The DHC Podcast
Ever wondered what it’s like to be truly involved in sports? Wonder no more!
On this podcast, I’ll sit down with players, GMs, owners, and passionate fans like you to uncover how they fell in love with sports. We’ll dive into their unique journeys, explore the business side of the game, and discuss the endless possibilities that the sport offers.
From behind-the-scenes stories to deep conversations about the sport, I’m here to explore it all—while having a ton of fun along the way!
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The DHC Podcast
Missed Baseball Games to Vegas Adventures PT2
Who knew that betting apps and Cinnabon breakfasts could make for such an unforgettable weekend? Join us as we unravel the tales from the AAA Championship trip to Las Vegas, where our friends Paul, Eric, and Val ventured into the hustle and bustle of Sin City. Though I couldn’t attend, their stories brought me along for the ride—complete with baseball influencer sightings, some questionable autograph antics, and Val's top-notch hospitality. We're embracing the unpredictability and delight of minor league baseball, all while dreaming of future escapades.
Baseball isn't just America's pastime; it's a global passion. Our episode takes a swing at understanding the intricate world of minor league baseball, with playoff strategies and the charm of team gear sparking lively conversations. Reminiscing about the Omaha triple-A all-star game and the excitement of the World Baseball Classic, we explore what makes international competitions so electrifying. We're also looking forward to the 2026 Classic, certain it will be a grand slam for fans worldwide.
There's more ahead than just baseball chatter. Sharing the quirks and joys of traveling with friends, we navigate the chaos of the Vegas Strip and plot potential adventures to Puerto Rico. We're also thrilled to recount our network's growth, celebrating chance meetings with podcast personalities like Tyler Maughan and the invaluable efforts of Val in bringing us together. With a nod to our next guest, who promises deep-sea fishing tales and stadium food secrets, we're eager for what's to come in this vibrant, ever-evolving community.
The Dad Hat:
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Stadium Food Girl:
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Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@stadiumfoodgirl
Curved Brim Media: https://curvedbrimmedia.com/
Make sure to follow the Dad Hat Chronicles: https://linktr.ee/TheDadHatChronicles
Is anybody there? What's up? Dathack Crew, and welcome to another episode of the Dathack Chronicles podcast. This week we finish our conversation. So, paul, eric, val and I, we finish our conversation about the trip to the AAA Championship in Vegas. Okay, this was, you know, it was a little fun but at the same time a little sad because I was not able to be part of it. But I was super happy that my friends were able to partake and participate in what was end up being a lot of cool things, uh, for triple, a championship, minor league baseball guys. So, uh, without further ado, I'll give you the episode.
Speaker 1:That's what I wanted to do. That's what I wanted to do. I wanted to go to see a bunch of games you know like on tv and all that, and then just enjoy that. That's that was my goal. Right, I'm like, all right, let's go to like a bunch of games you know like on tv and all that, and then just enjoy that. That's that was my goal. Right, I'm like, all right, let's go to like where there's a bunch of football games, sports going on, and then let's, you know, put a couple bets and then have fun the rest of the night see, that's what I tried doing.
Speaker 3:But the betting company that's at the hotel and I won't name that I felt like I didn't like their app. There wasn't't a lot of prop bets. I like kind of the rushing and receiving and passing and stuff. That was good but I didn't really care for it that much. We went after we finally woke up Saturday morning we went to Paul and Amy went and got some Starbucks and then I went upstairs to the food court and got Cinnabon, got a cinnamon roll, and we were sitting there talking and then the K-State-Oklahoma State game was on some TV. So we were kind of watching that a little bit, not too focused on it.
Speaker 1:You shouldn't have At least Shana's not.
Speaker 3:Yeah, no, she was pretty, not very happy about that, but we didn't watch a ton of football. Because then after that we we didn't watch a ton of football, but because then after that we went over to New York, new York, and had a little bit of lunch, and then we Nathan's hot dogs drove, yeah, drove over to Aria, oh yeah, and parked and then took this little tram that was about to dump us sideways.
Speaker 3:It was like leaning a lot, it's like three miles an hour, and it's just like three miles an hour, and it's just like so we took that over to caesar's and or basically bellagio, and then walked over to caesar's to check out the little uh fish tank that paul wanted to show us, and then made our way back it was somewhere to walk it's.
Speaker 4:It's about the journey. We saw a lot of stuff on the way. Yeah, I'm sure you did I'm sure you did but I kept telling paul.
Speaker 3:I was like I don't know why val wants to come over to the hotel. We can just take. It's just two of you. We can put you in the car because we had a pretty big size suv that we rented so we had plenty room. And, ed, if you would have made it, we had a third row so you could have laid and stretched out in the very back and stretched out.
