Friday, March 26 1999

Good morning and welcome to Day 7 of the 6th Annual Spring Training Trek 1999!

And on the 7th day he rested.  My mind said to get up, my heart said it was time to go to Disney's MGM Studios, but my body kept saying, just 5 more minutes.  So today, I slept in.  After all, I am on vacation.  But then it was time to get up, get focused, and get to the ballpark for a game against the Montreal Expos.  The Expos for a number of years shared Spring Training facilities with the Braves in West Palm Beach.  When Atlanta accepted Disney's invitation to move to Orlando, the Expos moved to a new facility in Jupiter, north of West Palm Beach along with the St. Louis Cardinals.

It is a cloudy day, temperatures in the mid 70's, with a chance of scattered showers.  Hopefully it will all blow through. Disney transportation is probably the only thing wrong with the Wide World of Sports, as the bus rarely makes its scheduled trips on time.  As a result, I sat down in my seat in the 2nd row behind home plate in the middle of the 2nd inning.  Tom Glavine was on the mound, and the Braves already had a 1 run lead.  In the bottom of the 2nd, Mark DeRosa led off with a single into left.  Glavine laid down a perfect bunt to move DeRosa to 2nd.  Otis Nixon struck out, Brett Boone drew a walk, and then Chipper Jones doubled into center scoring DeRosa and Boone.  Javier Lopez grounded to first to end the inning, but not before the Braves put up 2 runs on 1 hit.  After 2, the Braves lead 3-0.

In the top of the 3rd, Glavine got a ground out to short then gave up a hit to center field and recorded a strikeout for the 2nd out.  Glavine was forced to deflect a come-backer to the mound, sending the ball into right field.  Runners were on the corners when Glavine gave up a walk to load the bases.  A fly out to center ended the inning.  Randall Simon led off the bottom of the 3rd with a hit to single.  Gerald Williams, playing right field, flied out to center.  Brian Hunter, playing left field, popped up to the infield.  Mark DeRosa, playing 2nd base, grounded into a fielder's choice who chose Simon for out #3.

Glavine started the 4th by giving up a hit to right field, then a line drive got past Boone into right.  He ran it down and on an off-balance throw, gets the runner at 2nd.  The play went as a hit and a put-out.  A fly out to Williams in right, and another come-backer to Glavine ended the inning.  Glavine led off the Braves half of the inning with a strikeout.  Nixon ground out to short for the 2nd out.  On a 3-2 count, Boone drove one down the 3rd base line for a double.  Chipper Jones flied out to left to end the inning.

Top of the 5th, and Danny Bautista took over in right, Tony Graffanino at 2nd, and Marty Malloy at 3rd.  Williams moved over to left.  Glavine struck out the lead-off batter, then gave up a hit to center.  A ground-out started a double-play to end the inning.  Lopez led off the bottom of the inning with a ground ball to short.  The throw got away from the 1st baseman, and Lopez was safe.  Randall Simon, hitting .333, chopped to 3rd, but the throw to 2nd was dropped and runners were safe at first and 2nd with no outs.  Williams fouled off pitch after pitch before grounding to short.  Simon was out at 2nd, but the Braves had runners on the corners.  Brian Hunter, hitting only .194 and being tested in left field, stepped to the plate.  With plenty of outfielders and Randal Simon having an excellent Spring, Brian Hunter's chance to rejoin the Atlanta team is pretty slim.  Williams attempted to steal 2nd and was caught in a run-down when the ball got away.  Lopez scored and Williams ended up at 3rd on the error.  Hunter struck out and Mark DeRosa, hitting .200, singled into right to score Williams.  Glavine grounded to 3rd to end the inning with a force out of DeRosa.  But the Braves got 2 runs on 1 hit and 3 Montreal errors.

In the 6th inning, Eddie Perez came in to catch Glavine, and immediately took another foul tip in an area he really did not want to take one in.  He shook it off and continued playing, however.  Glavine then gave up a hit to center, Randall Simon caught a pop-up in foul territory, and then induced a double play to end the inning.  Glavine received an ovation as he walked off the field.  As we moved to the bottom of the inning, the sun was beginning to peek through the clouds, alternating cool breeze and hot blasts.  It was the kind of afternoon where a number of the guys in the grass seats in left field took off all the law would allow in the hopes of soaking up some rays.

If anyone is interested, the field at Disney's Wide World of Sports is 335 and 330 feet down the 3rd and 1st base lines, 400 up the middle, and 385 in between.  There is a lot of foul territory behind the base lines but very little down into the corners.  There is an old-fashioned scoreboard where a couple of underpaid part-timers dutifully (and manually) post the runs, hits, and errors each inning.  There is also one of the best best large video screens ever seen at a sports complex, enclosed suites around the upper level, televisions in the concourse (so you don't miss a thing while feeding), and enough souvenir merchandise to make a Braves fan poor.

