Currently Reading: The Cactus League

The Cactus League by Emily Nemens

It's baseball season, y'all!  Finally!

In Shreveport, we aren't lucky enough to have a minor league team anymore. We used to have The Shreveport Captains but they moved to Frisco, TX several years ago and are part of the Rough Riders organization now. Their old stadium is now part of our urban decay landscape and has been take over by bats -- and I don't mean baseball bats. It's a source of much contention and local grumbling.

We do have several college baseball options, though, and so only a couple of blocks from my house is the Centenary Gents baseball field. Part of the SCAC, the Gents give us a few months of good, fun baseball every year. LSUS also has a baseball team, so we are not completely without options.

This week I started reading The Cactus League by Emily Nemens.  What fun this book is!  I love it so far. I'm not even halfway yet, but I can tell that this is one I'll want to own; I'm reading it as a library book right now. Apparently the book is told in chapter long vignettes from various characters; I'm still with the first character, a batting coach named Michael who returns home to Arizona for spring training to find his house has been occupied, and wrecked, by squatters. And where does Michael go to relieve the anger and anxiety from this discovery? To the batting cage, of course, at the brand new stadium complex.

I'm drawn into the story already and can't wait to get back to the book. Of course, I started it yesterday while at the Gents ballpark; I was reading before the game and during the doubleheader intermission. Totally set the mood!

This is a debut novel from Emily Nemens, but she's been involved with books and literature for some time as editor of The Paris Review and former co-editor of The Southern Review. Bonus: she graduated from LSU with a MFA degree in fiction.  I can't wait to follow her new path as novelist.

Loose Saturday Morning Musings

Wishful thinking: where is the sun?

Some loose thoughts this gray, gloomy, not-yet-Spring morning:

On sunshine:  Sun?  What is that?  It's been cloudy and damp as long as I can remember.  I need sun. I'm tired of gloomy, gray days.  So there.

On writing:  Blogging has been rather slow here as I've been involved in research and in writing on book two. Plus, it's been gray and gloomy and there has not much I felt like blogging about. I'm so over politics these days -- I doubt I'll ever return to full time political blogging. I'm super excited about my new book project, however, and am looking forward to sharing it with you, but not quite yet. Patience.

On reading: I've been reading a lot of research material for the new book, but I also have to have my pleasure reading. I am currently reading The Sound of Building Coffins by Louis Maistros, which Steve picked up at the Louisiana Book Festival last fall.  It's a stunning book and I can't recommend it enough, especially if you're from NOLA or Louisiana. I'll post a full review when I've finished but man, it's a truly beautiful book. Check it out.

On school:  Another reason for slow blogging. This semester has been a challenging one and I'm only halfway through the semester. I take seriously my responsibility to teach my students and prepare them for those end of the year tests, even when those students don't always fully realize the importance of those tests. Most days I feel like I've had rocks thrown at me all day and I'm exhausted,  sometimes in tears, but this is part of it. And it's why I love my job: we will all get there together and we will be successful. It's a challenge every single day, but one so very much worth taking.

On thank-you notes:  I received the loveliest thank-you note yesterday from the Association for the Preservation of Historic Natchitoches (APHN), thanking me for speaking at their banquet last month, when in truth, I'm the one thanking them. I love sharing the Cane River Bohemia story with groups and I'm so grateful that they like my book. Thank you notes are too often an overlooked touch, I think. My mama drilled me about writing them when I was young and I still do it. There is something special about the fact that someone took the time to hand write a note, put a stamp on it, and mail it. My APHN note is on lovely creme colored stationery with the APHN monogram and the handwriting is beautiful cursive writing with a personal, lovely message. I will keep it forever and plan to put it in my Cane River Bohemia scrapbook that I'm going to start on this summer.

On the calendar:  With the approach of spring there are some exciting events coming up. I'm headed to Baton Rouge in a couple of weeks to talk about Cane River Bohemia with the members of the Baton Rouge Country Club Book Club.  In April I will be speaking with the North Louisiana Historical Association at their annual banquet in Natchitoches. I'm very excited about both of these invitations! The Baton Rouge event gives me an opportunity to head back down south and I could not be more excited about that. We're going to head over to New Iberia, St. Martinville, and Arnaudville and hit some of our favorite spots.  Also in April is the Books Along the Teche Literary Festival and while I am only going as a book lover and not an author, I can't wait to get back to New Iberia and see friends, listen to Cajun music, and take part in the joie de vivre that is so much a part of that area. I need the break.

