On the Road to the Bigs

Welcome to Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium, home of the Marlins and Cardinals.

I’m on my to Miami for a couple of Marlins games. What’s on the way to Miami? Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium, home to both the Jupiter Hammerheads and the Palm Beach Cardinals. Who’s playing baseball at Roger Dean Stadium this week? Well, it’s the Jupiter Hammerheads and the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels. Looks like I’ll be stopping in Jupiter for some minor league baseball on my way to the bigs.

Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium in Jupiter, Fla., is a busy place. In addition to the Low-A Hammerheads and Cardinals, Miami and St. Louis also share the stadium for spring training, and each fields a team here in the rookie Gulf Coast League. That means there’s always something going on at the stadium and it requires a lot of fancy footwork to keep the pieces moving.

Safety first. No autographs. A shield between bullpen pitchers and fans.
Some seats OK, some not, for safe distancing.

Masks 100% off in the stands, 50% off in the team store. 

The Marlins and Cardinals both use the same playing field and grandstand, but each organization has its own office space, practice fields, conditioning rooms, lockers, etc. The teams were faced with a problem when dealing with pandemic health restrictions. How do two teams that play games in one stadium virtually every day find time to clean seats and other surfaces to ensure safety for players, employees and spectators?

The solution was to close the stadium three days a week to all but players and essential personnel. No spectators were allowed for Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday games, and seats were limited for Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Restrictions have been eased to allow more people in the stands, but there are still no spectators on Sundays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Some recognizable names on Palm Beach County Sports Hall of Fame banners.

I’ve been to games at Roger Dean Stadium several times, I think for at least one spring training game, and maybe a minor league game too. I don’t have my game logs handy, but I can check them out in about a week when I’m back in Pennsylvania. I know that I was here for a game in spring of 2013 so my sister Gale could get an autograph on the pink bat she was given as the Marlins 2012 Honorary Bat Girl in baseball’s Going to Bat Against Cancer campaign. 

I’ve also been back to get a stamp in my Minor League Ballpark Pass-Port Book. I just don’t remember exactly when. You’d think I would have gone to a lot of games at Roger Dean on my many, many trips to Miami for Marlins games, but there was always some scheduling problem or travel deadline that got in the way. I have seen the Hammerheads play many times when they travel to Daytona to face the Tortugas. 

Signs show which outfield buildings belong to the Marlins
and which belong to the Cardinals. They light up.

 
Tonight’s game in Jupiter was a perfect fit for my weekend plans in Miami, with an early Marlins game Saturday and even earlier start on Sunday. Spending tonight in South Florida means I won’t have to get up extra early for the 4½-hour drive south.

What makes me really happy is that I'm seeing games this season where all the Marlins teams are based, at least almost. After tomorrow, I will have been to games in Miami, Jacksonville, Pensacola and Jupiter this month. Somebody send me a ticket to Beloit, Wisc. If I can get to a Snappers game, it'll be a clean sweep of all the Marlins's teams. It might not be this month, but there's a good chance I'll make it before the end of the season. I would like to see the Beloit Snappers in their farewell season. They'll have a new name next year. We just don't know what it's going to be yet.

New name, new uniforms for the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels.

The Hammerheads' opponents have a new name and a new look this season. The former Fort Myers Miracle, A-Advanced team of the Minnesota Twins, became the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels in 2020. They never got to play a single game though. No minor league teams did, as the season was postponed and eventually cancelled when Covid-19 put a halt to everything. This year it's a new name, new uniforms and new colors. They're still with the Minnesota Twins, but they and they rest of the old Florida State League teams are now in the Low-A Southeast league. 

Celebration for the Hammerheads.

The Mighty Mussels of Fort Myers showed up to play baseball, but it was the mighty muscles of the Hammerheads that prevailed. Final: Jupiter Hammerheads 4, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels 1.

There's No Barking in Baseball

Lulu loves Bark in the Park. It was the first AAA game for her and for sister Gale.

It’s Crustaceans & Canines night at 121 Financial Park, home of the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, and that means dogs get in free. Owners have to sign a waiver at the entry gate and read a short list of rules. Rule No. 2 says “NO BARKING” in capital letters, but there didn’t seem to be any enforcement throughout the game. In fact, the public address crew played a doorbell “ding-dong” several times to stir things up amongst the fur-covered fans. 

