Game – 13 July 2013 (Hagerstown)

Rome Braves 4, Hagerstown Suns 7

Venue: Municipal Stadium

League: South Atlantic

Attendance: 1180

Despite a 5-run first inning by Hagerstown, Rome chipped away at the lead throughout the game. Rome tallied 14 hits and three costly errors in the loss. Meanwhile Hagerstown had 10 hits and two errors.

Scoring: There was a few interesting scoring plays during the game. Pitcher Wes Parsons (Rome) committed a balk during the first inning that allowed two runners to advance. Also in the first inning, third baseman Eric Garcia (Rome) committed two errors on the same play (fielding and throwing).  Triple: Jose Peraza (Rome). Homerun: Kyle Wren (Rome), whose batting average stood at .370 after the game.

During the t-shirt toss promotion, a shirt landed to my immediate left at my feet. A man behind me was very adamant about getting a shirt, so I picked it up and instinctively and handed it to him. He took it from me and started celebrating that he got a shirt. His daughter, with some teenage disdain, said, “Dad you already got a shirt the other night!” He replied, “Yes, but this is for your Mom.” After a few minutes he, somewhat belatedly, quietly said, “Thank you sir.”

I placed the winning bid on an item during the silent auction this evening. I won a gift package from the Dayton Dragons items, including a shirt, hat, poster, a package of baseball cards and a 2013 pocket schedule. My $20 winning bid benefited the John Hopkins Children Cancer Center. (I calculated that very few other people in the park would have any connection to Dayton and no one else had placed a bid)

The electronic scoreboard was partially out of order during the game. A wide band was missing on the left half of the scoreboard and a small band across the bottom. This made it difficult to read or of being much use.

This my first game in Hagerstown this season was marks my eighth consecutive season seeing games at Municipal Stadium. There appears to be no over-the-air radio broadcasts this year. As discussion about a new stadium drags on in Hagerstown, I worry that there are not many more games left to see in the city.