SB Nation User Blog: Jamie in LA

Anthony Witrado please take note:

Jamie in LA — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 04:48:33 -0000

Anthony Witrado please take note:

this is more like what you should have said about the Prince incident.

Kevin Acee does not throw his player under the bus.

Jamie in LA's Complete Spring Training Post - With More Pictures!!!

Jamie in LA — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 23:32:31 -0000

EDITOR'S NOTE: The Brewers are off today, and as such there's no game thread. But, take a look at Jamie's photo gallery and you'll feel like you've been to a game, if not more. Thanks Jamie!

Hello Everyone,

I have to say, this trip was easily the best Spring Training trip, ever. This was the 4th time I drove down there to watch baseball since I moved to LA about 5 years ago. I have made some great friends going down there; and we made plans to meet up and stay together this year in Phoenix.

I drove down there in the middle of the night to get down there for when the players started getting to the ballpark. This year, I made it a point to go and watch other teams, where as in the past I mostly just hung out at the Brewers camp. Living about 2 miles from Dodger Stadium; and the Dodgers being my 2nd favorite team; I was especially excited to go to the new Dodgertown. The new facility for the Dodgers is just beautiful; and when they opened up the park to the public for the first time a day before the first game; my friends and i took advantage of the $1 hot dogs. The guy on the PA announced that the Dodgers Ballpark aims to be the most fan friendly in the Cactus League; which is pretty cool. The White Sox share the stadium with the Dodgers; but their practice fields have ZERO access for fans; which is really a shame.

Some Highlights of the Trip:

-Went to the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for Goodyear Ballpark, which hosts the Indians (and the Reds starting next year); and before the ribbons hit the ground, my friend Andy and I were in there side by side. First ones in the new park!
Talking to the Brewers is always fun. Four years ago, there were a lot less fans down there; so it has been fun to see the players and team get more popular. It is always good to see and chat with these guys. I talked to Seth a bit about how he hopes to improve his batting this year; with Jeff Suppan about how great his Sports bar here in LA is; and with Braunny about making three stops (hopefully the WBC, April, August) in LA this summer! It was also great to see Chris Capuano.
Got to meet a bunch of Dodgers that I haven't met before. The access to the players here in LA is not so great; so it was fun to chat with Matt Kemp, James Loney; and even Andre Ethier about his favorite local diner in my neighborhood. They really made a great effort to mingle with the fans; definitely one of the more fan friendly teams down there.
My friends and I made a trip down to Tuscon (about 2 hours) to see the Rockies and DBacks play. There was hardly anyone down there; and it seems that they are doing everything they can to move up closer to the other teams in the Cactus League. It was fun to see Tulo and Todd Helton.
On the last night I was down there my friends and I went to dinner at baby Kay's Cajun Kitchen. The food there is fantastic; I lucked out and ran across it a few years back. We had all just come from the Brewer game about 10 miles away; and surprisingly enough, Billy Castro walked in to the restaurant. He came over and chatted with us for about 10 minutes; and then stopped by for another 10 minutes with his wife after they were done eating. I told him congrats on the new job. He said he is very excited about the team; and enjoys his new responsibilities. What a great guy.
Some former Brewers I ran into were: Tomo Ohka, Greg Aquino, Scotty Pod, Claudio Vargas, G. Mota, Mark Loretta, Lenny Harris, Don Money, Chris Bosio, Scott Fletcher, Ted Simmons, Don Baylor, Tony Graffanino, Kevin Seitzer, Doug Henry, Bill Schroeder, and Jason Bere.
While in Tuscon I got to reenact the Wesley Snipes moment in Major League (They shot the Movie at the Rockies current stadium) when he finds out he makes the Major League team. Charlie Sheen says: "Don't celebrate in front of guys that just died." So he goes outside and does a little dance and says, "Yes! Yes! Yes!"
The trip had many highlights, but my favorite 10 minutes was when I listened to Greg Maddux talk baseball to a few players in the dugout. He talked about how he wasn't afraid to pitch in the zone; how he used to work on the movement of his pitch by pitching balls 90 feet away into buckets; and how he loved it when the batter would move around in the box and not stay in the same place during an at bat.

