JASON'S BLOG

NVLL's Jason Berhel shares his stories from the road:

05/12/09

Camden Yards (Baltimore MD)
Baltimore Orioles vs. Tampa Bay Devil Rays

We took the train up from DC to catch the Orioles take on the Devil Rays. You can pretty much travel between all the major cities on the East Coast by way of train. On the ride up you see many old buildings and a lot of trees.

We arrived in Baltimore and headed over to Camden Yards. The ball park is amazing. It's a mix of old tradition and new design. It has the feel of the SF Giants ballpark with a little more space. We ate at the Diamond Bistro which has windows over-looking the entire stadium.

It's really cool to see all the orange and black and the fans are really behind "the birds". We did hear some boos for wearing our Yankee hats. CC pitched the previous series here shutting the Orioles out 4-0 so I decided to remind the fans who's the real Ace!

The seating is great and it's a very nice place to watch baseball.

07/10/09

Angels stadium (Anaheim CA)
LA Angels vs. NY Yankees

We were in LA on business and had a chance to catch game #1 of the big series in Southern California. Yankee games have the same feel as when the Lakers come to the Coliseum to play the Warriors. There is a buzz in the air and so many Yankee fans.

I got a chance to say hello to CC & tossed him one of our NVLL orange black support bands which he immediately put on. It's still so amazing to see him in a Yankee uniform! He watched the game from the dugout in preparation for the series finale where he pitched.

Watching the Yankees up close is awesome. They are such a machine. The way they enter the field, do stretching, take BP - it all shows the signs of champions. Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Jorge Posada - they all take every aspect of the game so seriously.

It was a great game with over 20 combined hits and some very well played baseball. The Angels won and there was a big fireworks show at the end of the game. A very nice experience all around.

07/11/09

In each city we visit - Steve (NVLL Special Projects Coor.) is always on us to always keep an eye out for new ideas & ways we can improve. This is for all aspects of life - family,career, & our commmunity. We visit various community parks and especially little league baseball complexes. The goal is to get good ideas from all over and figure out ways to bring them back to North Vallejo.

Garden Grove Pony League has a great complex. They have four fields all in great condition. On our site visit, we were greated by the league President who was preparing for a weekend tournament. He pointed out the centrally located batting cages which were fully automatic. We also noted the outfield bleachers, and pleanty of common space to hold pre-game meetings.

There are year-round tournaments and the league has fielded several Pony League champion teams. With a great complex and the various amenities - you can see why. All in all, it's a great place for kids to play baseball.

08/13/09

Safeco Field (Seattle WA.)
Seattle Mariners vs. New York Yankees

We took the 1 1/2 hour flight up from Oakland for a business meeting which happened to also fall on the day the Yankees came to Seattle to take on the Mariners. Seattle is a very nice city with hills, historical places and much to see. We had time to stop by the famous Public Market and even had a coffee at the original Starbucks!

CC was on the hill and pitched a gem. He struck out 10 and allowed the Mariners only 3 hits for his 13th victory of the year. We sat behind the plate and could see, feel and hear all that is baseball.

The ballpark is amazing. The retractable roof protected us from the daily Northwest rains and the fans were not too harsh on us for cheering the Yanks! It was another great baseball experience.

The setting is great and it's a very nice place to watch baseball.