In Search of Big Papi: Spring Training in Fort Myers

"Trying to get a fastball by him was like trying to get a sunbeam by a rooster." Bob Feller--Cleveland Indians Pitcher.

After we got our Boston Red Sox program, Mom was flipping through it casually as we waited for the game to start. Mom saw a photo of a statue of Ted Williams in front of the park and looks at me in wonder how we missed it. Ted Williams was Mom's hero during her childhood and adulthood, and when Ted Williams died on July 5, 2002, she called me in Slovakia, where I was visiting a friend, and was in tears over the loss of one of the best baseball players ever.

Ted Williams spent his entire baseball career from 1939-1960 with the Red Sox. Known as "The Kid", "Teddy Ballgame", and "The Splendid Splinter," Williams hit a career 521 home runs and a career .344 career batting average. Williams also won two Triple Crowns, two MVP awards, and is the last ball player to hit .400 when he hit .406 in 1941. His career was interrupted twice during WWII and the Korean War when he volunteered to become a combat fighter pilot leaving many fans to wonder how many more home runs Teddy Ballgame could have hit in his career. Williams retired from baseball and the Red Sox with a bang in 1960 when he hit a home run in his last at bat. His #9 jersey is among the seven (1, 4, 6, 8, 9, 14, 27) numbers retired by the Boston Red Sox.

As much as the fans adored Ted Williams, he didn't like the press or many fans and had several run ins with reporters during his career. Never one to tip his hat to the Boston Faithful, Williams got all of Red Sox Nation in a tizzy when in the 1980's during a Ted Williams Appreciation Day at Fenway, he finally tipped his hat to say thanks to his fans. Another of our favorite Ted Williams moments was during the 1999 All-Star Game at Fenway Park when Ted Williams was honored by all of baseball as the best leftfielder ever. Teddy Ballgame, being ill, came out on the field in a golf cart and received handshakes and hugs from the All-Stars, and Mom and I were left in tears of joy at this site.

"Yep. Putting his hat on the little kiddie's head. Cute. And out of the side of his mouth: "Now get outta my way, you little rat bastard." Stephen King--Faithful (2004).

Cut to March 2009, Mom and I go to the front of City of Palms Park to see Ted Williams statue. The statue is a replica of the statue of Ted Williams at Fenway Park with Mr. Williams holding a bat in his left hand and placing his ball cap on the head of a young boy with cancer. The Boston Red Sox wanted a statue of Ted Williams the Philanthropist and honor his work with the Jimmy Fund, the Boston cancer fund that the Red Sox has sponsored for decades. Some critics like authors Stewart O'Nan and Stephen King, co-authors of the Red Sox 2004 Championship season book Faithful said the statue doesn't do Teddy Ballgame justice and should have been one swinging at the ball.

Like the statue or not, Mom and I felt we were in the presence of a god when standing next to Ted Williams's bronze likeness as were several hundred other fans paying homage that day after the game. Mom and I posed for a few shots before the statue and read the plaque below. I thought Mom shed a tear or two before we headed back to the car and back to the hotel. Being at the ballgame, meeting one living legend in Johnny Pesky, seeing our boys hit four home runs and win the game 9-4, and paying homage to Ted Williams. What more can a girl ask for?! I'm in baseball heaven!

After all of the excitement of the pre-game festivities before the Red Sox/Twins game on St. Patrick's Day, Mom and I finally got seated on the grass of our right field lawn seats to watch the ballgame.

The Red Sox players had gone into their clubhouse to change for the ballgame and come out dressed in white home uniforms with green lettering and numbers for St. Patrick's Day. Mom and I think they are very nice looking, but later, my sister Erika thinks they aren't so nice. "It's St. Patty's Day, sis, get into the spirit!", I joke later that week when I show her the pictures on my camera. Erika later said that Jason Varitek's red socks (he wears his pant legs hiked up unlike most players these days wear them down) make him look like a big Christmas tree (Miss Blackwell, we presume!).

The pre-game festivities start on the field with the National Anthem sung by a local gospel singer and the ceremonial first pitch. There is a little person dressed up like a lepruchan on the field with the Sox, but Mom and I are too far away to get a close look at what Big Papi is doing with him. Later on, Mom and I look at photos on-line and discover that Big Papi, who can be a joker, put #15 on the lephruchan's back as a joke for vertically challenged teammate and 2008 AL MVP Dustin Pedroia, who says he's 5'9" but is a little shorter.

