Baseball & softball overload!
Saturday will be the Opening Day for the Bangkok Baseball & Softball Association. Each year, the Opening Day Ceremony begins with a parade of players which is followed by the introduction of the coaches and teams. There are a few speeches and the ISB choir performs a few songs. A rousing sing-along rendition of "Take Me Out To the Ball Game" ends the Ceremony. Hot dogs and drinks are served to the players immediately after the Ceremony ends and then games begin in early afternoon to continue each weekend until mid-February.
This year, the BBSA Board of Directors (of which I am a member) was fortunate to have two very important people accept our invitation to attend the Opening Day Ceremony. The U.S. Ambassador Thailand, Kristie Kenney, will be our special guest of honor and (probably more appealing to the players), Johnny Damon will also attend and will speak to the kids and sign autographs!
Johnny visited the U.S. Embassy yesterday for a "meet & greet" and this is the profile that was distributed prior to his arrival...
"A Major League Baseball star for 17 seasons, Johnny is one of the most outstanding, respected and durable players in MLB. Johnny spent six years with the Kansas City Royals, one season with the Oakland A's and then to the Boston Red Sox. After winning the 2004 World Series with the Boston Red Sox, Johnny signed with the New York Yankees. In 2009, he won a World Series with the Yankees, joining Babe Ruth, to be one of just a few full-time, everyday, players to achieve World Series rings with both the Red Sox and Yankees. Now with the Cleveland Indians he became 50th on the all-time career hits list. Thailand is special to Johnny because this is where his mother Yome is from. Johnny will train with the Thai National Baseball Team to prepare for their participation in the World Baseball Classic qualifier in Taiwan from November 15-18th."
Needless to say, the Board is so excited to have these two important guests attend our event. It has been a bit stressful for the Board members as far as managing protocol and coordinating the guests' schedules, arrivals/departures, etc. with our program for the Ceremony but it should be a great event and lots of fun for the kids.
Christopher has a game tonight and then both he and Caitlynne have games tomorrow at 1:30 pm. The first few games are always a bit rough as the kids shake off the dust and get back in the baseball/softball groove. I volunteered to an assistant coach for Caitlynne's team but, similar to her basketball team, no one signed up to be the head coach. However, a dad with a lot of coaching experience and knowledge of softball also signed up to assist so we will work together. We had our first practice last night and I think our team has a lot of potential. With the exception of one girl, everyone else has played before and they all looked quite capable as we ran through some hitting, pitching and fielding drills.
Here are some random photos from the Melbourne Cup Luncheon.
The centerpiece on our table.
Our table.
Walking the catwalk.
Have a great Friday!
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