Speaker 1:Yeah. So let me ask you this overall, like what it was overall was a good, good weekend, a good showing for my, for minor league baseball. Like overall, the championship and everything.
Speaker 3:So what surprised me is that when I went two years ago, they did the International League Championship game, the Pacific Coast League Championship, and then the AAA National Championship game and the crowds were so, so Reno was in it. Uh, they won the uh, what had that been the Pacific Coast League? And then they were in the championship but lost to Durham. Um, so they had a decent following because Reno was probably the closest out of anybody, obviously, obviously besides Las Vegas. But they announced it was just under 9000. So it was actually a pretty big crowd. So, with being Omaha and Sugar Land from like two teams yeah.
Speaker 3:Like Paul said earlier, I was out there for the most part watching the game because the Kansas City Royals, aaa, so a lot of guys that have been up in the majors. I'm like, oh, paul, first baseman Nick Prado, he's been with Kansas City. Uh, pitcher, he's been with Kansas City. Blah, blah, blah. Um. Then we saw some guys waiting outside of the uh kind of back gate at the end after the game waiting for autographs ended up. I did get Nick Prado's autograph, but everybody else they were like obviously done, they're like, yeah, we lost, we're done, so they basically good old jerks yeah, so overall the the environment was pretty good, pretty big crowd.
Speaker 3:Uh, they had some baseball influencer there that was giving away a couple playstations and I tried getting one and I they did trivia to give those away. I knew both answers, but they had a bunch of little kids and they were just calling on them. So I'm like me, me, me, and they wouldn't call I'm a big kid so I could have had a playstation 5 and I really want one because I want to play the new college football, ncaa college football.
Speaker 1:But I'm more of a shooter when it comes to video games.
Speaker 4:It's all right though because eric then like muscled some of those kids out of the way to get Nick Prado's autograph after the game Good job.
Speaker 1:Good on you, buddy, I was actually probably younger than most of the guys there, because most of those guys were going to sell it at the card shows.
Speaker 3:Probably yeah. No, I thought overall it was very good. Val, like Paul said, was a really great host, took great care of us and got to meet chef g and then got to meet adriana, so a lot of fun for sure and I'll have y'all know me.
Speaker 2:And another lady did the wave at the hockey game and it was awesome um, I tried.
Speaker 1:I was doing the wave in our section upstairs, but nobody else is doing it, so yeah, because these, these two knuckleheads don't like doing the wave uh, yeah but first of all, okay, none of you were invested in it because by the by the time that you guys I'm sure we're doing the wave your team omaha, was getting their asses handed to them. So might as well you would have had fun with, uh, with the wave no, definitely not gonna do that, I don't care if we're down 95 or up 130.
Speaker 3:We're not doing the wave. I kind of figured it would be going that way, because Sugar Land won the series against Reno in two and then they had pretty good pitching and really good hitting. But then Omaha had to go to game three to be able to advance and so they used up all their pitching and I didn't figure they'd have much pitching left which you could tell. So yeah, I thought overall Sugar Land probably was going to win just by their offense and Omaha not having the pitching staff to get it done.
Speaker 2:They did take a lead.
Speaker 3:Do what?
Speaker 2:I was saying, which is why the over was a lock.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it was Sugar Land jumped out to an early lead. Omaha came back and took it after that, but then Sugarland came right back.
Speaker 1:It was over after that. They had a lead for like a minute.
Speaker 4:It was 4-3 Omaha for like a minute.
Speaker 3:Sugarland scored in like every first five innings, like at least one run in all the first five innings. So they had the lead for a third of an inning and then they gave it up.
Speaker 4:Yeah yeah, that third inning went on forever. Yeah, it was like nine runs scored. Yeah, one thing to answer val's question about the game and the atmosphere was, I think that because it was the triple-a championship game and they were you, it was a serious baseball moment, right Like it sort of mattered for these franchises. It wasn't very minor league baseball-y, right Like there wasn't a lot of like goofy between any activities. There were a couple. There was the one where they like put people in the like the big sphere, like the big inflatable sphere, and they, you know, try to knock each other over. I don't know how that doesn't get people injured and cause a lot of lawsuits. That game, um, but it was, it was not. It was a more sort of serious baseball atmosphere than than even like a typical triple a game for like corporates and things like that, for just just from like the focus was on the baseball.
Speaker 4:I mean, for us the focus was, let's be honest, on the food, uh, but uh, the. The focus on the field, I think, was, uh, you know, for the baseball.
Speaker 1:Interesting. Would you go again?
Speaker 4:100%. I would do it every year. Vegas is easy for me to get to. Are they going to do it in Vegas next year?
Speaker 2:I hope.
