Three articles

With Barry at 758* someone should put an asterick next to the HR count in AT&T. I would personally send him a thank you letter!!

Hey Zack!

I'm in Nashville right now, and I am done with the baseball aspect of my trip:

Boston Red Sox vs. Anaheim Angels, Tuesday August 7th:

Ball tossed from Bartolo Colon.

1st ever attempt at glove trick from 25 feet up in RF. I almost have the ball, when Dice-K walks over and places the ball in my glove. Yay!

Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Cincinnati Reds, Wednesday August 8th

Drive into Cinci and it starts Pouring. OY!. Reds batting practice is cancelled, but my Dodgers came out right when the sun did. It was the most Humid BP of my life. I felt like I was in a steam room.

Ball from DJ Houlton

Ball from Brett Tomko

GLOVE TRICK USED FOR BALL 3!!!

Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Cincinnati Reds, Thu, August 9th (No BP, 12:35 start)

Ball from Jonathan Broxton

Autos from James Loney and Russel Martin.

Went to a Minor League Game in Nasvhille and got 5 balls in 25 min of BP. WOW!

--Ethan

(sorry for the long post)

Saw your article yesterday morning in my local paper. You have got to be kidding me if someone plays $500 to attend any game with you. The article makes you come across as a little bitter 2 times. 1st when you hurt your ankle. 2nd when the guy got the ball in the middle of the row without a glove. You buy a ticket to the game you sit in your seat or at least stay very near it. You dont got running around the stadium

lol, someone's a bit jealous.

PUCK COLLECTOR-
That would be hilarious.

ETHAN-

No need to apologize. I like long posts, especially when people are telling me about all the balls they got. I'm most impressed by the fact that you got balls from several great pitchers (and in Colon's case formerly great). Congrats on the use of the glove trick and the autographs.

AAAAAAAAAAAA4082-

I'm not kidding. I've already booked games with several clients who are flying to NYC and can't wait to run around Shea Stadium with me.

CUBS0110-

:-)

Does the $500 include airfare, hotel, tickets & food to Shea? A baseball at Sports Authority cost less than $20. Do they know tickets at Shea are A LOT less than $500 & they can run around on their own. Technically they are supposed to stay in their seats. That is why you buy them. If you run around you might sprain your ankle. Oh wait, you already know that.

where does it say you have to stay in the seat you buy? all that is is a reservation of a seat, not a restriction.

AAAAAAAAAAAA4082-
A baseball at an auction once sold for over $3 million, and seats in luxury suites often cost over $10,000.

CUBS0110-

If everyone had to stay in their seats, no one would be able to use the bathrooms and the concession stands would go out of business. The way I see it, it shouldn't matter if you're wandering for a beer or a ball.

Zack, I enjoy reading your blog every day. My family and I are going on vacation to Atlanta and I was wondering what tips do you have for snagging @ Turner Field?

There is a difference going to the restrooms & concessions stands and running around the stadium annoying people. There is nothing worse when someone is sitting your my seat when I get to it or having an adulet standing in front of me with a glove.

First of all, you should learn how to use proper spelling and grammar. Second, to my knowledge, Zack doesn't sit in other peoples seats--it seems like he never even sits in seats at any point! Zack wouldn't block the view of others because he, as a baseball fan, he understands that people go to the ballpark to watch the game. I believe that more of his standing and running around is in the concourse and then running only down the aisles (as to not block the people sitting in the seats view).

aaaaaaaaaaaa4082-

Can you please explain to me (and the rest of the Zack Hample Fan Club) why you continue to read and comment on a blog that inevitably leaves you feeling frustrated and pissed off...?

Tmuddly, I believe there is a gap between the outfield wall and the stands perfect for the glove trick. I believe there is a picture somewhere. Goodluck!!!:-)

http://snaggingbaseballs.mlblogs.com/photos/other_stuff/gap.html Turner field

thank you sparky

This is to somebody who signs in with 12 a's and the number 4082. I have been reading your responses for some time on this blog. What is your problem, nutcase? You invariably write something negative, destructive, bitter, and gratuitous. Are you envious of the man whose blog this is? Are you failing to take your meds? I suggest that you are in need of psychiatric help. Finally, the final eleven a's in your moniker should be replaced with the following letters: -s-s-h-o-l-e-m-a-j-o-r. Which is what you are. Now, do all of us a favor and get lost!

Boodle: Thanks for saying what we've all been thinking!

People,
I am just voicing my opinion. You have something wrong with that? It seems like Poodle does?

