2012 in a nutshell

2012 went by way to fast!!!!  Sammy started his 1st season of coach-pitch and had a great season!  we headed off to our annual summer trip to Idaho to visit the cousins and stopped in Ogden, Utah to watch the Ogden Raptors play.  It has one of the most beautiful views that we have seen in our travels.  Tucked in old town Ogden and up against the mountains.  Our next stop was our favorite park to visit, Avista Stadium, home of the Spokane Indians.  We had a great time going with Mark and the boys.  On our way home we drove down the coast for some site seeing and our 1st stop was Seattle, WA.  We were lucky enough to see the Texas Rangers play the Mainers on a rare sunny day!!  The whole family went and Sammy was lucky enough to get a picture with Martin Perez before the game.  After Seattle we drove to Portland to visit more family then headed to San Francisco!  We had a great time on the Golden Gate Bridge and spending the day on the wharf.  On our way home we were able to stop in Modesto and Rancho Cucamanga, long drive home.  The Rangers of the AZL made the playoff and we followed them all the way to the championship game and they won!  Sammy had his picture with Lewis Brinson (1st RD pick, 2012)!  We were excited to be able to watch our favorite player, Hanser Alberto play in the AZ. Fall League and spend some time with him on his birthday.  To finish off the year Sammy played his 2nd season of winter ball (coach-pitch).  2013 will be a better year of blogging, that's for sure!!!!!!!!!!!!

2012 Spring Training

We had a lot of fun this year! We met some new friends and had a great time goofing around and watching some baseball! This is the 4th Spring training since we started this blog and its amazing how fast and how much the kids have grown. A few of the players that we enjoyed watching over the past few seasons were not here this season, I guess that's the reality of pro ball and we wish them the best of luck in the future. Some of the players remember Sammy from the past and tell him how big he is getting. We spent a little time on the Royals side this year since the Rangers have made a lot changes do to the signing of Yu Darvish. It was nice to go watch the Royals because it wasn't so crowded and easier to keep an eye on the little ones.

Korean Baseball Spring Training

It was a nice surprise to see that the Korean Baseball Organization is having their spring training in Arizona this year! The Nexen Heroes and Kia Tigers are in Surprise and the rest of the teams are in Peoria and Tucson. Sammy and Ava and I checked it out and it was a lot of fun. The Korean players were very nice. They are very vocal when they practice, chanting and cheering on each other. BK Kim, a former Diamondback plays for the Heroes and Sammy got a pic with him.

Later in the day we went over to the Kia Tigers side. They say the Tigers are the Yankees of the Korean League. We hung out with a few fans and some of the Korean media. They had fun talking with the kids and we enjoyed each others company. Sammy had his picture taken with Suk-Min Yoon, later that day we found out he was the MVP of the League for 2011 and is expected to play in the MLB in the next year or so!

Baseball Camp

Sammy spent his January weekend's at the U.S. Baseball Academy honing his fielding skills! He had a great time and met some new friends. The coaches nicknamed him "Tex" and "Hollywood". He will start coach pitch this March and is excited to meet his new teammates!!!!

Arizona Fall League Rising Stars Game

Sammy and I had a great time at the game! Sammy's friend Brandon tagged along with us! They had a great time goofing around, don't even think they were really watching the game! Sammy was very excited that i caught a foul ball, thanks to the guy missing it behind me!!

Fun day at the ballpark

Had a great day spending time with all the kids today! We watched an instructional league game played in the main stadium and the kids had a blast! Sammy met a couple of boys his age and they walked around the stadium getting their baseballs autographed. A nice surprise, Hanser Alberto hung out with us for a few inning and hung out with the kids. Janet and Ava kept busy running up and down the stairs chasing each other. After the game Sammy and Janet got a few autographs then we headed to the park to play! Great day with the kids!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2011 All Star Game

I thought it would be nice to take my beautiful wife Michelle to the All Star games since Sammy and I were gone all weekend! We had a great time at the game. We decided to take the light rail to the game and that was pretty cool. We had a great dinner at a local soul food restaurant close to the ballpark then headed to the game. It was a great game and had a great time hanging out with my best friend!!!!!