Speaker 4:I think They've done it a few years in a row.
Speaker 1:That's what I'm saying. So I wonder where they're going to have it next year If they're going to change it.
Speaker 4:It's a great venue for it. You can reliably count on the weather To be good. That was my guess. I don't think a great venue for it.
Speaker 1:You can reliably count on the weather to be good. That was my guess. I don't think you can have it in other areas of the country that's up in the Northeast. You really couldn't do that. Ohio can't do that.
Speaker 4:Right, maybe El Paso.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:The only one I can think of.
Speaker 4:Maybe Durham, that's pretty north, that's as far north as they never have hurricanes in Septemberember uh in north carolina no, they never do until they do, and then you know weather's always great in north carolina in september sweet jesus, I will say it was announced today that, uh, big league weekend is I saw that.
Speaker 1:I saw that that. Oakland's playing.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:It's not Oakland.
Speaker 3:According to Val's screenshot, it is they didn't change that they didn't. Oh boy.
Speaker 2:But it'll be them against Arizona, so y'all should try to come out for that.
Speaker 1:That's March 28th, right.
Speaker 2:March 8th and the 9th.
Speaker 1:May the 9th.
Speaker 3:To also answer your question yes, I've gone twice now. I think they need to do the International League and the Pacific Coast League Championship games there as well, because I think you guys were talking about on your podcast the second part with the Aviators guy. He said that it's just one game, it's really hard to plan.
Speaker 3:Yeah, but where you had three games, I went to all three games Friday, saturday, sunday so I feel like they should do that again and I thought about going last year and almost last second went to last year's game but then ended up when I came to Vegas in December instead and went to the ballpark to see Enchant. But yeah, I would for sure go back again.
Speaker 4:Now, the interesting thing about that is that this year the Pacific Coast League and the International League those championships were determined by a three-game series or a best-of-three-game series.
Speaker 1:Right, yeah, wildcard style.
Speaker 4:Yeah. So they're probably not going to do that in Vegas. They're probably not going to play two separate three-game series in Vegas and then the championship game.
Speaker 1:What I didn't like is with those series which I watched the Clippers one is that they chose the first-half winner as the host city, right? Instead of why don't you just choose whoever has the best record and then have them be the host city?
Speaker 4:I don't fully understand the whole first half second half thing because in the minors in particular, your roster is likely to be quite different at the end of the second half.
Speaker 1:That's why they're doing the first and second half.
Speaker 3:A hundred percent Because, yeah, like in the Texas League, here we have season tickets to the Windsurge Tulsa. They won, I think two years ago, the first half, and by the middle or beginning of the second half their entire roster was up in Oklahoma City. And then so Wichita rolled them. They beat them like 29 to 1 in the three-game series. They outscored them 29 to 1. And so, yeah, I don't –ored them 29-1.
Speaker 1:I get it why they're doing it right? Because, again, you want to do first half and second half, but I'm with you. I think it should be the whole season that determines who's going to go the top two. We're going to tap one of these divisions and go with it. Now let me ask you this Do you think that they should do kind of something like that for double a single a like uh, for example, instead of doing it one? Um, instead of doing it first half, second half, do the you know the top two at the end of the season? Uh instead of the uh.
Speaker 3:first half, second half and would you do like an ultimate double, a champion? The only thing with that is they have like three leagues, so they have the Texas League, the Southern League and the Eastern League, whereas AAA is only the Eastern and the Pacific Coast League, and then one league is a whole lot bigger than the other one in AAA. Yeah, I don't understand that at all. That's wild.
Speaker 2:No, they should break it up into two Pacific West and Pacific wild break it up into two Pacific Pacific.
Speaker 1:They should they really should like break it up into like down the middle, Like all right, you guys are in the Pacific, you guys are in international.
Speaker 3:Also bring back the all-star game in the minor leagues.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I missed the all-star game. The all-star games are great. I went to a triple-A all-star game in Omaha, actually back in like I don't know like 2016, I think it was, and they had like all the mascots there. I mean that was really fun. Like all the mascots were there and uh, that was that was very cool. That was, uh, the AAA all-star game kind of like. Uh like like Ranger Amy always describes, the all-star game is like a United nations of uh of like baseball fans, right, you see everyone wearing all the different gears.
Speaker 4:I liked at the championship game in Las Vegas, a ton of fans wearing different gear from the different teams. You see all that, even just out and about at the grocery store. I'm checking out people's hats and t-shirts to see if they're wearing anything minor league baseball. There was a guy in the Vegas airport wearing no, it was just on the Vegas Strip. When there was a guy in the Vegas airport wearing a, was he no, it was just on the Vegas Strip. When we were walking around on the Vegas Strip, it was just Amy and me on Sunday and there was a guy wearing an Everett Aqua Sox cap and I'm like, hey, Aqua Sox, that's cool.
