Spring Training, 2019


   

Once again we invaded Peoria, AZ, over St. Patty's Day weekend to hang out, have fun, tailgate, and take in a Padres Spring Training Game or two.




We drove the 360+ miles from San Diego on Thursday, checked in to the luxurious Springhill Suites by Marriott, and headed over for the Thursday night tilt vs. the Dodgers



It was a bit chilly Thursday evening but we were prepared!



The usual suspects: Tom, Trevor, Patty, Neal, Jenny, Mary, Lorri, and me!



And here we are again!



The crowd is settling in



The lineup: Manny! Hos! Wil Myers! Tatis! What could be better?



Good seats, as usual, thanks to Tommy







Speaking of Tommy, this is the "other" Tommy, Tommy Lasorda, who is about 112 years old now.



Me, Mary, and Lorri in a selfie!



Tommy and me



On Friday, we had an away game against the Milwaukee Brewers in Maryvale, about a half-hour drive from Peoria. This is a selfie with Tom and Patty in the car behind us!




There they are again.



We finally got into the parking lot and got situated for a little tailgating by the Grand Canal. Seriously, that's the name of it. I looked it up on Google Maps, so it has to be correct, right?



Since it was an away game, it was sandwich day. No fancy tailgate stuff for away games.



Once again, Mary and Neal pulled out their Dick's sunshades, causing envy amongst the Dicksless.



Ryan, Kim and baby Everly joined the festivities too!



Everly is one mellow tot!



Ready for some 'shoes? Not today.



There were a lot of Pads fans at the game as well as plenty of Wisconsin Cheese Heads



Here we are without Neal and Trevor but with some gut photo bombing.



Here we are with Neal and Trevor but no photo bomber



We all decided that we will not go back to Maryvale any time soon. The parking was a disaster, slow getting in and ridiculously slow getting out. There were long lines to get into the park too.




Saturday evening we took over the lobby breakfast area for pizzas, wine and Everly watching



OK, finally it was time for some serious tailgating. We had a home game against the Kansas City Royals and Neal cooked up a variety of brats and sausages, perhaps inspired by the previous day's wiener races at the Brewers ballpark. Which, when you think about it, why don't the Brewers have beer-chugging contests instead of stupid wiener races?



Here's some of the spread



The master wiener cooker at work



The accoutrements!



Mary likes sautéed bell peppers! Onions too!



Let the feast begin!



We found some balls!



Today's lineup



Good seats yet again



We had nice sunny weather Saturday and Sunday.



The Pads win! The Pads win! The Pads win!



Saturday night at Rock Bottom Brewery



Sunday was St. Patrick's Day and we were ready, or getting ready, anyway.



Wearin' o' the Green!



Heading into the game.



Everly with her smart phone!



Ryan, Mary and Jenny



Maybe we shouldn't have been so critical of the Brewers because it took us a while to get into the Pad's ballpark. It was a sellout crowd for the game against the Angels.



Alas! No Mike Trout or Albert Pujols.



Still, we had Manny!



Great seats down the third base line just past the dugout. We could clearly see many blowing bubblegum bubbles.



Just a row of Angels fans between us and the field.



Patty taking a photo of Ryan, Kim, and Everly



post-game behind home plate



Thanks to Trevor for sharing some of these photos!



The whole group!



Everly and Trevorly



Trev and Jenny, aka trouble.



Meanwhile, back at the hotel...



Eight years of Spring Training baseballs signed by some of the best (horseshoe) players out there. It was another great trip to Peoria with good friends, good times, good food, and a pleasant adult beverage or two!

Go Padres!