 | On the weekend of August 24-26 a couple of friends & I went to Kansas City to see our Twins take on the hometown Royals. Here is a summary of our trip. DAY 1
August 24, 11:50am
We get on Highway 35W South & are heading to Kansas City. The Twins are in the midst of a slide. A 5 game lead in the AL Central has evaporated. They now trail the Cleveland Indians by 6 1/2 & are hoping to get healthy against the happless Royals.
August 24, 1:21pm
We enter the great state of Iowa - Minnesota's beloved neighbor to the south.
August 24, 4:50pm
We are finally out of Iowa, there wasn't much to see - miles & miles of flat land much of which is covered with corn. There were not many signs of life.
August 24, 6:17pm
We arrive in Kansas City, the skyline entering the city is unimpressive - not many sky-scrapers & the downtown seems dead. We are now attempting to find our hotel.
August 24, 9:24pm
We are back in the hotel, the Marriot on the Plaza, we just ate dinner & are getting ready for a night on the town. We got a preview of the Plaza - seems very nice - at lot of upscale stores & resturants. They have something called the 'Cow Parade' going on. It is basically a bunch of life size cow statues painted with a variety of themes. There is a 'Cash Cow' painted like a dollar bill, a cow with a Negro League baseball theme, a cow with a diving mask & flippers on, and many, many others. They seem to like cows.
August 25, 1:20am
We have just returned from a night on the town - downing a few adult beverages & having a good time. The Twins defeated the Royals 9-3, we hope they keep the momentum going for the next two games. Cleveland also lost to Seattle, the Twins trail by 5 1/2 .
DAY 2
August 25, 9:41am
I am the first one up, ready to start the day. I am going to the Negro League Baseball Museum while my companions do a little shopping on the Plaza.
August 25, 12:24pm
I have just finished my tour of the museum. It is very informative & well put together. It is located in the 18th & Vine area - a refurbished area of the downtown that is still in progress. It is located in the same complex as the Jazz Museum. The most memorable feature is the mini diamond set up with life size statues of an all time Negro League team all at their respective position, it features greats like Satchell Paige, Josh Gibson, & Cool Papa Bell. The most interesting fact I learned is that the Negro Leagues began playing night games in 1930 - 5 years before the major leagues.
August 25, 6:40pm
We head to Kauffman Stadium to see the Twins & Royals battle.
August 25, 7:21pm
We are in our seats enjoying the game. Our seats are good - they are in the 3rd row of the top deck in the infield on the 1st base line. This stadium is set up well, our view is great. The park is great for watching a game, airy & peaceful. It is a 'real' baseball park.
August 25, 10:00pm
The game is over, the Twins win 7-1 behing a strong performance by Joe Mays. Corey Koskie hit a home run in the win. Cleveland loses to Seattle again, the Twins now trail by 4 1/2.
August 26, 1:51am
We are back in the hotel after celebrating the victory with a few drinks - once again we spent our night in the Plaza.
DAY 3
August 26, 11:30am
We check out of our hotel & will head to the game shortly.
August 26, 1:28pm
We are at the game & in our seats. We are in the middle deck on the suite level in the 1st row in the shade & out of the hot sun about even with 1st base. The view is great once again - this is the perfect spot to be.
August 26, 2:47pm
The Twins lead 5-1 in the bottom of the 6th.
August 26, 3:40pm
It is 7-2 Twins in the bottom of the 9th with 2 outs. Twins manager Tom Kelly pulls pitcher Eddie Guardado in favor of the undependable Latroy Hawkins. A move, that in the opinion of this observer, is unwarranted. Hawkins does, however, get Royals OF Darmal 'Dee' Brown to ground out ending the game. The Indians rally in the bottom of the 9th to defeat Seattle & the Twins remain 4 1/2 back. We decide to check out the Royals Hall of Fame inside the stadium before leaving. We see the '85 World Series trophy, the dedication to George Brett & other baseball immortals such as Amos Otis & Dennis Leonard.
August 26, 4:21pm
We are back on the road to Minneapolis.
August 26, 7:35pm
We are passing through Ames, IA noticing the USDA's Veterinary Services Labs to our left - just off the freeway.
August 26, 8:35pm
We are in the middle of Iowa - 140 miles from Minneapolis.
August 26, 9:49pm
We are on home turf - Welcome to Minnesota!
August 26, 11:31pm
Home at last!!
-dlz
 | |
