Gearing Up for a Big Spring Training Trip
Actually, I’m not gear up for it. A friend of mine is. She wants to put together a Spring Training trip for her husband’s birthday and she called me yesterday asking for tips on where to go, how to do it, etc. I was a little embarrassed to say I’ve never been to ST though I’ve always wanted to go.
Have any of you guys ever been? Highlights? Low lights? Places you would or wouldn’t go?
We’re only about 40 days or so away from P/C’s reporting…….
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Retro Game O’ da Day!
April 22nd, 1983. It was a Friday night game, 6,630 diehards showed up. Man, with Fergie Jenkins on the mound it blows my mind that only 6K showed up for that game. It was the final season of his HOF career. What a dominant beast this guy was back in the day. The Cubs handled us easily 7-2. Laskey stood little chance against Jenkins and he was relieved by the flailing trifecta of Mike CHris, Renie Martin and Mark Calvert.
A Place To Talk About Giants Baseball 
other than johnnie l at the top, that’s not a bad looking lineup.
Kuip was pretty weak, too.
2012 version of LeMaster Kuiper Omallley and May
Crawford, Burris, Fontenot and Stewart
based on 83 stats, anyone argue with Pagan/Cabrerra, Freddy, Panda, Clark, Evans, Leonard, Posey, Boo?
BF….Theirs great places to eat and drink right near theese park.Don and Charlies a huge Giant hangout,Old Town has Carlos Obrien mexican food,a plenty other pubs and cool places.A Great place that the Locals go to is Grease Flat up at the Pinnacle Peak.Outdoor bbq pits live music,dollar bills on the bar ceiling,great Burgers and beers just a fun place with reasonable pric
If you’ve never been, then you do need to hit Don and Charlie’s.
http://www.donandcharlies.com/
Make reservations early (I mean weeks in advance), as they book-up quickly. Also, leave yourself plenty of time to check out the memorabilia…it is an awesome collection. Year-before-last we passed Willie Mays leaving as my daughter and I were going in.
The Pink Pony just re-opened under new ownership last year. I had a New York steak and it was awesome. Another place where you want to make reservations early.
http://www.pinkponyrestaurant.com/
There are slews of places in Old Town Scottsdale.
Good luck on getting a hotel room near the yard…if they don’t have them yet…giddy up.
On the retro…Kuip weak? WTF…he had ONE career HR. 😉
Yeah and Kuip hit that dinger off of Steve Stone and he will never let him forget Chi.
Never been to ST either. Wish I had gone before it became overpriced and overcrowded and corporate.
It is overpriced and crowded, but still a good experience. 15-20 years ago…it was outstanding. I remember my first year going…we bought the cheapest tix available for a Giant-A’s game at Munincipal (A’s yard)…then proceeded to walk down and sit in the first row behind the Giant’s bullpen…spent the entire game jawing with them…it was great. Those days are long gone…but again…still a good experience.
staying in scottsdale makes it an incredible experience but like it was mentioned, a very tough room to get. one of my favorite memories was playing that betting game where everyone puts a dollar into a cup and the cup gets passed each half inning. the winner is the guy holding the cup when, after the third out, the players roll the ball toward the mound. if it stays on the dirt, you win. hilarious. all around the stadium you hear people going nuts whether it stays or not. the players totally know and LOVE to mess with them.
No Twin or Chuck growling over something? Quiet day!
Just have a drink at Don and Charlie’s, then have the best steak in town at Durant’s
http://www.durantsaz.com/dinner.html
Avoid anything but the steaks. Avoid Pinnacle Peak at all costs ( locals don’t eat there, they take the inlaws from out of town there.) If you eat Mexican food at a place called “Carlos O’Brien’s” you deserve what you get.
Haven’t been to the Pink Pony since Charlie Briley passed away, but I hear it’s still good- it was THE spot for years.
Was there before, and went last year, Twin (PInk Pony). The new ownership has done a fantastic job. Have not had a steak at Durant’s…but the steak I had at the Pink Pony was one of the best I have ever had. Highly recommended.
On a separate note…anyone see this article regarding Cainer and the Evil Empire?
http://tinyurl.com/7huab67
Thats BS Twin, Grease Flat is “Always” packed.The viewsof the desert floor up their are Awesome.BF if they golf, their are a Zillion nice courses….Wi Ko Pa, Talking Sticks,Las Sendas.Longbow.The Phoencian with 3 beautiful 9hole layouts Palm,Canyon,Oasis.And 7 swimming pools.Place has it all.
