Field Trip ~ Baseball Field

We had a fun time going to Education Day at the Tourists Baseball Field. This small, mountain town, minor-league baseball team has a history to it, having hosted some of baseball's most influential stars. Lou Gehrig, Jackie Robinson, Ty Cobb, Warren Spahn, and even Babe Ruth have graced this field with their prowess. Cal Ripken Jr. was a bat boy there in the early to mid 70s, while his father managed the Club. The famous American author, Thomas Wolfe (Look Homeward, Angel and You Can't Go Home Again), was a bat boy back in 1915. Portions of the classic film, "Bull Durham," starring Kevin Costner were filmed at this baseball field during two days in October 1987. 

I was unsure on how the kids would do at a baseball game with all the noise. Once they had the hang of what was going on and we moved to a calmer section, they enjoyed it. We were lucky to find a calmer section between a group of homeschoolers from a different county and a group from a nursing home. They were not nearly as wild as the public school kids were in the first section we sat in. Interestingly, the public school kids were being riled up by their teachers. I guess they were trying to wear them out or something.



I was surprised how hot it was in the stands. I had brought a picnic lunch of organic hot dogs, potato chips, and fruit, but I ended up buying a snow cone for them to share.


They liked meeting Teddy, the Tourists' mascot.


They also enjoyed hitting a few balls of their own. 

The little educational packets they handed out were pretty good. The packets were mostly math and were too hard to concentrate on there, but we did learn some from them. I was proud of them for making it through five innings and behaving themselves.

Blessings, Dawn