On baseball:  Bring it.  I'm ready. And leave the damn pitch clock in spring training - quit messing with the game!

On crawfish: I need some. I don't want to pay $7.00 a pound for them. I must wait.

Since it appears the sun will not come out today I'm going to settle in and get some work done today. I hope the sun is shining where you are and that you have warm, bright days.

Later.

Another Great Season at Shehee Stadium

Another Centenary baseball season is in the books for us (we don't usually travel to the SCAC tournament which this year is somewhere in Texas.)

This year Centenary finished atop the SCAC standings with a 15-3 record, just ahead of Trinity at 14-4.  A lot of the games were away games this year, it seemed, and the ones early in the season that were at home were often cold and rainy, so we didn't make as many games this year as we usually do.  But when we are there, well, it's just good baseball.

It's been about four years since I did a post about the program; we've seen these boys start as freshmen, grow and develop their game, and move on.  It's our own little version of the Durham Bulls!  The atmosphere is like family and over the years we've developed friendships with faculty, coaches, parents, and other locals that just come out in support.

Each team in the conference has a sort of reputation too: some are better sports than others, some are hostile to referees, some are as nice as they can be and invite you to visit their city.

But always it is just good fun.  We've had some really memorable times!  And we've seen some really standout players.

One of the standouts this year was senior Chris Zapata who is an outstanding catcher and a real power hitter.  As pitcher, and first-baseman, Cole Lavergne was really exciting to watch; he threw some truly wicked pitches in the game today.

It is universally true in baseball that each pitcher and each batter has his own stance and his own quirks.  There's the batter that always crosses the plate with his bat, or the one that stands just outside the box, then charges into it and takes his stance when he's ready; there's the pitcher that prowls around the mound like a caged tiger, scratching the dirt with his cleats, and the one that deeply arches his back and stares over his glove before he throws.  They are all unique and entirely wonderful to watch.

But of course, it takes an entire team to produce a winning record like the Gents have done.

The parents are always great team boosters and at every home game can be seen boiling crawfish, frying fish, or grilling burgers, ready to feed the hungry players after the last pitch.  Then there is Coach in the concession stand fixing up delicious Nathan's hot dogs or serving roasted peanuts; it just wouldn't be a game without that!

One of the joys of these games to me is seeing the children who come out: sweaty little boys with their baseball gloves thundering down the stands, running at breakneck speed to retrieve foul balls.  The boys look with such admiration at the grown players and you can just see the dreams in their eyes.

Of course, the players can act like kids too - because really they still are; they're just about to launch into adulthood and are hanging on to this boys game for all it's worth.  I watch the dugout as much as I watch the game because the players are always cheering each other on, yelling, singing, waving their arms, jumping around to the music playing over the PA, doing all kinds of crazy things.  They are having a blast, which is the pure joy of baseball.

Cheering on teammates returning from the outfield

And the dogs: oh my are there dogs.  At any game you can count on seeing four or five dogs from tiny Yorkies to full grown Labs.

The best part?  It's free.  So when someone comes and sits down in front of you in the fifth inning, and pops their umbrella...

There goes my view of home plate.

...you can just move.

Yes, this season is done at Shehee Stadium but next year will come soon enough.  Until then, there's this video of the final out today and the celebration after.  You can see Cole Lavergne on the mound and the fans stand up, applauding, to cheer him on...



God I love this game!  And I love you, Centenary Gents!  Thanks for another great season, and good luck in the tournament!

Can Shreveport Attract Independent Baseball?

Postcard photo by Neil Johnson of Fair Grounds Field

I've got baseball fever.  Spring is coming; I can almost see it from here, and spring means baseball.

Shreveport does not have a professional baseball team; no minor league team, no independent team.

We had the Shreveport Captains, the Shreveport Sports, and  the Swamp Dragons, among others.  Now we have nothing. Our taxpayer-funded, once beautiful baseball stadium sits as an example of urban decay at the Shreveport fairgrounds serving primarily as a home for the city's bats (and I don't mean baseball bats.)  The stadium opened in 1986 and the last baseball game there was in 2011.