There’s a lot to like about this stadium. It’s easy to get to despite some tricky one-way streets around the downtown Jacksonville sports park area. There’s plenty of parking nearby and once inside you get a great view of some of the spectacular bridges that cross the St. John’s River. Beyond right field is the impressive TIAA Bank football arena, home to the Jacksonville Jaguars and college football’s Gator Bowl, and the otherworldly roof of Daily’s Place amphitheater.

Daily's Place amphitheater lights up right field. The colorful roof seems to be crowned
by a string of lights from the Hart Bridge over the St. John's River.

The food is very good with a special Jumbo Shrimp twist. In addition to the traditional hot dogs, peanuts and Cracker Jack, almost every food stand menu includes some type of shrimp dish. There’s boom boom shrimp, torpedo shrimp, shrimp and grits, coconut shrimp, burger and shrimp, shrimp po’ boy, shrimp and pulled pork nachos. That’s about it. On my bucket list (but I’ll need help from a few friends) is the burger pie: four quarter-pound patties served between two pizzas. 

Boom boom shrimp, fried morsels with a mildly spicy sauce served in a waffle bowl.

As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I’m excited about the Jumbo Shrimp’s promotion to AAA in the Miami Marlins minor league system. It’s an easy drive for me on I-95 in less than two hours from my home in central Florida. It’s a big opportunity to see some of the baseball stars of the future, as well as some of the current major league players who are working their way off the injured list.

Over the years, the Jacksonville teams have been affiliated with 10 different major league teams, the Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Cardinals, New York Mets, Montreal Expos, Milwaukee Brewers, Kansas City Royals, Seattle Mariners, Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Dodgers and, since 2009, the Miami Marlins. Baseball fans will recognize many of the players who played in Jacksonville before or during their major league careers.

A tribute to Hank Aaron by section 103, one of many along the concourse. 

Some of the biggest stars are immortalized on the steel support beams that hold up the third level luxury boxes and other areas above the main concourse. My section was between pillars with pictures of Hank Aaron and Tom Seaver. There’s also a small wall of fame on the ground floor as you enter the stadium that includes names like Nolan Ryan and Larry Walker.

Wall of Fame, below the 3rd base stands.

Jacksonville was home to AAA baseball once before. The Havana Sugar Kings of the International League landed here in the 1960s after the team had to flee Cuba, and they became the Jacksonville Suns. The team moved again to Virginia a few years later where they play today as the Norfolk Tides. Another Jacksonville Suns team was formed and it played in the AA Southern League until the overhaul of the minor league system last year. For a while, the team was known as the Jacksonville Expos. They started playing as the Jumbo Shrimp in 2017.

This week’s schedule features a matchup between the two former Jacksonville Suns teams in a season-long series they’re calling the Navy Town Showdown. The Jumbo Shrimp took an early lead in the series, but the Tides have won the last two games to make it 9-5 in favor of Jacksonville. In the unusual post-pandemic schedule, the two teams face each other 36 times total, so they’ve got a long way to go.

You don't want to see this when you arrive for a game. Weather was never a threat,
but the Tides rained on the Jumbo Shrimp's parade in the 5th inning.

The Tides sent 13 men to the plate in the 5th inning and the Jumbo Shrimp were charged with two errors. Norfolk’s leadoff batter hit a home run and the ninth batter of the inning hit a grand slam to put the game out of reach. Jacksonville’s Deven Marrero had two home runs and three rbi, but that was it for the Jumbo Shrimp. Final: Norfolk Tides 9, Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp 3.

Braves' New World

Main gate at SRP Park in North Augusta, S.C.

Is there a more natural matchup for city and team name than the Augusta Greenjackets. On the one hand you have a feisty insect with a game face and a stinger to frighten opponents, and on the other hand you have a gallant tip of the baseball cap to the local golf institution. The Brooklyn Cyclones come to mind. A powerful storm and a wild Coney Island thrill ride. Any others?

Speaking of extraordinary baseball team names, but in a different category, I happened to be looking out an airplane window over Savannah, Ga., when I was writing this, and I could see Historic Grayson Stadium, home of the Savannah Bananas, the fun-and-a-half college summer team.

