If you haven’t ever been to a Zephyrs game – GO. If you haven’t been to a game in a while – GO! If you haven’t taken every kid you know to a game – DO IT! We need to support them folks!!! It was also very cool to see both NOLA.com and WIST AM 690 Radio on the scoreboard (since I work for both of them). I felt a sense of Zephyr pride or at least I was thinking (how can I score me some of them free tickets- LOL). What a beautiful ball park and a great team for the greater New Orleans area to get behind!!!
img_3730.JPG It is hard to fit in a Zephyr’s games when your kid is playing baseball. We finally had a day without a conflict and headed out to the Sunday afternoon game. We have been to several other minor league baseball games like the Round Rock Express and the Tulsa Drillers (when we lived near them)- and it about freaking time we went to the Zephyrs!

To tell you the truth – I was dreading going as I figured it would be brutally hot. We sat under an overhang and there was a nice breeze the whole time – phew. We bought tickets in the “Reserves” and were given a $1 per ticket military discount – came to $45 for 2 adults and 3 kids. Parking was $3 and food and drink (as we intended to eat lunch there) was about $10 a person. So – about $100 for the day (but it could have been done for a bunch less). We all had a great time and the Zephyrs won! They even have a pool in the right field that you can reserve for parties during a game. I will suggest that for hubby’s next company gathering!

The kids got free whiffle ball bats and were very excited to have Boudreaux autograph them. Here is some gut-busting stuff about the Zephyr’s team mascot(s). This from Bofa D’s Guide To Strange Minor League Baseball Mascots:

1. Boudreaux D. Nutria: The New Orleans Zephyrs mascot is pretty cool. First, he looks like a Beaver – so you can yell “Nice Beaver” during the game. That joke never gets old. Second, he’s not even a beaver. He’s a nutria. Apparently, Nutria were brought to the area way back in the day as a potential food source. But, people soon realized they are gross and they multiply too fast. So now pretty much everyone hates them and the government pays people to kill them. Naming your team after that is awesome. I also like the “D.” part of the name, replacing “the” – that’s creative. And finally, he has a girlfriend, so he’s a pimp.

BWAHAHAHAHA!

As for what a Zephyr is – this from Merriam-Webster:
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English Zephirus, west wind (personified), from Latin Zephyrus, god of the west wind & zephyrus west wind, zephyr, from Greek Zephyros & zephyros
Date: 1611
1 a: a breeze from the west b: a gentle breeze

Next games: Monday 7:00 (I believe Drew Brees will throw out the first ball), Tuesday 7:00, Wednesday noon and Thursday 7:00 and then they will be home again on the 21st. I hope you go soon!

***Catch me on my personal blog and NOLA.com almost every single day (I take breaks now and again). Kiss My Gumbo readers RULE!!!!! Be sure to mark it as your favorite and tell all your friends about it!