It is a crying shame.

In 2015, KTBS reported that the City of Shreveport still spends $200,000 per year to maintain the facility:

It costs $200,000 to maintain it but this isn't money the city is actually spending on the park. They're using staff and supplies from neighboring Independence Stadium to walk over and do things like maintain the exterior and power wash to keep down the smell of the poisonous bat droppings.

Now the field is covered in weeds and trash. SkyPixel has several drone photos of the park from 2015 which show an overgrown field, broken seats, broken windows in the press box, and with home plate and the pitcher's mound still covered as if someone is actually coming back to play.

In recent years there has been talk of demolishing the stadium which would cost about $450,000.  On the other hand, there are people in this community who would like to save Fair Grounds field and offer, if not professional baseball, something else there for people to enjoy.  There is a Facebook page, Rescue Fair Grounds Field, with over 500 followers, but nothing has happened.

In Shreveport we can still see baseball at the college level.  Both LSUS and Centenary have excellent teams and our community colleges also have baseball.  The Centenary field is within walking distance from our house and I can hear batting practice from my front yard. There is no sweeter sound.  We regularly attend those games and it is great fun!  Wouldn't it be fabulous if the baseball community came out to watch, too?  We sit among parents of the student players mostly.  There is little community support, although there is some.

There is no charge to get into a Centenary baseball game: it is free.

There is something about the game of baseball that is just magic to me.  I don't understand all of it and I'm not a lifelong student of baseball although I have always enjoyed watching it.

When we go to the Centenary games, I love sitting in the warm spring sun, getting that first blush of tan on my winter skin, listening to the songs on the PA system, the walk-up songs, the chatter and laughter of the parents around us.  Most of the time there are parents in the parking lot boiling crawfish or getting some BBQ feast ready for after the game and the scent infuses the air around us. I'll get some hot roasted peanuts and a coke, prop my feet up on the rail in front of me and get lost in the game before me.  The antics of the boys in the dugout are always hysterical; I love their camaraderie and love for each other and the game.  It's all-American.  There is nothing better.

I recently watched The Battered Bastards of Baseball on Netflix.  It's a 2014 documentary about the independent Portland Mavericks who played for five seasons under owner Bing Russell.  Narrated by his son (and former player himself) Kurt Russell, the film is a hilarious and nostalgic romp through the life of this team.:

Built around speed and reckless play, the Mavericks were initially looked upon as a joke - until Mavericks pitcher Gene Lanthorn threw a no-hitter in the team’s first game, and it was off to the races. The Mavericks proceeded to clobber their competition and set attendance records, becoming overnight media sensations covered by NBC, Sports Illustrated - even The New Yorker.  

 With a roster of ragamuffin players culled from open, public tryouts, the Mavericks shocked the baseball world in 1977 by achieving the highest winning percentage of any team at any level of the game (.667). The Mavericks became the team nobody wanted to play - a cocky, hard-partying Wild Bunch that regularly whipped squads boasting future major leaguers like Ozzie Smith, Dave Henderson, Dave Stewart or Mike Scioscia.

All that's missing is Annie Savoy.

But the documentary also makes one painfully nostalgic for local baseball.  One point the film makes is that the fans knew the players and the players were part of the community.  There is archival footage of the players in uniform sitting among the fans during the game. The locals supported the team in record breaking numbers. When corporate baseball came and forced the team out, attendance dropped like a rock.

So baseball comes and goes within a community.  It's a business -- a big business these days with million dollar contracts and personalities.  The price of a professional baseball ticket can set you back some serious change, but whenever we go to Des Moines we always go see an Iowa Cubs baseball game which is excellent baseball and costs a fraction of what you'd pay to see the Chicago Cubs, for example.

Is Shreveport a sports town?  Is it a "baseball town"?  We have hockey, rugby, soccer, even roller derby.  Will this town support minor league baseball? 

In 2016 a new independent league was announced: the Southwest League, which will include Louisiana.  They will reportedly begin playing in 2019 with six teams in Texas with growth expected in coming years. 