It's all about bugs and golf for the Greenjackets.
Augie ready to get busy with some gametime antics.

The Greenjackets have been around since the early 80s with affiliations beginning with the Tigers, then the Cardinals, Pirates, Red Sox and from 2004 to 2020, the Giants. When Major League Baseball reorganized the minor leagues, it gave the Atlanta Braves the opportunity to line their affiliate ducks in row across the southern states from Mississippi to South Carolina.

The Braves have the Gwinnett Stripers (AAA) in nearby Gwinnett County, the Mississippi Braves (AA) in Pearl next to Jackson, the Rome Braves (High-A) in northwest Georgia, and now the Greenjackets (Low-A). The San Francisco Giants chose to affiliate with the Eugene Emeralds over the Greenjackets, when the Emeralds were eliminated from the Chicago Cubs’ minor league lineup.

Prime real estate in the outfield. Prime seating in the suites.

The minor league reorganization eliminated 43 teams from the system which led to many teams being demoted or promoted from one class to another, and some switching affiliations with their major league partners. The Rome Braves and the Greenjackets were both class A, and both of them were in the South Atlantic League. About half the league’s teams were promoted to the High-A level, and another half were assigned to Low-A. Three SAL teams in Lexington, Ky., Hagerstown, Md., and Charleston, W.VA., are no longer affiliated with a major league team.

Another victim in the Atlanta minor league shuffle was the Florida Fire Frogs, the Braves’ A-Advanced team in the Florida State League. The Fire Frogs were a team adrift after an extension on their stadium lease in Kissimmee expired at the end of the 2019 season. They were supposed to play in Atlanta’s spring training facility near Port Charlotte in Florida in 2020 after a market infringement problem was resolved with the Charlotte County Stone Crabs, a Tampa Bay Rays affiliate. The 2020 minor league season was cancelled, and the Fire Frogs and Stone Crabs were both eliminated when the Braves went with the Greenjackets and the Rays chose the Charleston Riverdogs for their Low-A teams.

Riverdogs on the field, regular dogs in the stands.

The Greenjackets moved in 2018 to SRP Park across the Savannah River in North Augusta, S.C. The ballpark is in a new riverside development that includes a hotel, a brew pub and residential apartments that overlook the left field fence, like the apartments that overlook Coolray Field, home of the Gwinnett Stripers.

In was a hot Sunday afternoon with mercifully cloudy skies when the game began. Even the pitchers deserted the folding chairs in their baseline bullpens, to find a little shade in the dugouts. The Greenjackets sent 10 batters to the plate in the 4th inning and 8 in the 5th to build a commanding 9 to 2 lead. The Riverdogs tried to scratch their way back, but the Greenjackets held on for the win. Final: Augusta Greenjackets 9, Charleston Riverdogs 7.

Jackets get the victory.

Extra Innings, Extra Excitement

The Views at Coolray. Luxury apartment living in the outfield.

“Did I die and go to heaven?” 

That’s what I would ask if I lived in an apartment complex like The Views at Coolray Field. I would have been able to watch the Gwinnett Stripers (AAA Braves) play the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (AAA Marlins) from the comfort of my balcony or from the salt-water infinity pool that looks like it flows into right center field. Atlanta Braves fans get to select from 1- or 2-bedroom models with names like Spahn, Maddux, Aaron or Jones.

This was my second visit to Coolray Field near Lawrenceville, Ga., and a short drive from the Braves’ major league home north of Atlanta. I didn’t notice the apartments back in 2016 on my first time here, but I was probably more focused on the final game of the International League Championship series between the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Railriders and the Gwinnett Braves. The team adopted the name Stripers in 2018 for the bass fishing that’s popular in the region.

The first 1,000 fans got a free Stripers fish scale jersey
like those worn by the welcome band. 

I had been to the first games in the series at the Railriders’ home field not far from where I live in Pennsylvania. It just so happened that I was leaving for a road trip to Florida and it occurred to me that I could tweak my route and stop for the continuation of the series in Georgia.

The Railriders walked away with the Governors Cup trophy that year, and I left with the a big notion in my head: I could arrange my future travels with stops near minor league baseball stadiums, and see a lot of baseball

I'm on my second ballpark passport book, with about 50 stadium stamps so far.

