Days Nine and Ten of Ballpark Tours Rocky Mountain High Redux were filled with varied activities – another Cardinals/Royals I-70 Series tilt (which played out a lot like the first one); museum visits covering topics from The Great War to The Day the Music Died; vodka-infused snow cones; jalapeno-enhanced hot dogs and pizza; and even a bit of a baseball pitcher-umpire dustup. And, of course, there was the long bus ride home, during which we shared stories from the trip, beer and snacks, and rock and roll music (from the back of the bus). Here’s a look at how it went for me.
DAY NINE – BASEBALL AND BATTLEGROUNDS
After breakfast at the Holiday Inn Country Club Plaza, my roomie and I hopped the hotel shuttle for a ride to The National World War I Museum and Memorial – open since 1926 and “dedicated to remembering, interpreting and understanding the Great War and its enduring impact on the global community.” It’s an emotional and educational experience, as the story of (and behind) World War I is told through a series of films, sound recordings, art, artifacts and interactive displays. I can almost guarantee that the only regret you will have is that you didn’t have more time to spend there. (Some of the Ballpark Tours trekkers actually visited the museum on consecutive days.)
Being a bit more specific, you will find: hundreds of uniforms of the day; weaponry from sabers to rifles to artillery pieces; medical equipment and a 1918 Ford Model T ambulance; aircraft; a Renault FT Tank; and a replica of the World War I trenches. There are also: video presentations of the battles, tactics and strategies of the conflict; moving (and educational) documentary films; sound booths with music, news broadcasts and propaganda from the period; related art work (from paintings to posters); and state-of-the-art interactive displays that let you select which aspects of the Great War you wish to focus on. At $16 (discounts for seniors, college students and youngsters), it’s a bargain.
THE GAME – CARDINALS PROVE “CLUTCH” AGAIN.
Saturday evening, it was back to Kaufmann stadium for a second Cardinals/Royals tilt – and again there was plenty of Cardinals’ red in the stands and Cardinals’ firepower at the plate (more on that to come.) Our seats were in the lower deck, right-field corner – good view, except for the occasional loss of the second baseman or shorstop behind the foul pole.
The Redbirds won – this time 8-2. A few observations:
- The Cardinals once again put together some clutch two-out hits. In Firday night’s game, St. Louis accounted for four of its five second-inning runs with a series of four straight two-out hits – and also scored five of its their seven total runs with two outs. Saturday, the Cardinals again jumped to an early lead. This time scoring four third-inning runs on a string of five straight two-out hits – and also scored six of their eight runs with two out.
- There were a handful of defensive gems: 1) In the third inning, Royals’ 3B Alicides Escobar leaned into the dugout to snag a foul off the bat of Cards’ 1B Matt Carpenter; in the seventh, with one on and no outs, Royals’ SS Adalberto Mondesi saved a hit with a diving grab of a Yadier Molina grounder, getting the force out at second; in the ninth, another fine play by Mondesi retired Carpenter 6-3.
- Matt Carpenter ran his streak of game getting on base to 29 games, with a seventh-inning walk.
TREAT OF THE DAY – SNOW CONES FOR BIG KIDS – THE PICTURES TELL THE STORY
$10.25 and – on a hot day – worth every penny.
- We saw a pair of traditional around-the-horn double plays. In the seventh, with runners on first and second and one out, a grounder (by Cardinals’ cleanup hitter Marcell Ozuna) was turned into a third (Escobar) to second (Whit Merrifield) to first (Ryan O’Hearn) twin killing. In the eighth, with runners on first and second (no outs) for the Royals, Whitt Merrifield hit into a third (Jedd Gyorko) to second (Kolten Wong) to first (Matt Carpenter) double play. There was also an unassisted double play in the bottom of the first, as the Royals’ Alex Gordon lined to Cards’ firSt-sacker Matt Carpenter, who caught Whit Merrifield off the bag.
- In the ninth inning, Cardinals’ reliever Justin Hicks brought the heat when facing Royals’ CF Brett Phillips. In a five-pitch at bat that ended in a ground out to first, Hicks’ pitches were clocked at 101 m.p.h.; 101 m.p.h.; 102 m.p.h. 88 m.p.h.; 103 m.p.h. Hicks recorded a four-out save.
- The Cardinals’ 22-year-old righty Jack Flaherty evened his record at 6-6 (with a 3.22 earned run average), went seven innings, gave up just two runs and fanned nine Royals.
- I briefly visited the “Outfield Experience” (see yesterday’s post) between innings and was surprised by the number of people on the min-golf course, riding the carousel or involved in other activities and games that took them away from the game.
