Strasburg throws 10 Ks to break the Washington Nationals' losing streak

I had spent last weekend watching baseball in DC, and last night Stephen Strasburg was on the mound to strike out 10 batters and end the Washington Nationals' losing streak at four.  Last night's game was the 2nd game in the Tampa Bay Rays v Washington Nationals' series.  I was at Nationals Park, since my friend Cathy offered up her seats to the game.

Question: Who can't resist the opportunity to get two free tickets in good seats to go watch the Nationals baseball?!?!

Answer: Not this girl.  I watched the game comfortably behind the Nationals dugout (i.e right before 1st base).

As I mentioned, this was my fourth time at Washington Nationals Park in less than a week, and I was looking forward to seeing the Nationals rebound and get back to their winning ways.  For those of you that don't know, the Yankees swept the Nats over the weekend, and the Nats dropped another game against Tampa Bay on Tuesday.

Last night, I went to the ballpark sporting my Strasburg jersey and the man on the mound did not disappoint.  The Nationals came out on top with a score of 3 to 2. Stephen Strasburg was Player of the Game after striking out 10 batters with an ERA of 2.54.

Last Valentine's Day I got a new camera and of course I brought it to the game. I absolutely love this camera. Hope you enjoy the pictures --- for this blog post I focused on Stephen Strasburg, Joel Peralta, and Hideki Matsui.

Peralta was interesting to me after the pine tar controversy from Tuesday night's game.  Can you see inside his glove?!?!  Neither can I...

After last night's game, the Washington Nationals are 39-27.  They still lead the NL East. 

Personally, I'm more of an Americal League girl, but I have to admit that it's great to have such a fun team to watch here in DC.

Hope you enjoy my pictures!

THEWIRK

Red Sox v A's at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum ~ It's as bad as people say it is

Last night I ventured to Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum (i.e. which opened in 1966) to watch the Boston Red Sox play the Oakland A's.   I went to the venue, specifically to check out a new venue and see what people are talking about when they complain about the venue.  I've never seen the Oakland Raiders play a home game.  With the NFL Lockout, ,proximity of the venue to where I reside, and my desire not to return to the Coliseum any time soon I probably won't be back for a game for quite a few years.  ****With any luck, Oakland will have a new stadium/ballpark by then.  I have my fingers crossed for Cisco Field in San Jose!

I was told I could take BART to the game, but I decided to drive.  $17 later I was in the parking lot.  People were throwing footballs and grilling.  The tailgating looked fun, but I had to get a ticket so I went straight to the box office.   As I walked towards the ticketing windows, I couldn't help but notice that Oracle Arena (i.e. the home of the Golden State Warriors) looked so much newer.  Little did I know that was just the beginning of my surprise... 

Ticket in hand for a seat 10 rows off the field, by the A's dugout, I was ready to walk the concourse and see what the Coliseum had to offer.  As I walked the lap around the concourse I was underwhelmed.  The path is narrow, and I wonder whether 6 adults holding hands could stand the width of the concourse.  This isn't conducive to fans who are trying to navigate the crowds to find their seats, consume concessions, and/or shop.

For baseball there are numerous concession areas that are vacant.  Further the upper deck sections are covered by a tarp.  My guess is that these seats don't sell.  Aesthetically, I think it's a good solution.  I just think it's sad to see Rickey Henderson and Dennis Eckersley's names up top, representing an "old and busted" venue.  Yes, I said it.

I caught the opening pitch after visiting the concession stand to grab my customary order of a hotdog and nachos.  The concessions lady was a happy lady and that was nice, since I was already a bit disappointed that I had made the trip to the game.  ****  Further, I was reminded that I was on the West coast when I saw Red Vines amongst the candy selections. 

I stopped in the ladies room.  That was a necessity, but a mistake.  I've seen restrooms at rest stop and train stations that are cleaner and more modern.

As the night grew chillier and the lights came on, I began to feel some "charm" for the venue.  Unlike Red Sox manager, Terry Francona, my night at the park didn't end early.  Francona was tossed after arguing with the home plate umpire in the top of the 4th.  Actually, around the time Francona left, I felt like leaving the park, but I stuck it out until the top of the 8th.  ****  I'm not one for leaving games early, but I'd seen enough and wanted to get out of there.

I left with the A's in the lead and a score of 1-0.  I am not familiar with the A's, but I was impressed with the pitching of Brett Anderson.  He ended up pitching a shutout for 8 innings.  I also didn't know that Hideki Matsui is an A, until last night.  In the bottom of the 1st inning, I saw Coco Crisp score.  As I mentioned, I left at the top of the 8th.  As a result of that poor decision, I missed the 4 runs that the A's scored in the bottom of the 8th.  C'est la vie.

I still need to download the pictures I took of the venue and at the game, but my computer can't pull them off my camera right now.  The irony... 

If this venue was an amusement park it'd be called "NO FLAGS".  On a 5 star-rating system, it gets 0 stars.

Today I've been telling people that knew I went to the game last night about my adventure.  They're laughing and telling me, "Told you."  Literally.  That's what they're saying.  Honestly, most of the fond memories these locals have of that venue have to do with the tailgating in the parking lot or some story they remember from the 1980s.  Needless to say, unless you have a time machine and/or you're a baseball fanatic, pay the $17 and hang out in the parking lot.


THE WIRK