2-0 in the Cactus league feels real good, even if the games don’t mean anything.

Yesterday we had a lead and lost it. Today, we rallied back from being down 3 runs to win it. These kind of games are so much better than 11-1 beat downs during Spring, you actually get to pay close attention for a full 9.

Diamond Notes:

- Well, we knew it was going to happen sometime and Barry Zito got the call today. On the very first pitch to Fielder, Zito drilled him between the numbers. Everyone in the house probably knew why, and cheering was abundant. The one classless thing that I want to tell you about is Fielder’s walk to 1B. On his way out of the box, he actually grabbed the ball that hit him and flung it over the mound by Zito. He also started clapping at 1B. Nothing happened beyond that, but come on, just shut up, wear it, and take your base. It’s not like he didn’t know why he was hit or anything. Honestly I’m surprised the umps didn’t do anything. Maybe it’s not a big deal in the baseball code book, but I thought it was kind of bush.

- Pitching: Honestly, I didn’t think today’s pitchers were that off. Definitely had their struggles, but managed to keep the damage to a minimum which allowed us to come back and win. Zito wasn’t the best location and control wise. Affeldt also had struggles, and didn’t seem to be his usual shut down self. That said, he did induce another one of his many double plays, albeit from a runner he put on 1B instead of inherited. Wellemeyer, Sosa, Turpen, Hinshaw, Medders, and Romo all had pretty good outings. Kind of surprised Hinshaw got in the game since he pitched yesterday. I guess one batter wasn’t enough of a workout. Romo got the save and looked really good, striking out 2.

I also just realized who Todd Wellemeyer reminds me of, Kevin Correia.

- Thomas Neal didn’t get in the game today, but he was suited up and watched from the dugout. Quite frankly you wouldn’t know he was thumped yesterday. Glad that he is doing well.

- There were a ton of cool plays today. The first being a throw to to get Rickie Weeks trying to advance to 3B. The throw was there in plenty of time, but the best part is that Rickie began his slide at like the half way point on the base path. That would prove important because Pablo was essentially waiting for him and tagged him on the butt right when his face met the dirt. It was pretty classic. I provided “widescreen versions” in flickr to show just how far away he was from the base.

Another play that was awesome was a relay late in the game from Velez-Noonan-Holm to save a run at the plate. The relay was just on the money and Steve did a great job putting the tag on. The photo I took is unfortunately out of focus because my camera jumped to make sure the umps butt was crystal clear in the photo, but you can see the tag between his legs.

- There is really nothing like watching a game at Scottsdale Stadium. The food, atmosphere, people, and of course the team, beat out every other venue bar none.

It might be the homer in me, but seriously the food here is awesome. The fried Wok Noodles are bomb. The bar b que is bomb. The garlic fries are bomb. Now if they could only lower their prices…

- Will Clark is, and will always be, the Giant of my childhood. There are really none that can compare to him as a player I looked up to when I was a kid. I even used to have one of those t-shirts that had a cartoon of him with the really oversized head like standing over the Golden Gate. You know what I’m talking about. Even my logo is based off of his Giant Attitude signature logo from the 80’s.

He was at the game today and I’ll tell you what. If you are a fan, he is the most approachable player I have ever met. He treats you like your his long lost friend from high school or a relative or something. He probably signed over 300 autographs today and is always making the game fun for kids. Another taste of this is him peeking out of the dugout between innings and chucking bubble gum to kids in the stands. Basically giving them a moment, even as little as pointing to them and chucking a piece of gum, that they can look back on. So glad he’s back in a Giants uniform where he should be.

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