I see the countdown clock.
 

1904
Took me twenty minutes to walk from where I parked.
 

1905
Just got second run!

 

x1907
Big homer.

x1909
Are the party animals like the bananas? I had surmised to Amy that the bananas were like the Harlem Globetrotters - in other words, they never played another team *like* the Harlem Globetrotters.
Not so here?

x1909
I asked because of that slip and slide stunt that the party animals just did.

 

1911
Both teams are based here, created here. Only the bananas play challenger teams out of town.

1912
Home run [for the Bananas]!

x1912
So is Grayson their home too?
 

1913
Not all towns have challenger teams. Yes, both are based at Grayson.
1913
Animals travel with bananas to towns without challenger teams.
 

x1914
I feel like the old man at the end of Moonstruck.
"I'm so confused."

 

1917
LOL!

1920
So, end of first. Animals had 4 runs, bananas just one, so the animals get the point for the inning. Most points wins.

1921
Only in 9th inning do things change. Then, every run counts as a point.
 

1925
Did you see that back flip catch of the pop fly? Amazing!
 

1930
That bananas batter has his own walk-up band! And hit a home run!
So, animals had no runs, bananas scored a run, so bananas get the point for the 2nd inning. Game now tied.

 

x1935
I had Amy on the phone for a while but I did see that backflip catch!
 

1935
Man who stole first just came in. Animals have a run.
 

x1937
Am I hearing music during gameplay?

1938
Oh, yeah. Hardly ever stops.
 

x1939
Hmmm.

1939
Dogs on the diamond, kicking [licking] peanut butter. Lol

[Bark In The Park night - I love those!]
 

1940
Have you not seen the umpire dancing? Music never ceases.
 

x1940
I guess I haven't. Poodle doesn't care for the peanut butter.

1947
No on field promotion, just shenanigans in the stands.
[my words, not the banana marketing machine's]

1950
Home run. Did you hear the train?

x1951
I guess I didn't. I had the sound on mute during the phone call.

1954
You know how walk up music would stop before the pitch? Now, just
keeps on going, then another song starts, with the batter still up.

x1955
Yeah, this really isn't about baseball is it?

x1957
What is this about every fielder has to touch the ball before the
runner goes to second?

 

 

1957
Not hardly. All about keeping people entertained. Very like a circus.
1959
No walks. When batter gets 4 balls, its a sprint and he gets to keep running
with no one allowed to try to get him out until all have touched the ball.

x1959
Oh.

2001
That goes for any man on base, so if bananas get a sprint, man on third can run in. 

2005
Animals got that inning point, too. So, score is 3 animals, one bananas.

x2007
This is just chaos, to me. So many new things to learn. So many things to UNLEARN, if these players ever won a shot at professional baseball.

2009
Just now, while an animal was at bat, the stands was singing happy birthday to an unnamed random fan.

x2010
I haven't noticed time for a pitcher to warm up at inning change. I haven't noticed inning changes!

x2010
Heard the happy birthday.

2012
Yeah, there's no warmups.

x2012
I get it now. During inning changes, they distract you by going to the broadcast booth. Smart.

[Note: that only happens for those watching online.]

2012
Bottom of the fifth.

 

 

2018
Salute to the troops at top of the sixth.

x2020
Guy in the broadcast booth just said 202 straight sellouts.

2027
Correct. All the games are sold out this year, too, even the away games.
[I had already left and was walking to my car.]

x2028
It may not be baseball per se but it's a successful business model.

2029
Jesse is a marketing major, as is his wife.
He is the team owner.

x2030
Is he the guy in the yellow suit and bowler? They were talking with him during the military salute.

2031
Yes.

2045
Home now! Just turned on the game.

x2045
Oh, you left before it was done?
[Not something I ever did during real baseball games.]

2046
Only missed the one inning? That's a surprise.
Yes, wanted to beat the rush. Others already were leaving, too.
Probably only tourists staying for the whole thing.

x2047
I get it.

2048
Nice that Bill Lee was on the mound!

x2049
I don't know him but I know they made a big deal out of him.
 

2051
He's a big deal from years back. They have had him pitch several games now.

2101
You notice they arbitrarily change rules. Like this game, each run in the 8th inning counts as a point. That rule is only supposed to apply to the ninth.

x2102
I can't keep up.
 

2102
Fifteen seconds left, but that means naught.
 

2103
What bothers me are the rule changes. Unnecessary changes.
2105
This particular change will make the game longer. More beer and liquor sales.

2110
And it's done!

x2111
Yeah, I think I'm going to bed.

2111
Back to our regularly scheduled lives!
2112
Good night, dear. Nice to have you 'with' me tonight!
 

x2112
Yeah, it was fun.
 

2113
I have one more game and I am done. Though I do know some folks locally who plan to have a game watching party. :-)

***

My thanks to Jeff for that textversation keeping me company tonight!

 

My thanks to that former Marine and his wife and daughter for making room for me to sit!

 

And congratulations to Jack Skole of the Party Animals for the first CYCLE of the season.

SINGLE - 1st inning

DOUBLE - 7th inning

TRIPLE - 6th inning

HOME RUN - 3rd inning