A Beautiful Day On The Greenway

The Greenway
Wilkes University - Wilkes-Barre, PA

Brad Lidge In The Ninth

Brad Lidge In The Ninth
Conklin Classic
WIP Philadelphia
After having a perfect 2008 and helping the Phillies to win their second championship in franchise history, closer Brad Lidge has just blown his 11th save of the season. WIP Philadelphia has commemorated this with their parody of Frank Sinatra's Strangers In The Night.

The Apocalypse Never Looked So Beautiful

9 (2009)
Cinemark - Moosic, PA
This is one of the most stunning animated films I've ever seen.  I truly cannot recommend it highly enough.

Pedro's The Boss

Sunday, September 13, 2009

Double Header: New York Mets @ Philadelphia Phillies

Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA

Last night was one of the most memorable experiences that I've ever had at a ballpark.  What started out as tickets to the day game of a double header turned into seeing both halves of the double header, including a night game that saw one of the most dominant pitchers of this generation.

 

I forgot to bring my digital camera, so the only pictures I was able to take were with my phone which takes pretty lousy pics, most of which came out too blurry to even bother keeping.

Game One

Pitching: John Maine vs. Kyle Kendrick
Results: Phillies defeated Mets, 5-4

Our tickets for the day game were SRO, so we found a decent spot at the silver bar on the third base side to see Kyle Kendrick pitch his first big league start of the season.  He was a rookie sensation in 2007, but was far less effective last season and spent most of this season in the minors to work on developing a change up.  He's made a handful of appearances out of the Philadelphia bullpen and hopes to work his way back into a crowded Phillies rotation.

The Phillies bats didn't waste any time putting runs on the board.  With two outs in the bottom of the 1st, Chase Utley drew a walk and Ryan Howard followed it up with an RBI double to put the Phillies up 1-0.  They opened up the game off of Mets reliver Tobi Stoner with a pair of home runs.  The first was a solo shot from Ben Francisco in the bottom of the 4th, and the second was a two run homer from Shane Victorino in the bottom of the 5th to put the Phillies up 4-0.  The Phillies scored what would end up being the deciding run in the bottom of the 8th when pinch hitter Andy Tracy singled to right field to Eric Bruntlett, who was pinch running for Matt Stairs from second base.

Kyle Kendrick put up a solid performance, giving up two runs on seven hits and a walk over 7 ⅓ innings.  He struck out the side in the top of the 1st and was throwing a shutout for the first seven innings of the game before giving up a two run homer to Anderson Hernandez in the 8th and subsequently getting the hook.  Tyler Phillips was brought in from the bullpen to record the last two outs of the 8th before the ball was given to Brad Lidge in the 9th.

Lidge may have had the greatest season for a closer in the history of the franchise in 2008, but his production has fallen off of a cliff this year and last night's game was no exception.  He started off the 9th giving up a single to Jeff Francoeur, who then promptly stole second.  He got Carlos Beltran to ground out, but gave up a single to Josh Thole that scored Francoeur.  Luis Castillo struck out for the second out, but Thole stole second and then scored on a Jeremy Reed single to center field to bring the score to 5-4.  It was looking like the Mets were going to claw their way back and give Lidge another blown save, but he pulled it together to strike out Angel Pagan to end the game and pick up his 29th save of the season.

We stopped by McFadden's for dinner after the first game of the double header.  I had a cheesesteak, but I kind of wished I had ordered what Angie got after I saw it.  She had the Dublin Burger, which is a half pound cheddar cheeseburger topped with bacon, onion rings, and barbecue sauce.

On the way back to our car, we ran into a father and son who weren't able to stay for the night game of the double header and were trying to sell their tickets.  The seats were better than anything I've had at Citizens Bank Park, and they were only asking face value for them, so we said what the hell and bought them and headed back to the ballpark for the night game.  It ended up being one of the best decisions I ever made.

Game Two

Pitching: Tim Redding vs. Pedro Martinez
Results: Phillies defeated Mets, 1-0

When you enter through the left field gates, it puts you at the end of Ashburn Alley where a row of giant baseball cards are hanging on the wall to let you know the Phillies lineup for the game.  My jaw dropped when I saw that it was going to be Pedro Martinez.  He's been one of my favorite players in the sport since he pitched for the Montreal Expos when I was a teenager, and I was thrilled when he signed a mid-season deal with the Phillies two months ago.  Going to the night game meant that I was able to see one of my favorite pitchers and a no-doubt future Hall Of Famer take the mound for my team, and he would be going up against a hated division rival who just so happens to be his former team.

photo credit: Matt Slocum - Associated Press

Philadelphia Daily News (September 14, 2009)

The night game had another surprise when actor Tony Danza, who starred in Taxi and Who's The Boss, came out to sing the national anthem.

My phone was about to die before the first pitch of the night game, so I asked a nice dude in our section to take a photo of us before it did.

Pedro Martinez is going to be 38 years old next month so his days of being the most dominant pitcher in baseball are in the past, but he has been more than solid for the Phillies since signing with the team in the middle of July, going 4-0 with a 3.64 ERA in six starts, and striking out 27 batters while only walking 4.  Last night's start against the Mets has got to be his best start in a Phillies uniform.  He threw 130 pitches over 8 shutout innings, giving up six hits and two walks with 7 strikeouts.  The Phillies bats were only able to put up one run in the night game when Chase Utley hit an RBI single in the bottom of the first inning to score Jimmy Rollins, but one run was enough.  After pitching eight scoreless innings, Ryan Madson came in to slam the door on the Mets to pick up his 8th save of the season and to improve Pedro's record with the Phillies to 5-0.

 

Philadelphia Inquirer (September 14, 2009)

Citizens Voice - Wilkes Barre, PA (September 14, 2009)

This was a day at the ballpark that I'll never forget!

Cowboy Cookies

Cowboy Cookies
Wilkes University - Wilkes-Barre, PA

The dining hall at school has kind of a hybrid oatmeal and chocolate chip cookie that I've never had before.  They're called Cowboy Cookies, and they're absolutely delicious!

Taking The Fun Out Of Woodstock

Taking Woodstock (2009)
Cinemark - Moosic, PA
This film is evidently based on the the true story of Elliot Tiber.  This is the man who was responsible for getting the permit to bring the 1969 Woodstock festival to Max Yasgur's farm in Bethel, New York.  If the film is to be believed, he's also the man who wasted his opportunity to take part in the most iconic moment in the history of rock & roll.

As for the movie, it somehow manages to make Woodstock feel dull and boring, and it tops off a disappointing story with a cringe-worthy scene that borders on antisemitism.  I can't think of anyone that this movie would appeal to on any level.