4/10/26 — Astros vs Mariners
My first game against the M’s division rivals and my former hometown team: the Astros.
This was a bit of a baseball-heavy weekend as Leo and I attended this Friday night game, and then the whole family would return Sunday.
This was our first time sitting in the upper deck above the left field bullpens. We were second row, and Leo found every opportunity to peer over the railing watching the pitchers warm up. We got to see a lot of bullpen activity tonight with Speier, Bazardo, Wilcox, Brash, and Munoz all throwing.
This was also our first time seeing Emerson Hancock pitch in person this season. Leo had become especially fascinated with his sweeper after watching his start against Cleveland on TV earlier in the season.
We enjoyed watching Hancock last season too, especially his Father’s Day start, so there’s already a bit of continuity forming whenever we see him take the mound. Tonight was not his sharpest outing, but he battled through traffic all night and nearly escaped a bases-loaded jam untouched. Even after allowing 3 runs, he still left the game carrying a 2.04 ERA. Leo and I are already finding ourselves excited whenever Hancock takes the mound.
Compared to the JRod squad, we were much higher up in these bleacher seats, so I was not expecting many chances at a ball. Lo and behold, Randy Arozarena smashed a rocket to left center field, landing just a few feet away from us.
I felt so close to catching it, but it plunked into the stands a couple seats over. A fan sitting in the front row grabbed it and promptly handed it to a young kid sitting nearby. Leo handled it really well. He seemed more excited about being close to the moment than disappointed about missing the ball itself.
One fun aspect of sitting near the front row in left field is getting to watch the bullpen pitchers’ entrances before the gate to the field even opens. And like our last game in March, the warmth of the pyrotechnics was a welcome respite from the cold marine layer.
As the game neared its conclusion, some seats opened up in front of us, letting us get a better glimpse of Munoz warming up. I managed to capture Leo shouting “He brings the heat!”
Later, we also started chatting with the fan who had grabbed Randy’s homer. Upon realizing that Leo genuinely knows ball, he told us he wished he had handed the ball to Leo instead. I responded, “We’ve got a few more games we’re attending this year. Who knows?”
Final: Mariners 9, Astros 6
Seats: Section 184, row 2 (above the bullpens)
Memory: Bullpen experience in a bullpen heavy game. So close to catching a home run ball.