VIP Fans of the Trip:

I think this guy is the same guy from last year.
This guy aced the shirt; but kept the suspenders!
I'm glad I dont have to decide who has a better moustache. This guy or this guy.
This has to be THE BEST PHOTO I took on the trip!
I still cant believe a parent would let Dodgers owner sign their kid's forehead.

Misc Tips for Spring Training (Please ask me if you have any questions):

Bring a Map of where you will be going. I haven't run across a great map yet; so take 5 minutes to do a few Google Maps of where you will be headed. Some of the new ballparks are a bit difficult to plug into a GPS cause of the names like Ballpark Way.
Bring a Baseball and Blue Ballpoint (or a handful of Baseball Cards and a blue sharpie Blue Sharpie). So far this spring the Brewers have been great about signing for the fans.
Put on more sunscreen than you think.

You can never go wrong with these great places to eat:
1. Don and Charley's: They have great food (a bit pricey); and the place is packed with sports memorabilia. Many players stop in there to eat; especially on the weekends. The night we went we saw Bob Feller and Mike Fetters! 7501 E. Camelback Rd. Scottsdale AZ. 85251 (480) 990-0900
2. Baby Kay's Cajun Kitchen: Get the Cajun Combo; the etouffee is the best thing on the menu!!!! 2119 East Camelback Rd
Phoenix, Arizona (602) 955-0011
3. Oregano's Pizza: I think we ate at the Scottsdale location. Excellent Pizza. Casual Dining. We sat outside and split a pitcher of the local Hefeweizen Beer; which was incredible. Don't forget to order The Original Pizza Cookie for Desert; you will thank me later.

My Full Set of Spring Pictures are now on my Flickr Page:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jengber/sets/72157614569790843/

Hope Everyone is doing Great; and chat soon,
Jamie...

Spring Pictures - Teaser!!!

Jamie in LA — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 02:50:19 -0000

Hey Guys,

I just got back to LA; and have uploaded some pics from the 1st part of my trip.

Again, I am sorry that i wasnt able to report from camp; I stayed at (literally) 6 different places on my trip (between friends houses; and hotels in phoenix, scottsdale, and tucson); which meant a lot of moving around and not typing stories for the internet.

Here are a few pics to entice you; and i promise there are many more; including one that i took today of dodgers owner Frank McCourt signing a kid's forehead.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jengber/sets/72157614569790843/

yay!

Jamie.

Jamie in LA is Alive; Don't Worry...

Jamie in LA — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 05:11:12 -0000

Hello Dudes, I am very sorry that i havent been posting a report/pics; we have been running around 12 hours a day; and havent had reliable internet access. i have been getting some good ones; and will be posting ASAP. Seth McClung says hi; and he wanted to pass along that he has been working on his batting stance to improve his hitting. went to see the giants today. zito played catch with timmy lincecum; and r johnson played catch with cain. got some great shots of it; randy was tutoring cain how to throw some fancy pitches. tom hardicourt has a pretty awesome beard. soon, Jamie in LA

Spring Training - Here I Come!

Jamie in LA — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 21:46:49 -0000

Hey Dudes,

I will be driving to AZ to be there for the Brewers workout tomorrow morning. This will be my 4th year going down there; and I am very excited to see all the players; and hang out with some great friends I am meeting up with in AZ.

I plan to take a bunch of pictures and upload them to my flickr account as they accumulate. Hopefully my blog will be exciting enough for a front page bump (hint hint). ha!

As you probably know; the Dodgers are in AZ for the first time; and since they are my 2nd favorite team, I am excited to see them workout as well.

Go Brewers!

Jamie in LA

dudes, i was at the dodgers phillies game last night.

Jamie in LA — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 19:54:54 -0000

super fun. my awesome neighbor and huge phillies fan, missy and i went to the game. it was an electric atmosphere. it has surprised me every time ive been there how much more intense the energy is than at the beginning of the season. i have gone to about 35 games this season; and the acquisition of manny; love him or hate him has been huge for this team both on the field and in the stands. wish the brewers were playing. at least i got to see a matt stairs home run; which is a lot like watching a brewer victory... i posted a few pics from the game

Yesterday at Dodger Stadium...