Could we tempt them to come to Shreveport?  Do we have anyone with the cash backing to lure them here?

Baseball started in Shreveport in 1872 and existed under various teams and leagues until 2011.  Isn't it time to bring it back?

What is stopping us?



Related:
Roy Lang:  Fair Grounds Field turns 30 Today (April, 2016)
What's to Become of Fair Grounds Field?  (KTBS, 2015)
Cal Ripkin, Sr.  Foundation
LSUS Baseball Schedule - 2018
Centenary Baseball Schedule - 2018
For the Love of the Game: Talking with Kurt Russell about The Battered Bastards of Baseball
The Southwest Baseball League

Civil War Era Baseball at Mansfield Battle Park

If your vacation plans this summer include staying around the Shreveport/Bossier area, keep in mind that despite the budget cuts throughout the state, the Mansfield Battle Park and Museum is still open, despite rumors to the contrary.

I checked with Park Manager Scott Dearman who tells me that they are open Wednesday - Sunday, 9:00-5:00 and that they don't expect to be shut down.

In fact, tomorrow, July 2, you can go and enjoy a hands-on program on Civil War era baseball beginning at 11:00 a.m.  Baseball was one of the many games the soldiers would play to break up the monotony of daily life:

A park ranger will begin with a brief talk on the evolution of the 19th-century game known as Town Ball. After this, what better way to learn about the soon-to-be “National Pastime” than to play the game? The rules will be explained to all participants and equipment will be provided to play a 2-3 inning game. So bring your family and friends and a picnic lunch and enjoy a game of baseball! And just a hint, there are no strike outs! 

Here is an interesting article about baseball during the time of the Civil War by Michael Aubrecht:

During the War Between the States, countless baseball games, originally known as "townball", were organized in Army Camps and prisons on both sides of the Mason Dixon Line. Very little documentation exists on these games and most information has been derived from letters written by both officers and enlisted men to their families on the home front. For the hundreds of pictures taken during the Civil War by photography pioneer Matthew Brady, there is only one photo in the National Archives that clearly captured a baseball game underway in the background. Several newspaper artists also depicted primitive ballgames and other forms of recreation devised to help boost troop morale and maintain physical fitness. Regardless of the lack of "media coverage", military historians have proved that baseball was a common ground in a country divided, and helped both Union and Confederate soldiers temporarily escape the horror of war.

And here is another article from the Smithsonian about the earliest baseball game:

Though various forms of baseball were played in England and America for over a century prior to the Civil War, modern rules of the game were not developed and employed until the 1850s. The evolving Knickerbocker Code or rules had its origins in metropolitan New York in 1845. Union soldiers, more familiar with the game, introduced others, including Southerners and Westerners to baseball throughout the Civil War, resulting in thousands of soldiers learning the game. Upon returning home, the game spread to friends and neighbors and soon the sport was played in every region of the country, solidifying its title as “The National Pastime."

If you want to learn more, and play a game yourself, head to Mansfield. You can bring chairs, a grill, and a cooler and spend the day at a fascinating historic site!

Here is an overview of the Mansfield State Historic Site, including directions on how to get there.

Here is their Facebook page.

This would be a great time to support the site and the museum and we are extremely lucky that they are still open given the near constant threats of closure by the governor.


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Loose Thoughts

A few loose thoughts:

1.  Be sure to check out my continuing Monday posts on DaTechGuy blog each week.  They go up a little after noon each Monday.  This week my post reflects on the upcoming administration of John Bel Edwards.  Color me skeptical.

2.  Why is Donald Trump still leading in the polls?  Seriously.  I'm not being derogatory about Trump supporters, but I swear I spoke to one guy a week ago who said he likes Trump "because you just never know what he will say!"  It's like reality tv!  SMDH.

Okay, so Rubio and Cruz are trending up and that's good.  Steve will never be on board with Rubio but I can be.  My history with Rubio is very well documented, all the way back to May 2009 on this and multiple other blogs. I'm predicting the nominee will be Rubio (yes, I KNOW conservatives hate his immigration stance; trust me.  The Legal Insurrection readers have flayed me over this).

And by the way, The New Yorker has an interesting profile of Rubio, here.

