Baseball beginnings

Bittersweet beginning
My first ever big league baseball game came on 'bat day' at Jarry Park against the Atlanta Braves in the Montreal Expos' debut season in 1969.  My dad took both me (9 years old) and my brother (7 years old).  It was truly magical.  That was in the days when the whole city had a love affair with the franchise, and even a torrential downpour couldn't dampen our spirits.  It is bittersweet to read of the triumphant home opener of the Washington Nationals and the sheer exhilaration of their fans.  "Nos amours," "our beloved" Expos are no longer.  Neither is my dad who so loved the game of baseball, and who imparted that love to his kids.  I suspect that the hole in my baseball heart will never be filled!
--Irving Salzman, Livingston, N.J.

Philly fanatic
My first baseball game was in 1959 at Connie Mack Stadium.  I don't recall who the Phillies played that day, but I vividly remember two things.  Sitting next to my dad and watching Dave Philly hit a home run just moments after I urged him on with my popcorn bullhorn.  If memory serves me right, he hit it over the right centerfield wall by the scoreboard.  I cried the day they tore the Connie Mack down after building the hideous Vet.  Baseball has never the same again in Philadelphia.
--Ervin Deck, Wiscasset, Maine

Holy cow!
My first major league game was at Wrigley Field in 1990 when I was five years old. I skipped a day of kindergarten to go. I don't particularly remember who the Cubs were playing or if they even won. I do, however, remember the 7th inning stretch.  My dad hoisted me up onto his shoulders and we walked towards the broadcast booth to listen to Harry Caray sing. I was completely in awe. I had seen this event so many times on TV, heard it on the radio, but seeing Harry hang out of the booth waving his microphone in the air had me in tears, even at five years old.
--Rachel Rodriguez, Fort Atkinson, Wis.

Loving the Rocket
I went to my first big league game July 10, 2003, it was Yankees vs. Indians in Cleveland. If I remember correctly, The Yankees lost 3-2 but at least I got to see my most favorite player ever pitch: Roger Clemens. I think the Yankees would have won if Alfonso Soriano hadn't been picked off twice. It was really disappointing, but still I had a lot of fun in spite of the loss.
--Mary, New York

'Let's go Red Sox!'
I don't remember much about the game action that day, but my very first Major League game was in May of 1967 at Fenway Park. And yes, it was the Yankees in town to play the Red Sox. My Dad and I were seated on the first base side, just past the dugout about halfway up. The thing I remember most about that day is me as a seven year old, with a popcorn box shaped like a megaphone. I ate every kernel of popcorn and then proceeded to march up and down the aisle (not too far away from Dad's watching eyes) while chanting through the megaphone box "Go Red Sox!" I had the attention of all within earshot. To this day, I remember that quite vividly as the sunniest, greenest place I had ever seen.
--Dave Bean, Los Angeles, Calif.

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