Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Miami Marlins 7/21/12 & 7/22/12 PNC Park Pittsburgh, PA

I missed the game on 7/20 due to typical summer weather in Pittsburgh. I woke up on 7/21 to gloomy skies and contemplated skipping that game as well. However, the showers held off and I headed down to the ballpark. I had a few goals for this series. One of my goals included getting a baseball from the 2005 World Series signed by Ozzie Guillen. I was able to get Ozzie on the ball. However, I have no idea where it’s at right now. My car is absolutely trashed and I’m pretty sure it’s buried in it somewhere. I will upload a picture once I find the baseball. Speaking of Ozzie, it is well known he is one to speak without thinking. I watched as one fan handed Ozzie a baseball and asked him to sign it on the sweet spot. Ozzie’s reply was “No Shit!”. I thought that was pretty funny. I also had 2 Logan Morrison Home Run Baseballs from Sun Life Stadium in Miami last season that I was hoping to get signed. I didn’t have any luck with Morrison.

Besides Ozzie, my only other Marlins autograph was from Heath Bell. Heath signed my ball then proceeded to ask “Do you even know who I am?”. Yeah bro, I know who you are. You’re an overpaid wannabe closer with what 10 blown saves this season and an ERA of 7. Bell is a cocky piece of shit, end of story. I wish him nothing but the worst the rest of this season.

Instead of entering the ballpark at 4pm and watching a weak Pirates BP and taking my chances on a Marlins BP that was lacking Hanley and Giancarlo, I decided to do some kayaking. I ended up hanging around outside of PNC Park for a few hours and reeled in 4 baseballs. I weighed my options for the evening and since nothing better was going on, I stayed in my kayak at PNC Park for the game. No Home Runs were hit during the game. Bummer dude. I paddled home and got rested up for Sunday. Sunday brought blue skies and sunshine. However, there was no BP so once again I set up shop in my kayak outside of PNC Park. You may ask why I keep hanging out outside of the ballpark by the river. I have a few reasons.

The list above is an outdated and close but not fully accurate list of home runs that have left PNC Park and made it to the Allegheny. If you look closely, you will notice that ONLY ONE HOME RUN IN THE HISTORY OF PNC PARK HAS EVER REACHED THE RIVER ON THE FLY. The home run was hit by Daryle Ward in 2002 when he was a member of the Houston Astros. My goal is to catch the 1st Pirates Home Run to land in the Allegheny River on the fly. Anyways, back to the Pirates vs. Marlins. I was shut out while waiting on the river. However, I did take a few photos which can be found below.

During the 7th Inning I believe, we all heard a fairly loud thunder like sound and turned around to see the Gateway Clipper stopped behind us. A few members of the crew were standing near the front of the boat looking at something.

If you look closely, you will notice some wood on the side of the boat destroyed. Apparently, the Gateway Clipper had clipped one of the piers under the Clemente Bridge. Nobody came to check on the bridge. So, if the bridge collapses in the near future here is the reason why. The Pirates swept the Marlins. I only ended up snagging 4 baseballs. However, I’m not disappointed. Chasing baseballs around during BP has become somewhat boring for me. BP baseballs are meaningless to me anymore. I may decide to concentrate primarily on foul balls and home runs the remainder of the season. Check back soon for a recap of the Pirates vs. Cubs series.