Gonzai Gallery

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Nine days. In order, Akron, OH; Cleveland, OH; Toledo, OH; Columbus, OH; Erie, PA; Jamestown, NY; Batavia, NY; Rochester, NY; Syracuse, NY; and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, PA. Along the way there was an earthquake in Akron, a tornado 500 feet from the hotel in Toledo, 2 inches of rain in 90 minutes in Erie, and a spectacular and rare Northern Lights display in Rochester, which I slept through. The whole thing was all about minor league baseball (with a brief look-see at Jacobs Field), with at least one game every day except in Erie, where the 1st game was rained out. And somewhere north of 400 autographs. Those were the days...

OK, upfront here, I used to have partial season tickets for the AAA Richmond Braves. Yes, I drove 3+hours each way to see a minor league baseball game, 10 or so times a season, to a fan-unfriendly and unfriendly fan stadium that looked like the wrong half of a UFO had landed on a train track. And I broke my ankle in their then-unpaved parking lot. Haven't been down there in a few years, but the crappy ballpark finally caught up with them and the Atlanta Braves vamoosed, leaving the stadium empty last year. This year, Richmond succeeded in swiping the Norwich Navigators' AA franchise and will play this year as the AA Eastern League Flying Squirrels.

Yes. Flying Squirrels. For real. Hey, guys? A bizarre nickname and logo will not cover up a crap stadium with obnoxious fans (half of whom are smoking like chimneys).

FTR, the (swallows hard) Flying Squirrels logos. Someone, help us.