An Awesome Saturday Night
Posted: Sun Jun 26, 2011 2:56 am
So this will be a tad long winded....but I want to tell the story.
So those emails that team websites such as phillies.com that are offering sweepstakes/grand prizes in partnership with local businesses...I used to delete them thinking they were rigged and I had no shot at winning. But two months ago I decided what the heck..I will enter it..its free.
Grand prize was 4 tickets behind the visitor dugout on 6/25 for Phils vs A's and the opportunity to throw out first pitch.
Then I didnt hear anything for months so I figured...I didnt win....no big deal. Then on Wednesday of this week I get an email from the phillies saying congrats on being the grand prize winner of the horizon/phillies sweepstakes. You will be throwing out the first ball on Saturday night. My jaw hit the floor! Horizon will also be in touch with you to arrange for you to pick up the tickets. Meet the Phillies marketing guy at 6:20 in the phillies offices and they will take it from there.
My first thought was there is no way I won.....this is a scam right? But then the phils called me and so did the business and it was real. I was chosen out of 17,000 entries and I was throwing out the first pitch in front of 45,000 people!
So quickly it was...figure out who goes with me to the game(ended up being wife and parents who live locally) and get a babysitter fast! We figured that part out and we were on our way. All the messages I got from friends were...dont screw up...you will be boo'd. You will be on you tube if you throw as bad as John Wall did. LOL. So that was a little nerve-wracking.
Met at the Phillies offices at 6:20...they took me to the media room and showed me where Charlie Manuel does his post game press conferences..got to sit at the table and have my picture taken at the podium. Will post that once I download it.
Then at 6:40..down the hallways/tunnels to get to the field. We came out right next to the A's dugout. I watched Kurt Suzuki and Hideki Matsui walk right by me. Getting a little nervous. I asked the Phillies guy who I was throwing the first pitch too...he said the Phanatic so you will have a big target. Turns out that wouldnt matter.
Then I get out to the field and the coordinator calls my name and I step over near the on deck circle....I was told do not step on the chalk lines and do not step on the mound. Cole Hamels was set to toe the rubber minutes later. They said as soon as you hear your name called, and you are at the designated spot in front of the mound..throw the ball. We are on a tight time line. So I walked out to the spot and promptly threw the ball right into the ground and it goes to the backstop.
The Phanatic retrieved the ball and came back to me and said...thats ok...no big deal. The Phanatic talks? I thought he was mute. And we posed for a picture and I was on the huge big screen with the Phanatic in the middle of citizens bank park. This was a dream come true.. If anyone boo'd I didnt hear it...I was able to cross something off my bucket list. I threw a first pitch at a MLB game(and my hometown favorite team the Phils).
I got to keep the ball(which was broken in and had dirt on it since my throw was at the Phanatics feet). I was escorted to my seat and the Phils lost 4-1 but who cares. I just had the time of my life through a random sweepstakes that I will probably never be lucky enough to win again. But I won this time and that was a night I will never forget.
So next time you get one of those emails....it may be a good idea to enter. You have nothing to lose...and only a memorable night at the ball park to win.
I will add some pictures to this thread later today.
I couldnt have spent a Saturday night any better than that!
Andy Saxton
So those emails that team websites such as phillies.com that are offering sweepstakes/grand prizes in partnership with local businesses...I used to delete them thinking they were rigged and I had no shot at winning. But two months ago I decided what the heck..I will enter it..its free.
Grand prize was 4 tickets behind the visitor dugout on 6/25 for Phils vs A's and the opportunity to throw out first pitch.
Then I didnt hear anything for months so I figured...I didnt win....no big deal. Then on Wednesday of this week I get an email from the phillies saying congrats on being the grand prize winner of the horizon/phillies sweepstakes. You will be throwing out the first ball on Saturday night. My jaw hit the floor! Horizon will also be in touch with you to arrange for you to pick up the tickets. Meet the Phillies marketing guy at 6:20 in the phillies offices and they will take it from there.
My first thought was there is no way I won.....this is a scam right? But then the phils called me and so did the business and it was real. I was chosen out of 17,000 entries and I was throwing out the first pitch in front of 45,000 people!
So quickly it was...figure out who goes with me to the game(ended up being wife and parents who live locally) and get a babysitter fast! We figured that part out and we were on our way. All the messages I got from friends were...dont screw up...you will be boo'd. You will be on you tube if you throw as bad as John Wall did. LOL. So that was a little nerve-wracking.
Met at the Phillies offices at 6:20...they took me to the media room and showed me where Charlie Manuel does his post game press conferences..got to sit at the table and have my picture taken at the podium. Will post that once I download it.
Then at 6:40..down the hallways/tunnels to get to the field. We came out right next to the A's dugout. I watched Kurt Suzuki and Hideki Matsui walk right by me. Getting a little nervous. I asked the Phillies guy who I was throwing the first pitch too...he said the Phanatic so you will have a big target. Turns out that wouldnt matter.
Then I get out to the field and the coordinator calls my name and I step over near the on deck circle....I was told do not step on the chalk lines and do not step on the mound. Cole Hamels was set to toe the rubber minutes later. They said as soon as you hear your name called, and you are at the designated spot in front of the mound..throw the ball. We are on a tight time line. So I walked out to the spot and promptly threw the ball right into the ground and it goes to the backstop.
The Phanatic retrieved the ball and came back to me and said...thats ok...no big deal. The Phanatic talks? I thought he was mute. And we posed for a picture and I was on the huge big screen with the Phanatic in the middle of citizens bank park. This was a dream come true.. If anyone boo'd I didnt hear it...I was able to cross something off my bucket list. I threw a first pitch at a MLB game(and my hometown favorite team the Phils).
I got to keep the ball(which was broken in and had dirt on it since my throw was at the Phanatics feet). I was escorted to my seat and the Phils lost 4-1 but who cares. I just had the time of my life through a random sweepstakes that I will probably never be lucky enough to win again. But I won this time and that was a night I will never forget.
So next time you get one of those emails....it may be a good idea to enter. You have nothing to lose...and only a memorable night at the ball park to win.
I will add some pictures to this thread later today.
I couldnt have spent a Saturday night any better than that!
Andy Saxton
lookn forward to the pics!