I got some help from the Gwinnett team store at Coolray, which was having an end-of-season clearance sale back in September of 2016. At half price, I picked up their last remaining copy of the Ballpark Pass-Port book that has pages to record your visits to each stadium. All the team stores have a rubber stamp with the stadium name and date of your visit. This was, in effect, the start of my quest to visit as many minor league ballparks as time and money will allow.

Jumbo Shrimp warming up before the game.

It’s extra exciting for me to be back in Lawrenceville, Ga., because it’s my first time seeing the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp playing as a AAA team. It’s also the first time I’ve seen any Miami Marlins AAA team in action. I wanted to go to New Orleans to see the Baby Cakes, previously the Zephyrs, but that never happened. Before New Orleans, the Marlins AAA team was the Albuquerque Isotopes, but only after I was no longer living there, and I never managed to make a trip back while they were there.

I was all set to go to Wichita, Kansas, where the Baby Cakes moved to a brand new stadium and were renamed the Wind Surge for the 2020 season that never happened. After the pandemic and baseball’s shakeup of the minor leagues, the Wind Surge were reclassified as a AA team and are now affiliated with the Minnesota Twins. They never got to play a game as a AAA team or as a Marlins affiliate.

I’m hoping to make a trip to Jacksonville this week to see the AAA Jumbo Shrimp at a home game. I can’t wait for them to come to Pennsylvania to play the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs and the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Railriders whenever baseball eases off on its pandemic travel restrictions.

Jumbo Shrimp escape with a victory

The Jumbo Shrimp were cruising to victory until late in the game when the Stripers turned a 5-4-3 triple play (Jason Kipnis to Johan Camargo to Travis Snider) in the top of the 8th inning and scored a couple of runs in the bottom half. I’m pretty sure this is the first time I ever saw a triple play.

The Stripers tied it up in the 9th to send the game into extra innings. Now, I don’t care how long it takes to finish a baseball game. I share George Carlin’s enthusiasm when it comes to extra innings. But, say what you will about baseball’s new extra innings rule, there’s no denying that the excitement level goes up a notch when the inning begins with a runner on second base. Base runners seem to be more aggressive and the lost art of bunting becomes a useful strategy. The pressure on the pitchers increases from the very first pitch.

Jacksonville’s extra runner was picked off in the 10th and the next batters flied out and struck out. The Stripers had the bases loaded with 2 out in the bottom of the 10th, but the side was retired on strikeouts. In the 11th, the Shrimp scored 3 runs with an rbi double and a home run, and the Stripers went down on a popup, a strikeout and a ground out. Final: Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp 8, Gwinnett Stripers 5, 11 innings.

Stadium souvenir pin, a Striper bait worm on a hook.

The Barons of Birmingham

Regions Field evokes Birmingham's industrial past.

I got an early look at Regions Field today, where the Birmingham Barons (AA White Sox) are halfway through their six-game home stand against the Tennessee Smokies (AA Cubs). Ooh, a Windy City brawl. I needed a bite to eat, and I wanted to find an easy route to the ballpark and parking for tonight’s game. The Barons’ home ballpark is in an urban area and I’m glad I took a test drive to get my bearings. The highway access ramps and various one-way streets create a real tangle for a first-time visitor. 

The ticket office was open, so I got an old-fashioned printed version that will make a nice souvenir. The ticket seller assured me there would be plenty of options for parking once I get to the ballpark. I showed up early anyway and found a free spot across from a $10 lot that got me right back onto the highway after the game. 

Birmingham skyline, looking from right field.

Regions Field is an industrial-strength winner. It looks like they took an old factory apart and put the pieces back together in the shape of a baseball park. There are plenty of heavy metal structural components, exposed and painted a cool, dark gray. Lots of brick too. The seats in the stands are the color of the dark green forests that cover the hills around Birmingham. 

Watch the players up close as they warm up in the batting practice cage.

The stadium is located in a neighborhood a few blocks from the city's downtown center where multiple interstate highways converge and then branch out in all directions. You can see the skyline as you look back from right field. During the seventh inning stretch, fans light up their phones and wave to the kids in the tall children's hospital beyond center field as everyone sings "Take Me Out to the Ballgame."

