So we’re back from Florida and I’m way overdue with a post.  Our trip was great!  We snuck out of Denver just hours before a major snow storm blew through.  Dad seemed pretty relieved to get out of town.  He said he didn’t want to take a week off of work and get stuck in the airport. 

We flew into Tampa, got our ride and headed down to see Grandma and Grandpa Goodrich down in Port Charlotte.  I did a whole lot while we were down there, so I decided to split my trip into two posts.  The first one is going to be from the game we went too.  The second will be about the rest of my trip.  Sound OK? 

Here we go.  Dad managed to pick up four tickets to see the Rays vs. Reds.  The Rays Renegade gave us some advice and told us to get there early so we wouldn’t get stuck in traffic.  Here’s a shot of the stadium as we pulled in.

When we got inside, we were greeted by this guy.  He wanted me to try his “buffalo wings”.  I explained to him that buffalo’s don’t fly and don’t even have wings.  I think he was just confused.  It was probably from the humidity.   

Dad and I headed down the right field line to watch batting practice. 

The place was already packed, but we still managed to get a decent spot along the wall.

I talked one of the Reds players into tossing up a ball for me.  After batting practice was over, we headed down the fence to get a better spot for autographs.  Andy Sonnanstine came over to us and signed my baseball.  He was super nice and signed for everybody that wanted an autograph.   

We called out to Dusty Baker as he was walking by and he also stopped to sign an autograph for us.  Dad was pretty excited to meet him.

Evan Longoria signed for about 10 people next to us, but we couldn’t get his attention.  Dad wanted to get Scott Kazmir to sign his jersey, but he must have had the day off.  We didn’t see him anywhere. 

Eventually, we made our way up to our seats and got ready for the game.  Here’s a shot of the first pitch. 

That’s Willy Taveras leading off.  I still don’t know how I feel about seeing him in a Reds uniform.  He evenutally got on base, but got picked off.

Here’s Evan Longoria facing Edinson Volquez. 

Just me.  Livin’ the good life.

Dad and I wandered off to do a little exploring.  We came across the popular tiki hut out in centerfield. 

Not a bad seat in the house.  This is the view from the tiki hut.

We worked our way around the boardwalk and watched the players warm up in the bullpen. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Akinori Iwamura taking a strike.

Joey Votto looked sharp and hit a home run during the game. 

Look out Brandon Phillips! 

I hung out with Mom and Grandma during the 7th inning snooze. 

The Rays lost, but we all had a great time.  The Rays have a beautiful ballpark in Port Charlotte.  The weather was perfect and I managed to get another baseball and a few autographs.  Just a great day!

So stay tuned.  I’ll go through the rest of Mom’s pictures and make a post about the rest of our week in Florida.  

Opening Day is only a few days away!  On TV tonight, we watched the Cubs vs. Yankees in the new Yankee Stadium.  Right now, I’m fighting off sleep, trying to stay awake for the Rockies vs. Mariners exhibition game.  I think sleep will win. 

Hope you enjoyed our pictures.  Until next time, good night!