It's almost 6:15, about 35 minutes before the Tampa Bay Rays unveil their American League Championship flag and an hour before Scott Kazmir throws the first pitch in the Rays home opener against the NY Yankees.
I've been hanging around since before 3, checking out batting practice and pregame interviews. Mostly fly-on-the-wall stuff. Fans were allowed in at 4 and a bunch of kids gathered in the outfield bleachers to catch homerun balls during BP.
And some adult fans have just gathered to show their appreciation:
Here's a few random observations and some more pics:
• Evan Longoria and Akinori Iwamura were the only Rays to sign autographs before the game. Longoria worked his way down a long line; Aki did a shorter stint. The other players either just waved or kept tunnel vision.
• Longoria was one of two Rays to do pregame interviews. B.J. Upton was the other; it's his first game this season.
• Joe Maddon does two pregame press conferences: one with TV on the field, one on the dugout steps with press people.
• Troy Percival and Gabe Gross played cards while a few players did interviews and others tended to business. No one spoke to them.
• TV and radio media guys tend to be close-talkers. One guy, the last to talk to Longoria, got up so close to the third baseman that Longo could've told you what he had for lunch.
• Batting practice is an interesting ritual. Players hit in groups of three or four, quickly entering and exiting the cage and taking about six or seven swings per sequence. Longoria, Upton and Carl Crawford constituted on grouping. You get a real sense of camaraderie among the entire team
This article appears in Apr 8-14, 2009.