About three weeks ago, I received a packet in the mail from the Pirates.  It was an invoice from the Pirates for $1,197.

I had to decide if I should renew my tickets, or show my displeasure with the Pirates 17 season streak of ineptitude by not sending in the check.

The reading material that the Pirates included was a catalog of season ticket holders posing with Pirates players, discussing how awesome being a season ticket holder is.

The people talked about the amazing benefits they get, and how the players excite them.
The Pirates even added an extra incentive this year, a pay-in-full incentive contest called 30 prizes in 30 days.

Basically, they will draw the name of one paid-in-full account daily for 30 days and give away a prize that is designated on that day.

The prizes range from lunch with the Pirates broadcasters to an all expense paid trip to the 2010 All Star Game.

The winners have already been posted on www.pirates.com/sth for the first few prizes.  I'll let everyone know if I am lucky enough to win.

The only incentive I needed was early access to batting practice.

I renewed immediately, sending the check in the same day that I received the invoice.  My account is for three tickets, so I paid $399 per seat for 81 games - or $4.92 a ticket.  That's one of the best deals in baseball.

Recently, the Pirates invited their season ticket holders to come and take batting practice on the field at PNC Park.

This was the second year that the Pirates have done this, and the second year that I would participate.  If you're a long time reader of this blog, you may remember this entry from last year.

I had asked my dad if he'd like to go hit again, but he indicated that he wasn't interested.  So, I decided to ask Zack Hample, winner of the ballhawk league in 2009, if he'd like to come to PNC Park as my guest.  Hample enthusiastically obliged, and brought along his mother and his friend Brandon.

Zack, two fellow ballhawks and friends, Nick and Bryan Pelescak, and I met at the stadium at 9AM.  We promptly entered through the right field player's garage door and walked down towards the field.
This was the view at the end of the tunnel.
We were met by Pirates in-game entertainment announcer and ballpark host Joe Klimchak, who went over some guidelines for the day.
There were about 100 of us (up from the 40 or so that attended the same time slot last year), and we were divided into three groups.  Group 1 would hit in the cage first, group 2 would shag the balls put into play from group 1, and group 3 would catch fly balls in right field from a pop up machine.

I was in group 3, so I would be one of the last batters to hit. This was a large disadvantage, because the balls were absolutely soaked by this time - due to the heavy morning dew that had drenched the grass.

The session began a little after 9, and I wouldn't make it into the cage until 10:15ish.  While waiting, I fielded balls at third base and shortstop, and wandered around the park for awhile.

Some views of the field:
Looking down the right field line towards home plate.  (I'm not exactly sure why there's some random foul ball line drawn into the right field grass)
The view from a runner's perspective taking a lead from second base.
Checking out the 325 sign in left field, looking at the bleachers which were my "playground" at batting practices during the 2009 season.
I then made my way towards the bullpens.
To me, the bullpens were rather boring.  There were tarps that covered the mounds.  I did however notice that the player's bathroom doors were cracked open.  I had to take a look to see how luxurious the accomodations were for these big league pitchers.
And, they weren't anything that I expected.  In fact, the bathrooms on the main concourse for fans are classier.

Visiting team's bathroom:
Pirates' bathroom:
I noticed another door to the right of the visiting team's bathroom, so I entered it.  There was no security anywhere, so I figured it couldn't hurt.
I wandered around in some hallways underneath the center field and right field stands.

There really wasn't much to see.  Just some grounds crew materials and a parking lot.  The hallways eventually led to the driveway that we had walked down upon entering the park.

I went back to the field and awaited my turn to hit.
Nick Pelescak takes a cut:

When group three was finally called to hit, I decided to bat at the very end of the group.  I wanted to take a few practice swings and stretch a little, but I couldn't do it with the set up that the Pirates had.  Basically, you stand in a line and wait your turn. 

I walked over to the warning track near the Pirates dugout and loosened up a little bit. 

I eventually got into line when I noticed some people who had already had a turn were sneaking into the group three line.

I watched Zack Hample hit - he made some solid contact - and his session was over in the blink of an eye; 8 pitches.  The pitching machine feeder even counted a ball that was chin high as one of his 8.

It would soon be my turn.  Zack's friend Brandon snapped a few photos of me as I was awaiting my turn:
Another shot:
It was then time for me to get into the cage.

I got into my open stance:
And proceeded to take some cuts.


I didn't have the machine timed.  In fact, I was out in front of most of the pitches.  I swung and missed at half of the pitches, and was disappointed by my performance.

I was kicking myself for not getting some cage time against pitching machines in the weeks leading up to today.  Nick and Bryan Pelescak and I had done lots of hitting in the past weeks, but it was all off of live pitching, which is a bit different than hitting off a machine.  I hit a few decent balls in my first round, but nothing that came close to being a home run.

When I was finished, Joe Klimchak announced that there would be a lighting round for any batter that would like to hit again.

I jumped back in the cage after a few batters.  This time, it was just four pitches.

I hit much better my second time, making contact with all four pitches.  I fouled one into the screen and hit three line drives or hard grounders into left field. (Can you spot the ball in the photo below (look above the right wheel of the platform) Again, nothing that remotely had a chance of leaving the field.
It was 10:30 AM, and I was forced to leave due to other commitments.  My friends stayed well into the afternoon.  I wish I could've stayed, but it will give me some more motivation for next year to finally take one out of PNC Park on the fly.

I said goodbye to Zack:

And that, was that.

See you April 5th 2010, PNC Park.

Week 26 was extended by the tiebreaker game in Minnesota earlier this week.

The winner this week was Zack Hample, who won for eighth time in 26 weeks.