Speaker 1:And he's like, yeah, and he's like people always look startled when they're wearing minor league stuff and you recognize it right.
Speaker 3:Not a lot of people are like us who really do recognize and follow right like baseball, like the way we do. Yeah, just walking around shouting at people I'm like, hey, sweet, baby cakes jersey. There was a guy wearing a baby cakes jersey at the. You guys, you know, chased them, you know stalked them I did and I said I like your baby cakes jersey. He's like, yeah, worst name ever.
Speaker 4:I'm like no, it's not you go to hell, did you?
Speaker 3:him.
Speaker 1:Because at that point I would have throw punched him.
Speaker 3:Yeah and then now they're in Wichita, so thanks for sending them to Wichita.
Speaker 1:And there was another one too.
Speaker 3:I don't remember where we saw them at, maybe New York, new York or something. I was like Paul look it's a whatever.
Speaker 4:Yeah, that's right. Who was that? There was a dude, but my one of my favorite world baseball classic logos is the cap logo for the mexico team. Yeah and uh, there was a guy wearing that and I was just like dude. I love that cap so much and he was just like why are you talking to me?
Speaker 2:by the way, if you ever have a chance to go to a mexico game you know at the wbc, please do. I want to say that's the top three game that I ever went to in my life I saw the mexican team, but it was in Puerto Rico. Oh, I saw. No, I'm sorry, specifically against USA. That game was nuts, it was at Chase.
Speaker 1:That's a good game. I'll be honest, that's a good game. Mexico, usa Nothing beats Dominican in Puerto Rico. That is. That's a wild game.
Speaker 2:Noted for 2026.
Speaker 4:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Indeed Caribbean series is back in Miami. That's a series you guys need to go to.
Speaker 4:The well. So the Caribbean series was what I saw in Puerto Rico in 2016 or 2014. I forget what it was exactly, but but it was a while ago. The world baseball classic is high on my list right now in terms of remaining bucket list items.
Speaker 1:International baseball is just. It's a totally different atmosphere.
Speaker 4:Yeah, it's awesome, we went. So, as you know, ranger Amy and I went to two games in Japan.
Speaker 3:You went to Japan.
Speaker 4:And then poor Shannon and Samantha and Ericantha and eric had to hear like so many stories about japan and I was like amy, we're talking about japan too much. And she's like, you're right, you're right, you're right. The people in japan thought that we talked too much about our stories about japan, like it was just we couldn't stop ourselves I love those stories.
Speaker 2:I I could listen to that podcast over and over.
Speaker 1:Listen, all I'm saying is 2026, world Baseball Classic Pool A, san Juan, puerto Rico.
Speaker 3:I want to go to the one in Houston.
Speaker 1:United States, Mexico, Italy and Great Britain, you would that's March, right.
Speaker 4:That would be like March of 2026. But let's not wait for that. That's March, right. That would be like March of 20.
Speaker 3:You said 2025 or 2026?
Speaker 4:2026.
Speaker 2:That's like during spring training. So not all the big players on teams are in spring training at that time.
Speaker 4:Listen, mark it down.
Speaker 2:We went like Shohei Otani. We knew he wasn't going to be in spring training. He was.
Speaker 1:That was one of the best World Baseball Classic championships I've ever seen in my life.
Speaker 4:And listen if you guys don't know. I went to Japan that one time, did you? Yeah, can you believe it? What in the world they are so psyched to be two-time champions of the world Like that means a lot to the Japanese baseball team.
Speaker 1:This is why everybody was talking. All these idiots were like oh, that's just why you should never have the world baseball classic. You talk to the players and you talk to people from other countries and they're like this is the best thing ever.
Speaker 4:It's. It's doing a lot to grow the game. Ask.
Speaker 1:Edwin Diaz, who, by the way, tore his ACL doing a Puerto Rico game.
Speaker 4:Yeah.
Speaker 2:In the celebration.
Speaker 3:So he would, he said, he would, he said he didn't celebrate today on purpose because he's like I don't want to get that. So after they won, he's like I'm not doing that. But imagine, imagine paul who travels so much that he's like caribbean series. I don't know 2014, 2016, I don't know. I can travel so much. I didn't know where we all right I just have a bad memory is all.
Speaker 4:It was 2014. I know, I know that it was 2014, now that I say that I wonder if paul will ever make it to japan or not. Well, there was the one time maybe next time you y'all go I want to go, so bad well, the world baseball classic in puerto rico in 2026, that march of 26, planning japan for 2026 wb.