Johnny Pesky brings the Red Sox line up to the umpires getting the crowd to cheer, and the game is about to begin. Mom and I are thrilled that 2003 World Series MVP (with the Florida Marlins) and 2007 Cy Young Award Runner Up Josh Beckett is the starting pitcher for the Red Sox, and most of the first stringers are starting except for Pedroia, who left the US team and World Baseball Classic injured, and Kevin ("YOOOUK" to fans and "The Greek God of Walks" as Stephen King calls him) Youkilis, who is still with the US team. JD Drew, the 2008 All-Star Game MVP is still hurt and not playing, but we are thrilled to see "The Pride of Woonsocket, Rhode Island", Rocco Baldelli, who has been with Tampa all of his career, starting in rightfield in a Red Sox uniform.

The Red Sox take and early lead 1-0 when Captain Varitek hits a solo home run, but Beckett gets shaky in the 3rd inning and the Twins take a 3-1 lead. But before Mom can say the day is ruined, our boys come through in the bottom of the 3rd. Big Papi hits a two-run home run, and Mom and I are thrilled. I am more thrilled because this is the second game in person I have seen Papi bomb one out. The first one was a monster catwalk shot in Tampa in 2005, and I still think the ball is still among the catwalk in Tropicana Field today!

The 4th inning is the Red Sox big inning when Jacoby Ellsbury, who was third to Evan Longoria of the Tampa Bay Rays in the 2008 AL Rookie of the Year voting, hits a two run home run bringing in second baseman and Pensacola native Nick Green, who used to play for the hated Yankees. Papi has another base hit when he singles and comes in when another Canada native and former Pirate star Jason Bay bats him in with the Red Sox fourth home run of the game. The score is 8-4 by the end of the fourth, and Red Sox manager Terry Francona and Twins Manager Ron Gardenhire start taking out the starters and putting in the Spring Training invitees and minor league players. Beckett is done after three innings of strong work.

But Francona doesn't put in a minor league pitcher into the game, and we are greeted by the Dropkick Murphy's hit Shipping Up To Boston from the Oscar winning movie The Departed. This can only mean one thing, Jonathan Papelbon is coming into the game. YIPPEEE! Papelbon is a hard-throwing reliever and our closer who was third in the AL in saves last year and has a piercing stare and ferocious delivery to the plate. Pap is also known for his post-game dancing after the 2007 ALDS and ALCS when he did a jig to the Dropkick Murphys both times, the first time in his undershorts which almost gave Red Sox TV analyst Jerry Remy a coronary. After the Sox clinch the 2007 World Championship, Pap tells the press that his dog Boss ate the ball he used to strike out the Colorado Rockies' Seth Smith for the last out of the World Series. Pap gives up a run in his one inning of work, but it's Spring Training, and he is getting the kinks out before the regular season begins.

The next 4 innings, we see our Japanese pitchers in the game. Daisuke Matsuzaka is at the World Baseball Classic for Japan, but we get the honor of seeing Hideki Okajima, a lefty with a whiplash-like blind delivery, Takashi Saito, a 39-year-old veteran from Japan and LA Dodgers, and 22-year-old prospect Junichi Tazawa, who is to start the season in AA Portland, but what Mom and I see at this game has us thinking Tazawa will be up in the bigs soon.

Some of the Minnesota Twin players cool down after playing by jogging in right field. We have a great seat to see this and some fans try for autographs. A couple of the Twins players oblige the fans, and I clammor down from our spot in the grass to take to get Centerfielder Carlos Gomez's autograph on a piece of note paper from Mom's purse. I thank Carlos for the autograph and he quietly nods at me. I run back to our seats like a happy kid and make sure the autograph is safely in Mom's purse for the trip home. Jose Mijares, a Twins reliever, signs some autographs and waves and smiles at everyone in the stands.

While Mom and I were worried about sunburn or sunstroke at the beginning of the game, our worries are eliminated by the second inning when the sun goes in and we enjoy an overcast and breezy time watching the game. My face got a little red from the first few hours at the game, but I am glad that was the only sun I got. By the end of the game, the field is full of Red Sox Minor League prospects, but they do a good job holding off the Minnesota Twins and the Red Sox win the game 9-4. Happy with the win, Mom and I get up to leave the ballpark but not before going to the front of the stadium to have our picture taken in front of the Ted Williams' statue. Seeing the Red Sox play in person was a great experience for Mom and me, but seeing them win made the day extra special!