Jamie in LA — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 20:49:19 -0000

Hey Guys, We had a blast yesterday at the game; despite it's abrupt ending. The 150 of us UW-Alumni were loud the whole game; chanting everything from "Let's Go Brewers" to cheers for every one of the guys in the Bullpen; which we were sitting next to. It was fun to lead chants of "Marcus Hanel" and "Billy Castro." They were pretty amused; and I got a good shot of Riske and Torres laughing at us... Here is the full set of Pictures (It's my Birthday today; so it was a perfect celebration!) Go Brewers! Jamie in LA.

My Day at Petco Park

Jamie in LA — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 18:26:12 -0000

Hey Guys,

I was lucky enough to go to the game yesterday; and of course I forgot my digital camera. Which is a bummer; cause it was one of my favorite baseball experiences in quite some time. It was a beautiful day for baseball and seeing Peavy vs. Sheets was as awesome as advertised.

For those of you who have not been to Petco; plan your trip now. It is a beautiful ballpark; that is totally fan friendly. It is a perfect mix of a new ballpark with other fun stuff to do without being cheesy (Angels Stadium). The park beyond the outfield fence is spacious and geared for the whole family. Kids can play in a sandbox or hit balls in the tiny baseball park. The best thing is that if you sit on the hill, you can see the live action of the game; and watch it on a huge monitor with the television feed; The Padres radio guys are also patched in to the loudspeakers out there, so you can hear whats going on. Totally awesome.

Since it was far from sold out; I wandered around and watched the game from several seats.

Highlights:

- Watching Ben Sheets warming up from 5 feet away. The visiting bullpen is a bit ridiculous. They are on the field with no shade at all.

- Chatting with Seth McClung, Jeff Suppan, and Marcus Hanel; who are really great guys.

- Sitting in the Park and realizing that this place is only 2 hours away.

- Seeing so many Brewer fans everywhere. Where did all these people come from??? They weren't around a few years ago. Awesome.

- Trevor Hoffman's almost comical entrance. It was kind of silly; but enjoyable to watch. I don't think the music was turned up that loud all day.

- I was about 5 feet under the Mike Cameron home run. I thought I had a chance to catch it; till it hit the wall above me and bounced back on to the field.

- The Carne Asada Tacos I got on my way home. mmmmm.

I'm going to the game tonight; and on Sunday with a group of 150 UW-Alumni living in Los Angeles. Should be awesome. I promise not to forget my camera this time.

Go Brewers!

Jamie in LA.

Yosted at Dodger Stadium!!!

Jamie in LA — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 17:52:31 -0000

I went to the Dodger game last night and was surprised how much i was rooting for the Indians. I guess it might be that I have been a fan of them since the day i saw Major League... and enjoyed a little American league nostalgia.

I was sitting in my very favorite section; right next to the visiting bullpen (section 52); and taking in the game. The Indians were up 4 runs in the 8th when the Indian's Bullpen did their best Milwaukee Brewers impression. It was fun seeing them warm up and then trot into the game. Borowski looked pretty bad warming up; but went in anyway; and got the longest Ned Yost leash i have ever seen (kobayaski and Bauer; who looks AWESOME were already warmed up and ready to go).

The Indians won the game in 10 innings; but i thought of you guys.

Some of the Dodger fans are a bit much. Though, I did chuckle when a group of drunk guys sang "Wild Thing, you make My Heart Sing!" while one of the Indians was warming up.

Worst (Best???) RAZZ of the night was and, i wrote this down on my vitamin water bottle to save it's brilliance...

Screaming to the Indian's Bullpen:
"We got good weather here. You aren't gonna get any help from Tornadoes!"

(he has a point).

I am going to the game again today and sitting in the all you can eat section. My goal is 3 hot dogs, 2 nachos, and 3 cokes.

soup warming up in maryvale.

Jamie in LA — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 16:37:23 -0000

soup warming up in maryvale.