Speaker 2:March of 26. We're pointing Japan for 2026 WBC.
Speaker 4:Because I want to see them like.
Speaker 2:I don't know if they're going to raise a banner or whatever, but I'm like surely they're going to go all out for that first game in Japan.
Speaker 1:I'm just saying the Caribbean baseball series is set for 2025. Already set to go, all right. So it's going to be 31st of Januarybruary, 7th of 2025.
Speaker 2:I'm just putting it out there 25 is gonna be so nuts, because there's also that rivalry week that mlb highlighted. But it's in mexicali no, but there's a bunch of. There's like a whole like week of like serious, like rivalry games. It's just 2025 is gonna be so lit. I can't wait, it's gonna be amazing.
Speaker 4:It's gonna be fire, I think it going to be so lit. I can't wait. It's going to be amazing. It's going to be fire, I think.
Speaker 2:It's going to be so fire.
Speaker 4:We were all laughing because, well, okay, ranger, amy and I are considerably older than everyone we were traveling with there.
Speaker 1:Wait what.
Speaker 4:Eric and Shannon are slightly older than Val.
Speaker 1:I would have been closer to your age.
Speaker 4:We were laughing that first of all, if Val likes something, it's fire, and then if Val doesn't like something, there's nothing that Val doesn't like. So we never figured out what that was there was like. At no point was anything like the opposite of whatever fire might be.
Speaker 2:It's so funny. I had my tripod with my light and I was eating and and I was like, oh my gosh, this is so fire. And then I'd have another plate. Oh my gosh, this is so fire. And Ranger Amy pointed it out. I didn't realize. I say this is so fire Because I'm saying that to everything I'm eating and, mind you, I have one of everything. So, yeah, it was awesome.
Speaker 1:So definitely we should put it on the calendar that there's possibilities for many other international style series, tournament series, baseball games that we should attend, besides the AAA championship, which we do not know where, is going to take place in 2025.
Speaker 2:But if it's in Vegas, yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, if it's in Vegas, it's set. I mean we're, you know if there's not another hurricane.
Speaker 4:Can you go out like did they know or does like? Is minor league baseball just not saying right now?
Speaker 2:I don't know, but I'm like I already assumed it was going to be in Vegas, just like I assumed there would be a big league weekend game here in Vegas, like I'm going to just assume that there is, like it's Vegas.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I would, I would go back. I mean, in general I like Vegas. So Ranger, amy and I, our flight wasn't until nine o'clock at night and then it got delayed. We didn't get home till two, 45 in the morning last night. So I'm, I'm a, I'm on, as Kramer would say, no sleep, and but I would. I, you know, I would do it again. Eric and Shannon and Samantha had the opposite, where they were out at like six thirty in the morning.
Speaker 3:So bro, we got done with the baseball game. It was a super long game. Then we hung out for a little bit and then we drove over, looked at the sphere.
Speaker 4:And I don't know, did we do that on? Purpose because I was trying to sleep or did we just because the route that you know he drove, the back seat was not consulted on? Uh, whether we should do that, but it was like I think, I think shannon and samantha were sort of like we want to see the sphere and they're they're clearly not vegas regulars. Because, first of all, it's right, when the Eagles concert was letting out of the stadium and it's like trying to drive on the strip or near the strip on a Saturday night.
Speaker 4:You're just going to be sitting there. You don't do that. So Eric and Amy are like sound asleep in the back seat. I'm sitting there next to them and they're like let's go drive by the Sphere. And I was just like no, no, and they were late and they did it and they cost us 45 minutes. But it was, like you know, everyone was fine, we were all just having a chill time, we were still still vibing from a really fun night. But, uh, it was definitely funny. Like I, I'm sort of like trying to eye the strip to see like how close are we to Excalibur? Because Amy and I are just going to walk, drop us at this corner here.
Speaker 1:Just stop right here. I'll walk. Oh my gosh. We'll rent one of those little electric scooters and we'll make it back to the hotel.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I thought you were going to see the sphere. Yeah, had I known, I would have warned you guys that the eagles were there.
Speaker 4:What were you going to say, Eric? Sorry, Eric.
Speaker 3:Go ahead. I was just going to say so. They announced this year the AAA National Championship game where it's being held in March, so I don't anticipate until spring training time or so that we'll find out where it's going to be, because that's when they announced it this year. It was back in March.
Speaker 1:So we've got to wait all the way until March to make our plans for AAA.
Speaker 4:Championship is what you're saying We'll probably be in Puerto Rico when that happens. We're going to go swimming in the bioluminescent bay in Fajardo.
Speaker 1:Hey, look at you.
Speaker 2:This is going to be a silly question, but I just literally don't know.
