Wounded Warrior Amputees vs DC Celebrities, 3 Apr, 2012

After the Nat’s exhibition game against the Red Sox, the outfield was turned into a softball field to showcase the Wounded Warrior Amputee team. They played against an assortment of DC celebrities (a mix of radio and tv personalities, former pro athletes, and politicians).

The game was set up like any other Nats game – the color guard brought out the flag, First Ladies favorite DC Washington sang the national anthem, the Nats pack threw t-shirts into the crowd, Clint interviewed players, and the Presidents even got in a race (Teddy still couldn’t win).

The biggest difference (other than the odd angle of the field and the giant yellow balls) was that the crowd was NOT cheering for the hometown team. There was a lot of good-natured heckling of the DC celebs, and everyone was supporting the amputees. Overall, everyone was having a great time – on and off the field. Whether diving for balls, sliding into bases, or making a fool of themselves, there was a smile on everyone’s faces.

And don’t think that being an amputee slowed any of these guys down. In fact, they were probably in better shape than half of the team they were playing against. It was really cool to see the variety of prosthetic limbs available too. Technology is amazing, and these guys are taking as much advantage of it as they can.

If the team comes to your area (they travel around the country), I highly recommend going out to watch them play. Details on upcoming events and the players themselves can be found on their website.

More pictures from this game are here.

April 4, 2012: Nats vs Red Sox (Exhibition)

Welcome back to…

Spring! The cherry trees were in full bloom and military helicopters flew by the stadium regularly. What else says spring in DC?

Ballpark food! $5 pregame beers are back, along with Shake Shack (that delicious burger), and Box Frites (not pictured are our garlic fries). Your First Ladies will try to sample some of the new food options, but sometimes you have to go with what you know. Of note, prices have gone up again on some items.

Racing Presidents! We thought Teddy might have a chance in the preseason, but no luck. He was helped out by the bunny (who tackled Abe, Tom, and George), but got distracted by two jugglers right before the finish line.

Fabulous weather! The field started out completely in the sun, but the shadows stretched long as the game played out. Ashley’s new seats are over in left field… a girl could get used to this view.

Silly games between innings! So far the best new game was “Stealing Second”. The contestant has 45 seconds to run from center field to 2nd base, switch the base out, and run back. If he does it, he gets to keep the game used base. Nifty.

Great catches! Derosa was right in front of us in left field, and we got to see several nice snags. The infield wasn’t too bad either!

Home runs! Ramos got things started with a 3 run homer, and Desmond answered with a solo in the next inning. It wasn’t quite enough to put us over the top, but it was lots of fun. And very promising.

Dramatic 9th innings! The Nats had a chance to tie it up in the 9th with 2 outs, Desmond on 2nd, and a nice long line drive by Espinosa. Desmond ran as hard as he could, but the ball just beat him to the plate (at least, that’s what the Ump wanted us to believe…). I wasn’t disappointed that we didn’t pull out the tie (no extra innings in preseason), because the game was just so much fun. (Picture courtesy of Drew).

First impressions? I think the Nats will be a fun team to watch this year. Then again, it’s hard not to enjoy yourself when you’ve skipped work to go watch your team on a gorgeous spring afternoon.

Stay tuned tomorrow for a bonus post – the Wounded Warrior Amputee vs DC Celebrity Softball game.

Full set of pictures can be found here.

Ahh, spring…

Hi loyal Nats fans! Your First Ladies are both returning from out-of-time-zone trips and looking forward to the return of baseball to DC.

What’s not to love about spring in the South? The flowers are blooming, the breezes are soft, and soon (tomorrow!) the wonderful sounds of bats connecting with balls will fill the air.

We’re both looking forward to renewing old acquaintances and starting up new friendships this year. Ashley will be at the game tomorrow, and both Maggie and Ashley will be at the home opener next week. In between we’ll let you know what our preseason predictions are and get back into the swing of blogging too.

We can’t wait to see you at the ballpark!