2014: Life of a MLB Season Ticket Holder: What a Weird Week!

Most of the time I try to tailor my column to encompass the season ticket holder experience to all fans but this week was so strange that it's going to be all about the my week with the A's. In all my years of having tickets and going to games I have never encountered a week, especially an opening week, that played out quite like this. Whatever bizarre thing could happen did happen.

Mom and I on Opening Day! (Photo credit: A's Fan Photos)

First of all I live in Northern California. It has not rained since September (there was a rain delay at an A's game so I remember) and everyone is worried about a drought. So, the week leading up to Opening Day it rained. Thunder, lightening, small tornados the whole deal - this stuff never happens in NorCal at least not often. The last time the A's had a game rained out was in 1998.

Opening Night went great with the exception of having that freezing feeling that you can feel in your bones. It was literally bone chilling cold which most of you will laugh at because it was only in the upper 30's, lower 40's. So it was cold but there was not a whole lot of rain. A's lost but that is typical - finally! - one thing that was normal during the week. The A's have lost their last ten Opening Day games. True story. But we've been the the play-offs three times in the past nine years so I kind of look at it as batting .300!

The Tuesday the game was rained out but at least we were aware of this prior to heading out to the O,Co Coliseum in Oakland. I live about 30 minutes outside of Oakland, 20 minutes on a good day. Anyway, Wednesday there was sun and there was something else highly unusual, a double header to make up for Tuesday's game. I went to the day game on Wednesday but didn't stay for the night game. The A's went 1-1 which was fine with me. That left us at 1-2 after three days of the week. Could be worse but our supposedly awesome new closer acquired during the off season from the Baltimore Orioles blew the games both Monday and Wednesday night. He did not pitch in the day game we won! Coincidence? Maybe or maybe I am just cynical.

To read about the rest of my crAzy week (and see me "nerded out" in some major NERD POWER gear) ... CLICK HERE! Brought to you by Sports Unbiased

You can find us on Twitter @OakAsSocksGrl and @SportsUnbiased1

MLB Network's Face of MLB Fan Vote: Just who is This Guy with the Glasses?

Getty Images

If you are a big baseball fan or even just a causal baseball fan you probably watch MLB Network (MLBN) from time to time if not, like me, multiple times per day. If you have watched MLBN in the last month then you are probably wondering, "who is that guy with the glasses?" I don't blame you, he is on the Oakland Athletics who, less face it, no matter how good they are just don't get a lot of press. Just look at Josh Donaldson's snub from last season's All-Star Game

I have to pause here because I am sure you are probably wondering, "Who the heck is Josh Donaldson?" Well, he is the All-Star caliber, finished fourth in the MVP voting in 2013 and very dedicated third baseman for the Oakland Athletics. But this article is not about the Oakland's Bringer of Rain.

Again, where am I going with this right? How in the world is this all still related to that guy with the glasses, right? I'm just trying to show you how little press the A's get each year except talking revolving around their "old stadium' and "small fan base."

Each year MLB Network holds a fan decided competition online. A "face" of each Major League Baseball organization is chosen and they then compete go head to head against each other in a bracket style playoff.

(Image courtesy of Jamey Van Dyke @PerfectGameGear)

This year the Face of the Oakland Athletics as voted on by the fans is, second baseman, Eric Sogard. He's a nice guy who quietly does his job and does it well. Until now was only known for making pitcher Matt Garza a little too mad for knowing how to bunt properly and for as, previously mentioned, wearing glasses. Sogard is one of very few, if any, major league players who wear their glasses on the field. Stephen Vogt, Oakland's catcher, said of Sogard,

“I think he’s what the A’s are all about, he’s under-the-radar and very good, the epitome of the Oakland ‘As.

Over the past year Sogard and his glasses have gotten the attention of the Oakland fans. The A's, who do have a somewhat smaller fan base than say the New York Yankees, have quite a mighty one. Oakland fans have been called by many the loudest fans in baseball. Now they are trying to make themselves nationally heard in MLBN's Face of the MLB competition.

Sogard as everyone's favorite professor Dr. Indiana Jones (Image courtesy of Omar G @Omar01)

Sogard is a fan favorite because everyone loves a guy with glasses and a lot of hustle. His nicknames include The Professor and Harry Potter (I once heard someone yell, "Expelliamus," in a game where Sogard turned a double play). His other monikers, often used as hashtags to identify him on Twitter, are NerdPower and RallySpecs. At one point his glasses even had their own Twitter account.

Since being voted as "The Face," as his teammates now call him, Sogard surpassed the Chicago Cubs' first baseman Anthony Rizzo and Colorado Rockies' fan favorite, shortstop Troy Tulowitzki in the first and second rounds of the bracket. Even more surprising was that he beat out Tulowitzki by a whopping 68% of the fan votes. Sogard was of course very humble on the subject of his new celebrity saying,

“Obviously, it started as a joke more than anything, but the fans are starting to grab a hold of it and run with it. Obviously, my baseball credentials don’t match up to Tulowitzki, but it’s great to see the power of the Oakland fans when they come together.”

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