Sitting on the right field lawn at City of Palms Park was an awesome experience for Mom and me, but my advice to those who want to do this is to bring sunblock and a blanket. We brought the sunblock but no blanket. Also if you get up during the ballgame to go to the bathroom or the concession stands, you will not be allowed to return to your lawn seat until the batter at the plate is finished hitting in order to prevent people from getting hurt by foul balls. While Mom had to wait one time in the tunnel, a man asked her if she was hot and needed to remove her Red Sox shirt. Turned out he was a big collector and liked Mom's shirt. Mom turned him down and they had a good chuckle together.

Post game festivities to be continued in the last entry of this journal. Please read more!

Mom and I left the shade of the shops and food court, we went up the stairs to walk around ballpark itself. Mom and I had gotten to City of Palms early and were able to see the Red Sox and Twins take batting and fielding practice. City of Palms Park is a smaller park than Fenway and it's more intimate allowing fans more contact with the players and other activities that are going on before the game. Mom and I pose for photos with the ballpark in the background before starting our pre-game adventures.

The Boston Red Sox have the field first for practice, and Mom and I keep our eyes peeled for our favorite players. A familiar figure comes out of the dugout, and I focus on the back of his uniform. It's #33, Jason Varitek, our catcher and captain. "OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN!", I moan. After a rough 2008 at the plate, Varitek was still chosen for the All-Star Team for his defensive prowess. All winter, fans like Mom and I waited with baited breath to see if the Red Sox would re-sign our captain, and come January a collective sigh of relief could be heard throughout Red Sox Nation when he agreed to a one-year contract with an option for the following season.

After seeing Jason, Mom and I keep our eyes open for more players. "There's Jon Lester over there!", I exclaim to Mom. Jon Lester is one of our young left-handed pitching stars who battled Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma from 2006-2007. Last year was Lester's first full year back from cancer treatments, and he stunned all by pitching a no-hitter against Kansas City. Dad was over the day that game was on TV, and he kept channel surfing saying the game was a blowout and not interesting. When I put the game on, it was the 7th inning, and Lester was going strong with his no-hitter. "Blowout my butt!", I said to Dad, "Lester has a no-hitter going on!"

The batting cage is set up at home plate, and several Red Sox are there waiting their turn to take batting practice. Another familiar site is at bat, and I pant in anticipation. It's one of my heroes, David Ortiz. Affectionately known as "Big Papi" throughout the league and Red Sox Nation, Big Papi got me through a horrible time in 2004 after I was assaulted by an ex--boyfriend's son. His heroics during the 2004 ALDS against the Anaheim Angels and in the 2004 ALCS against the hated Yankees were stuff legends are made of, and I have proudly worn his number (#34) jersey and t-shirt with pride since. Mom and I watch Big Papi put on a show by hitting several balls out of the park before letting someone else take a few swats of the bat.

The players on the field are not signing autographs and run into the dugout when they are done fielding and hitting, but people try to get their autographs. Mom and I get a spot near the Boston Red Sox dugout, and the usher tells me it's OK to stand there but not to put anything on the dugout. No problem, I just want to watch my boys practice and be smell the grass on the field and enjoy being oh so close to my Red Sox.

Mom and I look around the field and watch people filing into the park as we are near the dugout and spy an elderly gentleman sitting in the stands dressed in the Red Sox St. Patrick's Day green uniform talking with fans. I hear someone say "Is that Bobby Doerr?", a Red Sox legend and infielder, but Mom says he doesn't travel because of a really bad back. Another glance, and it hits us. "That's Johnny Pesky!" Johnny Pesky came into the league about the same time Ted Williams started to play ball in the late 1930's. Johnny's career was a lot shorter and not as storied as Ted's, but Johnny's legend in Red Sox Nation continued when he stayed with the Red Sox on and off for the next 50+ years as a coach, minor-league manager, and good-luck charm for the team. Up until some lame-butt rule by MLB saying that Johnny Pesky couldn't be in the dugout because he isn't on the official coaching staff, Johnny was sitting in the dugout next to many Red Sox managers and players.

There was a small line waiting to get an autograph and pose for pictures with Johnny Pesky, and Mom and I feel this is too good of an opportunity to pass up and climb up the stairs to the line where Johnny Pesky is. As we get closer to Johnny, we can hear him talking with the fans who are clamoring for his autograph and photo op and see what a charming man he is, talking with the guys and flirting with the women.