A few notes:

• As expected, Zack Hample finishes the regular season in first place with 525 balls.  Rounding out the Top Five were Erik Jabs (412),
  
• Happy Youngster, on a trip to Denver, snagged a Prince Fielder home run on 9/30/09.  To see the catch, click HERE.
  
• Zack Hample won 7 out of 11 categories.  He failed to capture the top spot in these categories: Games Attended (Erik Jabs 81), Hit Balls Snagged (Erik Jabs 217), Thrown Balls per Game (Joe Faraguna 5.63), and Device Balls per Game (Donny Haltom 1.83).  Still, Zack's 2009 was very impressive.
  
• Chris P had a strong week to propel himself back into the top 5.
  
• Alex became the fourth member of the ballhawk league to pass the 300 balls in one year barrier.  Welcome to the club

Here's how week 26 turned out:

Week 26 Leaders:

Total Balls Snagged:
1)  Zack Hample 43
2)  Chris P 26
3)  Alex 21

Games:
1)  Mike In Detroit 5
2)  Matt Jackson, Chris P 4

Average Balls per Game:
1)  Zack Hample 14.33
2)  Greg Barasch 9.00
3)  Gary Kowal 8.00

Hit Balls Snagged:
1)  Greg Barasch 13
2)  Zack Hample 9
3)  Chris P 7

Thrown Balls Snagged:
1)  Zack Hample 31
2)  Alex 19
3)  Chris P 18

Device Balls Snagged:
1)  Zack Hample 3
2)  Alex 1

Competition Factor:
1)  Zack Hample
2)  Puck Collector
3)  Gary Kowal


Here's a look at the final 2009 regular season standings:


2009 Season COMPLETE Leader Board:

Total Balls Snagged:
1)    Zack Hample    525
2)    Erik Jabs    412
3)    Happy Youngster    372
4)    Alex    316
5)    Chris P    287
6)    Greg Barasch    278
7)    Nick Pelescak    273
8)    District Boy    221
9)   Shawn    189
10)    Donny Haltom    178
11)    Mike In Detroit    132
12)    Joe Faraguna    124
13)    Matt Jackson    120
14)    John Witt    83
15)    Bob Fox    82
15)    Gary Kowal    82
17)    Leigh Barratt    76
18)    Puck Collector    59
19)    Andrew McDonald    35
20)    Donnie Ankudovich    28
21)    Connor    13
21)    Jeremy Evans    13

Games Attended:
1)    Erik Jabs    81
2)    Nick Pelescak    75
3)    Chris P    68
4)    Happy Youngster    61
5)    Zack Hample    58
6)    Alex    49
7)    Bob Fox    44
8)    Mike In Detroit    41
9)    Leigh Barratt    40
10)    Matt Jackson    38
11)    Greg Barasch    37
12)    District Boy    36
13)    John Witt    31
14)    Shawn    30
15)    Donny Haltom    24
16)    Gary Kowal    23
17)    Andrew McDonald    21
18)    Donnie Ankudovich    20
19)    Joe Faraguna    19
20)    Puck Collector    10
21)    Jeremy Evans    9
22)    Connor    5

Average Balls per Game:
1)    Zack Hample    9.05
2)    Greg Barasch 7.51
3)    Donny Haltom    7.42
4)    Joe Faraguna    6.53
5)    Alex    6.45
6)    Shawn    6.30
7)    District Boy    6.14
8)    Happy Youngster    6.10
9)    Puck Collector    5.90
10)    Erik Jabs    5.09
11)    Chris P    4.22
12)    Nick Pelescak    3.64
13)    Gary Kowal    3.57
14)    Mike In Detroit    3.22
15)    Matt Jackson    3.16
16)    John Witt    2.68
17)    Connor    2.60
18)    Leigh Barratt    1.90
19)    Bob Fox    1.86
20)    Andrew McDonald    1.67
21)    Jeremy Evans    1.44
22)    Donnie Ankudovich    1.40

Hit Balls Snagged:
1)    Erik Jabs    217
2)    Nick Pelescak    184
3)    Zack Hample    170
4)    Happy Youngster    143
5)    Chris P    95
6)    Greg Barasch    85
7)    District Boy    60
8)    John Witt    58
9)    Donny Haltom    50
10)    Leigh Barratt    43
11)    Alex    41
12)    Matt Jackson    36
13)    Shawn    34
14)    Mike In Detroit    29
15)    Joe Faraguna    17
15)    Puck Collector    17
17)    Gary Kowal    14
18)    Donnie Ankudovich    10
19)    Andrew McDonald    9
20)    Bob Fox    8
21)    Connor    4
22)    Jeremy Evans    0

Thrown Balls Snagged:
1)    Zack Hample    274
2)    Alex    260
3)    Chris P    192
4)    Happy Youngster    164
5)    District Boy    161
6)    Greg Barasch    155
7)    Shawn    153
8)    Erik Jabs    125
9)    Joe Faraguna    107
10)    Mike In Detroit    102
11)    Nick Pelescak    89
12)    Donny Haltom    84
12)    Matt Jackson    84
14)    Bob Fox    74
15)    Gary Kowal    62
16)    Puck Collector    38
17)    Leigh Barratt    33
18)    Andrew McDonald    26
19)    John Witt    25
20)    Donnie Ankudovich    16
21)    Jeremy Evans    13
22)    Connor    8

