Day 5 - Dinner with our coaches (Rennie Stennett, Omar Moreno, & Edgar Varela

We ate tonight, as Team Vaughan, at Pier 22 in Bradenton.  Excellent food, reasonably priced.  Atmosphere is excellent, right on the water.  Decor is similar to what you would find at a Morton's Steakhouse.  We had our own private room, that sat all 18 of us.  We took our scorekeeper to dinner as well.

It started out like a wake, considering how we were cheated out of a playoff spot, but in a little while the mood lifted.  Rennie Stennett told stories regarding his career to the majors.  An attempt to make a comeback.  How the major leagues is a business and sometimes decisions are made to save face, rather than doing the correct thing.  Just like every other occupation - I guess.

Rennie told stories of how loose the clubhouse, these won't be published, because what happens at camp - stays at camp.  Certain quirky things about many ballplayers that most of you would recognize by name.  We laughed hysterically for the better part of 45 minutes.

Some observations of the camp experience:

1)  All the staffs (training, clubhouse, grounds crew, kitchen, security, and hotel administration) are very pleasing to interact with.  They are here to make you experience top notch, just like a major league ball player.
2)  The food is excellent.  You can eat as much as you want, which you will often hear from campers, "I gain 10 lbs when I'm down here."
3)  Of all the places I have gone on morning runs, this is my favorite.  The warning track around the ball fields is .62 of a mile, when you go around all 4 fields.  You don't have to worry about dogs, so you plug some tunes in and get after it.  The morning run is key to keeping your legs from getting stiff.  Plus running on the crushed sea shell warning track is different.  Seeing the palm trees that ring the outfield fences, makes you reflect on how fortunate you aren't in sub-zero Michigan!

Top to bottom captions:
1)  Omar hanging out on the couch in the clubhouse hallway, awaiting the completion of another rain delay.
2)  TJ with Edgar Varela, manager of the Bristol, VA rookie club.  Good luck in 2014.
3)  David Miller - Rennie Stennett - Frank Schlotter at the coach's dinner.
4)  Jessie Moreno & Omar Moreno at breakfast.  Big thrill for Roger Angelelli, who's grandson is a big fan of Omar's.  Roger was able to eat & converse with Omar.  See photo below, Roger posing for his photos with the Pros - just a photo I randomly took.
Dave Miller - Omar Moreno - Lee Lacy - Roger Angelelli - Don Robinson