Speaker 4:A silly question, be a silly question, but I just literally don't know. A Phyllis question.
Speaker 2:A silly question.
Speaker 1:Phyllis is happy, so there you go.
Speaker 2:Do you need a passport to go to Puerto Rico?
Speaker 1:You do not.
Speaker 2:Okay, then we're going to Puerto Rico.
Speaker 4:It is a US. Go ahead, eric.
Speaker 3:I have a passport so I can go. It's okay.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I used my passport to go to Japan recently. Did you guys know that? No, I did not know that.
Speaker 1:Tell me more. Yes, you do not need. Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States, so therefore no passport.
Speaker 4:That's how come Ed is a US citizen.
Speaker 3:I was going to say you're one of us.
Speaker 1:One of us. One of us, one of us, one of us, one of us.
Speaker 4:One of us. But it is interesting that I mean like Puerto Rico has its own team in the World Baseball Classic, right?
Speaker 1:Well, for international, even the Olympics we have. You know, we're Puerto Rico, we're not represented by the United States.
Speaker 4:Yeah, yeah, just like this, so you know.
Speaker 1:Just full disclosure, you know, because if I don't, I get you know my wife will be mad at me.
Speaker 2:Gosh, I can't wait. Also, when the WBC was in Arizona, I went to a Columbia Canada game for $3. It was awesome.
Speaker 1:Well, I mean, I mean Columbia, canada, but I did catch a World.
Speaker 2:Baseball Classic foul ball, so I have that Columbia, Canada. But I did get to World Baseball Classic Foul Ball, so I have that displayed there.
Speaker 4:That's awesome, it's pretty cool.
Speaker 2:Like whatever those shapes of the WBC logo.
Speaker 1:Yeah, the WBC. Yeah, do you guys know who designed that logo? Not you, paul, I know you know who did it.
Speaker 3:Probably Todd. If I had to guess, it was Todd it was.
Speaker 4:Todd, Todd Val and I were. You know who they did probably todd if I had a guess, it was todd, was todd todd radom. Val val and I were talking about todd radom at the uh because because when I posted the picture with all of us with tyler maughan, todd radom was very impressed by that. He was like the classic tyler maughan todd todd was singing tyler's praises on Twitter.
Speaker 3:None of us recognized Tyler when he first walked up, until we started hearing him talk because he had a huge mustache. I saw that.
Speaker 1:He's like screaming from side to side.
Speaker 3:When Paul posted that, maybe on Twitter, sam Dykstra was like or no, maybe Instagram? Sam Dykstra was like tell that, maybe Instagram.
Speaker 2:Sam Dykstra was like tell that dude to shave.
Speaker 3:Sam was not having it. He's like she did. She was honestly crying, yeah, val was emotional, so that for me.
Speaker 2:I have it on record. I wanted to, not I wanted to interview these. I mean, I guess I have said I've also wanted to.
Speaker 1:Hey, listen, we put it out there for him. Hey, tyler, you should come on the podcast. And then you said, say duh, and he's like duh.
Speaker 4:He's like the most approachable guy. You should absolutely have him on the podcast.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, no, I'm sending him a message tonight to invite him on.
Speaker 4:So now, the quadfecta I'm missing now is Ben Hill. What I've not actually met Ben Hill in person. I went to a Rockies game with Sam Dykstra and Josh Jackson. And then Tyler we just met, but I've not met Ben Hill yet.
Speaker 1:So I got it. Val, we would have on the podcast. We've had already Sam Dykstra Really cool dude, got a lot of good information. Now Tyler Maughan now we go to need, you know, those two Josh Jackson and Ben Hill.
Speaker 4:I was like it's the show before the show in person. It was so funny Like the moment, like cause I didn't recognize him. You know, as he walked up, cause I, what happened, the way it happened was actually kind of funny because it was the first time Val and I met in person. And so we're outside the ballpark and we're walking up and here's Val wearing her Las Vegas in the Oakland green and yellow, her Las Vegas cap with the Oakland green and yellow, which was a sweet cap, that was actually a great cap. And so we're walking up and I said to Val, I'm like I can't believe we haven't met in person yet. And so we're walking up and I said to Val, I'm like I can't believe we haven't met in person yet. And as I say that Tyler is like over my right shoulder and he's like I can't believe we haven't met in person. And I turn around and he's like Tyler Maughan and I'm like, oh my God. So it was like this bizarre swirl of like.
Speaker 1:Here's Val, who I've never met in person, and we're finally meeting, and then Tyler maughan shows up out of nowhere and like I can't believe we're having that, and so it was just such a while and we all just hung out there.
Speaker 4:For, like I'm not jealous at all, don't worry, because I'm not jealous at all.