Device Balls Snagged:
1)    Zack Hample    81
2)    Erik Jabs    70
3)    Happy Youngster    65
4)    Donny Haltom    44
5)    Greg Barasch    38
6)    Alex    17
7)    Gary Kowal    6
8)    Puck Collector    4
9)    Shawn    2
10)    Donnie Ankudovich    2
11)    Mike In Detroit    1
12)    Connor    1
13)    Chris P    0
13)    District Boy    0
13)    Joe Faraguna    0
13)    Nick Pelescak    0
13)    Matt Jackson    0
13)    Bob Fox    0
13)    Leigh Barratt    0
13)    Andrew McDonald    0
13)    John Witt    0
13)   Jeremy Evans    0

Competition Factor:
1)    Zack Hample    275,975
2)    Alex    258,384
3)   Greg Barasch 244,755
4)    Donny Haltom    238,254
5)    Joe Faraguna    231,691
6)    Puck Collector    222,898
7)    Happy Youngster    213,481
8)    Shawn    210,126
9)    Chris P    163,289
10)    District Boy    135,987
11)    Gary Kowal    132,879
12)    Matt Jackson    122,475
13)    Connor    111,153
14)    John Witt    110,517
15)    Erik Jabs    103,444
16)    Mike In Detroit    99,919
17)    Nick Pelescak    71,999
18)    Jeremy Evans    56,494
19)    Donnie Ankudovich    55,230
20)    Bob Fox    53,834
21)    Leigh Barratt    48,108
22)    Andrew McDonald    32,034

Game Balls
1)    Zack Hample    11
2)    Shawn    8
2)    Chris P    8
4)    Happy Youngster    6
5)    Nick Pelescak    4
6)    Leigh Barratt    3
7)    Alex    2
7)    Donny Haltom    2
7)    Greg Barasch    2
7)    District Boy    2
7)    Mike In Detroit    2
12)    Puck Collector    1
12)    Matt Jackson    1
12)    Connor    1
12)    John Witt    1
12)    Erik Jabs    1
17)    Joe Faraguna    0
17)    Gary Kowal    0
17)    Jeremy Evans    0
17)    Donnie Ankudovich    0
17)    Bob Fox    0
17)    Andrew McDonald    0


Now, a look at how many balls per game per category each ballhawk averages

Hit Balls PER GAME
1)    Zack Hample    2.93
2)    Erik Jabs    2.68
3)    Nick Pelescak    2.45
4)    Happy Youngster    2.34
5)    Greg Barasch    2.30
6)    Donny Haltom    2.08
7)    John Witt    1.87
8)    Puck Collector    1.70
9)    District Boy    1.67
10)    Chris P    1.40
11)    Shawn    1.13
12)    Leigh Barratt    1.08
13)    Matt Jackson    0.95
14)    Joe Faraguna    0.89
15)    Alex    0.84
16)    Connor    0.80
17)    Mike In Detroit    0.71
18)    Gary Kowal    0.61
19)    Donnie Ankudovich    0.50
20)    Andrew McDonald    0.43
21)    Bob Fox    0.18
22)    Jeremy Evans    0.00

Thrown Balls PER GAME
1)    Joe Faraguna    5.63
2)    Alex    5.31
3)    Shawn    5.10
4)    Zack Hample    4.72
5)    District Boy    4.47
6)    Greg Barasch    4.19
7)    Puck Collector    3.80
8)    Donny Haltom    3.50
9)    Chris P    2.82
10)    Gary Kowal    2.70
11)    Happy Youngster    2.69
12)    Mike In Detroit    2.49
13)    Matt Jackson    2.21
14)    Bob Fox    1.68
15)    Connor    1.60
16)    Erik Jabs    1.54
17)    Jeremy Evans    1.44
18)    Andrew McDonald    1.24
19)    Nick Pelescak    1.19
20)    Leigh Barratt    0.83
21)    John Witt    0.81
22)    Donnie Ankudovich    0.80


Device Balls PER GAME
1)    Donny Haltom    1.83
2)    Zack Hample    1.40
3)    Happy Youngster    1.07
4)    Greg Barasch    1.03
5)    Erik Jabs    0.86
6)    Puck Collector    0.40
7)    Alex    0.35
8)    Gary Kowal    0.26
9)    Connor    0.20
10)    Donnie Ankudovich    0.10
11)    Shawn    0.07
12)    Mike In Detroit    0.02
13)    Joe Faraguna    0.00
13)    District Boy    0.00
13)    Chris P    0.00
13)    Matt Jackson    0.00
13)    Bob Fox    0.00
13)    Jeremy Evans    0.00
13)    Andrew McDonald    0.00
13)    Nick Pelescak    0.00
13)    Leigh Barratt    0.00
13)    John Witt    0.00



Week 26 Photos
Ballhawks were given the option to submit a photo for this and future ballhawk league updates.  The photos could be of them making a catch, posing with a ball, a picture of a ball snagged, or something strange or interesting that they saw at a game.

Submitted by District Boy:
District Boy's first goal for 2009 was to snag 200 balls.  He finally reached the mark on September 25th (courtesy of Reid Gorecki)

Submitted by Zack Hample:
Zack Hample holding Robinson Cano's grand slam ball on September 28 at Yankee Stadium.