Keep your negitivity to yourself. Zack has been "running around" stadiums for a long time and if he was doing something wrong, somebody would have stopped it by now.

To the one whose name contain s twelve a's - eleven of which should be replaced by by the eleven letters: s-s-h-o-l-e-m-a-j-o-r:

You are not posting opinions. You are postng attacks. To show who has class, note that despite your unwarranted hostile comments, Zack Hample responds to you with respect and seriousness, when he has a clear right to be as despicable as you are. Get the hint: stop appearing on this blog, whose purpose is to exchange baseball news and experiences for fun - with good will and in a friendly manner. Your garbage is unwelcome. We do not want to see your name any more. Disappear!

Here's a day-by-day of my ballpark tour...

Day 1 (New York)--Went to Shea Stadium to watch the Mets. Got Bronson Arroyo to sign on a Reds cap and Pedro Feliciano on a stub.

Day 2 (Baltimore)--Got Charlie Haeger and Jon Danks to sign on a stub. ESPN Zone dinner

Day 3 (BaltiWash)--Tour of Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Inner Harbor Free Time, Nats Game: Got an unknown Nats coach to sign stub.

Day 4 (Washington)--monument tour, time at "the pavilion--the world's crappiest food court" (as proclaimed by yanksfan61293), softball game, Nats game: late for BP, nothing

Day 5 (Pittsburgh)--arrived late for an odd 12:05 PM start, nothing, about 2 hours to leave parking lot after game, Cheesecake Factory dinner

Day 6 (drive to Detroit/Ann Arbor)--leave hotel in Pittsburgh-100 AM, arrive Ann Arbor hotel-4 PM (OUCH! That's A LOT of driving!), dinner at BD's Mongolian Grill AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!! Art fair happened to be going on in downtown Ann Arbor, so some free time, then Whirlyball---AESOME!!!!!!

Day 7 (Detroit/Ann Arbor)--laundry, free time at art fair, softball game, Tigers Game: got 3 royals to sign on Royals cap: John Buck, Odalis Perez, Buddy Bell

Day 8 (Milwaukee)--LONG drive, just made it for Milwaukee vs. San Fran game so no BP, autos--sat in GREAT home run seats BARRY BONDS PLAYED!!!---------but nothing came our way

Day 9 (Chicago)--hour and 1/2 drive to ChiTown for 1.05 cubs game, but were still late b/c counselors gave us to much wasted mingling time at hotel, so no BP, Navy Pier (pretty much an old pier converted into a large entertainment area comparable to Balti's inner harbor), dinner at Bubba Gump's

Day 10 (Chicago)--Chicago River Architecture tour (great for architecture, civil engineering geeks like me), time on Magnificent Mile!!!!!!!!!, Magnificent Mile (and vicinity) photo scavenger hunt, found Tigers hotel--about 5 of us (including myself, out of 21), snuck into hotel lobby when guard who told us "don't go in or we'll remove you from the hotel premises" wasn't looking, got picture with and autograph of Magglio Ordonez, arrived IN TIME (finally!!!) for BP and got Jerry Owens and Todd Jones to sign...cheered on Magglio Ordonez, one of my new most favorite players, had an awesome day that I will never forget!

Day 11 (Cleveland)--drove to Cleveland, arrived too late for BP for Indians vs. Red *** game, nothing

Day 12 (Cleveland)--day at Cedar Point Amusement Park, self proclaimed "World's Best Amusement Park" (and apparently voted so by many others), arrived late for Indians game, nothing

Day 13 (Drive to Philadelphia)--went to Rock 'n' Roll HOF in the morning, braced for longest drive of the trip, arrived in Norristown, PA (where our laundromat was supposed to be) at about 8:00 after driving for roughly 9 Hours, however laundromat didn't exist anymore due to a fire, so we ate dinner in a parking lot across from a brewery, arrived at hotel in downtown Philly around 10:00 to 11:00 PM

Day 14 (Philly)--tour of Citizens Bank Park, insanely good cheesesteak lunch at Pat's King of Steaks, softball game, Phillies game: got an unknown Pittsburgh coach to sign, as well as Ian Snell, twice (once on stub, other on a piece of cardboard [i was running out of pirates stuff to get signed])

Day 15 (Drive to Albany/Cooperstown)--arrived in Albany around 2:00, found a laundromat, dinner at Uno Chicago bar and grill, Simpson's movie, checked in to hotel in Albany

