Game 1 - Exhausting

The Cardinals defeated the Reds today at the Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati by the score of 1 - 0 and I am exhausted. I am not exhausted because this game took 2:56 to play. I am not exhausted because I arrived at the ballpark at 7:15AM for a 4:10PM game. I am not exhausted because the security guard would not allow me into the ballpark because I did not have my 2014 MLB pass. I am not exhausted because I awoke the Cardinals PR Director to tell him I needed my pass which he had in his possession. I am exhausted because of the schizophrenic pace of this game. The game is over. The game continues. The game is over. The game continues. Exhausted.

Great Show Great Fun

I truly enjoyed today's Cardinals spring training telecast. This was my third and last 2014 spring training game/telecast. What a great show! Our fairly new coordinating producer produced all three shows and he was really on top of it today. The telecast included some very insightful graphics, some very entertaining b-roll and a nice crisp open. The Producer was prepared and it showed. Plus, it was just a wonderful experience sitting next to him in the truck. One could never tell that this Producer had very little baseball experience. Very, very impressive! Great fun indeed.

You Can Just Tell

The Cards lost to the Marlins again today in their second spring training game of 2014. There is a huge difference between a Major League player and a minor league player. That difference was very noticeable during today's game/telecast. The Major League pitcher throws strikes, works fast and has an idea when he is on the mound. The minor league pitcher is all over the place nibbling, is scared to death, and doesn't have a clue when on the hill. The Major League batter makes adjustments from at-bat to at-bat and sometimes from pitch to pitch. The confidence factor is very noticeable. The minor league batter hopes and prays and guesses on every pitch. When there are Major League players on the mound and in the box the game has a special feel to it. There is a nice flow to the game. Put a minor league player in any of those positions and the flow of the contest is haphazard. Televising a game with a nice flow is quite enjoyable. Televising a haphazard affair is mentally taxing. How does one know the difference between a Major League talent and a minor league player? You can just tell.