Minor League Baseball

We took the boys to see a baseball game tonight; The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers and the Dayton Dragons. It was C's first baseball game and at seven he's just old enough to make it through a full game without a lethal case of the fidgets. A is twelve and it's been too long since we've been.

Minor league baseball - what a deal! The tickets are inexpensive, Fox Cities Stadium only has 5,000 seats so there really aren't any bad seats in the house. My little guy leaned around the corner of the dugout, said 'hi' to Leury Bonilla who grinned a big 'hi' back and tossed him a baseball. A few innings later a perky usher asked him if was having a good time, found out this was his 'first ever' game and dug up a game ball with someone's initials.

We even had a chance to boo the umpire ...

In the ninth, Timber Rattler frustrations bubbled over. Dayton had runners at second and third with no out. The Wisconsin infielders were playing in on the grass to cut down the run at the plate. Justin Turner hit a grounder right to Bonilla at third base. Bonilla dove for the runner at third and appeared to have tagged him out. Base umpire Alex Diaz ruled the runner safe and Rattler manager Jim Horner sprinted out of the dugout to argue the call. After a brief, but heated argument Horner was ejected. Just before the next pitch was ready to be delivered, Diaz ejected Bonilla.

I have no idea why Bonilla was ejected. From where we were sitting he appeared to be just standing there then ... bam he's outta there.

All in all an excellent night - you almost don't mind that the good guys lost by three runs.

Cross Posted to The Daily Brief.