                                                                                                                                                           Entrance to the Negro Southern League Museum 

The ballpark is surrounded by new apartment buildings, coffee shops, a huge brew pub and Railroad Park, a green space with a babbling brook that is known as "Birmingham's living room." If I had planned my time better, I would have visited the Negro Southern League Museum, which actually backs into the open space behind left field. It's only open until about 4 p.m. though, and it's only accessible on a street entrance outside the ballpark.

A peaceful spot in Railroad Park across the street from Regions Field.

Inside the stadium there are a number of tributes to the players who have been important in the history of baseball in Birmingham. A statue of Willie Mays, who played with the Birmingham Black Barons greets fans at the entrance near right field. A way larger than life portrait of Michael Jordan, wearing his Barons uniform when he gave baseball a try, hangs below a lofty ceiling in one of the food service alcoves.

Statue of Willie Mays outside the stadium.
Michael Jordan in a lofty portrait from his days with the Barons.

Tonight’s promotion was Pride Night and the Magic City Disco Krewe danced everyone through the entry gates to the musical sounds of the 70s. Magic City is Birmingham’s nickname, probably because of the city’s rapid growth after the Civil War and its success as an industrial center. Sometimes the Barons wear special jerseys to honor the Magic City. 

The Barons found a number of ways to get runners on base, and then bring them home to score. The Smokies were kept at bay by the Birmingham pitchers. Final: Birmingham Barons 6, Tennessee Smokies 1.

Were we ever this young?

Back to Back in Bama

Welcome to Toyota Field, home of the Rocket City Trash Pandas

It looked like trouble for two baseball games I wanted to see in Birmingham and Madison, Alabama, on Thursday and Friday. Both the Birmingham Barons and the Rocket City Trash Pandas were rained out on Wednesday and both scheduled double-headers for Thursday, Rocket City to play their postponed game and Birmingham to resume its game suspended in the bottom of the third inning. Rain was still a potential threat to both teams on Thursday and I kept one eye on the weather as I tried to figure which back-to-back games I wanted to see.

A real ticket. Up until now it's been all digital since the pandemic.

It didn't take me long to decide. The Rocket City Trash Pandas are a new team in a new stadium in a new town and that put them near the top of my list of stadiums to visit. Then there is that goofy name, the winner in a competition that looked at suggestions from fans. Trash panda is a nickname for the clever raccoons that find ingenious ways to get into the garbage of residents in the beautifully wooded countryside around Huntsville and Madison County, home to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center. The Trash Pandas' mascot, Sprocket, is shown in the team logo blasting himself into space in a rocket made from a garbage can and other spare parts.

Sprocket blasts off on a souvenir cup
and plants the flag on the promotional giveaway hand sanitizer.

The team was supposed to have its inaugural season in 2020, but the Covid-19 pandemic had other ideas. Formerly known as the Mobile Bay Bears, the team was moved after unsuccessful efforts to get an agreement for a new stadium, or at least renovations to the existing one. They left behind historic Hank Aaron Park, named for the legendary ballplayer from Mobile.

Where they landed is the sleek and modern Toyota Field that is loaded with fan-friendly features. A wide concourse surrounds the field with unobstructed views, even from behind the batter's eye in center field. It's made of a fabric that looks solid from home plate, but lets you see through when you are walking behind it. 

Bullpens for home and visiting pitchers can be seen from the outfield concourse.
Fans can watch the game from the spacious lawn in right field.

The ballpark has real bullpens in the outfield where fans can get a closeup look at the pitchers biding their time or warming up. The placement of the bullpens creates a quirky outfield wall that has no curves, just a series of jagged zigzags, crooks and crannies.

Food stands, with names like Dumpster Dive and Gravity Grille, are easy to get to, and you can watch the game while you wait in line. Giant lightboards above the two main food vendors and visible to fans in the seats show how long they'll have to wait — 10 minutes, 20 minutes, etc. Smaller food carts and beverage stations are located around the concourse and huge entrance plaza.

A trash talking food stand at Toyota Field.
A Lawler's potato "stuffie" full of BBQ pork from All Stars.

The team store, called the Junkyard, keeps busy. Even with the year-long wait for the Trash Pandas' inaugural season, or maybe because of it, merchandise sales have been through the roof. A t-shirt that proclaimed "Trash Panda Nation" was the only one left on the rack. 

