Game 8 – August 1, 2008

Red vs. Nationals
Nationals Park, Washington, D.C.

Nationals 5, Reds 2

Home runs: Jay Bruce (Reds)

Beer: $7

Photos

We’d now reached the day of our last game. In some ways, the trip went by so quickly. Yet, as someone said on the bus that morning, it seemed like a month ago that we’d been in Pittsburgh.

The drive back from Cooperstown was thankfully uneventful (no bus trouble), just long. We arrived at our hotel in Voorhees, N.J., outside Philly, around 1:30 a.m. Luckily, we didn’t leave the next morning until 10:30 – a little later than our usual departure time. But I still fell asleep after the bus started moving Friday morning. (The hardest part about going back to work was not taking at least one nap every day!) And our ride through New Jersey and Maryland to Washington, D.C., also was uneventful.

Once in D.C., we had time for lunch at the Old Post Office – now filled with restaurants and shops – and then our guide joined us for a city tour. Since I’d never been to Washington yet always wanted to go, it was terrific to see all the sights – even just the glimpse from afar we had of many. We did have the chance to get out in front of the Capitol and the White House. Interesting to see the war protesters in front of the White House and also the cameras and equipment for the various television networks kept off in the distance under tarps. Our guide explained this is so they can have the White House in the background for reports yet not have to haul equipment back and forth. Then it was to the World War II Memorial, which was beautiful and expansive. After that, we had our choice to visit the Lincoln Memorial, Korean War Memorial or Vietnam War Memorial. The Vietnam one was the farthest walk, and it was really hot that day (the only hot day we had, 90+ degrees) but that was my choice to see. The guide went with us, and his stories and explanations added much. It was so impressive to see, although very somber as the flags and flowers and letters that people left along the wall were both touching and sad. A man from the other bus, someone we’d shared the airport shuttle with in Pittsburgh, was standing a distance away and just looking at the wall. He caught up with our group several minutes later and said he was thinking about his friends who’d been killed in Vietnam.

After a welcome opportunity to visit a concession stand and get something to drink, it was off to Nationals Park for the Reds-Nationals game. With neither team having much success this season, a lot of people had been looking forward to seeing Ken Griffey Jr. play in this game. That wasn’t to be, however – he was traded the day before to the White Sox. Such is baseball at the trading deadline! Before going in, we all gathered on the steps for a group photo.

This is the first year for Nationals Park and it is definitely one of the nicest stadiums we visited. Very comfortable for fans – wide seats, wide aisles, wide concourse, big variety of food. I had my first nachos of the trip, and they were covered with chili, cheese and salsa. Very messy, yet very good. Our seats were great, down the left field line and maybe 20 rows up from the field. The game – the Nationals won 5-2. They had a lot of hits and scored all five runs in the first two innings. Odalis Perez (who the Cardinals always score a ton of runs off of) pitched into the eighth inning and allowed only one run. The crowd – there wasn’t much of one, which is too bad. Because it’s definitely a great ballpark.

The Nationals have four mascots, all presidents – George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abe Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt. And, as you might expect, they have a President’s Race. George and Abe were wandering in the stands a bit near our section after the race. At first, they seemed pretty cool as far as mascots go. But the more I looked at them, the creepier they seemed with those giant heads. (Look at the pictures and see for yourself!)

There was one special treat for us at the conclusion of the ballgame: fireworks! Definitely the perfect ending for the final game of the tour.

And then it was one more long bus ride (for us, anyway) to our hotel. Along the way, Stevette passed around the microphone so everyone could share their favorite memories or thoughts in general. It’s amazing how much we experienced in those nine days!

The next morning, it was officially over – those leaving that day boarded the bus for the airport, we took a taxi to our hotel for the night and a day of further sightseeing with my friends Michael and Tammy. Yet before departing the tour group, there was a flurry of hugs and photos and goodbyes – and birthday wishes for me. To honor the occasion, I received a baseball that said “Happy Birthday” on it with the Yankees logo – purchased by Marybeth and Eileen at Yankee Stadium. An appropriate way to acknowledge and remember a special day that concluded such an amazing trip!