Last week, I was in San Antonio, Texas for work (ABF Freight) and had two non-work agendas on my plate – baseball experiences and reconnecting with an old friend from Texas. Before I write about baseball, I can happily say that I did get a chance to reconnect with my longtime friend, Anthony Perez, for a Sunday chat and a Wednesday breakfast in his adopted hometown of San Antonio. It was great to see Anthony and hear about his work, his family, and share some much needed laughs.
After flying in rather early on Sunday, I had an opportunity to head out to Nelson Wolff Stadium, home of the MILB San Antonio Missions. The Missions are the Double A Affiliate of the San Diego Padres. Wolff was a short drive from the SAT airport and I arrived to a mostly empty parking lot Sunday morning. The Missions were on the road and so I took the opportunity to park, walk the perimeter, and live to see the field another day. Here are some photos from my first stop, yes I am foreshadowing something here, to Wolff Stadium.
Sunday was such a beautiful day for taking photographs. Sunny skies, some gorgeous clouds, light winds – ideal for photos and for playing a baseball game. With literally no one around, I took in what I could of the perimeter and then humbly headed back to my rental car. On the way out, I spotted a smaller field next to Wolff Stadium and went over to check it out. The gates were locked but I did get a few shots of the sign and the field – The Mays Family Field of Dreams. The league is called the Miracle League of San Antonio and you can check them out at www.miracleleagueofsanantonio.com.
Okay, let’s fast forward to Thursday morning now. Since my work shift was around 12 noon, I had some personal time in the morning for baseball experiences. I got up early on Thursday, had my breakfast, a quick workout in the gym, then headed over to the San Antonio Missions Stadium to see if my luck could improve. Meaning, my luck of getting inside the park for some baseball field photos and to learn more about the San Antonio Missions. And if you find yourself in a situation where you cannot get into a baseball field, simply do like I did and go back another day. Your luck may change, as did mine.
So, I was hoping to hop into the team store of the Missions, grab a magnet or a hoodie as a souvenir, then ask if I could grab a photo or two of the park. But, the team store was not open. Game days, the team store opens one hour before game time. Thursday was a game day, so my showing up at 10am was not going to allow me any kind of access into the team store nor the field on the other side of that team store. So, I took a walk down to the left field area of Wolff Stadium, where there was a wide open gate. And I walked in and found a nice stadium manager who let me do my thing. So, here is what I saw after I walked in…
Thursday was a cloudy day and you could just sense the incoming rain was nearly minutes from making its presence felt. After speaking with the stadium manager, I walked over to behind home plate and took a few photos. The park looks amazing, well groomed, baseball ready grass and infield dirt, plus there were landscapers attending to the field as I strolled around. I took a few moments to check out the views from the stands and behind the third base dugout and was super satisfied that I had made it inside. On the way out of Wolff Stadium, I happened to spot three familiar pitchers who once pitched for the Missions. Can you believe these three HOF Pitchers all played for the Missions at one point? Valenzuela, Eckersley, Martinez – three of the best to ever pitch in the Major Leagues.
Grinning from ear to ear, I departed through a tiny space between two gates in the front gate area. And read a sort of funny sign, seeing that I was there on Sunday, read the same sign, and was now back again 4 days later. Thank you for coming, see you next time, Missions Field.
Then, looked down to my left and saw a baseball lining in the rocks. I plucked it up into my hand, tossed it up in the air a few times, then placed it into my pocket. I had a idea of who I was going to send it to – my nephew Finley Hohl, who just pitched a one hitter for Narragansett HS. The baseball had only one hit on it, one imperfection from a wooden bat striking it, a foul ball perhaps. Finbar, as I like to call him, was getting this baseball from Uncle Noel.
So, it took me two separate days/times at Wolff Stadium to complete my baseball experience. But, having tasted just a little bit of the outside of Wolff Stadium on Sunday, I knew I was hungry for more when I arrived on Thursday morning. I did walk the perimeter on Sunday and respected the locked gates and doors. And on Thursday, when I saw the open gate in Left Field, my youthful heart started racing until I got in and around to see the inside. It doesn’t always work out, getting in to see the interior of these majestic baseball parks. But, it is so freaking satisfying when it does work out. Overall, it was an incredible San Antonio baseball experience at Wolff Stadium, home of the San Antonio Missions.
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