2009 Ballhawk League Archive:
TOP BALLHAWK:
Week 1:  Happy Youngster 38  (Runner Up:  Zack Hample 31)
Week 2:  Zack Hample 27  (Runner Up:  Erik Jabs 21)
Week 3:  Zack Hample 30  (Runner Up:  Erik Jabs 21)
Week 4:  Zack Hample 40  (Runner Up:  Happy Youngster 39)
Week 5:  Zack Hample 31  (Runner Up:  Erik Jabs 22)
Week 6:  Erik Jabs 31 (Runner Up: Happy Youngster 26)
Week 7:  District Boy 40 (Runner Up: Greg Barasch 20)
Week 8:  Erik Jabs 18 (Runner Up:  Donny Haltom 17)
Week 9:  Donny Haltom 16 (Runner Up:  Erik Jabs 13)
Week 10: Zack Hample 27 (Runner Up: Shawn 26)
Week 11: Zack Hample 59 (Runner Up: Donny Haltom 23)
Week 12: Greg Barasch 36 (Runner Up: Nick Pelescak 22)
Week 13:  Chris P 24 (Runner Up:  Alex 17)
Week 14:  Greg Barasch 22 (Runner Up: Chris P 19)
Week 15:  Nick Pelescak 17 (Runner Up: District Boy 10)
Week 16:  Alex 21 (Runner Up: District Boy 19)
Week 17:  Joe Faraguna 18 (Runner Up: Happy Youngster 11)
Week 18:  Erik Jabs 22 (Runner Up:  Zack Hample 14)
Week 19:  Alex 38 (Runner Up: Joe Faraguna 31)
Week 20:  Alex 41  (Runner Up:  Erik Jabs 36)
Week 21:  Chris P 35 (Runner Up: Happy Youngster 34)
Week 22:  Nick Pelescak 24 (Runner Up: Greg Barasch)
Week 23:  Donny Haltom 30 (Runner Up: Chris P 22)
Week 24:  Zack Hample 54 (Runner Up: Happy Youngster 14)
Week 25:  Erik Jabs 44 (Runner Up:  District Boy 37)
Week 26:  Zack Hample 43 (Runner Up:  Chris P 25)

There's an article on ESPN.com devoted mostly to Zack Hample, but I am quoted in the article as well.

See the article's title?  I guess I can be attributed with it - the author directly lifted it from a quote that I gave him.  Pretty cool.

I ran into Zack in Baltimore on August 10th, and spoke with the columnist during BP.

Here's the small section that I received in the article:


If you'd like to read the entire article, click HERE.

Here's my postseason picks.  Do you agree or disagree?

AL Divisional Series:
Yankees beat the Twins in four.
The Twins have a lot of momentum.  They're bound to falter soon.  Plus, they just depleted their bullpen in the 12 inning marathon win on Tuesday, and must bounce right back. 

Red Sox beat the Angels in five.
The Red Sox will win - if only for the fact that I want to see the Yankees/Red Sox rivalry in full force this offseason.  The Angels NL style approach could give them problems though.


NL Divisional Series
Rockies beat the Phillies in four.
The Rockies have been one of the hottest teams in the recent months.  They almost wrestled the NL West team away from the Dodgers, who had an almost insurmountable lead earlier in the summer.  The Phillies bullpen is shaky, leaving the door open for another "Rocktober," at least for a little while.

Cardinals beat the Dodgers in three.
Yeah, I'm calling for a sweep of the NL West champs.  I wasn't impressed at all when I saw them recently in Pittsburgh.  Heck, the Pirates won 3 out of 4 against the Dodgers in late September.  The Pirates!!  With Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright, the Cards have this one all but locked up.


ALCS
Yankees over the Red Sox in six.
The Yankees firepower will be too much for the Red Sox to handle.  Also, I hate the Red Sox more than any other team, even if they do have ex Pirate Jason Bay.

NLCS
Cardinals over the Rockies in seven.
The Cardinals starting rotation is just too good.  The Rockies are a great team, but the road will end for them in the NLCS.

World Series

Yankees over the Cardinals in seven.
There's a saying that good pitching will be good hitting.  Whoever said that didn't factor in the Yankees offense and the Yankee stadium factor - which has seen a record number of balls flying out of the yard.  Albert Pujols and Matt Holliday will make things interesting to watch, but the Yankees will bring home the trophy in 2009.

My first game of the 2009 season was a Pirates vs Reds game at Great American Park.  I figured the best way to close the season was by making my final game of the 2009 season a Pirates vs Reds game at Great American Park.

I left my house around 11 AM, and arrived just before 4 PM.

Unfortunately, the gates at Great American don't open until 90 minutes before the first pitch, so I would have to wait around until 5:40 to get in.  I was thinking, "I should've gone to Baltimore."  (To see the Blue Jays vs Orioles).

I sat outside the center field gate, read the newspaper, checked scored on my phone, and waited for the gates to open.  While there, Cincinnati natives tried to engage me in conversations about the NFL and the Steelers, a subject that I didn't really care to talk about at a baseball game.  Unlike most Pittsburghers, I'm pretty indifferent when it comes to the Steelers and Penguins. 

When the gates finally did open, I ran in and snapped a quick picture.

BANG!

A ball hit two rows behind me.  I ran over and picked it up.  It was ball #1.

BANG!

Another ball hit a section to my left.  I ran over and grabbed that one as well. 

I looked in to see who was hitting.  It was #44 Brandon Moss, a player known for his batting practice displays of power, which hasn't translated to actual game play yet.

Jason Jaramillo, the Pirates backup catcher came up next and launched a ball several rows over my head.  No matter, there weren't many people there, so I was able to run up a few stairs and pick it up.  It was ball #3.

I was happy that the stands looked like this for most of BP,

which was a bit surprising, since it was a Saturday game.  It was also pretty chilly, which you can see from the garb the Reds fans are wearing.

I would go on to get my fourth ball of the day from Brandon Moss.  He hit a home run to my right that landed in a seat and stayed there.  I picked it up, for ball #4.

Right field isn't the most ideal place to ballhawk due to long railings that take up five rows.  It pretty much contains you to just one section.

The final Pirates group came up to hit, and it was filled with light hitting right handed batters.  Before making my way over to left field, I decided that I had to search for easter eggs, because there was a ton of empty space where fans hadn't passed through yet.