THE DOGFATHER AND THE TEFLON DON
My Kaufmann Stadium supper came from The Dogfather – a gourmet hot dog emporium near Gate D. My “Teflon Don” featured a hot dog topped with chili, jalapenos, chopped onions, parsley and yellow mustard – on a “garlicky” bun and accompanied by homemade chips. Spicy hot – great with cold beer – at $10.25. Hint: Take a fork and extra napkins for the chili.
The stand also offers the: “Sweet Tooth Lucky” – a dog topped sweet beans, maple-pepper bacon, chopped onions, yellow mustard and parsley; “KC Boss” – topped with mac-n-cheese, sweet barbeque sauce, maple-pepper bacon and parsley; and for the traditionalists the “Made Man” – just a nice hot dog topped relish, chopped, onions and yellow mustard.
The highlight of the contest – at least in terms of emotion on the field – was the ejection of Royals’ starting pitcher Danny Duffy in the sixth inning (Side note: Duffy was probably going to pulled at that time anyway.) After giving up a one-out single to Cardinals’ 3B Jedd Gyorka, Duffy (with the Royals trailing 4-2) got ahead of CF Harrison Bader 1-2. Duffy then thought he had fanned Bader on an 80-m.p.h. change up, but first base umpire Adam Hamari ruled that Bader had checked his swing. Three pitches later, Bader hit a two-run home run and Duffy let his frustration get the better of him.
There was a bit of remorse as we left the ballpark, as our group realized it was the last of the seven games on our ten-day baseball journey. Still, there was the hotel bar and live music (XPARTE) at The Levee to ease our pain over the remainder of the evening – and sure to be some surprises on Day Ten’s drive from Kansas City back to Saint Paul.
DAY TEN – THE LONG RIDE HOME AND A TRIBUTE TO BUDDY HOLLY
As I’ve noted before, Ballpark Tours is dedicated to great baseball and to getting participants close to the action and the attractions (as well as the cuisine and culture) that define the cities and towns tourers visit – whether it’s Denver, Colorado and Kansas City, Missouris or Hays, Kansas and Clear Lake, Iowa.
On the Day Ten bus ride from Kansas City, we took our lunch break in Clear Lake, Iowa – the site of the last performances by rock and roll icons Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and The Big Bopper (J.P. Richardson). Early on the morning of February 3, 1959 (now immortalized as The Day the Music Died), after a concert at Clear Lake’s Surf Ballroom, the three were among those who perished in a small plane crash just outside Clear Lake. (They were headed to Fargo, North Dakota, with their next show scheduled at nearby Moorhead, Minnesota). The Surf Ballroom – still operating as a music venue (seating just over 2,000) – now includes a museum of music memorabilia. In 1998, the Surf Ballroom, in fact, was inducted into the Iowa Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame; in 2009, the (national) Rock and Roll Hall of Fame designated the Ballroom as an historic landmark; and, in 2011, the Surf Ballroom was added to the National Registry of Historic Places.
Our lunch stop was at the Surf District Rock and Roll Grill, right across the parking lot from the Surf Ballroom and Museum (which we had time to visit over the lunch “break from the bus.” The Ballroom offered a great look at r0ock and roll history – as did the the Surf District Grill. The bar and grill (itself a live music venue) was filled with autographed memorabilia from acts that had performed ath the Surf Ballroom. Here are justa FEW exmaples; a Fabian-signed photograph; a Blue Traveler harmonica; a top hat signed by Alice Cooper; a Hootie and the Blowfish mike; guitars signed by such artists as Slash, B.B. King and Willie Nelson.
If you are looking for a baseball connection, thre is a signed baseball from Kevin Costner – whose rock/country band Kevin Costner & Modern West has released four albums.
I should add the lunch was accompanied by rock and roll videos featuring a wide range of musical acts.
A great stop – and great addition to our hardball adventure.
FOR THE FOODIES
The Surf District Rock and Roll Grill had a varied menu – lots of salads, sandwiches, pizzas (and a full bar). I went with the La Bamba Chicken Avocado Flatbread – tomato sauce, sharp cheddar, grilled chicken, jalapenos, avocado and cilantro. ($10.95, and yummy). Washed it down with a nice cabernet.
Overall, the return trip was smooth – lots of sharing of memories from the trip, plenty of music blaring form “the back of the bus,” the beer didn’t run out and there were still snacks to share. – and, of course, the group Awards Cermony at our final rest stop. Thanks , Julian, for another great trip.
Now, it’s back to more traditional Baseball Roundtable posts.
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Member: Society for American Baseball Research; The Baseball Reliquary; The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.