3.  I think Ben Carson is a very kind, gentle man; he won't be president.

4.  I really, really miss the sane, rational, intelligent voice of Bride of Rove.  Perhaps she will come back in 2016?  *Hoping*

5.  There are some great local activities going on this week:  the annual Candlelight Christmas Service will be this Friday, December 4, at the Brown Chapel on the Centenary campus.  We went last year and it's just beautiful.  I've been looking forward to it all year.  Saturday, December 5 will be the Pioneer Christmas Parade and Trade Days in Grand Cane.  It begins early but is always a good time.

6.  Gertrude Stein once said “It takes a heap of loafing to write a book.”  The revisions to my Cammie book are sitting here, ready to go, but I haven't done them.  In part, I hate to get back in there and mess up what I've done, but I know that in the end it will be better.  In another part, my deadline is August 1.  That's a long way away and I work better under pressure.  So, I'm setting myself a February 1 deadline.  There's a reason behind that date that I don't want to get into right now, but suffice to say that my goal is to have the manuscript ready to go by February 1.  

While I do have a contract with LSU Press, the manuscript still has to get by their panel of expert readers, so I have to get my act together.  Right now I am doing some additional research and reading to round out a couple of thin spots in my manuscript.  I had no idea what a long process this is; but, it will be a better book for it all!

7.  What a screwed-up-dirty dog-cluster-monkey-mess this LSU story has been this week.  The only person that needs to go ANYWHERE is Joe Alleva.  What an inept ass.  Both Miles and the players deserve better than what they got from Alleva this past week.

8.  Have you tried this?  It is heaven.  I can only find it at Sam's Club -- during the holidays.  Stock up.

9.  I am SO ready for baseball season at Centenary to begin.  This is the fastest three months of the year for me.

Have a good week.  I'm back to work this week after Thanksgiving break and we are heading into EOC testing.  We are ready.  Then we get to kill Macbeth.  Awesome!  Then Christmas break!

Leave a comment.  I miss your voices.

Dear Shreveport, We Need to Talk

DES MOINES -- Dear Shreveport-Bossier, we need to talk.

It's time to see other people.  While I love you, and have spent my entire life with you, you are not making forward progress to the degree that you should; you're not working up to your potential.  You could do so much better.

Nobody is perfect, and I don't expect you to be perfect.  But...

Let's look at Des Moines, Iowa, for a moment.  So often, people around the country laugh at and scoff at old Des Moines.  But Shreveport, let me share a secret with you; I've been having a little affair with Des Moines for several years now.

You see, Des Moines is about the same size as you, generally.  It has suburban areas just like you do.  There isn't a whole lot of difference in the population numbers:  As of 2014, Des Moines had a population of about 209,000 and in 2013, Shreveport had about 200,000 and Bossier City has a population of about 70,000.   Roughly even; at least comparable.

So why does it seem like downtown Des Moines is light years ahead of you, Shreveport?  What gives?

Downtown Des Moines is a thriving, busy, happening place where people live, work, and play.  There are many, many restaurants, cafes, and bars with outdoor seating:

There is one...

...right after another...

I realize it's a lot hotter and it's more humid in Louisiana, but look Shreveport, your neighbor in Dallas has a lot of outdoor patio areas, too.

In downtown Des Moines, there are old buildings that have been converted to apartments; something that you are beginning to do, Shreveport-Bossier.  These lofts and apartments are filled with young people that work and play downtown:

There are even little grocery stores here and there so if you need to pick up something, you don't really have to leave downtown.

And Shreveport, in downtown Des Moines, they restore old buildings, not abandon them and let them rot until they just fall down.  You have so many fine buildings downtown that have fallen into such a sad state of urban decay.  What business wants to come into a town like that?  Why can't your leaders find a way to preserve instead of ignore?

Even the littlest flaws are addressed and marked for repair.

Yes, Shreveport, downtown Des Moines is lovely with its flowers...

...and plentiful green spaces that enrich downtown living.  And it's so clean -- the people take pride in their downtown and so trash and litter is almost non-existent.

But Shreveport, even more than that, and this is where we need to talk, Des Moines has a Triple-A baseball team.  Now, think back to those population numbers I referenced, and let me reiterate:  Des Moines has a Triple-A baseball team.  And don't tell me that you can't have that because "the wealth isn't there."  Band together with your surrounding communities, work together.  Shreveport, Bossier, Benton, Haughton, even Minden.  It's there.

