7-26-12 (vs. Washington)

I went to bed at 7:00 AM on Thursday morning, got up around noon, and worked on the post for Wednesday. I left for the game at 4:25 and hit some traffic going into Milwaukee because of my tardiness. I was parked by 5:45 (later than usual) and walked the parking lots for a bit to hand out some cards and talk about Be The Match. I dropped off my extra ticket at will call for my twitter follower that would be joining me, and went inside at 6:05. The giveaway on Thursday was a nice camouflage hat, and I might actually wear it. A lot of giveaways (at all stadiums) aren’t made very well but this one seems better than most of the hats I’ve gotten over the years.

I went up to section 205 to get game photo number 98 taken and for a split second I thought I had grabbed the wrong sign. When I pulled out the piece of paper it was upside down and I thought: “86!? NOOOOOO!” I think the fact that I was going on a few hours of sleep on the heels of 14 hours of driving contributed to my stupidity. A nearby fan did the honors and after a few adjustments I got one I liked.

I had only consumed two sausages over the previous 11 days so I figured it was time for another Polish. I devoured it quickly and it was delicious. A twitter follower (Scott) who had joined me at a previous game tweeted me earlier asking if I had tried the Giant Slugger yet (I hadn’t). It’s a two foot long hot dog topped with chili, onions, nacho cheese and jalapeños. A few weeks ago I took a few pictures. This first one is just of the hot dog itself, alone and waiting for the pretzel bun that it would eventually call home.

At a later game I saw two guys eating one and I asked if I could get a picture. I mentioned who I was and why I wanted a picture of it and one of them asked to get a picture with me. It was a fair tradeoff. It comes in a long cardboard box and includes handles for convenient transport.

Scott stopped by after the first inning and allowed me to take a section of the enormous dog (they cut it into four sections for easier handling). It was good but I don’t think I could eat a whole one. I’ll count this as one hot dog in the statistics because that’s about what it equates to (maybe even a little more than one).

Derrick was waiting in his seat when I arrived 20 minutes before first pitch. I found out that he’s from Milton and currently living at his parents’ place while he attends UW-Whitewater. We probably should’ve car pooled since we left at around the same time and he came within 1.5 miles of my parents’ house on his way to the game. Sorry environment.

Jonathan Lucroy was back from his two month Disabled List stint. It was good to see his name back in the lineup. Here he is coming out to start the game:

The game started and Gallardo delivered a strike to Lombardozzi to kick off the seven game home stand.

Similar to opening day the highlight of the game may have been the opening pitch strike. In the second inning LaRoche led off the inning with a home run and it was downhill from there. Gallardo gave up a walk and a hit following the home run, but had a chance to get out of the jam if he could retire the Nationals’ pitcher. Instead Gallardo walked Edwin Jackson and the following batter (Lombardozzi) delivered three runs with a bases clearing triple. Ouch. In the 5th the Nationals added three more runs to take a 7-0 lead.

The Brewers had just called up a pitcher by the name of Jim Henderson. I didn’t know much about him but we found out that he has pitched parts of 10 seasons in the minors and that Thursday was his Major League debut. It shows a lot of heart to stick with it that long and not give up. He delivered a strike with his first pitch in the bigs:

He wound up striking out his first batter on a 97 MPH fastball, and got all three batters out that he faced. Velocity must not have been a problem for him and I’m assuming it was a combination of a lack of secondary pitches and control that kept him off of a major league roster. Well done Jim, the Brewers bullpen welcomes you!

It was 8-0 in the eighth when Carlos Gomez hit a 2-run home run. That’s all the Brewers got and the Nationals took game one. Final Score: Nationals 8 – Brewers 2. It doesn’t hurt as bad when they’re never in the game, so I had that to be thankful for. The losing streak is now at seven, though, and that is painful.

Late in the game I had a fan in front of us take a picture of Derrick and me. He gave a thumbs up, I did not. I had a great time talking baseball with him and I’m grateful for his $40 donation to Be The Match for his ticket. Thanks Derrick!

Tonight I’m going with another twitter follower who graciously agreed to make a $40 donation as well. After the game I’m heading back to Madison for the night. I haven’t seen Victoria since the 15th and I’m very much looking forward to it. She occasionally sends me pictures of Prince (like the one below) which is nice of her but also makes me miss being home that much more.

Personal Stats:

Daily Stats:

Season Stats:

If you want to learn more about Be The Match and how you can help, CLICK HERE