Speaker 4:It was a solid 10 minutes that we were just hanging out just like, just just yapping and then, it was funny because we're you know we're in the suite area and we're hanging out and when it's quiet you hear Tyler's voice. They're broadcasting it in the suite area and Val's laughing. Val had a very funny thing. She said to me I'll let Val determine whether she should say it on the podcast. She's like I don't want this to be creepy, but it's so funny. You go to the bathroom and there's Tyler Mons voice.
Speaker 2:And then I told I think it was Eric, Eric, I think I told you I was like, oh my gosh, I'm so glad we met him outside, because I'm literally staring at him eating right now. I don't want to go freak him out. I'm so glad I had already gotten that out of my system outside.
Speaker 4:Yeah, you were like I don like I wouldn't want to go introduce myself to him, but he's right there and he's eating and he's with his new wife. He is newly married, as of just about celebrating his first anniversary.
Speaker 2:I saw that they're still here in Vegas, not me checking his story or anything Not like you're stalking him or anything.
Speaker 1:Too funny. Any parting words. We've been here over an hour now.
Speaker 4:My favorite thing about all this is all of the future plans that it leads to. I love that I finally have gotten to connect with Val. I love that I got to meet Shannon in person and hang out with her in person, and EFA superstar Samantha from episode 128.
Speaker 1:Not that you know the episode.
Speaker 4:We just. The network is growing, the community is growing and you know all of these things that we do just leading to more plans.
Speaker 3:I love it yeah, what was funny is that I kept referring to my wife's friend coming and then I I didn't wasn't saying the name and then eventually I mentioned samantha and he goes, wait, samantha from the podcast. I was like yes, that's her, she's coming. So yeah for me. I just want to say thanks so much again to val. So two two years ago when I went, it was just me by myself, didn't have anybody there. Two years later we had a big party with a group of like seven of us there, got to meet some awesome people Tyler, chef G, adriana so overall just a lot of fun. So thanks for setting it up, val.
Speaker 2:Yeah, no, it was awesome. I'm so glad you guys were able to come out, and we're going to have to do it again, for sure.
Speaker 1:Yeah, we'll do something again in the fall or something and then try to meet up. I'm really I'm like I'm sad but at the same time I'm very happy for you guys. You guys got to enjoy that, cause I was. It looked like a lot of fun. It really did, from like all the Instagram pictures and and I know the game was on, by the way, on Valley Sports as well as MLB Network. Just want you guys to know about that. And then I watched it for like a little bit. And then when Donald said, what are you watching? I go the AAA championship he goes like, oh yeah it's.
Speaker 4:It's been a good year for Curve Brand Media, though, right Like we had the 100 percent. We had the meetup in North Carolina and that was a ton of fun, and now now Val knows to keep an eye out for that. Where do we want to go? By the way, there's so many options right.
Speaker 1:So many people are saying that we should go to Texas because that's a good place for some baseball Vegas as well.
Speaker 4:Val's trying to get us back out to Vegas baseball Vegas as well. I was trying to get us back out to Vegas.
Speaker 1:You know, Val, we're trying to do multiple teams, multiple games in one weekend here.
Speaker 4:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, the East coast is going to be best for that which I've never gone to a minor league game on the East coast, so we should stick to the East coast.
Speaker 1:There's also the Chicago area.
Speaker 4:There's a lot of teams up there, you know I, I sort of threw out the chicago area, chicago, wisconsin, you know, yeah, yeah, michigan there's, uh, you know the the east coast has just so much. I actually really like the ballparks in florida, like the, the spring training facilities that they use for ballparks we can do like a tampa area, you know that. Yeah, like a you know a Clearwater, st Pete, I'm sorry, a Clearwater. Clearwater, st Pete area, you know it's a clear water.
Speaker 4:Yeah, that's what I said, oh the. So you know there's a ton. There's a ton that we could do and you know it's we got. We got Anna's trying to lure us to Texas. We got the calibration gang trying to lure us to Texas. We got the Calibration Gang trying to lead us, the minor league nerd trying to get us to Chicago, along with the baseball mapper guys who are up there as well, right, exactly, we got a lot of options for that.
Speaker 1:There's something we got to discuss for our meetup next year.
Speaker 2:This would be easy for me. Anna is in a city that's maybe like 15 minutes away from my hometown.
Speaker 1:There you go. Texas will be fun, Chicago, Wisconsin area or even up in Michigan doing some we were just talking about that on the show, Eric to hit up some Northwoods League games. That will be a lot of fun.
Speaker 4:All the baseball they have in Texas. I've only ever been to one baseball game in texas. It was at the old rangers ballpark. It's the only game I've ever been to in texas.