Kat, there’s no law against you liking it but Pinnacle Peak and the various restaurants that have inhabited it has been a tourist trap with awful food for decades. And it’s always full, true- with the inlaws and the terrible relatives who torture them 😉
If you want views- go to my sister’s house in the high dessert- and she’ll give you something edible besides…don’t bring your cat, they live for about 5 minutes up there.
My sis does say that the burgers are pretty good. Get a designated driver and get snockered, have a green chile cheeseburger, leave the window open on the way home. BTW_ don’t curse there, they’ve been known to throw people out for that..
this has all been great guys, keep ’em coming.
When are you coming to Brooklyn? We can drink cans of Rheingold in brown paper bags and hang out on my favorite street corner…
That sounds like a kick-ass time, Loo…
what, no sweet jenny cream?
The best so far today.
I went to ST a few times back in the day. I’ve told the stories before about spending the night with two friends sleeping on the Giants workout fields at Indian School Park. We had dreams of The Humm Baby himself waking us up and shooing us off the field. Alas it did not come to pass, but we did make it through the night. Another memory was watching “Salomon Torres” throw a bullpen the spring after his meltdown. Several fans were standing above cheering him on—and one was getting on him “just don’t quit on us this year Salomon,” when my brother turned to them and said “that’s not Salomon Torres.” (It was Jaime Brewington)
I also saw Big Daddy throw a “B: game at Indian School which was very cool. That’s my advice….see if there is a “B” game going on during the main game and go check that out in a much more casual, intimate setting.
I can’t speak to any of the fancy steak joints–that’s not the way I roll. If you’re looking for cheap mass-produced American beer and tasty burgers, then I’m your man.
I can’t believe Fergie Jenkins was still at it in ’83. I would have never guessed he and Sandberg took the field together. Did you make that up Flav, just to see if we were paying attention?
Dawg – I’m a burger and beer guy, too…I just like to have a good slab of meat every once in a while, too. I do dives with the best of ’em…
I hear you, Chi. These days I can better afford a steak (and a hotel room), so I might give that a try. Great having you back here. Do you still call Hangtown home?
The best ST food ever was at the Orlando Airport. Back in the those days, the ’60s, stone crabs were given away like trail mix at the bars. We’d order our entrees but first a huge platter of stone crab claws were a complimentary appetizer…
Mike, that’s sort of funny because after I read what you wrote, I remembered the “clam chowder soup in sourdough bread” I had approx. 15 years ago in one of the SF airport terminals. Not certain which restaurant (Boudin???) prepared it (because I usually fly into San Jose airport), but it was delicious. Quite weird really, because I never equate good food with airports . . . That was definitely the exception.
Yeah, blade, Boudin’s Bakery and Café. Still there too
Ted, thanks . . . Does Boudin still have the restaurant at Fisherman’s Wharf too (again, not certain, but seem to recall a “round” building)?
Yeah, they’re still at the Wharf. Pier 39 as well. Actually, they’ve got locations all over the place now
I’m impressed with the Marlins off-season . . . Today, the team rounded out its rotation by acquiring Carlos Zambrano, plus cash, from the Cubs for former first-round Draft pick Chris Volstad. This trade is essentially a low-risk, high-reward move, because the club gets a veteran who has proven he can pitch at the top of the rotation. Guillen and Zambrano are good friends, so Ozzie should be able to “control” Zambrano’s occasional volatility (which usually stems from his extreme competitiveness). Regardless, it will be interesting to see how it pans out next season.
Blade it will be high risk for the matinence crew and dugout guys once Zamarano implodes and destroys the water cooler and toliets.
Alleykat, at $2.5 million (Cubs are paying the rest of his $18 million plus contract), they can afford to purchase extra commodes and water coolers. 😉
Yanks plotting for Cain?…
http://tinyurl.com/7c45egu
The Fish look good on paper…but how many times have the Yank-Mees looked great on paper…only to flame out. Can’t say I don’t hope for the same for the Miami Marlins….
They already pissed-off one of their best young players (Hanley Ramirez) when they signed Reyes, and then said they wanted Ramirez to make a switch to the hot corner.
On top of it all…I think their new uniforms suck.
