Fan Fest event kicks off All-Star week in 'Burgh
PITTSBURGH — Twelve-year-old Brian Swain has just hit Yankees star Alex Rodriguez with a pitch, and he is proud of it.
"I beaned A-Rod on purpose," said Swain, who lives in Pittsburgh but was born in Boston. "I'm a die-hard Red Sox fan. The Yankees can die."
Swain got his chance to pitch to Rodriguez at Major League Baseball's Fanfest, which opened Friday and runs through the All-Star game Tuesday. Among the plethora of attractions are video pitching and batting cages that allow fans to virtually face off against baseball stars like Rodriguez, Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens.
The 400,000-square-foot carnival also offers baseball fanatics a chance to participate in clinics run by pros, view artifacts on loan from the Baseball Hall of Fame and buy, sell or trade sports memorabilia.
"I intentionally paid down one of my Visas so I can max it out this weekend," said Jeff Sanders, 24, of Pittsburgh, as he haggled over the price of a rookie card for Pirates All-Star left-fielder Jason Bay.
FanFest, an annual event in the All-Star game host city, is projected to draw between 80,000 and 100,000 fans, organizers said. Its location at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, just across the Allegheny River from PNC Park, may boost attendance to record levels, they said.
"We do well when we're close to the park. We feed off the energy of that," said Morgan Littlefield, director of special events for Major League Baseball.
Organizers pitch the event as a way for fans to get involved in the game even if they can't make it to PNC Park.
Hunt Auctions Inc. will offer free appraisals to people who bring in their collectibles.
"Anything can walk in the door, which is the exciting part of the appraisal, you never know what people are going to bring in," said Cheryl Goyda, a consignment coordinator at Hunt.
At last year's FanFest in Detroit, one fan walked in with a rare signed baseball from Christy Mathewson, a Hall of Fame pitcher for the New York Giants who dominated play at the turn of the century. The ball is valued at about $100,000, she said.