The Iowa Cubs play at Principal Park in downtown Des Moines in a lovely little stadium right on the river.

Principal Park seats 11,500 and replaces the original stadium that was built there in 1947.  The new stadium was completed in 1992, just six years after old, abandoned Fairgrounds Field,  and has gone through some upgrades since then, like the addition of sky boxes, etc.   I've been to see the Texas Rangers in their stadium, and let me tell you, there isn't much difference other than size.  The fun, amenities, and activities are all there.

Even better, the stadium is within walking distance of that busy, thriving downtown that we just talked about.  You can park your car at the stadium, walk two blocks, have lunch in a German bar/restaurant... (because you can only eat so much Mexican and Asian food which is about all you have, Shreveport...I know there are Italian restaurants and steak places, but let's get some variety, eh?)

Have some authentic German food,

...go to a first-class science center:

Then walk over to the ballpark and see a great game.

The tickets to these games at Principal Park are quite affordable.  For less than twenty bucks for two people, you can sit right behind home plate;  look at that view, too!  The beautiful capitol building is lovely all lit up at night.

A person might even be lucky enough to get an autograph from a visiting retired major league player like Lee Smith.

Shreveport-Bossier, why in the world don't you have baseball?

It's a great thing to be able to take the family out to a ball game.

Why, Shreveport, why can't you do this?

And if baseball isn't your thing, Shreveport, Des Moines has two hockey teams - The Iowa Wild which is American Hockey League, and the Des Moines Buccaneers which is the United States Hockey League.  You remember hockey, don't you, Shreveport-Bossier?  There's also basketball, soccer, and pretty much whatever other sports you'd like to see.

And guess what, Shreveport?  Des Moines also has a zoo - a really fabulous zoo.

Like I said, I love you, Shreveport; I really do.  You've been my home my entire life, and that's why I hate to see you languish.  There's more to life than casinos, really!  There's got to be a better tourist draw than the Boardwalk, don't you think?  So, what's the problem?

It looks like people have already given up on you, Shreveport-Bossier.  Given up.

That is heartbreaking.

The Fastest Three Months of the Year

That was the fastest three months I've ever seen.  It flew by.

I am referring, of course, to the Centenary Gents baseball season which began February 8 and ended this past weekend.  Oh, there are a couple of playoff games left -- it's not completely over, but those games are in Texas.  The 2014 season at Shehee stadium is finished.

And I'm sad.  I miss them already.

There is nothing like baseball to herald in spring.  After the long, cold winter (and we had a few cold days down here in Shreveport!), and the endless dull gray skies, it is pure joy to walk into the baseball complex to bright green grass and the players warming up on the field.

Overzealous, perhaps, Steve and I showed up at a couple of those February games a little unprepared for the cold wind that left me frozen by the end of the ninth.  By the April 22 game the girls were all in shorts, tanks, and sandals soaking up the sun while others took shelter from the blazing sun under umbrellas.

The April 12 game against Austin College was blessed with perfect weather.  We had a mild 75 degrees and a mellow breeze that whistled gently as it blew through the protective netting above us. That was the first game where you could discern the scent of sunscreen in the air from the fans in the bleachers. Centenary won both games that day.

Steve and I started following the team last year after talking about it for ages.  We finally got around to going and have been hooked ever since.  For years I would sit on my deck or in my swing under the magnolia tree in the front yard and listen to the ping of bats as the team practiced.  Sometimes I could hear the music from the PA system as they practiced.  The stadium is within easy walking distance from my house, and we have indeed walked to a couple of games (not the cold ones).

Centenary was in a sort of growing year this year; they lost some good seniors last year and so there were several new players this year.  In fact, there were only three seniors on the roster this year.  They're three pretty good ones though:  first baseman Mark Martinez plays with all of his heart.  At 6'1" and 220 lbs., he's not the fastest runner on the team but when he connects with his bat, that ball just soars.  He's a dynamite first baseman and it will be odd seeing someone else at that position next year.  One of the highlights for me this year was when Mark hit a triple against Austin College; like I said, he's not the fastest runner on the team, and I think everyone in the stands was cheering for him as he breathlessly arrived safely at third.