Phuck the Fish…
Snaark – interesting from the New York Times…I posted this link earlier and above…same topic.
http://tinyurl.com/7huab67
Sorry, I missed it ChiP. Glad to see you’re back…
The Giants have said an extension for Cain is a priority. IMNSHO…I think he should be THE priority (sorry Timmy). We shall see…
After winning the WS in 2010, the Giants had a terrible offensive year in in 2011 LARGELY because their opening day lineup spent more than 20% of the year on the DL. That has the usual suspect opining that Cain and Lincecum will be bolting due to lack of support. They may or may not leave but it would be determined by the oldest incentive in the world- clams.
Anyway, IMO Cain will sign an extension and Lincecum will leave after next year, shortly before his arm gives out. We will have received the best years of his career..
Seems like you and I are the “Lone Rangers” on this issue . . . I hope we don’t sign him to a 4 year contract, much less an 8 year contract (that Tim and his lunatic agent want). Pure idiocy for anyone to consider that type of contract.
SanDawg – in answer to your earlier question…yes, still romping in Old Hangtown (Camino, actually…just up the road from Placerville).
Westphal got canned in Sacto. I wonder if it could be for shit like this:
“Just last week, Cousins had another verbal altercation with Westphal after Westphal called him for a technical in practice.”
He called a T on his own player? In practice?
The NBA is a friggin joke.
If the Giants were in the NBA, and Tejada had been any good, after his insubordination episode, Sabes would have started Tejada, and fired Bochy…
Poor Keith Smart, screwed by the Warriors, now he gets Cousins..
I was looking for something else and stumbled upon this blog post— excellent read about Dirrrrty Sanchez. No comments, too bad. –that’s what sucks about the blog world, there are some great writers out there and no one reading what they write…
http://snowwouldahadit.wordpress.com/2011/11/07/here-she-goes-again/#more-1232
Thanks for pointing to this perfect little tribute, BF.
Well, that’s one way to look at it, but how much readership would these many fine writers get if it were not for blogs?
BF – I haven’t been to ST since 89 (that was one long year). For me one of the bad things was,I couldn’t bet a dog to save my life.
Been to Scottsdale (not ST) a few time since 89. If you want to go for high end accommodations The Biltmore is cool (except they wouldn’t let me get my own ice, always had to call for someone) but so is the Hyatt at Gainey Ranch, adult only pool and shuttles into Old Town.
I’m liking this compressed NBA season, with so many games packed into each week.
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The ubiquitous Ted Robinson is calling the Stanford/Oregon basketball game tonight, and Oregon either has the coolest basketball court you ever saw, or a complete visual nightmare, ranking with Idaho St.’s football field. There’s no in-between on that.
Zoom– the floor doesn’t *floor* me (thank you, thank you, I’ll be here all night folks). I’m surprised more schools don’t do this for the recognition alone.
I see where the Warriors signed a midg . . . uhh, undersized guard, Nate Robinson. During the offseason, Robinson was arrested for urinating in public outside a bookstore in a New York City suburb.
He’ll fit right in.
I can’t wait to see what Ellis thinks about playing with a 5’9 pt guard.
When Jackson said “we will no longer tolerate mediocrity” I was like “dude have you been following the team the last 15 years or so? I’d fucking kill for a little mediocrity right now!
Curry needs to shut it down and have a specialist figure out what’s going on with that ankle– continuing to roll it over and over on normal plays is stupid
Exactly. By the by, what’s up with Dorell Wright? I made a trade proposal to another FL team earlier this season . . . Whew! Glad he turned it down. Wright has been a shell of what he was last year.
i’m pretty sure i said it earlier, this will not heal anytime soon. he has to go at LEAST a year doing near to nothing and THEN start a rehab program. they should have gone for CP.
Wild rumor out there that they’re gonna trade steph + #1 for d-Howard and pray he doesn’t bail at end of season
Dubs need to get the ankle specialist out of the Andrews Clinic in Alabama that worked on Monta’s ankle and let him take a look. Something is radically wrong with this ankle. The offseason surgery, done by a guy in N Carolina, either hasn’t healed or made it worse. I’m assuming that it was more of Curry’s choice of surgeon, given the location. I’d say it’s panic time regarding this injury…
Did y’all see the Superdome. They have it all lit up in purple, a huge lighted fleur-de-lis and big lighted letters saying ” Here Kitty” .
Talkin’ smack with your stadium – priceless.
That’s fairly awesome. I’ve got playoff fever baby, bring the games on!
Me too Flav. The 14th is my birthday, so my wife is parking my ass in a bar with a motel room across the street. The woman knows how to give me a birthday celebration.
Maybe some dial-a-shot action?
“when the bar calls you” ….lqtm