Tag: Hillsboro

Hops? Or Oatmilkers?

Dear Liza,

Our local Minor League Baseball team is called the Hillsboro Hops. And last week, they were also “The Malmö Oatmilkers!” Here’s how it worked.

Major League Baseball teams have minor league ‘farm teams’, where their newest players get trained up to professional level. These teams are located all over the country. Our local Hillsboro Hops are a farm team for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

And the newest, 121st Minor League team, is …. The Malmö Oatmilkers, from Malmö, Sweden! Yes, that’s right. Sweden. I haven’t been able to learn if there are actual players on the team or if it is just a really interesting marketing idea of the Oatly Oatmilk Company.

With you and your family living in Denmark (just next door, in a manner of speaking), we had to go see. This week, they were playing the Vancouver Canadians.

Well, there wasn’t as much to see as we had hoped, but it was fun, anyway. The Oatmilkers were our own Hops players, wearing the Oatmilkers’ uniforms. As fitting to oatmilk, the uniforms are a creamy white with dark brown lettering. The uniforms had numbers on the back but instead of the player’s name, it said “Baseball Player”. It was goofy and kind of sweet.

Of course, what Auntie Bridgett was after was some merchandise. A Tee shirt, maybe, or a coffee cup. But no such luck. Nothing.

But, as I said, you have to work hard NOT to have fun at a Hops game. Along with baseball, there are snacks, kids, costumes, tire races, trivia games, and this week, the first-ever drone show over Ron Tonkin Field.

So we didn’t come home with goodies, but a good time was had by all.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Amazing New Park in Portland!

Dear Liza,

I have found the best place to play by Portland! It is called Hidden Creek Park and it’s just west of town, in Hillsboro. Auntie Katie and the Cousins took me there last week.

Hidden Creek Park is huge, new, and beautifully designed.

There are several different play areas with creative, challenging, accessible play equipment, including a metal and wooden structure called “Oro, the Forest Giant”, a hollow ape with slides and climbing bits all over it.

There were dozens of kids all over the inside and outside, and there was room for more. It was amazing! Kids of ages about 6 to teenagers like Cousin Jasper found lots to do.

In a different section of the park is a water play area with sand and rocks so kids can make little dams and canals.

Across a broad plaza with bathrooms and such is a Fitness area, with lots of climb-y things and par course exercises to do. Kida and grandkids all had a fine time!

I can’t wait to share it with you on your next visit.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Going to See the Hops!

Dear Liza,

Did you know that the Portland area has a professional baseball team? Well, it does!

And last week we drove west about 11 miles to Ron Tonkin Field in Hillsboro to see our Hops play the Vancouver Canadians. It was a lively night out.

The Hops are the High A level farm team for the Arizona Diamondbacks, an official professional team, and it shows. The playing was great, and so were the amenities… Scoreboards, food, drinks, restrooms, all very up-town.

Grandpa Nelson had gotten us tickets along the first base line so we would be in the shade for the evening game. Our weather has been in the high nineties and he didn’t want us to get roasted! We were warm, but not uncomfortable.

As the game got started, we saw that the Hops players had chosen their own ‘walk up’ music (that plays as that player comes up to bat), but the visiting Canadians walked up to music chosen as a play on their name. A Canadian player named Spain walked up to Robert Goulet’s “Red Ships of Spain”, and Cade Doughty walked up to Julie Andrews’ “Do Re Mi” from “The Sound of Music”.

It was delightful, these odd snippets of music coming around with the batting order. During the evening we also heard bits of “Uptown Funk”, “Zorba the Greek”, “Sugar Sugar” and “I Love Rock and Roll”.

Besides following the game, there were other diversions, like a bus tire rolling race, karaoke sing-along, and air guitar contests. These were video-broadcast to the big screen so everyone could enjoy the fun, even if it was happening across the stadium.

The sun went down, and the Canadians’ Cade Doughty made their only run in the 9th inning. By then, the Hops had scored 11. It’s always fun when ‘our’ team wins, even if we just met.

We gathered our things and joined the flow of folks out into the parking lot and Auntie Bridgett drove us home through an orange sunset.

Summer in Portland is amazing, active, and wonderful…. If you have the stamina!

Love,

Grandma Judy