Another senior saying goodbye this year is outfielder and sometime pitcher Nic Parrott.  We saw Nic sail a couple of beautiful homers this year.  Also leaving this year is pitcher Jake McFarland.  I hope they're all on to bright futures and take good memories of their time at Centenary with them.

Next season looks pretty good as Centenary retains many players from the current roster.  Assuming they all come back, and there are a few new recruits to replace the departing seniors, it should be an awesome team.  There was some great hitting this year and the pitchers have been fun to watch.  Very promising is sophomore pitcher Holden Novak:  he's a tall, lean, 6'4" and he prowls all over that mound as he prepares to take charge with his arsenal of pitches.  He's got a mean fast ball, and a great curve ball.  He's exciting to watch.

I'm also looking forward to watching Christian Sebastien (C-Bass) for one more year before he moves on.  He's a very powerful and athletic player who has no problem with his bats.  Outfielder Chris Jones is faster than lightening and he makes plays happen.  As a freshman, he plays with a great deal of confidence and he will steal a base if you don't watch him!

We've had a grand time watching "our boys" this year.  The fans are great and we've met some really nice people, most of whom seem surprised, and pleased, that we are just neighborhood riff-raff showing up to watch baseball.  "Who's your son?" we get asked all the time.  They're all our boys now.  (My daughter graduated from there, if that counts.)

And the dogs.  Oh my, the dogs.  There's the lady with the yellow retriever and the brindle boxer - beautiful dogs!  And Izzy!  (Izzie?), the wonder dog!  She's just precious.  There are dogs of all sizes that come out
with their owners to watch the game.  Most of them just go to sleep, some watch the other dogs, and some beg to retrieve the balls that sail overhead toward the snack bar or the drainage ditch.  Every time a ball fouls out of bounds by the batting cages you can hear a thunder of sneakered feet as little boys run with their gloves to get it first.

The students that come out to watch their friends play are first class.  A highlight of the season for me, and I still laugh about it, was the basketball team who comes out to support the baseball team.  The baseball team does the same for them, and there's a tradition of heckling the other team that goes on.  Sometimes, I guess, people get a little sensitive about their kids out there on the field, and on one occasion (team shall remain nameless!), some mamas got mad at the heckling.  I have to admit, it might have been a little far when our basketball players were ribbing one of the guys on the opposing team about being, well, vertically challenged.  "Hey!  You need some phone books to stand on while you bat?"  "Hey ump!  How can you call a strike - he's so short the strike zone is too small!"  "Do you need a Fisher Price bat?"  Yeah, it was pretty intense and there was some mama drama, but when the basketball team showed up the next day for Game 2 with a dry erase board depicting a ruler and a sign that said, "You must be this tall to bat," well, you had to be there.  But it was pretty funny.

I can't believe the season is done.  I have to wait until next year for my peanuts and diet Coke, kicked back in my seat behind home plate (did I mention it's absolutely free to get in?), listening to horrible country music during warm-ups and between innings.  Really, I can live the rest of my life without Joe Diffey's John Deere Greene, but then again, it now has a sort of soft spot in my heart.  You can occasionally hear a fan or two holler at the box when they play the same old songs.  Last week during an especially tense game against Trinity, the person doing music played Jason Aldean's See You When I See You and a girl turned around and yelled "Quit playing the depressing music!  We're trying to win a game here!"  It was pretty funny.  All in good fun.

Yes, the sights and sounds of Centenary Gents baseball is over for now.  It's been a wonderful season, and we'll be back next February.  With blankets.  And until then, I'll always think of you, Centenary, when I hear this one:

Take a Trip to Watch Some Centenary Baseball

There's nothing like a little snap of spring in the air to make one's heart long for baseball.  The crack of the bat, the satisfying smack of ball to glove, the chatter from the dugout...it's pure heaven.

Steve and I live within a good fastball of Centenary College and I can hear the baseball team's batting practice from my house.  So we decided this weekend to venture on over to Sheehee Stadium and check out some Gents baseball.