Also, Pirates power hitters Garrett Jones and Ryan Doumit had already hit before the gates opened, possibly putting some bombs at least 10 rows up into the seats.

The methodical search, up and down every row, would yield ball #5

and ball #6.

I then headed over to left field.

There were a few home runs hit, but none in my vicinity.

I was hoping that the Pirates would hit until 6:25 or so, since the game wasn't to begin until 7:10, but was disappointed to see the players run off the field at 6:05. 

Check out the picture I took from left field of the emptyness of the right field bleachers.  This would be a nice place to ballhawk if they would be normal and open at 4:30 on Saturdays (like PNC Park and Progressive Field).
I had a whole TWENTY FIVE MINUTES of ballhawking.  No wonder I didn't do so well here earlier in the season (eight balls over two games).

If I hadn't had bought a ticket directly behind the Pirates dugout, I may have left to get back to Pittsburgh at a decent hour.  Plus, 411 isn't a great looking number to me.  I wanted to get one more ball.

I walked around the stadium and snapped a few more pictures:

Before the game began, I got Andy LaRoche to toss me his warm up ball, except right before he was about to release it, he pump faked upon seeing a four year old girl with her glove up, two rows behind me.  He paused and pointed at the girl and underhanded the ball.  The ball floated two feet to my right.  I should've reached out and grabbed it, and given it to the girl, but I didnt.  I watched it float slowly by and land in the little girl's glove.  I started kicking myself for not catching it - it would've been ball #7 of the day.

I would have to try and get a ball by some other means.

I had great seats to do it:
Front row behind the Pirates dugout/camera well.
I was just to the left of where the players entered/exited the Pirates dugout.
It was a perfect spot to get a ball.

In the second inning, Pirates' first baseman Garrett Jones tossed me ball #7 as he came off the field.  I was a bit disappointed that he had switched the warm up ball tossed by the coach with the game ball that he was bringing in towards the dugout. 

I watched in subsequent innings as he did the same thing.

With the Pirates trailing by a large margin, I left in the 6th inning to make the four and a half hour drive back to Pittsburgh.  I got home sometime after 1:30AM.

Was it worth the trip for 25 minutes of batting practice?  I'd say so.  I ended the season on a positive note, with seven balls, and 412 snagged during the 2009 season.

Coincidentally, 412 is also my telephone area code, which is somewhat cool.

Today's baseballs:

Sweet spots:

STATISTICS:
Game:  7 balls (6 hit, 1 thrown)
Season:  412 balls (217 hit, 125 thrown, 70 device)
Games: 81 games (10 of which didn't have BP)
Average:  5.09 balls per game
Career:  578 balls
Streak:  96 consecutive games attended with at least 1 ball snagged.
Attendance:  24,539

There's only one more week left in the ballhawk league.

The winner this week was Erik Jabs, who would snag 44 balls across four days and five games. 

A few notes:

• Nick Pelescak set the single game PNC Park record of 14 balls this week, a record that would be matched by Erik the very next day.
• Erik Jabs snagged his first career foul ball, as well as his 400th ball of the 2009 season
• The District Boy finished a close second place this week - snagging a very respectable 37 balls in week 25.  He also eclipsed the 200 ball barrier.
  
• Nick Pelescak leap-frogged Chris P and Greg Barasch to get back into the top five.
• Alex is only five balls away from joining Zack, Erik and Happy Youngster in the 300 club.
• The Happy Youngster curtailed his ballhawking due to family obligations.  He has a slim chance in week 26 to still reach 400 balls in 2009 if he can have some big games at Coors Field in Week 26.  Wish him luck.

The ballhawk league will end after next week.  Good luck to everyone.

Here's how week 25 turned out:
Week 25 Leaders:

Total Balls Snagged:
1)  Erik Jabs 44
2)  District Boy 37
3)  Nick Pelescak 28

Games:
1)  Erik Jabs, District Boy, Nick Pelescak 5

Average Balls per Game:
1)  Zack Hample/Greg Barasch 10.00
2)  Erik Jabs 8.80
3)  District Boy 7.40

Hit Balls Snagged:
1)  Erik Jabs/Nick Pelescak 19
2)  District Boy 15
3)  Donny Haltom 8

Thrown Balls Snagged:
1)  District Boy 22
2)  Erik Jabs 18
3)  Chris P 12

Device Balls Snagged:
1)  Erik Jabs 7
2)  Greg Barasch 2
3)  Zack Hample 1

Competition Factor:
1)  Zack Hample
2)  Greg Barasch
3)  Alex


Here's a look at the overall 2009 season standings:

2009 Season Leaders:

Total Balls Snagged:
1)  Zack Hample 482
2)  Erik Jabs 405
3)  Happy Youngster 365

Games Attended:
1)  Erik Jabs 80
1)  Nick Pelescak 74
2)  Chris P 64

Average Balls per Game:
1)  Zack Hample 8.93
2)  Greg Barasch 7.43
3)  Donny Haltom 7.42

Hit Balls Snagged:
1)  Erik Jabs 211
2)  Nick Pelescak 184
3)  Zack Hample 161

Thrown Balls Snagged:
1)  Zack Hample 243
2)  Alex 241
3)  Chris P 174

Device Balls Snagged:
1)  Zack Hample 78
2)  Erik Jabs 70
3)  Happy Youngster 65

Competition Factor:
1)  Zack Hample
2)  Alex
3)  Greg Barasch

Now, a look at how many balls per game per category each ballhawk averages
Leaders:
Hit Balls per Game:  Zack Hample 2.98
Thrown Balls per Game:   Joe Faraguna 5.59
Device Balls per Game: Donny Haltom 1.83




Week 25 Photos
Ballhawks were given the option to submit a photo for this and future ballhawk league updates.  The photos could be of them making a catch, posing with a ball, a picture of a ball snagged, or something strange or interesting that they saw at a game.

