Aggie Baseball
To continue with our Blue Bell-themed weekend, Audra, Jessica, and I headed to Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park with a friend of mine this afternoon for some Aggie baseball!
Baseball wasn't a sport I watched growing up. My dad didn't watch it, and even though I played two seasons in little league, I had no interest in it. It also didn't help that the Texas Rangers weren't that great at the time I cared about sports either.
My first Aggie baseball game was the summer after my sophomore year in college. My roommate at the time, who was a freshmen ("fish") in the group for whom I was a co-counselor at Fish Camp the previous summer, was a baseball fan and invited me to go to a game. The Aggie baseball team was hosting an NCAA regional playoff. The Aggie baseball experience is unlike typical Aggie athletic events (i.e. football or basketball) in that the students don't stand and do yells, and thus no yell leaders are present. Instead, there's another set of "traditions," and that sort of got me hooked (in addition to a winning record).
After that game, I attended maybe one or two more during my undergraduate years and only for the NCAA playoff games. The summer after my second year in graduate school while on one of my summer internships, I saw that the baseball team won their regional and would face Florida State in a super regional matchup. Tallahassee was only a few hours' drive away, and I couldn't resist seeing an A&M team in Florida! The day trip I took was fun, and my fondness for Aggie baseball was rekindled (a win helped).
Olsen Field was renovated and reopened in 2012 as Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park. Part of the renovations added a playground along the first-base line in right field. I also saw many families who brought their kids along, and I wanted to bring Audra to baseball game before we left.
After we got our tickets, we headed through the entry gate and up the stairs where we saw an Easter bunny! Audra was terrified of it and suddenly clung to me.
Jessica then took Audra to the playground.
She was intrigued and doing really well until the train came by. Jessica tried to take her for a closer look, but she didn't like that and ended up back in the stands.
In the 8th inning, Audra was visibly tired, and the Aggies weren't doing well, so we decided to beat the traffic and go home after taking a few snapshots outside of the ballpark.
Baseball wasn't a sport I watched growing up. My dad didn't watch it, and even though I played two seasons in little league, I had no interest in it. It also didn't help that the Texas Rangers weren't that great at the time I cared about sports either.
My first Aggie baseball game was the summer after my sophomore year in college. My roommate at the time, who was a freshmen ("fish") in the group for whom I was a co-counselor at Fish Camp the previous summer, was a baseball fan and invited me to go to a game. The Aggie baseball team was hosting an NCAA regional playoff. The Aggie baseball experience is unlike typical Aggie athletic events (i.e. football or basketball) in that the students don't stand and do yells, and thus no yell leaders are present. Instead, there's another set of "traditions," and that sort of got me hooked (in addition to a winning record).
After that game, I attended maybe one or two more during my undergraduate years and only for the NCAA playoff games. The summer after my second year in graduate school while on one of my summer internships, I saw that the baseball team won their regional and would face Florida State in a super regional matchup. Tallahassee was only a few hours' drive away, and I couldn't resist seeing an A&M team in Florida! The day trip I took was fun, and my fondness for Aggie baseball was rekindled (a win helped).
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| 11 June 2011: Texas A&M vs. Florida State in NCAA super regional at Mike Martin Field at Dick Howser Stadium. |
After we got our tickets, we headed through the entry gate and up the stairs where we saw an Easter bunny! Audra was terrified of it and suddenly clung to me.
Being in a loud place with 5,000 other people, she continued clinging to me, even at one point going from Jessica back to me (a first). She eventually turned around to watch the game, though.
I bought a water bottle and a bag (and was inadvertently given a bucket) of popcorn. Audra couldn't resist.
After Audra was livened up a bit with popcorn, she was in a dancing mood. Throughout the game, a lot of music was played (batter intros, between innings, etc.). It was Military Appreciation Day, and after each inning, the PA asked veterans of each service to be recognized. The video below is during the Navy break.
Later on, Jessica bought some shaved ice with "tiger blood" and orange-pineapple flavoring. She couldn't resist that either.
Jessica then took Audra to the playground.
She was intrigued and doing really well until the train came by. Jessica tried to take her for a closer look, but she didn't like that and ended up back in the stands.
In the 8th inning, Audra was visibly tired, and the Aggies weren't doing well, so we decided to beat the traffic and go home after taking a few snapshots outside of the ballpark.
It was beautiful weather to be at the ballpark. We probably won't get to go to Olsen Field again, but hopefully, we'll get to see the baseball team wherever we end up!
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