We went yesterday for the first game of a double-header against the University of Dallas; Centenary lost the first game and won the second.  It was cold and windy so we only made one game.  We were surprised to learn there was no admission cost; we asked a couple of people if we needed tickets or needed to pay and everyone looked at us with a quizzical expression and said no.

As the weather was much warmer today, and no wind, we headed back out to catch the last game in this series against Dallas.

It was a small crowd but everyone was settling in for a nice afternoon of baseball when we got there; this lady was working on her tan while cheering on her team:

Parents and photographers:

Even Sock Monkey had a front row seat:

As the game began the Gents lined up to cheer on their batters (note all the baseballs on the roof of that building on the right):

Play ball!

Dallas had some really good hitters:

And the game stayed close.

A view from our seats:

Faithful fan Princess comes to every game:

There were several dogs there today.  All very well behaved, of course!

A respectable crowd stayed until the very end today:

This is the concession stand; yesterday we kept them busy selling coffee and hot chocolate because it was so cold.  Today we had hot dogs, peanuts, and cokes!  What else are you going to have at a college baseball game?!

The game was tied going into the ninth:

And the suspense was high:

At the top of the ninth it was all tied up:

When the Gents came up to bat, no. 25, Jemari James hit a ball down the first base line, Dallas had a little trouble fielding it in the corner, James rounded second and ran to third;  the ball was overthrown toward third and James made home plate.  Gents win!

After a wild celebration at home plate both teams shook hands and another game is in the books.

It was an exciting finish to a good game.

The Gents will be at home again next weekend against Trinity University with a Saturday double-header.  The schedule is here.

If you're looking for a nice way to relax and enjoy some top notch baseball, keep the Centenary Gents on your radar.  It's a great way to spend an afternoon!

The SIGIS Take a Trip Series:

Take a Trip to the 2012 Natchitoches Christmas FestivalTake a Trip to the 2012 Grand Cane Pioneer Day and Christmas Parade

Take a Trip to the 2012 Highland Jazz and Blues Festival

Take a Trip to the 2012 Vets for Vets Event

Take a Trip to the Norton Art Gallery and the Photographs of the Vietnam War Exhibit

Take a Trip to Octoberfest 2012 at Barksdale Air Force Base

Take a Picnic Trip to the Lock and Dam and a Detour to Lake Bistineau

Take a Dinner Ride Through East Texas

Take a Trip to an End of Summer Party and Listen to Soulfish Blues Band

Take a Summer Trip to Jefferson, Texas and Meet New Friends

Take a Trip to Dallas, Texas and The West End

Take a Stocking the Freezer Trip to Ed Lester Farms and Find a Cool Truck!

Take a Trip to Coushatta Down Louisiana Backroads

Take a Sunday Drive in North Caddo Parish

Take a Trip to Minden's First Annual Cinco de Mayo Festival

Take a Trip to the 2012 Defenders of Liberty Air Show at BAFB
Take a Springtime Trip to Second Hand Rose Antiques in Minden, LA
Take a Trip to Logansport, Louisiana
Take a Trip to the Lock and Dam on Red River
Take a Trip to the 2012 Barkus and Meoux Parade
Take a Christmas Shopping Trip to Second Hand Rose in Minden
Take a Trip to the Fourth Annual Barksdale AFB Oktoberfest 
Take a Trip to Grand Cane's Fifth Annual Pioneer Trade Day
Take a Trip to the 2011 Highland Jazz & Blues Festival
Take an Autumn Trip to Jefferson, Texas
Take a Fall Trip to Second Hand Rose Antiques in Minden
Take a Trip to the 8th Air Force Museum at Barksdale Air Force Base
Take a Summertime Trip to Grand Cane
Take a Trip to Desoto Parish
Take a Summer Trip to Second Hand Rose Antiques in Minden
Take a Trip to Natchitoches and Melrose Plantation 
Take a Trip to Ed Lester Farms and a Random Antique Stop
Take a Trip to the Norton Art Gallery and the Masters of Cuban Art Exhibit
Take a Trip to Natchitoches to See the Christmas Lights
Take a Trip to the Third Annual BAFB Oktoberfest 
Take a Trip to Natchitoches and Oakland Plantation
Take a Trip to Jefferson, Texas
Oktoberfest at BAFB