Submitted by Erik Jabs:
Erik Jabs poses with his 400th ball of the 2009 season, snagged on Friday, September 25th.


2009 Ballhawk League Archive:
TOP BALLHAWK:
Week 1:  Happy Youngster 38  (Runner Up:  Zack Hample 31)
Week 2:  Zack Hample 27  (Runner Up:  Erik Jabs 21)
Week 3:  Zack Hample 30  (Runner Up:  Erik Jabs 21)
Week 4:  Zack Hample 40  (Runner Up:  Happy Youngster 39)
Week 5:  Zack Hample 31  (Runner Up:  Erik Jabs 22)
Week 6:  Erik Jabs 31 (Runner Up: Happy Youngster 26)
Week 7:  District Boy 40 (Runner Up: Greg Barasch 20)
Week 8:  Erik Jabs 18 (Runner Up:  Donny Haltom 17)
Week 9:  Donny Haltom 16 (Runner Up:  Erik Jabs 13)
Week 10: Zack Hample 27 (Runner Up: Shawn 26)
Week 11: Zack Hample 59 (Runner Up: Donny Haltom 23)
Week 12: Greg Barasch 36 (Runner Up: Nick Pelescak 22)
Week 13:  Chris P 24 (Runner Up:  Alex 17)
Week 14:  Greg Barasch 22 (Runner Up: Chris P 19)
Week 15:  Nick Pelescak 17 (Runner Up: District Boy 10)
Week 16:  Alex 21 (Runner Up: District Boy 19)
Week 17:  Joe Faraguna 18 (Runner Up: Happy Youngster 11)
Week 18:  Erik Jabs 22 (Runner Up:  Zack Hample 14)
Week 19:  Alex 38 (Runner Up: Joe Faraguna 31)
Week 20:  Alex 41  (Runner Up:  Erik Jabs 36)
Week 21:  Chris P 35 (Runner Up: Happy Youngster 34)
Week 22:  Nick Pelescak 24 (Runner Up: Greg Barasch)
Week 23:  Donny Haltom 30 (Runner Up: Chris P 22)
Week 24:  Zack Hample 54 (Runner Up: Happy Youngster 14)
Week 25:  Erik Jabs 44 (Runner Up:  District Boy 37)

Today would be my final game of the season at PNC Park. 

After missing yesterday's (Saturday's) game due to rain, I decided that I had to make it to the park one last time, even though it was raining when I left my house.

When I arrived at the park, there was basically no one there at all.  Many people stayed away early, which turned out to be a good thing. 

Around 11:15, pitchers began to meander out of the Pirates dugout and head toward the bullpen to sit and await to rain to ease up. 

I stood by the fence above the bullpen and hoped someone would begin to throw.

Eventually, Charlie Morton (hidden by the bullpen roof) started to throw with Luis Dorante, the Pirates bullpen coach.  I watched them finish up at 11:29, one minute before the gate would open to allow me to get close enough to ask for a ball. 

Luckily, the Pirates security staff was prompt and opened the gate at precisely 11:30, which happened to be precisely the moment that Morton was walking into the Pirates bullpen.  I stuck my head over the railing and asked Charlie if I could have a wet ball.  He had three in his glove, and figured he wouldn't mind getting rid of the ball that he had just thrown through the rain drops. 

He flipped up ball #1, and I was quickly on the board.

Today's game may be my final batting practice of the season - I may only attend one more game, and it's a day game after a night game.  You know what that means...

Meanwhile, I had been watching the weather, and decided that I would not attend tomorrows (Saturday's) game.  It is a Skyblast date, and the chance of rain is 100%.  That means no batting practice, large crowds, and an all around tougher time snagging balls.  I would need to have a huge day - I wanted reach the 400 balls snagged in one year benchmark.

Chaos had broken out in Pittsburgh the night before due to the G20 summit.  I was hoping that this would scare people away from coming out early to batting practice - even if the Pirates were giving away Bobbleheads to entice folks to watch a potential 100 loss team.

I was second in line at PNC Park, arriving an hour and a half early.  Helicopters hovered over my head,  regiments of soldiers passed on foot patrol

and there was even the cavalry passing by.
Pittsburgh had transformed into a military state. 
Hopefully people would stay home.

Around 4PM, I went down to the riverwalk with my friend Nick.    While there, an usher would pop his head over the wall and ask what I was doing. 

I told him I was trying to catch a ball, and that I had just seen one hit two rows from the top of the right field wall.  The usher disappeared, and emerged minutes later with the ball in his hand.

He tossed it down to me - it was ball #1, and I was on the board before the park even opened.  Nick meanwhile, had better luck, snagging two balls on the riverwalk.

When the gates opened, the man who was first in line, a man known as Baseball Joe, caused a log jam.  He had brought the wrong ticket to the game.  To make matters worse, he is deaf and mute, so there was some confusion when the ticket taker tried to explain that he had brought Saturday's ticket.  There is only one ticket scanner during the first half hour, so I had to wait a few seconds that seemed like an eternity.  The scanner scanned my ticket, and I ducked underneath the railing to get around Baseball Joe.  The maneuver allowed me to get into left field and have the place to myself for at least a good 45 seconds. 

