But enough of my gluttony, onto the photographs of FanFest!
The hometown news crews were parked on the sidewalk with care in the hopes that the commissioner of baseball soon would appear. I had hoped, perchance to dream, for a chance encounter with WCPO-TV's dreamy Tanya O'Rourke. Alas, it was not to be. [How many literary references can I pack into one paragraph?]
I arrived at the opening each day, as you may have expected, and was able to snap a variety of photos before seas of humanity flooded the three floors of the convention center and obscured the sightlines.
Above you will see portions of the main floor. Portions. And there were two other floors of attractions.
One day of the five-day event was Military Appreciation Day. Immediately upon the gates opening that morning, all patrons were stopped just inside the atrium for a brief ceremony to honor both the active duty and retired from all branches of service. During the playing of the National Anthem, I stood next to legendary Red Sox pitcher Luis Tiant.
That is "El Tiante" in the black shirt with his back to me, facing the flag and with his hand over his Cubano heart. Trust me, it's him. "El Tiante" will make an appearance later in this post. On the last day of FanFest I got a backside photo of another foreign-born pitching legend:
Anybody recognize this Cooperstown Hall of Fame pitcher?
This could be my favorite ASG 2015 photo!
Stepping off the escalator, Lou and I bolted around this former National League Cy Young Award honoree (1971) as we sprinted toward the autograph line for Rollie Fingers (not photographed, above). Hustling past this seven-time 20-game winner, I wrestled with my Android Galaxy S9000 to switch it to selfie mode and snapped over my shoulder this awesome, blurry picture of Lou (wearing red, at right) and..... Fergie Jenkins. If you study the image closely, you will see the broad smile on Lou's face.
Bringing a broad smile to the face of FanFest attendees was MLB Network's Heidi Watney:
An illustrious crew of MLB Network on-air talent such as Sean Casey made hour-long appearances at the MLB Network desk to pose for photographs with fans.
One exhibit at FanFest presented the ways in which the game of baseball has been communicated about and reported on, down through the ages. Displays of old hardware? I'm there!
Yes! That is correct! You are in fact looking at a Blickensderfer model portable typewriter, circa 1885. Keys, paper roller and not much else. How cool is that?!
Ticker tape machine, circa 1910. You say Holla!, I say John Pierpont Morgan! .....And Phat Daddy becomes physically ill.
Who is kidding who?! We're all here for the autographs.
"El Tiante" was so happy to see me that he took precious time out of our one-on-one interaction to drink his coffee. ¡Dios mío! After putting his coffee down we actually shared a funny interaction made all the more funny because I'm not certain we understood one another completely. Here is Tiant's reaction to my jocular witticisms:
Also happy to see me was the greatest living Reds pitcher, Mario Soto:
Stepping up to meet Mr Soto, his mobile phone rang and he pounced on it like a weakly-hit grounder up the middle on a 2 Ball 2 Strike circle change. Note he has my baseball and his pen in the same hand. I had no jocular witticisms for Mario after this. But I was respectful. I simply thanked Mario and moved on. I still think Mario is great. I'm just glad he didn't throw the ball at me (although I could have led the 2015 ASG FanFest in HBP).
The lines were long for autographs, in some cases approaching 2 hours. I was fortunate often to be in line nearby or next to some fairly knowledgeable baseball fans who also were in possession of standard social interaction skillz. Believe you me, this is not always the case. I shared some great conversations with other fans about the remarkable career of Mario Soto, for example. In one line, an older guy wearing a Tigers cap and Denny McLain jersey asked a nearby volunteer about that afternoon's weather forecast. Sunny and warm, chance of afternoon showers came the friendly reply. Interjecting myself, as I am often wont, I added in a conspiring tone (as I am often wont), That's the forecast every afternoon in Cincinnati. The old Tiger fan's eyes lit up;
You know what they say about where I'm from, in Detroit?
Everyone within a 10-foot radius could see what was coming next;
Just wait 15 minutes and the weather will change!
Instantly, like Mario Soto pouncing on his phone so as not to engage me in polite conversation, some sneering jerk wearing a Giants cap (fair-weather fan, undoubtedly) said contemptuously to the old guy They say that about everywhere. Funny but true. And mean, too. Like I said, standard social skillz are sometimes absent in these long autograph lines.
Johnny Franco, surprisingly, had zero personality and did not even make eye contact with me. Very much against type. As such, he receives no photograph here. We all have bad days/moments, and I'll chalk up my experience with the former Reds closer as just one of those misfortunate moments.
The former MLB player which I had as autograph target #1 on my list, Hall of Famer Juan Marichal, I was never able to get. I tried every day to no avail.
The most energetic retired player, who took the most time to chat and even suggested to pose for a photo - and therefore win the theoretical prize as Most Fan Friendly - was legendary Reds pitcher Jim Maloney (the hardest-throwing Red until the arrival of the Cuban Missile):
Below, Lou (at right) and I acquire the John Hancock of Hall of Famer Rollie Fingers on the Convention Center's third floor (and grand ballroom). Were in not for the gregarious Jim Maloney, Rollie would have earned my Best All-Star FanFest Autograph Experience Award. The photo below was taken on the last day of FanFest. But on the first day, Rollie was the first signature I obtained (his was the only I acquired twice) due to a malfunction with the authentication gerbils seated to the right of Rollie, he and I talked very pleasantly for about 30 seconds. 30 seconds in autograph interaction time is an eternity.
With such long wait times for autographs (not complaining here, I'm just sayin'), I had plenty of time to study the high-rise scene just outside the Convention Center windows.
Carew Tower at center, the Queen City Square (seemingly dwarfed) to the immediate right and well off in the distance.
Lacking formal training in HVAC, I'm not sure if this massive apparatus hulking atop a downtown building is a freshwater-retention cell, central air control unit, elevator shaft, or nuclear reactor but the faded Shillito's graphic on its side is the element that caught my eye. Corporate mergers and consolidation put a knife in the heart of Shillito's in 1986 so that faint beacon for local retail has, evidently, been calling out for the past 30 years.
Lou was unable to attend the first few days of FanFest due to a family vacation/reunion along the eastern seaboard so, after getting my first Rollie Fingers autograph, I sent Lou the wish you were here photo below:
This seflie thing might just catch on! Could be a trend. You never know.
Roll the credits!
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