In the bottom of the inning, Danny Bautista, hitting .326, singled into short left.  Graffanino was hitting a dismal .105, and has no where to go.  There is no room in the Atlanta club, and no interest from other teams.  Bautista stole second and scored on Graffanino's single.  Hitting .175, Marty Malloy will probably start the season in Richmond with Boone and Lockhart working 2nd base, and Weiss and Guillen at short.  But Malloy can play anywhere on the left side, and might be called up in case of injury.  On Graffanino's attempt to steal 2nd, the throw went into Center and Tony ended up on 3rd.  It was the 4th error of the game for the Expos, the 3rd taking place at 2nd.  Malloy grounded to first for the first out.  Eddie Perez, hitting .400, waived Graffanino home on a wild pitch and the Braves had a 7-0 lead.  Perez grounded to 1st for the 2nd out.  Randall Simon, hitting .323, is a good candidate to back up Klesko at 1st, although they Braves may want him to get some more consistent playing time at Richmond.  Logic tells you that this would be a good professional move, but any minor leaguer will tell you that they would rather sit on the bench in the major leagues than play every day in the minors.  In this case, Simon flied out to left to end the inning.

Gene Schall took over at 1st in the top of the 7th, with Marcus Giles at 2nd and Odalis Perez on the mound.  A base hit to center, a fly out to left, and former Brave Mike Mordecai struck out.  On the play, Perez tried to throw the runner out at 2nd, but Giles can not hold on to the ball.  A second strikeout for Perez ended the inning.  Gerald Williams led of the bottom of the 7th with a double to right.  Once again, the 2nd baseman could not hang on to the ball and Williams was safe at 2nd.  Brian Hunter grounded to 3rd for the first out.  DeRosa grounded to short for the 2nd out, moving Williams to 3rd.  Gene Schall, hitting .133, has two chances to make the Atlanta team: slim... and none.  But he is getting plenty of experience to take to Richmond.  Schall struck out to end the inning.

Odalis Perez continued into the 8th with a strikeout, a ground out, and then another strikeout.  In the bottom, Bautista flied out, Giles grounded to 2nd, and Malloy stuck out to end the inning.  In the 9th inning, the wheels came off for Perez.  After a pop fly to center and a come-backer for out #2, the Expos got two hits to put runners in scoring position for Mike Mordecai.  Ball one.  Ball two.  Runners at 2nd and 3rd, 2 outs, top of the 9th.  A hit into right field broke up the shutout, putting runners on the corners with 2 outs.  A home run over the left field wall scores three more, and the Expos have quietly out hit the Braves 11 to 10.  But the score remains 7-4 as Perez gets a ground-out to end the game.  The Braves had 7 runs on 10 hits with no errors.  The Expos had 4 runs on 11 hits with 4 errors.

The Expos tried to mount a comeback off Perez's tired arm, but in general it is pretty obvious that besides the economic reasons, the Expos have little to offer Montreal to keep the team in a new park.  Speculation is that they will eventually move to the Washington D.C./Maryland area.  The question then becomes will they change their names to the Washington Senators.  The next stop on my Tour du Disney was MGM Studios, a tribute to all that is Hollywood.  MGM Studios is divided into two zones: The movie/television zone, and the Twilight Zone.  Accommodations can be found in the Hollywood Tower Hotel, better known as the Tower of Terror.

Well, I checked into into the Tower of Terror and was fortunately to be able to check out again, although I think I left lunch up on the 13th floor.  What that?  There are only 12 floors?  That must have been the floor where the window into my mind shattered.  Back on Sunset Blvd, I made my my way to Hollywood and Vine to the backstage area where Disney maintains actual operational areas for animation and post production.  I stopped by the Making of Armageddon movie, which turned out to be little more than a television special that might be seen on HBO's First Look.

A quick trip back to Sunset to the Hollywood Hills Theater and I was ready for Fantasmic.  Fantasmic was an incredible production marrying live action, animation projected through a screen of water, all interacting with pyro- and aquatechnics.  The story begins with Mickey releasing all the Disney characters and heroes from his imagination.  Like Pandora's box, all the evil characters and creatures soon escape and attempt to take control.  Just in time, Mickey realizes he can control his imagination, and the show ends with Mickey high atop the mountain, directing the fireworks just like in the animated classic, Fantasia.

You know, some would call this a full day.  A Braves victory over the Expos might be satisfactory.  Disney's MGM Studios might be desert.  Fanstasmic might be icing on the cake.  But would a concert at the House of Blues back at Downtown Disney's West Side be an indulgence?  You bet and I deliver.  Ladies and gentlemen, put your hands together for K.C. and the Sunshine Band!   What, you can't hear?  OK, so there is no cybercast but trust me the concert was fun.  And loud.  I still can't hear myself type.  For you young-uns who may not have heard of KC, don't worry.  They are on their 25th anniversary tour, so that should explain everything.

A day started late, but a full day just the same.  We have only two days left on our journey through Disney's reality.  Join me tomorrow for Day 8 of the 1999 Spring Training Trek.  I will be there, will you?

Fuskie