We saw the Phillies!

17-3 Phillies (BlueClaws) beat the Power.  Below is the Norfolk-Southern train horn that blows with every Power home run.  Oh, boy!

Almost every big leaguer has come thru a tiny minor league town like this.  In this game The Power played the Lakewood BlueClaws from Lakewood NJ, near Sea Girt.  This is the Phillies Single A team where Ryan Howard once played.  That means he too played on this Charleston field.  A fun note, the BlueClaws have a player, Mike McGuire, from Drexel Hill, PA near Philly.  It's always good to scan the players on a team and see their hometown.  When Mike walked-by we shouted his name and told him we were from the Philly area, got his autograph, and at game's end asked him for a ball, he tossed us one...thus a NEW STREAK begins.  We got another BlueClaw to sign it --- Jonathan Singleton, a 19 year old phenom from California.  He's a first basemen in the mold of Ryan Howard and was considered the 55th best prospect in all of baseball in 2009.

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?pos=1B&sid=t427&t=p_pbp&pid=572138

McGuire is a pitcher, a Univ. of Delaware grad who was drafted by the Indians, and was new to the team.  Apparently a hard thrower with 9 strikeouts in 5 innings pitched.  I asked him if he grew up a Phillies fan and he confirmed he did saying "I'm living the dream."

http://www.indiansprospectinsider.com/2009/01/indians-top-prospects-89-michael.html

Look at this "stadium."  Actually Charleston has a nice little downtown.  It's the state capital, and like most small towns it closes up at night.  The ball game was the only action.

The warm-up process is the same everywhere.