It was a real plus that Carpenter was there as well, because Collin doesn't have the confidence in his public speaking that he does on the mound, and Bob was able to talk a lot around Collin and fill in with background and context, keep things moving, tell stories to puctuate points.
Things I enjoyed -
Someone asked what his favorite pitch was - fastball. I followed up asking if he threw two seam or four seam, and he said he had just begun to throw the two-seam this year.
Spin man then borrowed a ball from a young guy awaiting an autograph opportunity, and gave it to Collin, whereby he showed how he grips each of his 5 pitches - the 2 fastballs, curve, slider, and circle changeup. This is the kind of detailed insider info that many of us crave from time to time, and he had the room's attention as he showed how he grips his pitches, how he breaks the wrist differently for each.
Somebody asked when he realized he was going to be a professional baseball player, and in his response he mentioned that his dad was initially disappointed - he had wanted Collin to carry on the family profession - surfing. Much laughter ensued at the unusual perspective of Sr. Balester.
Carpenter was asked how he felt about being renewed, and he revealed that he got the news his option has been renewed at 10:30 pm, with plenty of time to spare before the midnight deadline (Aug 1?). Again, knowing chuckles all around, especially in view of the recent Crow deadline debacle.
There was an autograph session, then plenty of time for pictures with Collin before he had to return to the team. Carpenter had to leave earlier to make it up to the booth for the start of the broadcast.
Upon breakup of the session, I saw Minty, Blue and Salty head directly to the nearest purveyor of quality malted beverages, and was able to get an order in before they finished. Did you guys end up sitting together?
I forgot my camera, but NOTLD was taking lots of pictures - I expect a full pictorial report by the end of the day...
