Gregg Mizuta: Sports Photography

Outside the White Lines

At a ballgame, what is happening off the field can be as interesting as the game. The dugout is usually a center of activity and chatter but sometimes when the team is on the field, it can become a quiet sheltered place to contemplate the nuances of the game.

Vale head coach, Rick Yraguen watches from the dugout during the Vale-Weiser game on April 7, 2012 at Walter Johnson Memorial Field in Weiser, Idaho. Vale won the game in 5 innings, 12-0, to improve its record on the season to 6-5.

Occasionally I’ll strike up a conversation between innings and during this game I had the opportunity to meet long time Weiser resident, Dale Emert, who was announcing the game, keeping the scorebook and teaching Samantha Soliz how to determine whether a particular play was an error or a hit. The ballpark is named after Hall of Fame pitcher Walter Johnson who played in Weiser before signing with the Washington Senators in 1907. Johnson would go on to become one of the most dominant pitchers in the game’s history, setting several pitching records of which some still stand. I had an enjoyable and informative quick conversation with Dale as he shared a few stories about the legend.

Below the “Walter Johnson Memorial Park” sign on the pressbox, Dale Emert doubles as the announcer and scorekeeper for the Weiser-Vale baseball game.

Being a baseball fan starts early. A few scenes of youth waiting for their time to be part of the game between the lines.

Watching the game from the third base side when not playing catch between innings.

Future Vale Viking ballplayers know that it’s about getting the bat on the ball.

Weiser’s ballpark has the regular setup with bleachers behind the backstop, but it also has a grassy hill on the first base side. Some take the blanket on the grass approach while others prefer the lawn chair on the top of the hill view.

A grassy hillside provides a fan friendly view of Cody Collins batting during the third inning of the Vale-Weiser game on April 7, 2012 at Walter Johnson Memorial Field in Weiser, Idaho. Collins went 2 for 2, with two singles, two runs, and a hit by pitch in a five inning 12-0 Vale win.

Sometimes the ball starts between the lines… and ends up outside the white lines. A young fan in the outfield bleachers watches Derrek Rodriguez go yard in the third inning.

Derrek Rodriguez hits one out of the park in the third inning of the Vale-Weiser game on April 7, 2012. Rodriguez went 1 for 3, with a home run and a base on balls.

Thanks for stopping by to take a look. There are more images in the 2012 Baseball – Vale vs Weiser photo gallery. See you at the ballpark. -Gregg

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 10th, 2012 at 9:58 pm. It is filed under Baseball and tagged with Baseball, Vale, Vikings, Weiser. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.