My plan is simple. When traveling to a new city, look for two things: a great restaurant (or local dish) and any attractions that stand out (to my interests). The main criteria: it has to be within walking distance of someplace that I'll be (hotel or ballpark). Unlike a vacation, I have actual work to do and need to work this stop in to my day. Also I don't have a car. Just a coach bus and two feet, only one of which is at my beck and call.
By the way... I just Googled "beck and call" vs. "beckon call"...
The Free Dictionary- Beck and Call
I found an article in Esquire magazine that talks up Greenville as a rising foodie hotspot. Almost all of the restaurants in the list were dinner-only establishments... save one or two. I chose a place called Nose Dive and planned for a Tuesday lunch.
On to Fluor Field. This is one of the class establishments in Minor League Baseball.Greenville is affiliated with the Boston Red Sox and built this park in 2006 to be a near replica of Fenway. The dimensions are nearly the same to spec, save the Green(ville) Monster in left is 30 feet, not 37. Why must SAL teams have one incredibly high wall?
This ballpark would treat the boys playing for West Virginia fairly well over the three-game series, including an 6-0 shutout on Monday night.
What I don't understand, and may never understand, is why any club would spend tens of millions of dollars for a permanent setup (like a stadium) to match a relationship that is tentative. Player Development Contracts are for two or four years. Obviously they get extended and some relationships are very good and last for long periods.
But take the case of State College. They built a field that has the same dimensions, nooks, and crannies of PNC Park. 31.4 million dollar writing on the wall to the Spikes original parent club, the Cardinals, that they were going to swap to be a Pirates affiliate. And then... six years later... they left the Pirates for the Cardinals. So the St. Louis team in the NYPL plays in a ballpark with the exact same dimensions of another big league club.
Fluor Field, regardless of parent club affiliation, is a class park. I just wish that you could tell who was warming up in the bullpens, which are hidden behind the right field wall.
On Tuesday, I took the 1 pm bus from the hotel to the ballpark and had Jimmy, our driver, drop me off down town. I was ready to try Nose Dive.
In hindsight, I would have tried something different. Not because this wasn't a tremendous sandwich... it absolutely was... but because Nose Dive is a Gastro-Pub. A Gastro-Pub is "Food Forward," meaning that it's all about the food. It's a time for chefs to create dishes that are both interesting and comfortable. I should have stretched my boundaries more, though the sandwich I picked still had me salivating as it was placed in front of me.
On my... walk... to the stadium, it became evident how much pride Greenville has in its' people, heritage, and scenic views. The streets are dotted with statues of important people who did important things. Here are a couple of pics I snapped during the trip to the ballpark.
This last photo is of Shoeless Joe Jackson. I'm fairly well versed in his history, but had completely forgotten about his beginnings in Greenville and Brandon Mill. I made arrangements to visit the "Shoeless" Joe Jackson Museum on Wednesday afternoon. A visit I was very excited about.
The Power won again Tuesday, nearly shutting out the Drive for the second straight game. Greenville scored three in the ninth to snap a 32 inning scoreless drought. During that same span, the Power scored 36 times. I'm just saying.
On Wednesday after a sushi lunch, I walked across the street to the museum to meet with Arlene Marcley. She is the curator and president of the museum, which will celebrate its' fifth anniversary this summer. The museum is the house that Joe lived and died in. In fact, while in the room that was the master bedroom, Arlene told me that I was standing in nearly the exact spot where he passed away in 1951. I moved immediately.
The deadball era is a fascinating period of baseball history and I was hooked about 12 years ago. I encourage you to watch Ken Burns documentary Baseball, especially the 19-teens segment. Once you wake up, watch it again and try to pay attention.
Here are some photos from the museum visit.
This is the dinning room, which is now the entrance.
Joe and his wife Katie... in their 1908 wedding photo.
And a few more photos...
I also took some time to interview Ms. Marcley for the radio pregame show. If you have seven minutes... Take a listen.
After some rain fell in Greenville, the Power took on the Drive one final time. West Virginia blew a four-run lead and lost the series finale 5-4.
I packed up quickly because I didn't want to be late getting on a bus that was already leaving later than anticipated. In fact, as the post game show was in commercial breaks, I was tearing apart the equipment I was done with and packing it up.
We "watched" Slapshot on the bus. I say "watched" because it is tough to really watch a movie on a bus. Or at least... its tough to watch a movie on the bus and get anything out of it. Fortunately it was Slapshot. Not much I needed to take away. It did help spark my creativity to think up a way to make a Power version of Kmart's "Ship my Pants" commercial (the best ad campaign on TV right now).
Six hours later... Three hours of sleep. Maybe. And then an hour and a half more in my own bed before an ill-scheduled dentist appointment (that I made six months ago). We started a four game homestand on Thursday night, a mere 13 hours after arriving home. I'm not complaining. I'm just saying. And I'll never have another bad day.
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