When baseball fan Roy Berger decided to relive his childhood dream and spend a week as a Pittsburgh Pirate, he really didn’t know what he was in for.
Keep reading to find out how Roy scored as he huffed and puffed his way through his first game.
I thought I was in for a tough day. On my way to the cafeteria for breakfast, the guy in front of me was toting a bat bag seemingly filled with bats.
When I got to the cafeteria, I saw bat bag upon bat bag and duffels filled with player equipment.
Who brings all this stuff and just how good/serious are these guys?
I felt a bit silly as my equipment—two fielding gloves, two batting gloves, an undershirt, shorts, and a pair of $20 Nike baseball shoes—was shoved in a plastic Westin hotel bag with the words “fresh laundry” on the side. I ate breakfast with the bag under my chair.
At 8:05 a.m. the procession to the Clubhouse began. We looked like the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade as all 83 campers (82 males and Julie) marched in tandem with the pro staff.
The Clubhouse is beautiful. It’s quasi-Major League standards as the real Pirates will be here soon for six weeks of spring training and then the prospects follow over the summer.
I have to admit, it’s pretty neat to see an engraved nameplate with your name and number on top of the locker, and two uniforms with name and corresponding number hanging in the locker. We have a home white uniform and an away black, plus a nice practice jersey, white pants, black socks, and two hats.
Check out Roy’s previous post: Fantasy Baseball Camp: Preparing for the Field
I soon found out it is a lot easier to watch a Major League ballgame than it is to get dressed for one!
We had our choice of uniform number. The natural for me was 21 for my baseball hero, Roberto Clemente, but I thought that was too hokey. There are nine campers who took that number. Bill Mazeroski—number 9—would be my next choice but there are 12 campers wearing that one.
My first-base heroes for the Pirates growing up—Donn Clendenon, number 17, and Willie Stargell, number 8—are both deceased and I had to let them rest in peace and not butcher their position for the week.
Thus, I chose number 56 for a guy born on May 6.
We finally got dressed, figured out how to put on the socks and belts, and 83 Pirates in white uniforms met on the ball field for our opening-day marching orders.
It seems like every morning there will be what is called Recognition Award before we begin our games.
The Recognition Awards are actually a kangaroo court presided over by Camp Commissioner Steve Blass—an ex-great Pirate pitcher who now does the radio broadcasts for home games.
Blass is the one-man court—judge and jury—and levels fines for transgressions the previous day. All fines are used for the Pirates Children’s Charities.
He asked for a show of hands for everyone that called home last night. About 25 hands went up. Blass said, “That’s a $1 fine. You are here this week for baseball and booze and not to be calling home.”
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He then asked for a show of hands for everyone that didn’t call home last night. About 50 hands went up. Blass said, “That’s a $2 fine for not giving a shit about what’s going on at home!”
Then Sid Bream, who looks like he can still bring it, asked, “And how about the guy that called his wife to see if he can play golf Wednesday?” which promptly earned Blass a $5 fine.
Stretching followed and then the real deal. They split us into eight teams for an evaluation game. Seven innings and the score unimportant but the pros were watching as they needed to draft the teams for league play which begins Tuesday.
I was put on Team 2 for the evaluation. We batted in alphabetical order, so guess who became the camp leadoff batter for the day?
I haven’t had butterflies in a long time, but stepping into the batter’s box for my first hard-ball game since 1969 I could feel some fluttering. I kept thinking, just get this over with, please!
My first at bat was a two pitch at bat. I grounded a ball past the pitcher and fielded by the shortstop over second base. In a bang-bang play at first he threw me out by about 15 steps. As I huffed toward first I kept thinking, “What a schlep.”
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Things got a bit better. I walked on a 3-2 pitch my second time up and then got two base hits in my final two at bats. The first was a ground shot into left and the second may be the best ball I’ll hit all week. A 3-2 line drive, solidly hit, over the second baseman into right field. I have to say, it felt good!
The problem was I had to run the bases. My first two times on base was with two outs so the inning ended soon after. The final hit was with one out and the next guy singled to left as I lumbered to second. Why are these bases so far apart?
Next batter hit what I though was a double play ball to short as I chug to third but they don’t get the out at first.
I made it safely to third. I told the third baseman, “I’m so winded right now it’s going to take a double to score me.”
I scored as a ground ball which should have ended the inning was dropped at first to allow me to get home and catch my breath.
Learn how Roy prepared with Fantasy Baseball Camp: Preparing for the Field
All in all, a good start. I was two for three with a walk and run scored. Strangely I played six innings in the field and did not record one put-out. A baseball rarity for a first baseman.
I think we won the game but nobody kept score and nobody cared. It was all very cordial and a fun time doing something I have not done for many, many years.
The umpires at the games are NCAA college baseball Division 1 types. The officiating is so much better than the caliber of play!
I did have a pretty neat moment during the game. Standing at first base between pitches I heard behind me, “Hey, Alabama how you doing?” It was Mazeroski and not something an 8-year-old kid in 1960 imagines will happen 50 years later.
After lunch we went back to the fields for a photo session. First we took individual photos with the 15 former ballplayers and then a shot of each camper with all the pros assembled together. Why am I picturing a cruise-style photo gallery one of these nights? Bring your checkbook if you want the memories!
On-field clinics are optional. In the afternoon, I attended an infield fielding clinic with former Pirate greats Dave Cash, Rennie Stennett and Mazeroski. That was followed by a batting tutorial with Bob Skinner (big season in 1960) and Bream—a former Atlanta Brave who beat the Pirates in a classic playoff series back in 1992.
The pro staff then assembled behind closed doors and drafted the eight teams for league play. I’m not sure what they could garner from the evaluation games but white smoke will rise by the time the teams are announced.
I don’t expect an invitation to the green room as an early first rounder. In fact, in draft parlance, if I’m a late first-day/early second-day pick that would be about right.
Matters not. I’ll meet my new teammates in the morning as we prepare to play a doubleheader.
I sure hope they move the bases closer together.
By Roy Berger for PeterGreenberg.com.
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