July 30, 2013 - Frederick Keys vs. Lynchburg Hillcats

Sadly, I only knocked off one new ballpark that I hadn't been to this year when I went with Chris and my brother, Adam to Frederick, Maryland.  We hit Frederick on our way back from Drew's place, figuring we could stretch out our vacation another day by taking in a minor league game.  I also had a free hotel night with my Choice Rewards, so we got to stay there without dipping into my already stretched beyond recognition vacation budget.

Harry Grove Stadium is a pretty nice place.  It reminded me a lot of the park in Bowie, MD and also the park in Hickory, NC.  I really enjoyed the orange seats, though.

Chris had a great time.  We met friend of the blog, Matt Hobgood, former Orioles first round draft pick.  He also got to go down on the field in the third inning and take part in an on-field contest with his uncle Adam.  They lost the contest, but I was able to get them both on a really grainy video with my phone.  By the way, I got a smart phone in May and I'm loving it.  I am still getting used to apps and stuff, but being able to blog while riding in the car was really awesome.

Here is the video:

Yeah, pretty grainy, but it works.

The coolest thing that happened, though, was before the game even started.  One of the employees came over and asked Chris if he wanted to be the day's "Play Ball" kid.  He said yes without even knowing what it was, but she told him that he would be brought down on the field during the National Anthem and would yell play ball into the microphone to start the game.  AWESOME!

Chris did a great job.  I thought this was one of the coolest things he was able to do at a game.  He's gotten free stuff from tons of players before, but I think he really enjoyed being on the field with them and yelling play ball.

Adam was a bit disappointed that the Orioles had promoted former South Carolina Gamecock, Christian Walker to Bowie a few days before the game.  Adam is a big SC fan, so that would have been cool to get to see Walker play.

The game was really good, Adam and I enjoyed a few Natty Bohs and some hot dogs.  We really enjoyed ourselves, even though the Keys lost.

So, I guess I'll try to knock out a few more minor league stadiums next year since I didn't get to too many games this year.  Oh well, we still had a great summer and an awesome vacation.

My 1988 Topps Pack From Topps Diamond Giveaway

I didn't get any mail today, which kind of angered me because I will be out of town for work when the mail comes tomorrow and Saturday.  Hopefully, one of the 9 baseballs I sent out for TTMs will be in one day soon.  I'm not holding my breath, though.  I got the idea from Ryan to shoot a video of me opening the 1988 Topps pack I 'won' off of Topps Diamond Giveaway, but I thought it might be a little more fun to let Chris do the pack busting.  Check out the video.

Good stuff, right?  He really is getting into cards and I couldn't be happier.  He has even gotten some stuff in my recent trades.  I really appreciate it when people think of Chris in addition to sending me Orioles cards.  He appreciates it too.  Maybe I'll shoot a video soon of Chris showing off his Lincecum collection.

POST NUMBER 500!!!!! (Or, Great Moments in Foul Bunt History)

Hooray! Foul Bunt has made it to another milestone!! 500 Posts! Wooooo.
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Let's take a look back and remember some great moments in Foul Bunt history...

• On November 16, 2008, Foul Bunt opened it's doors. You can read the post here. I chose the name Foul Bunt because I figured the blog would be pretty lame and a foul bunt was one of the lamest things you could do in baseball. Apparently, 80 followers later, my blog isn't as lame as I thought it would be.
• On December 14, 2008, I discussed my best pull ever (up to that time, of course). A 1960 Topps Stan Musial out of a shoebox bought off of Ebay. Read it here.
• On December 31, 2008, I got my 1955 Topps Jackie Robinson card. Read the post here. I also posted the Robinson while counting my 1955 set. That post (here) became my most viewed post yesterday (February 8, 2011), according to my handy dandy stats page.
• On February 1, 2009, I got the Roberto Clemente 1955 Topps rookie card in the mail. Check it out here.
• On May 31, 2009, I demonstrated the perils of alcohol and ebay after I had a couple beverages and bid on (and won) a 1955 Topps Phil Rizzuto.
• On July 3, 2009, Max and I demonstrate that it is not a good idea to try the gum found in 1988 Topps wax packs. Make sure you watch the video. Check it here.
• On July 24, 2009, I completed my first trade with Drew. Who knew that we'd become such good friends since then. Read the post here.
• I said earlier that my 1955 Jackie Robinson post had become my most viewed post. The previous champ that had held the record since google started keeping track in June was my September 22, 2009 post on meeting Bryce Harper.
• On October 27, 2009, I posted one of my most memorable posts, when I met Brooks Robinson in person. It was definitely a once in a lifetime experience. I'm glad I was able to share it with all of you here.
• On December 19, 2009, I completed the 1955 Topps set. One of my greatest card accomplishments ever.
• On May 2, 2010, I got my first TTM signed ball - Bobby Doerr. I've done pretty well with TTMs since then, but Doerr was the first.
• On June 11, 2010, I met Nolan Reimold in person. I was working at a site close to Norfolk and my boss allowed me to stay there overnight. I went to two games at Harbor Park and met Nolan outside the clubhouse. He was a really nice guy and I hope that he can finally put injuries behind him and become the great player that I know he is.
• On July 29, 2010, I met MASNsports.com's Roch Kubatko. I read Roch's blog every day (multiple times a day). It was awesome to meet him in person and talk about baseball for a while.
• On October 1, 2010, I started my daily listing of 1955 Topps cards. It has become a nice feature of my blog. I wonder what I'm going to do when I finish posting the set. Read the post here.
• On November 8, 2010, I posted probably my greatest TTM success. That of Virgil Trucks. If you read this blog regularly, you know that I am now a huge fan of Trucks, but this post is what started it all.
• On December 15, 2010, I posted on the huge loss of Bob Feller. I was really upset when he passed, I sure would have loved to meet him in person. You can read the post here.
• Finally, one of the coolest things to ever happen to me was being able to conduct an interview with the great Virgil Trucks. You can remind yourself here. I'm still amazed that I was afforded the opportunity.

So, there you have it. A much bigger recap post than I thought I'd do. I hope everyone has enjoyed everything. I've really enjoyed it and I hope that I can keep it up! Thanks everyone. Click the links and enjoy some nostalgia!

Let's see P.A.'s wife top this...

So, go ahead and pause my playlist and play this video of what happens when two bored dudes bust a box of 1988 Topps and then dare each other to try the gum... Listen to the cracking as Max tries it... I hope you have a good dental plan buddy!


Not to be outdone, and feeling like I would be a bad friend if I didn't take the dare as well, Here I am trying it....

That's dedication... or stupidity, you decide. Needless to say, Max and I had a good time together as usual. Once I can get the actual box break video uploaded from my laptop, I will post it as well.