We decided to drive down to Clearwater today to see the first Phillies spring training game, an exhibition game against the University of Tampa, a very good Division II school that won the national championship in their division last year and is ranked number one this year. it was a 65 mile drive from here to Clearwater but we had the tickets and wanted to get a head start on the season.
It was good to get back to the stadium, see the ushers again we had gotten to know in our previous trips and enjoy the experience of spring baseball. The first official spring training game is on Tuesday, so a lot of the seats were empty today (maybe 5,000 people were there) and many of the fans that were there were locals rooting of their hometown college team. The university also brought their pep band and two cheer teams - a dance team and a cheer leader squad. They also brought their mascot, a Trojan warrior, who the Phillie Phanatic had fun with in his usual way, e.g., giving him a ride on his quad-runner and then abandoning him in center field.
The game was better than the one they played against the same team last year; the Phillies won today, 8-3. Most of the Phillies players playing were rookies and non-roster players looking to earn a spot on the team. Everyone played pretty well and looked like they were playing with a lot more energy and enthusiasm than last year. It is still very early, but hopefully the team will be much better than last year, despite being in the middle of a rebuilding process.
After returning to Crystal River we went over to Eileen and Linda's house and had dinner. My sister Sharyn, visiting from California, helped prepare the meal and we grilled steaks on their grill. We had a great meal and enjoyed meeting with everyone again.
We are hoping we can get into Bay Bayou RV park a day early tomorrow, but won't know until Monday if not, we will have to figure out a "Plan B". The next game is on Tuesday and it would be great to get set-up before the game.
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