I have to say a word about the friendly and helpful staff at Toyota Field. From the parking attendants to the ushers to the food servers and guest relations staff, all were enthusiastic about making the fan experience memorable

On the field, the Trash Pandas (Angels AA) and the Chattanooga Lookouts (Reds AA) split the doubleheader. The visitors scored first in both games. Rocket City came back with a late rally in the first game, but they simply ran out of innings in the second. Finals: Trash Pandas 4, Lookouts 2 (game 1); Lookouts 5, Trash Pandas 1 (game 2).

Back on Track

Blue Wahoos Stadium on Pensacola Bay.

I was supposed to be in Florida for a month, but I had to cut the trip short when my car needed repairs to pass inspection. I salvaged as much as I could with a rental car and left Florida after two weeks. My planned side trip to Pensacola and Alabama was scuttled.

Lucky me. I found an airfare that gets me back on track with my baseball travel plans. Tonight I’m in Pensacola where the Blue Wahoos are playing the Mississippi Braves. I’ve been looking forward to this day, because it means I’ve been to all the major league, minor league and spring training ballparks in Florida.

That’s 18 stadiums in Miami and St. Petersburg (major league), Jacksonville (AAA), Pensacola (AA), Daytona (Low-A), and the spring training sites in West Palm Beach, Jupiter, Port St. Lucie, Lakeland, Tampa, Clearwater, Dunedin, Bradenton, Sarasota, Port Charlotte, North Port, and Fort Myers (two stadiums).

It might seem like there should be more than 18, but don’t try to do the math. It’s complicated. Fifteen teams have spring training in Florida and 10 teams have Low-A affiliates. Eight of the stadiums are home to both spring training and minor league teams, and five are used only for spring training. In addition, West Palm Beach has one spring training stadium shared by two teams. Jupiter’s Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium takes the cake. It’s home to spring training for both the Miami Marlins and the St. Louis Cardinals, and it’s also home to their Low-A affiliates. My fingers and toes assure me that it all adds up to 18 different locations.

A big welcome from Kazoo outside the stadium. Pensacola Bay beyond the outfield.

Arriving at the game tonight, I see that the sign says Blue Wahoos Stadium out front. The playing field inside is officially named Admiral Jack Fetterman Field at Vince J. Whibbs Sr. Community Maritime Park. Both men were influential in promoting the park project that brought the AA team to Pensacola. The park on Pensacola Bay includes the stadium, an amphiteater, recreational green space and some commercial buildings.

It’s a beautiful ballpark in a beautiful setting with views of Pensacola Bay beyond right field. They say, “It’s the best view in baseball,” and I’m not going to argue with them. Come hungry, because the food options are plentiful. If you want the notorious Crabzilla sandwich be prepared to pay. Also make sure you order it before 4 p.m. on game day. I settled for the crab mac and cheese hot dog, which was big enough for two people. The french fries were the best I’ve ever had.

The crab mac and cheese dog requires a fork, at least.
Save room for a Key Lime milkshake.

The ballpark has the smallest capacity of all the AA minor league teams, yet the Wahoos have drawn more fans that a lot of the teams in their division. The stadium was originally planned for an independent baseball team called the Pensacola Pelicans, but opportunity knocked when the Carolina Mudcats were put up for sale.

The team was relocated to Pensacola and became the Blue Wahoos. The first game in Pensacola as the AA team of the Cincinnati Reds was on April 5, 2012. They become a Minnesota Twins team in 2019 and are now the AA affiliate of the Miami Marlins. This brought the Marlins teams somewhat closer to home. Prior to last year’s overhaul of the minor leagues, the Marlins had affiliates in Jupiter, Fla., Jacksonville, Kansas and Iowa. The Wahoos give the Marlins another team in Florida, but it’s still quite a long ride from Miami to Pensacola, almost 700 miles in 9 or 10 hours. The Marlins fourth minor league team is still some distance away in Beloit, Wisc.

Night comes early in Pensacola. J.J. Bleday showed us how to get on base with a bunt.

The Braves brought their big bats with them and put themselves way ahead of the Blue Wahoos early. Shea Langeliers, the catcher, went 4 for 4 before striking out in his fifth at bat in the ninth. Three of his hits were solo home runs. Final: Mississippi Braves 9, Pensacola Blue Wahoos 4.