Day 16 (COOPERSTOWN!!!!!!!!!!)--arrived in Cooperstown early, got terrible seats for the HOF induction ceremony, went into town and looked in all the shops and lamented that all the HOFers were CHARGING to sign, witnessed HOF Induction Ceremony, which was AWESOME, took about 2 hours just to move about a mile from our busses parking space on a residential street about 1/2 mile-1 mile from the induction site, forgot where dinner was

Day 17 (Cooperstown/Albany, Drive to Boston)--tour of HOF in the morning, drive to Boston in the afternoon, Fire+Ice restaraunt for dinner

Day 18 (Boston)--tour of Fenway Park, time at Quincy Market (comparable to the pavilion in stuff there, but MUCH better food and options), Red Sawks game- arrived too late for BP, nada autograph/ball wise

Day 19 (New York!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)--my 3rd tour of Yankee Stadium, lunch at McDonalds and "airways pizza" on some boulevard in Queens, Yankee Game, sat in bleachers, so no autographs

Day 20 (New York!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)--Yankee Game, no autos, seats so high up in upper deck that we were actually covered by that little roof at the very top of the stadium, which was actually a good thing because it was an incredibly day, closing banquet at Mickey Mantle's

Day 21--Home at last

Also, some stuff I forgot when I first wrote this:

First baseball--got at Chicago vs. Detroit game in Chicago!!! I was standing right against the wall along the right field line where Detroiter Chad Durbin and some unknown tiger were "playing catch..." other player had a wild throw that sailed into the crowd. I got it, but since they weren't done throwning, they needed it back, so he promised when they were done I'd get it back...tossed it to me when he was done

By the way, the tour is through West Coast Connection and is based out of New York. The tour will run every summer.

Lastly, to be eligible for the tour, you have to have completed 8th grade, and you can't be any older than 16.

TMUDDLY-
Thanks. Glad to hear you like the blog. As "sparky19" said, there IS a glorious gap that runs behind the outfield wall, so if you have some type of ball-retrieving device, you'll be in great shape. Beyond that, the ballpark is great for chasing home runs during BP so it helps to be athletic and to be able to judge fly balls. Also, there are some decent opportunities for foul balls behind the plate during the game.

AAAAAAAAAAAA4082-

I don't expect everyone to love what I do. I don't mind taking criticism, and believe me, I can deal with being dissed, but c'mon...making fun of me for getting hurt? That's not cool, and as you can see, you're rubbing an awful lot of people the wrong way. If I ever pissed you off somehow, whether in person or via email (not that I even know who you are), just say so and we'll talk about it like adults. Otherwise, I really don't think I have anything else to say to you, and I don't mean that as an insult. I just need to move on and focus on the things and people in my life that are positive.

YANKS FAN-

Thanks for sticking up for me, and thanks for that amazing account of an amazing trip. WOW!!! I'm jealous about the induction ceremony. I'm not jealous that you got Ian Snell to sign a piece of cardboard. That did crack me up, though. All good stull. Thanks for sharing the details.

VEGANTEMP-

I was wondering the same thing. I guess some people have more fun being hecklers than fans.

SPARKY19-

Good call about Turner Field. And thanks for your support. I've been stopped a few times here and there, but only on rare occasions when power-tripping ushers and guards feel the need to assert themselves.

BOODLEHEIMER-

Hugs, kisses, and OUCH!!! I hope I never do anything to make YOU mad.

TOWNCRIER18-

Hi.

Z:
I heard you on Fresh Air. That was a really good interview. I think that you put yourself down by saying that your interests are, how did you put it, off the beaten track (Scrabble, etc.). Two quick things: 1) The interviewer asked you about your favorite baseball movie, have you seen Bingo Long's All Star and Traveling Motor King's - its a winner.

2) I saw somewhere you had a lineup card. My kid and I are planning to go to Shea sometime next month and I thought it would be cool if we could figure out a way of getting one of those - how is it done.

Best of luck on the new book, etc.

A

Hmm. I'm not sure how that could be considered putting myself down, but anyway...

1) I haven't seen that movie or even heard of it. I'll add it to my list and look for it, though.

2) The only way to get them is to ask the manager for them at the dugout after the game. Be warned: I only get lineup cards ON AVERAGE about once per season, and I've actually never gotten them in over 370 games at Shea. For whatever reason, managers hardly ever give them out in NYC. But anything's possible.

I have a crazy baseball week coming up. I should be at Yankee Stadium tomorrow, then I'll probably be going on a three-game roadtrip to Pittsburgh on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Nothing is final yet, but I'm pretty excited.