2023 Spring Training Game Threads

   I'll start with a Van Slyke one. Often after road games some of the relief pitchers such as Patterson, Kipper, Landrum, etc. would sit in the team hotel lobby and drink a beer. Typically I found that hotel security would not let fans into the lobbies of the team hotels but I was staying there so Bob invited me to join the group. The teams usually stayed at the nicest hotel closest to the ballpark. This time we were staying in downtown Los Angeles and it was about 11:00 P.M. Van Slyke and his wife and I think a child or two walked into the hotel and through the lobby to go to their room. A couple of the hotel workers politely asked Van Slyke for his autograph. He said no and kept on walking. Immediately his wife said, turn your ass around and sign those autographs. He immediately did what she said. I've got a picture of a group of us standing in front of Van Slyke's locker(he wasn't there at the time) at Three Rivers but I am not smart enough to know how to post it here. As a kid I loved baseball and dreamed of playing for the Yankee's but I wasn't worth a damn. Being able to walk out of the locker room and through the tunnel and onto the playing field was surreal.(This was in the morning before a night game so just a few player's were there).
    One of my favorite Leyland stories happened in Philadelphia. We were staying in a downtown Philadelphia hotel. We were leaving to eat supper at the Chart House. The team buses were waiting outside the hotel to take the team to the stadium. Leyland was waiting outside at the buses. I had met Jim several times but for sure he didn't remember me from Adam's house cat. I remarked to Jim that I was leaving the coaching to him that night. I'll never forget what he said: "I'll try not to F**K it up".

Willie Calhoun announces his candidacy…

Better than Hicks.

Randy Erogenous with two runners on…