Rain delay at Shea Stadium. July 9, 2008

What began as a joke in the summer of 2008 has evolved into a hobby. Possibly an obsession. I began collecting pennants from every baseball park for which I attended a game. It began with the #calledup crew on a day trip to the Mets old home, Shea Stadium, on July 9, 2008. Mets were playing the Giants. It rained. Actually, it rained so hard the game was delayed for awhile with the other side of Shea completely hidden by the shining of its own lights into the rain. It was a bonding moment for the #calledup crew.

I bought the pennant for Ken and I since we shared an office at the time. The pennant commemorated the last season of Shea. The pennant was then hung in our office on what we dubbed “The Pillar of Pennants,” which at the time consisted only of the one from our trek. Quickly, and with even more good-natured humor, the pillar became home to pennants from the Lehigh Valley IronPigs, the Philadelphia Phillies, the then Reading Phillies (now the Reading Fightin’ Phils), the Salt Lake Bees, and the Chicago Cubs. Eventually, the pillar became too full to accomodate the hobby. So, I switched to the drop ceiling though soon I will have to reassess the situation again.

The rules are simple. To raise a pennant I must have attended a game at the home team’s park. This is the active list of teams:

Minor/Independent League

1. Lehigh Valley IronPigs
2. Reading Phils
3. Salt Lake Bees
4. Harrisburg Senators
5. Indianapolis Indians
6. West Michigan Whitecaps
7. Buffalo Bisons
8. Lowell Spinners
9. Brooklyn Cyclones
10. Trenton Thunder
11. Somerset Patriots
12. Richmond Flying Squirrels

Major League

1. New York Mets
2. Philadelphia Phillies
3. Chicago Cubs
4. Florida Marlins
5. Cleveland Indians
6. Pittsburgh Pirates
7. Washington Nationals

Pennants not yet collected from games I’ve attended

1. New York Yankees
2. California Angels (they were not yet the Los Angeles Angels)
3. Seattle Mariners
4. Toronto Blue Jays
5. Baltimore Orioles
6. Richmond Braves (though the team relocated to Qwinnet, GA)
7. Norfolk Tides

Anticipated additions this summer

1. Williamsport Crosscutters
2. Lakewood Blueclaws
3. Mahoning Valley Scrappers