Take Me Out To The Ballgame!

Tomorrow's Cheap Seats will be at beautiful (sort of) old (sort of) Cooper Stadium in Columbus, OH. Why, you ask? Well, when I looked over the pre-season schedule for my beloved Washington Nationals, I noticed that they'll be doing a sort of "farm tour" at the end of Spring Training. They will play two games at the home stadiums of two of their farm teams, the first in Columbus, and the second in Norfolk, VA, before moving on to a couple of exhibitions at RFK Stadium.

Why is this so amazingly excellent? Probably because Columbus is about three hours away from Bloomington, whereas RFK Stadium in Washington, DC, is about 11 hours away. That means...I'm seeing a pro baseball game! The crack of wood on polished leather, the snappy white or grey uniforms, the smell of the grass, and the taste of those most beautiful of food items: the stadium dogs. As for feel...well, judging by the weather we're having around here, it could be a tad cool and wet. You know what, though? WHO CARES! I'M SEEING A BASEBALL GAME!

So, what of the game itself? Well, those pesky Nats, as they were once called, will be taking on their rivals from up I-95 (and US-1 and US-295), the Baltimore Orioles. Of course, being in Ohio, this game has nothing to do with I-95, but that's a minor technicality. The Nationals actually seem to stand a good chance in this game because of their record thus far in Spring Training. True, they're only 11-15, but that translates to a .423 winning percentage, which is on a level with their record last season. Also, their wins have come against teams like the NL runner-up Mets, the AL champion Tigers, and National League rivals Florida, Houston, and Los Angeles. There does happen to be some promise in this team. If they can tap into that promise, they might be able to pull off some surprises, much like last years Florida Marlins.

I'll be sending some pictures along for you folks tomorrow night or Friday night. Take me out to the ballgame, and go Nats!