Finally it's our turn, and Mom and I get next to Johnny Pesky. I climb over his legs to get to his left side not wanting to jar his bad leg that he broke a few years ago, and Mom sits on his right side. Johnny says, "Hello, Kiddo!" to me and I am thrilled to be called that at my age. Mom tells Johnny he looks great for a man who will be 90 on September 27, 2009, and we chat with the legend for a couple of minute. Johnny asks Mom and me "Which one of these men are your husbands!?", and Mom and I tell him we don't have husbands, and Johnny tells us he's been alone since his wife Ruth died a few years ago, and we tell him we are sorry. Mom and I pose for a couple of photos with Johnny Pesky, but in all of the excitement, I forget to have him autograph our ticket stub. Oh well! Just sitting with Johnny Pesky and taking a picture with him is enough for us, and we leave him smiling and vowing not to wash our Red Sox shirts again (OK, we did wash them afterwards)!

After seeing Red Sox Third Baseman and 2007 World Series MVP Mike Lowell near the dugout, and other players take batting practice, Mom and I head to our seats on the right field lawn. We forgot our blanket in the trunk of the car thinking that we wouldn't be allowed to have it in the park and have to sit on the grass. It's hot and sunny by noon, and we are grateful for having sunblock on, but no hats. Oh well we can go in the shade when it gets too bad, we say. The Minnesota Twins have taken the field now and are batting and fielding. After one player fields, he stops by the stands to sign autographs. It's Justin Morneau, the 2006 AL MVP and 2008 All Star Game Home Run Derby Champ. From Canada, Morneau is fresh from playing in the World Baseball Classic and back after Canada was eliminated in the first round. I get up to attempt to get an autograph, but the line is long. Poor Justin is suffering from allergies, and I want to tell him to take a Claritin, but it might be a banned substance. I get very close to getting Justin Morneau's autograph, but before I do, he has to return to his dugout to get into his game uniform. Oh well! It's not the end of the world as I return to our seats.

More Red Sox Spring Training game fun to be continued in another entry! Please read and enjoy!

"Hello, world, I'm a Boston Red Sox fan. For better for worse, I'm a Red Sox fan. . . .Same as it ever was. So bring on the Yankees, and may Alex Rodriguez bat .240." Stephen King--Faithful (2004).

Mr. King's words hit the nail on the head when describing our addicition to our beloved Boston Red Sox. My sister and I thought we would have to perform CPR on Mom Christmas Day 2008 when I first surprised her with Spring Training Tickets for St. Patrick's Day against the Twins, and Erika gave Mom a really expensive Red Sox jersey. Mom and I were really excited to be going to the ball game, and Mom joked about not having any trouble to find something to wear for the game. Me?! I had to figure out which of my eight Red Sox t-shirts would be making the trip south for the game. I finally settled on driving down to Fort Myers in my gray 2007 World Champions t-shirt Mom's family gave me followed by my red 2007 World Champions t-shirt that has all of the players' names on the back followed by my "Size Doesn't Matter! Dustin Destroia" t-shirt for the ride home. Addicted to the Red Sox? You betcha! Take away our Red Sox games during the season is like taking booze from a drunk. Just ask that representative from Direct TV when Mom eviscerated him for cutting off Bill Buckner making his triumphant return to Fenway Park for Opening Day 2008 after his self-imposed exile in Idaho after the 1986 World Series Gaffe Heard Round Red Sox Nation!

After a good night's rest after the hellacious ride from Pensacola to Fort Myers, Mom and I were ready for action the next morning. I wanted to get an early start to the ball park to get good parking, watch batting practice, and the possibility to get autographs from some players. I was like a little kid jumping up and down with nervous energy, and Mom was excited in a calmer way. After the easiest ride on the whole trip to City of Palms Park, we spent a little time looking for free parking. Not going to happen. Many businesses had their parking lots blocked off, and the neighborhood the park is located in is a little shady. Not wanting to walk too far on a hot March day, I bit the bullet and paid $7 for parking right next to City of Palms Park. Being St. Patrick's Day, Mom and I took a razzing from the parking lot attendant for not wearing green (we didn't think our Celtics shirts were appropriate for a Red Sox game), we were on the way into the ballpark.

The ballpark didn't open until 10:30 a.m., but there were several Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins' fans waiting to get inside. The usher at the gate was very nice and chatted with us while we waited to get inside. One family was from Connecticut and had been to the day before's game and the husband was wearing a St. Patty's Day t-shirt with the Boston Red Sox on it.

HOA! The Minnesota Twins team bus pulled into the parking lot coming in from their facility across town, and we see Justin Morneau (their first baseman and 2006 AL MVP) saunter into the visitors' locker room with other members of the team. People called out to them, but they weren't signing autographs then.