There were no easter eggs to be found, but while I was searching, a Pirates batter hit a home run into section 136.  Neil Walker attempted to scale the wall to prevent the ball from leaving the park, but didn't quite possess the vertical leap to do so.  I walked over and picked up ball #2 from the third row after it hit in the bleachers.

Typically, I try to average 2-3 balls during the Pirates portion of batting practice.  Since they only hit for 10-15 minutes after the gates open, I consider that I good start.

I would get ball #3 off the bat of Steve Pearce.    He hit a home run toward section 136.  Nick had settled underneath the ball, and I was standing in the row directly behind him, in the third row of the section.  The ball was carrying well, and I had to jump at the last second to make the catch.  Unfortunately, I didn't make the catch.  The ball hit off of my glove and bounced directly to a man in the first row.  He bobbled it, and sent the ball back in my direction.  Reflexes took over, and I grabbed the ball out of the air.  I was rather mad at myself for not making the clean catch.  Its a bit difficult to jump in the air in the bleachers without banging your legs up.  Typically, I quickly get up on a bleacher to catch these types of balls that are carrying just out of my reach.

The Pirates then wrapped up their BP, and the Dodgers came out to hit.

The entire first group was all left handed batters.  Normally, this would be awful, since I was confined to left field.  However, coupled with the fact that Manny Ramirez was snagging in left field (he's rather lazy), this created the perfect storm for the glove trick.

I noticed ball #4 roll into the "North Side Notch" in left center field. 

It was right up against the wall, and an easy ball to pull up with the glove trick.  I was happy to see that the ball was stamped "Dodgers Win" in bright blue ink.  This was the first Dodgers win ball of my 2009 season, as I haven't been to any games with the Dodgers yet.

Moments later, another ball rolled to the same spot.  Seconds later, I had ball #5.

I stayed in sections 137 and 138 near the bullpen, waiting for balls to roll to the wall.    I watched as Manny Ramirez fielded a ball within earshot of me.  Myself and another fan asked for a ball in Spanish. 

We were standing directly next to each other.  Manny turned and lofted the ball at us.  It was no contest.  I had longer arms, and made the catch about a foot in front of the other guys glove.  It was ball #6.  I also think it may have been the only ball that Manny threw into the crowd in his time in left field.

Another few minutes passed by, and two more balls rolled to the wall.  I reeled up ball #7 with the glove trick, and did the same with ball #8.  Randy Wolf was coming over to pick up ball #8, but realized that I had it covered with the glove trick, and let it go, turning back to left field.

The ballpark had only been opened for 25 minutes, and I had already snagged 8 balls.  Could I challenge the Jabs/Pelescak PNC Park record of 14? 

No, as things slowed way, way down.  The Dodgers' batting practice approach reminded me of the Cardinals' in that the hit many balls to the opposite field.

I was getting frustrated.  The place looked like this around 5:30:

Which is nice, but there were still some folks clogging up rows, making me readjust my routes to any ball that was potentially coming into the stands.

These people got in my way a few times:

And this guy was the worse, because he stayed in virtually the same spot, but kept moving up or down one row, so I had to keep checking on his location.  

I try to always familiarize myself with my surroundings almost before every BP pitch so I don't crash into anyone or get blocked off from going for a ball.

In the last group, Ronny Belliard lofted a high fly ball that bounced on the warning track.  I moved over a section and positioned myself perfectly to catch the high bounce.  It was ball #9.

I only needed one more ball to complete my quest to get 400 balls.  I had began the 2009 season with a goal of 300, but after reaching that last month on August 20th, I had made 400 a new goal for the season, to keep me motivated for the last five weeks of the season.

It was about 6:05ish, and batting practice was about to end in a few minutes.  I was then faced with a tough decision.  Stay in left field, which looked like this at 6:00....

or head over to center field to try and glove trick a ball that had rolled to the wall.

I decided to go give the ball a try.  I rigged up the glove trick on the way over to center field, and non-chalantly made my way down to the front row.  (I didn't want to draw attention from the ushers by sprinting in there).

I looked around at the Dodgers players.  No one was in a hurry to come get the ball, which was directly below me at the base of the wall.

With that in mind, I lowered my glove down over the ball, and reeled in ball #10.

Ball #300 and #400 of 2009 had both come via the glove trick.  Snagging 400 balls in a season is quite an accomplishment.  I believe only Zack Hample, myself, and probably the Happy Youngster (who will likely do it soon) have snagged 400 or more regular season balls in one season.

After snagging the ball, I asked my friend Nick (who is closing in on 300 balls in one season) to snap my picture.

I then got 25 extra tickets scanned, and lugged the bobbleheads back to my car.  Noticing a large crowd waiting to get in the stadium (due to all the extra security measures), I decided to leave and not stay for the game. 

If I end the season on an even 400, that would be a pretty cool thing anyway.

Today's baseballs:

Sweet spots:

STATISTICS:
Game:  10 balls (3 hit, 2 thrown, 5 device)
Season:  400 balls (211 hit, 119 thrown, 70 device)
Games: 79 games (9 of which didn't have BP)
Average:  5.06 balls per game
Career:  566 balls
Streak:  94 consecutive games attended with at least 1 ball snagged.
Attendance:  19,452

After leaving PNC Park around 1:25, I made it to Progressive Field in Cleveland, and was in line at 3:32.  I was second in line.  This would be my second game of the day. 

When I ran in, I didn't find any easter eggs on the ground.  I paced up and down each aisle and did manage to find ball #1 and ball #2 laying in seats.  The second ball was an International League (AAA) ball - which the Tigers are known to use in lieu of major league baseballs.  I was pretty happy because I didn't have any of these yet this year.  After snagging 300 some regular major league baseballs this season, any variation is a welcomed departure from the mean.