Speaker 3:Yeah, at any level out of all the minor league and major league teams in texas.
Speaker 2:I've only been to all of them now that's crazy, because I still need corpus mid Midland and Amarillo.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I did Midland and Amarillo two years ago and then knocked out all of them. The rest of them this year You've got to get through El Paso.
Speaker 4:That's because Eric has like nine baseball trips a year that are called something.
Speaker 1:Right, exactly.
Speaker 4:He's like oh, this is my June 15 Palooza that I do.
Speaker 3:Let's not take away from the fact that he's trying to push it off on me. Mr, I was just in Japan and then in. Vegas, and prior to that I was on Anna, danapolo, palooza and then Curve Brim Weekend.
Speaker 1:We should do not a yacht like a Curve Brim meetup thing, but go to Alaska, do a midnight sun game. That'd be a lot of fun.
Speaker 3:Not that they didn't do that last year or anything.
Speaker 1:No, not that they didn't do that last year or anything, no, that day we didn't do it.
Speaker 4:You know that was japan ball. Yeah, yeah, we, we can do it. And then one of the things I have discovered that has been just a ton of fun is like if you use baseball as an excuse to go to a place, and you know you'll laugh. The japan trip was 10 days. What Two of those days were baseball. The rest of it was like this incredible experience. So you know, you use baseball as the framework for a trip to like Alaska, you know, or a place that you really want to see. It's a great way to see the world.
Speaker 1:The Pacific Northwest yeah.
Speaker 3:Ed, have you done that? You haven't done that yet I did that last year.
Speaker 2:Oh my God, the Pacific Northwest. It's incredible.
Speaker 1:Thanks, guys, appreciate that, oh you haven't been. No, he did it on purpose.
Speaker 4:That's where our baseball palooza was two years ago, my daughter being at Gonzaga, you know now we've been to Spokane. We went to Spokane, we got back to Pasco to see Eric the peanut guy.
Speaker 1:I want to meet Eric, so bad.
Speaker 2:I want to meet him too.
Speaker 1:Me too.
Speaker 3:I'm just kidding. I've met him.
Speaker 2:I was about to say I'm pretty.
Speaker 1:You have met him. You hung out with him at a ballpark.
Speaker 3:Yeah, he came to Wichita and then last year I went to two games in Pasco.
Speaker 4:There you go Now. There you go. Now we're just bragging. Guess what. I saw baseball on three continents this year. We were in England and then, of course, all over North America, and then.
Speaker 1:Japan.
Speaker 3:I'm so happy for you, man, that's so good. He tried to tell me when we were hanging out in Vegas that he actually works. I said when Between trips. That's the whole point.
Speaker 1:He's in this zone that he keeps saying that I don't think it exists. So that's why I'm not going to say it, because it really doesn't exist.
Speaker 4:This is the thing when time has no meaning in the mountain time zone.
Speaker 1:There it is, guys. Thank you so much for coming on and talking about this experience. Final recommendation is that, uh, triple a championship wherever it is next year that people should go and experience. This is pretty much what we're getting right.
Speaker 4:Yes, you can do it with val. Yep, I don't know what it's like to go to the triple, a championship game, without val making an incredible experience so I do uh in general. Here's what I would say in general use baseball as a framework for creating awesome experiences, whether that is the world baseball classic, the caribbean series, the arizona fall league, the lost, the triple a championship game, all these things Use baseball as a way to have amazing experiences and fill your life with people who want to do that with you.
Speaker 2:Amen, I like it.
Speaker 1:I like it. Guys, thank you so much for doing this. Make sure you guys are following the Influencer Earned Fun Average, because AVG averages what they do best.
Speaker 2:You like that.
Speaker 3:That was pretty good.
Speaker 2:I'm pretty happy with myself on how I said that that was pretty good.
Speaker 1:Thank you, thank you. You know baseball by design. You know Paul Caputo. Hey, you know that guy. You know he talks. By the way, I've got to give you kudos the Clingstones. Pretty good episode, my friend. I listened to that one. That was interesting.
Speaker 4:Thank you very much. I've got an episode dropping at the time of this recording. I've got an episode dropping tomorrow where I talked to a guy who leads deep sea fishing expeditions for the Pensacola Blue Wahoos episode Wow, pensacola Mullets. The Mullets right.
Speaker 1:And then, obviously, stadium Food Girl. She is on all socials. Make sure you guys are following her Data Chronicles. She is on all socials. Make sure you guys are following her data chronicles. Oh, you know, this is what we do, right? Thank you so much, and then we will see you guys next time on another episode of the data chronicles podcast.
Speaker 4:Thanks, thanks, you're welcome. Bye.
Speaker 2:Thank you.
