Sunday, March 18 2001

Good morning and welcome to Day 2 of the 8th Annual Spring Training Trek 2001!

It is an unusually cool day, highs expected to be about 60, cloudy, and the threat of thunderstorms.  Due to a very late night (at Pleasure Island) and very little sleep the night before, I got a late start this morning.  I got no start this morning.  I got a late start this afternoon.  In fact, it is first pitch and I am just getting onto the bus.  In typical Maddox fashion, by the time I get to the ballpark at 2pm, it is already the top of the 5th with the Braves leading 3 and the Dodgers 1.

Maddux gives up a couple of hits, but gets out of the inning without difficulty.  In the bottom of the inning, Rafael Furcal grounds it, Chan Perry flies out to center, and Andruw Jones falls behind 0-2, works the count full, then swings for the right field fence, giving the Braves a 4-1 lead.  Jordan pops to center to end the inning.

In the top of the 6th, Steve Avery takes over on the mound, Paul Bako behind the plate, Kurt Abbott at short, Jason Ross in right (#94 from yesterday), and Corey Aldridge in left.  Avery gets a fly out to left center.  A dribble up the 3rd base line, and Wes Helms is unable to retrieve it in time to get the runner at 1st.  A blooper to 3rd, Helms throws to 2nd for the first out, but Abbott overthrows 1st and the runner advances to 2nd on the error.  Avery gives up a walk to put runners at 1st and 2nd with 2 outs.  A strike-out ends the inning, and Avery is looking good.

In the bottom of the inning, BJ Surhoff grounds out, Helms pops out to left center, and Abbott strikes out.  In the top of the 7th, Jesse Garcia takes over at short, and Mark DeRosa at 3rd, Aldridge moves to Center and Bobby Rivera in left.  Avery gets a pop-up for the first out, loses the next batter with 4 balls, a pop foul caught makes it 2 outs. A fly ball to center is dropped and runners are on the corners.  The next batter gives Aldridge another chance, and he makes it for out #3.

In the bottom of the 7th, Dax Norris pinch hits and lines to left for a 2 base hit.  Travis Wilson singles to right, and takes 2nd on a fielder's choice as the throw comes home to hold Norris at 3rd.  Jason Ross sends a come backer up the middle through the wicket to score Norris and Wilson, and the Braves have a 6-1 lead.  Chan Perry drops one to 2nd, the throw comes in to 3rd, but Ross is safe.  Aldridge grounds into a double play to clear the bases with 2 outs, scoring Ross.  Keith Lockhart flies out to end the inning, with the Braves ahead 7-1 over the Dodgers.

In the top of the 8th, Norris takes over for Bako, and Joe Slusarski becomes the Braves next pitcher.  The inning starts with a hit, a walk, and a nicely turned double play, putting a runner at 3rd with 2 outs. Slusarski rebounds with a strikeout to end the inning.  In the bottom of the 8th, Bobby Rivera leads off with a strikeout.  DeRosa flies out to left, and Garcia pops up to end the inning.  In the top of the 9th, Slusarski gets 3 ground outs to end the game.

Braves 7 runs, 11 hits, 2 errors, Dodgers 1 run, 0 errors.  As a side note, this game brought together the three great media companies, with an AOL Time Warner team, a Fox News Corp. team, and the Disney Wide World of Sports.

The next stop on my Spring Training Trek is Disney's MGM Studios. Always interested in science, I attended a demonstration of Jim Henson's Muppets 3D television, hosted by Kermit the Frog and Professor Bunsen Honeydew.  Unfortunately and as expected, Miss Piggy sings off key and Beaker hits a wrong switch, sending the experiment horribly wrong.  Next was a delicious filet mignon at the Hollywood Brown Derby restaurant, followed by the refurbished Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular and a visit to the ABC Soundworks Studio, where I listed to a Drew Carey hosted show in the dark, listening only to the 3D sound effects.

By 7pm, it is drizzling but Fantasmic is still scheduled to go on. Fantasmic is an outdoor show whose stage is an island in a lagoon.  With many not attending because of the weather, I was able to get seats up front.  So not only was I getting wet from the rain, but also from the screens of water through which Disney animation was projected.  So as the water churns with fire, the waves explode with the point of Mickey's magical hand, the characters of his imagination settle on the audience like a fine mist.  But I pursued.  I persevered.  I perspired.  I got the heck out of there as soon as it was over.

Now, some might have called it a day after sitting through a small monsoon.  But voyeurs of past Spring Training Treks know that it takes more than a Florida hurricane to hold me back.  So it was on to Downtown Disney's Market place where parted with yet more of my hard earned cash.  As I window shopped, I splurged and stopped for a chocolate cookies & crème sundae at Ghirardelli's.  The wonderful world of Disney is the largest collection of Disney logo merchandise, from clothes to food to crystal ware.  I took care of my brother and sister in law, their 2 yr. old daughter, my father, and myself.  To create the illusion of responsibility, I actually put some items back during checkout.  Disney will deliver the merchandise to my resort room on Tuesday.

So now it is 11pm, and I am ready to take the boat back up the river to Port Orleans Riverside.  The Space Shuttle Discovery is coming home, but I am continuing on in the face of bad weather forecasts.  Cool, overcast with the treat of rain, we will try to get the games in but if not, there is no lack for something else to do.  So stay tuned to your monitor and keyboard, and let me know how the weather is back in your neck of the woods.  Also, if anyone knows what happened to Matt Woodside yesterday, please let me know.

Until tomorrow,

Fuskie