10:30 comes, and the usher lets us in. Mom and I look around the outside of the park at the many shops and food stands and decide to do some window shopping and browzing before braving the sun and heat of the field itself. We stop at one stand for a Red Sox program. For $5, it's well worth it with several stories of the Red Sox past and present and a comprehensive listing of the 40-man roster and Spring Training invitees. I had forgotten my scorepad at home and scrambled to find the program's lineup sheet before giving up to browze more. The program salesman says "Enjoy the game!" and I say "You, too!" "I wish!", the guy said, and bummer, the poor guy doesn't have a TV to watch the game in his stand!

Mom wants to get a Boston Red Sox license plate for the front of the car, and I want a bumper sticker for the back of the car and maybe a patch for my jacket if they aren't too expensive. We find the plates in the smaller Boston Red Sox shop and at $11, it's cheaper than on-line. SOLD! I get a $3 bumper sticker but pass on the patches because they are too much for this time around. "Check on-line", I note to myself. After paying the lady, Mom and I look around the shop more. A TV is playing the highlights from the 2004 ALCS between the Red Sox and Yankees. My heart does the mamba watching it all over again, and Mom and I leave the shop to look around more. "They will have no problem finding my car in the parking lot at work!", I joke to Mom.

We were interested in Red Sox earrings, but we couldn't find any in the larger Red Sox shop further down the concourse of shops and look for something to eat before making it up the stairs to the park to watch batting practice. Man! The price of food and drink is pretty expensive with bottled water being $4.75 a bottle. I am glad I brought a couple of bottles with us because I spend that much on a 24-pack of Dasani at the grocery store! Mom and I are not that hungry and settle for vanilla ice cream cones and happily lick those while walking around a little more. We spy the lineup on a chart before the stairs to the field, and Mom writes it down in her notepad she keeps in her purse for me to copy into the scoresheet whenever I find it in the program. After one more lap up and down the shops, Mom and I make our way up the stairs to the field itself and to see "our boys" taking Batting Practice.

Dianne has to run now and go watch the Red Sox/Yankees Spring Training game on TV. This journal will be continued in a few more entries in this journal! Enjoy!

"City of Palms Park in Fort Myers is Fenway's sunnier-tempered little brother." Stephen King--Faithful (2004).

City of Palms Park is located in Fort Myers, Florida and is known for being the Spring Training home of Yours Truly's beloved Boston Red Sox. From 1965-1993, the Red Sox had their Spring Training camp in Winter Haven, which is in North Central Florida. But the people of Fort Myers wanted a Major League baseball team to train in their city and the populace along with former Red Sox leftfielder and Fort Myers native Mike "Gator" Greenwell started the efforts to get the Red Sox to the City of Palms along with a new stadium known that was built in 1992.

City of Palms Park is quite the facility with five baseball fields with dugouts and bullpens, and the main field where the Red Sox play has a big clubhouse with a big meeting room and a sizeable Trainer/Therapy facility for players to rehabilitate after injuries or surgeries.

The Minnesota Twins also train in Fort Myers, and their stadium, Hammond Stadium is located in the southern end of Fort Myers. City of Palms Park is also home to the Red Sox rookie team, the Gulf Coast League Red Sox from April to June and when baseball isn't in action at the park, it is used for concerts and other events.

The Boston Red Sox will be getting a new Spring Training facility in three to four years, and plans have been going on since last year to design a new park along with finding a suitable location in Fort Myers. When I was in Fort Myers last week, I heard on the local news that the first prospective locations are located south of Hammond Stadium or near Florida Gulf Coast University, but a definite location won't be determined until final plans from the developers come into the Red Sox front office.

Until the new City of Palms Park is built, enjoy a great time at the current facility located on Edison Avenue in North Fort Myers. Built to hold at about 8,000 fans, it's a smaller park than Fenway Park in Boston, but you can see the World Series Pennants near the Red Sox Bullpen in left field along with the retired jerseys of Red Sox greats Bobby Doerr (#1), Joe Cronin (#4), Johnny Pesky (#6), Carl Yasztremski (#8), Ted Williams (#9), and Carlton Fisk (#27) along with Jackie Robinson's #42 which is retired throughout Major League Baseball near Right Field. Later this year, Red Sox fans are hoping that Jim Rice's #14 will be retired around the time "Jim Ed" is inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. Tickets are cheaper than most Major League ballparks but you must get them early or be left outside the park looking in. For tickets and more information on City of Palms Park, go to www.redsox.com.