R-Phils’ Final Kids Club Game

September 9, 2009

So I’m a little slow in getting around to writing this entry. The final Reading Phillies Kids Club game of the season was on August 30, and now it’s September 9. Better late than never!

The pre-game Kids Club activity for this evening was an on-field photo session with various R-Phils players. For some undetermined reason, neither of my kids felt like doing it. Hmm. As one might expect, top prospect Domonic Brown had the longest line of fans waiting for their photo op with him. The entire photo session ended up lasting all of 20 minutes, so in a way it was just as well that the kids decided not to get in line, as we may have ended up not getting our chance anyway.

In the meantime, my husband ran into the husband of one of my good friends, who was there with his kids. As they were loitering in front of the customer service booth, the woman behind the counter asked them if they wanted to participate in one of the on-field contests between innings, which required two adults and two children. My friend’s husband said “Yes!”, and my husband (who doesn’t like to be a public spectacle) said “My wife will do it.” Photographic proof is further down this post.

Here is prospect Domonic Brown prior to the start of the game(s):

Due to rainouts on the previous two nights, a double-header was scheduled, with the first game actually resuming in the bottom of the second inning, the point at which it had been suspended the previous night. So as the game began, the R-Phils were already on the losing end, 1-0.

Around the fourth or fifth inning, we were to go on field with another group to compete in the sling-shot contest. We had 30 seconds to try to shoot squishy balls through a hole in a target which was lowered from the grandstand roof. Here we are:

My friend’s husband is on the left, I’m on the right, and my son is the one in black. My friend’s son is obscured behind me. Neither we nor the other group got any balls through the target, though some came close. It’s a lot harder than it looks – the soft stuffed balls tend not to fly straight. I’ve never seen any go through at games I’ve been to, though occasionally someone does make it.

The first game finished quickly, with the same 1-0 score as when it started. After a short break, game two began. Not sure there was any real reason why, but this game was “Beatles Tribute Night”. All the player photos on the scoreboard had been modified to give them appropriate hairstyles. Here’s Domonic with a “Beatle-do”:

Better stick to your normal hairstyle!

By the third inning, my son kept complaining that his stomach hurt. Could it be because he’d eaten (in this order) a helmet of Dippin’ Dots, two hot dogs, a Sprite, and a massive order of french fries? Let’s just say things were a bit unsettled, and we ended up leaving early. Shortly after we left, the R-Phils pitching imploded, so I guess it wasn’t a tragedy that we left when we did.

Caption Contest Fun!

Once I got a chance to look through my photos from the night, I discovered I’d inadvertantly caught this moment:

That’s Domonic Brown in front, and a (thankfully) unidentified R-Phils player in the back. Give me your most creative captions, and I’ll be sure to “pick” a winner!

 

(all photos by me, except the one of me was taken by my husband)

Written by Rants, Raves, etc. Posted in Dailies Tagged with Beatles Tribute, Domonic Brown, Kids Club, Reading Phillies