Within the span of a minute, I lost out on three home run balls in center field.  All three balls bounced on this six foot wide concrete platform seperating the outfield wall from the seats:

The balls took huge hops and landed about 15 rows back, and I wasn't able to get to any of them in time.

Ball #3 was thrown by an Indians pitcher (standing on the left of the two pitchers).

He snagged a ball, inspected it, then turned to throw it to the "crowd."  I was about five rows back, and held up my arms to get his attention.  He threw a nice arc right over those in the front row, and right into my glove. 

I used the term crowd loosely because when the gates opened at 4:30, there were only six people in line.  This was the scene at 4:50:

About mid way through the Indians BP, a left handed batter hit a towering high fly ball to right field.  Of course, the ball bounced on that blasted platform again, and took another high bounce.  Due to the angle that it hit, the ball went almost straight up in the air. 

I actually had to run down a few steps to get into positon for this ball.  These two guys were camped directly under neath it, waiting for it to come down:

They got in each other's way, and the ball bounced directly to me on the richochet.  It was ball #4.  I was happy to see that it was a Twins' Metrodome commemorative baseball.  The Indians and the Tigers had both played the Twins last week, so there was sure to be plenty of their baseballs mixed in.

Ball #5 was a home run that I caught on the fly off the bat of Shin Soo Choo.  When he hit the ball, I had to put my head down and run to the spot it was going to land.  I got there just and time and made a nice catch.  I quickly looked down to see if it was another Metrodome ball.  It wasn't.  That turned out to be a bad choice, because Choo hit the next pitch towards me, but I didn't see it hit, since I was inspecting the baseball I just caught.  I picked the ball up at the last second.  I made a reaction play to run over and catch it, but it hit off of my glove and bounced several rows down.  One of the guys that I beat out for ball #4 got it.  "You can't get them all," he said.

His next time up, Choo hit a ball into the Heritage Park trees in center field.  Since he was blistering the ball, I waited until he was done hitting, and then made my way over to Heritage Park.  I was worried that some other ballhawk would've ran over and got the ball.  Luckily, there was basically no one in attendance, so the ball was still waiting for me about two minutes later.

I used my "Cleveland Stick," a collapsible 6 foot measuring device, to move the ball closer so I could grab it.  It was another Metrodome ball.  It was also ball #6.  More importantly, I had reached double digits for the day - having snagged 4 balls earlier in the day at PNC Park.

I got ball #7 from Indians' pitcher Chris Perez.  A ball rolled to the wall and I asked for it along with a man who was playing the "how about a ball for a man on his 50th birthday" card.  Luckily the guy was a Tigers fan in Detroit gear, so Perez tossed me the ball.  It was yet another Metrodome ball.

The Indians finished hitting, and batting practice was only half over.  I would have a decent chance at double digits for the game.

By the way, here's the crowd at around 5:25, when the Tigers began to hit.
By the way, see that Progressive White SUV in the background?  It shoots out four t-shirts everyday at around 4:45-5:00.  I was easily able to snag a t-shirt, my second one this season.   Anyway...

I got ball #8 off the bat of an unknown Tigers lefty.  The ball was a home run ball that landed in an empty row to my right. 

I had competition from behind, with two guys trying to reach other the seats to grab the ball.  I got to the ball a split second before them, snatching it with my bare hand.  Guess what?  Another Metrodome commemorative!

Things then slowed way down for me.  I wouldn't get another ball for the next half hour.

I watched Miguel Cabrera pepper the left field bleachers with home run balls.  There was only one usher there picking them all up, and he had his work cut out for him.

One of Cabrera's homers nearly hit the scoreboard.  It landed in the very top row of the bleachers (as marked by the red X in the picture below.)

At 6:00, I ran over to those left field bleachers to look for some easter eggs that the usher potentially may have missed.  I searched the rows at the bottom, and watched as one teenager found one.  I then ran up towards the top of the bleachers, and found this waiting for me, three rows from the top.

Yes, another Metrodome ball - my fifth commemorative of the day, and ball #9.

Things in left field weren't going well, so I made my way back over to right field as the final lefties were finishing up.

Curtis Granderson ( i think - a black left handed batter ) - hit a deep home run to my left in right field.  Again, it was going to be about two sections over, so I put my head down and ran over to where I judged it was going to land.  I ended up making a really nice catch on the run for ball #10 of the day.  I got a nice hand from the few people that were still in right field watching batting practice.  It was also my fifth consecutive Metrodome ball snagged, and my sixth commemorative of the day.

Two pitches later, Granderson hit another home run to right field.  This ball was high in the air, and I had plenty of time to weave and correct my route so I'd be in the right spot.  I caught the ball with a basket style catch for ball #11.  It was the last hit of BP, as the Tigers then ran off the field.  I quickly snapped this picture right after batting practice ended to show all the room I had.

I love weekday batting practices at Progressive Field.

I left after batting practice, happy that after snagging 14 yesterday, I had snagged 15 today (albeit over 2 games).  It was a new "one-day" record for me.

On my way out of the stadium, I had a few reminders from the trees that fall was here, and baseball season was almost over.


Farewell Progressive Field - See you next year

Today's baseballs:
Sweet spots

STATISTICS:
Game:  11 balls (8 hit, 2 thrown, 1 device)
Season:  390 balls (208 hit, 117 thrown, 65 device)
Games: 78 games (9 of which didn't have BP)
Average:  5.00 balls per game
Career:  556 balls
Streak:  93 consecutive games attended with at least 1 ball snagged.
Attendance:  23,516
Race for 400 in 2009:  Need 10 in 3 games,  3.33 per game