shrine of the eternals induction day

the baseball reliquary is one of this area's most incredible treasures - part memorabilia collection, part historic preservation, and all baseball celebration.  the reliquary frequently put on incredible displays of obscure baseball artifacts, artwork, and presentations, that are open to the public.

part of their legacy is an annual selection of baseball pioneers to their "shrine of the eternals".  33 baseball icons have been inducted to their hall of fame, ranging from josh gibson (known as the black babe ruth), to jim abbott (a pitcher who played in the big leagues despite having only one hand).  this month the main branch of the pasadena public library is displaying a collection of items paying homage to these 33 individuals, and this coming sunday the reliquary is set to induct three more.

this event is free to the public, and if you are interested in reading about my experience from last year, you can check it out right here.

pcc baseball

another photo from the pasadena city college baseball game i went to a few weeks ago.

pasadena city college lancers

more photos from tuesday's ballgame. those who are interested in supporting the local college team, they have an afternoon game today. i'll have one more tomorrow for skywatch friday.

jackie robinson field at brookside park

after almost three years of living in pasadena, i finally made it to a pasadena city college baseball game at the historic ballpark by the rose bowl. while the crowd was sparse, i was totally in awe of this place - the stonework around the seating bowl, the view of the mountains, the fact that i was watching baseball in the sun, in march, for free!,... the list goes on and on.

the pcc lancers won in a blow-out, 15-13. i'll post more pictures from the game tomorrow. their next home game is thursday.

one week until pitchers and catcher report

now that football is finally over and done with, we can move on to the first sign of the baseball season's arrival. believe it or not, in just over one week's time, the first professional baseball players will start to arrive at their spring training sites in florida and arizona. this photo is from a trip i took last spring with my aunt to see some "cactus league" games in arizona.

time to play ball!

angels in the rose parade

this year's mlb all-star game is in anaheim at the historic angel stadium. the angels decided to participate in this year's rose parade by inviting a few former players to wave at the crowd. while it wasn't quite as cool as the dodger float from two years ago, i'm a sucker for anything related to my favorite sport.

jackie robinson field

located just south of the rose bowl, this baseball diamond is the home field for the pasadena city college lancers. i've never been to a game there - has anyone else?

in my humble opinion, this would be a fantastic location for a minor league ballpark to be built if pasadena ever decided to acquire one. maybe a dodger affiliate? dreams...

meet zack hample

not only was wednesday's dodger game one of the best i've ever been to, i also got to meet an obscure hero of mine. zack hample is a self described 'ballhawk' from new york, but he happened to be in los angeles to 1) go on the tonight show, and 2) snag some baseballs at a playoff game. i was also at the game early and was surprised to recognize zack from his fantastic blog (here is his account of that particular game).

you have to keep your eyes open - for starters, he changes his shirt and hat depending on which team is taking batting practice because players are more likely to throw baseballs to their own fans - dodger blue above, cardinal red (which wasn't such a fan favorite) below.


zack is unique because he knows how to get baseballs. a lot of them. he has written a book about how to snagging them. this season he has actually been collecting them for charity. his story is often featured in the media - plenty of youtube videos our there and here is a recent espn article on him. in real life he's just as i imagined him. a super nice guy (willing to sign my ticket stub), but also totally preoccupied with snagging baseballs. the whole time i was near him he had his eyes on the field, and while talking and signing for those who recognized him he was leaping around trying to snag that next ball.

oh, and for the record, after that game (in which he snagged 7 balls), his lifetime count currently stands at 4352 total baseballs.



the dodgers wrapped up round one of the playoffs yesterday by sweeping the st. louis cardinals. this is exciting news! next up is round two, although their opponent has not yet been decided. if there are any extremely generous dodger fans out there with extra tickets to round two, please pass them my way. sadly, round one was about as much as a seminary student (or his wife) can afford.

highlights from our northwest trip: mariners game

i got to cross one more ballpark off my lifetime list AND got to sample some ballpark sushi named after ichiro suzuki - the "ichi-roll" in case you were wondering. all in all, a pretty great day.

canadians at a ballgame

adam and i had a great time chearing for our blue jays, but sadly they lost last thursday night by a score of 6-1. we really should have gone the night before when they won 13-1 - oh well! for those baseball fans who have been living under a rock, our blue jays currently sit in first place in the american league with a record of 22-12! GO JAYS GO!

oh, and they start a series tonight against the hated evil empire.

wbc final: japan 5, korea 3 (in 10 innings)

last night was one of the greatest games i've ever had the privilege of being a part of. for starters, being on the field during the opening ceremonies as part of the flag ceremony was beyond incredible. then the game that followed was intense from beginning to end. the korean fans were much more enthusiastic, and also out in greater number. japan led for most of the game, and then korea tied them in the bottom of the 9th inning before ichiro won it with a single in the top of the 10th. japan is the 2009 world baseball champion.

this game ranks right up there with this one, and this one, in terms of games i've experienced live. stage one of my baseball week is done, and the world baseball classic didn't disappoint. on to arizona for some sun and spring training.

oh, and if anyone has any pictures of the opening flag ceremony, please send them my way.

wbc semi-finals: japan 9, usa 4

now batting, ICHIRO!

japan took down the united states of america last night in the second game of the world baseball classic semi-final round. it was a fantastic game for baseball fans - but not a great game for those who are fans of team usa.

the final game between japan and korea is tonight....

AND....


my good friend aaron who has been in town for the games signed us up to be a part of the opening ceremonies to carry in the flags of the participating nations. so are part of a group that gets to unfurl the giant canadian flag. if you end up at the game, or watching on tv, watch for us! the game starts at 6:00pm (pacific standard time on espn), and the opening ceremony probably starts some time before then. the above picture is from our dress rehersal today.

wbc semi-finals: korea 10, venezuela 2

while this wasn't a very close game, it was great to be watching some live baseball again! those of us who braved the chilly temperatures at dodger stadium were greeted to an offensive outburst from the korean squad, as well as an extremely noisy crowd considering the fact that there were a fair amount of empty seats.

tonight the usa takes on japan for the chance to face korea for the world baseball classic title.

ben and the blue jays

last night i got to hang out and play catch with a few of my friends on the toronto blue jays...

not really, but i was close enough to get a picture of the relief pitchers in the bullpen. oh, and the blue jays won, and eugene and i found free tickets to a sold out game at angel stadium - just as we were about to head home. all in all a pretty great night. this image isn't really pasadena related, but its not too far. about 40 minutes if traffic is good.

a side note: the jays and angels were wearing commemorative patriotic weekend hats - compare this and this to what they normally wear here and here.

i promised a picture of city hall, but i bumped it for this. stay tuned tomorrow when i promise there really will be a picture of city hall.

religious icon?

click for gallery of pasadena/jackie robinson photos