Game 92 - Nats Stun Phils; 7th Annual BlueClaws Outing

We missed the majority of the Phillies' Saturday night loss as we were enjoying our 7th annual outing to First Energy Park in Lakewood to watch the Low-A BlueClaws take on the Hagerstown Suns.  It was Margaritaville Night at the ballpark with all players wearing a Jimmy Buffett inspired jersey.  It was hot, but once the sun went down it was actually quite comfortable.


Prior to the game, it seemed as if most of the team made their way over to the stands to sign autographs for the half dozen or so assembled fans (mostly kids).  Doug was able to secure a South Atlantic League baseball and collected autographs from most of the team on either the baseball or on BlueClaws baseball cards.  I've created cards for most of the players and coaches who signed for Doug as I missed getting pictures of catcher Abraham Gutierrez and coach Adam Godwin.


We also won and bid on a Kevin Gowdy game-used jersey and following the game we waited patiently for Gowdy to arrive and deliver his jersey.  The young pitcher apparently didn't get the message that he was supposed to wait around, as he signed his jersey and departed for the evening.  A few other players were available though, and the boys added their autographs to their growing collection.

It was another fantastic night, and although the BlueClaws lost 2-0, we had a great time and we'll be back in 2020.

Memory Lane 
2013 BlueClaws Game
2014 BlueClaws Game
2015 BlueClaws Game
2016 BlueClaws Game
2017 BlueClaws Game
2018 BlueClaws Game 1 and Game 2
2019 BlueClaws Game

Meanwhile in Philadelphia . . .

Nationals 4, Phillies 3
Game 92 - Saturday Night, July 13th in Philadelphia
Record - 47-45, 3rd place, 8 1/2 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  With two outs in the top of the ninth, Juan Soto stunned the Phillies with a two-run home run off Hector Neris to give the Nationals a 4-3 win and the eventual win.

What Happened:  Neris' blown save wasted another fine effort from Aaron Nola.  Maikel Franco continued to swing a hot bat, hitting his 14th home run in the second.

Transactions:  J.T. Realmuto returned from paternity leave and Rob Brantly was designated for assignment.  Sean Rodriguez landed on the injured list with an abdominal strain and Adam Haseley was recalled from the IronPigs.

6th Annual Lakewood @BlueClaws Outing #BluePaws

At some point during the offseason, I received an e-mail from the Lakewood BlueClaws asking fans to submit pictures of their dogs in connection with the team's 2018 Bark in the Park promotion.  The pictures would be featured on a special jersey to be worn by the players and coaches for the game, and I immediately e-mailed the team a picture of our dog Chewbacca.

Fast forward to last night, and we made the 90 minute trek to Lakewood to watch the BlueClaws play with a collage of dogs, including our very own Chewbacca, on their uniforms.  Chewbacca officially becomes the first member of our family to appear on a jersey in a professional baseball game.  He has promised not to let this go to his head.


The BlueClaws lost the game, 4-2 to the West Virginia Power, but we once again had a blast.  Doug went to work before the game scoring autographs while Ben was happy to just get his picture taken with some of the players.  Both boys came away with baseballs with Doug getting tossed a ball from catcher Rodolfo Duran and Ben getting a ball of his own from coach Milver Reyes.

The BlueClaws auctioned off the special dog jerseys during an in-game silent auction, and we bid on and won three of the jerseys.  (As an aside, I probably got a little over ambitious and paranoid with my bidding as we wanted to make sure we brought home at least one of the jerseys and of course we ended up with three.  My initial paranoia aside, I was happy that proceeds from the auctions went towards BlueClaws Charities.)  We won the jerseys of outfielder Josh Stephen (#8), infielder Daniel Brito (#21) and coach Tyler Henson (#9).


Following the game, we were invited to the indoor batting cage area to pick up the jerseys, meet the players and get even more autographs.  The entire team was seated at tables circling the room, ready and willing to sign anything handed to them.  When all was said and done, both boys came away with baseballs autographed by the entire BlueClaws team and Doug also managed to get the players to sign a BlueClaws mini bat.  What an amazing experience and the ride home in a torrential thunderstorm gave all of us plenty of time to reflect on the cool night we had just shared.

For posterity's sake, I've created several limited edition Chachi insert cards and I also wanted to list the full roster below to help the boys identify the autographs they gathered on their team balls (and bat).  Thanks again to the BlueClaws and Bark in the Park!

2 - Marty Malloy MG 3 - Randy Alcantara 4 - Luis Ramirez 5 - Dalton Guthrie 7 - Danny Mayer 8 - Josh Stephen 9 - Tyler Henson CO 10 - Quincy Nieporte 11 - Brad Bergesen CO 13 - Yahir Gurrola 14 - Jake Scheiner 15 - Addison Russ 16 - Luis Carrasco 17 - Rodolfo Duran 18 - Jonathan Hennigan

20 - David Parkinson 21 - Daniel Brito 22 - Spencer Howard 23 - Gregori Rivero 24 - Julian Garcia 25 - Colby Fitch 26 - Kevin Markham 27 - Will Stewart 28 - Milver Reyes CO 31 - Kyle Dohy 33 - Zach Warren 44 - Connor Brogdon 54 - Ramos Rosso 55 - Damon Jones

Memory Lane 
2013 BlueClaws Game
2014 BlueClaws Game
2015 BlueClaws Game
2016 BlueClaws Game
2017 BlueClaws Game