Watching The Marlins Take On The Blue Jays - A Late Spring Training Matchup

My sister Susan and I watched the Miami Marlins take on the Toronto Blue Jays this past Monday afternoon at Roger Dean Stadium in the Abacoa neighborhood of Jupiter, Florida. The weather forecasters predicted heavy thunderstorms starting after lunchtime, and so we were taking a chance, but since we already had the tickets, we forged ahead. The first thing I noticed as we approached the ballpark were the number of license plates from Ontario and Quebec, showing that despite what you hear on the news, there are still large numbers of Canadians who still winter in Florida, not letting one unhinged bully drive them away. And when they played the Canadian national anthem, there were lots of cheers, which I was very happy to hear, especially since Florida is such a red state. And best of all, when the first pitch was thrown at 1:10 P.M., the sun was shining brightly.

During the game I was surprised to hear a Toronto batter announced whom I knew well: none other than Eloy Jimenez, the former star player for my South Side heroes, the Chicago White Sox, who gave him a six-year, $43 million contract in 2019 even before his major league debut. Eloy got a base hit, seen in the photograph on the right leading off first base. Eloy did very well for the White Sox, winning the Silver Slugger Award in 2020. Then in 2024, the year the Sox lost 121 games and knew they were about to undergo a major rebuilding, they traded Eloy to Baltimore, who the following year declined his club option for 2025. Eloy then signed with the Tampa Bay Rays, and the year after that signed a minor league contract with the Toronto Blue Jays, where he is currently a designated hitter and outfielder. And will he go north with the Blue Jays when they break camp next week? Although only 30 years old, he is not the same player he was with the White Sox, but perhaps he can regain his form with Toronto. After all, that was a pretty sold hit he made this past Monday. Good luck Eloy!

It was indeed warm and sunny for the first 2 1/2 innings. Then the storm clouds came, and it started to rain. Susan and I made our way to the main concourse, and under the shelter of the roof. As we discussed what we should do, the sun came out again, and we made our way back toward our seats. The usher suggested we take the two handicapped seats right behind home plate, since it would be easier for Susan and me to leave when the rain started again (I think he had inside information). And so, we sat back and watched the game until there were two outs in the bottom of the 6th inning, which is when I took the photograph on the left. Then the downpour began and we hightailed it back out to the main concourse. As we headed toward the ramp, I saw all the players heading for the dugouts, and when we approached the exit saw that everyone was leaving. The game had been called. Toronto, the visiting team, was leading 5-4 after 5 innings, which made it an official game. Since everyone left the stadium at the same time, it took forever to get out of the parking garage. But no problem. Two groups of Canadians were parked on either side of our car and were very friendly and entertaining. Despite Donald Trump. Go Blue Jays!