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01/28/2009 2:18 PM ET
Washington Nationals 2009 Winter Caravan & Inaugural Natsfest play host to thousands of fans over five days
First Ever NatsFest Draws Close to 4,000 Fans Over The Four-Hour Event
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The Washington Nationals concluded their 12-stop Winter Caravan on Monday, January 27, after having met with thousands of fans during the 2009 off-season tour. Team members, front office staff, radio and television broadcasters, mascot "Screech" and the Racing Presidents were all on-hand to meet with fans during the five-day outing in Washington, D.C., Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia. Manager Manny Acta, pitchers Joel Hanrahan, John Lannan, Garrett Mock, Mike O'Connor, Scott Olsen, Steven Shell and Terrell Young, outfielders Elijah Dukes, Willie Harris, Justin Maxwell and Josh Willingham, third baseman Ryan Zimmerman and broadcasters Bob Carpenter and Charlie Slowes participated in the various events held throughout the region before the start of Spring Training in mid-February. Pitchers and catchers will report to the team's Spring Training Complex in Viera, FL to prepare for the 2009 season on February 14 and position players will follow on February 17. The Nationals 2009 home opener will take place on Monday, April 13 vs. the World-Champion Philadelphia Phillies.
The Caravan began with autograph sessions and meet-and-greets in Martinsburg, WV and Rockville, MD on Thursday, January 22. Friday, the group visited the Southeast Washington home of Angela B., the recipient of a Washington Nationals Dream Foundation grant to repair her home through Rebuilding Together of Washington, D.C. The team brought Nationals backpacks filled with promotional items as gifts for Angela's children and the Dream Foundation presented her with tickets to the 2009 home opener. The players and Manny then joined 250 season ticket holders and front office executives Jim Bowden, Stan Kasten and Mike Rizzo for a Hot Stove Luncheon at Nationals Park. Led by NBC "Meet the Press" moderator David Gregory and Charlie Slowes, fans had two hours to discuss the state of the Nationals franchise with the executives in attendance. The caravan then headed to Annapolis, MD where participants signed autographs at the Annapolis Mall Build-A-Bear store, taking time to build bears with young fans. Friday's final event was a Celebrity Cook-Off at Washington D.C.'s ESPN Zone where Willie Harris' maple-smoked salmon narrowly beat out the other entries for the win. Saturday, the Caravan traveled to Southern Virginia where they were met with over 700 people in Woodbridge at the Potomac Nationals Pfitzner Stadium - the team's Class A Minor League Affiliate, AMF Kelger's Lanes in Charlottesville and the Red, Hot & Blue Restaurant in Richmond.
The first-ever NatsFest took place on Sunday, January 25 at Nationals Park with close to 4,000 fans participating in the day's festivities. The event included clubhouse tours, autograph and photograph sessions with Nationals players and manager, and a special Kids Zone which included Sony Playstation games and inflatables. Fans also had the opportunity to attend question-and-answer sessions with team officials, as well as special guests George Will (The Washington Post columnist) and baseball historian Phil Wood. The Washington Nationals Dream Foundation offered fans the unique chance to hit in the park's indoor batting cages for a $1 donation. The Dream Foundation raised just over $9,000 through general donations, silent auctions and memorabilia sales.
"The Nationals are thrilled with the success of the 2009 Winter Caravan and Inaugural NatsFest," said Team President Stan Kasten. "We are pleased we were able to reach so many of our fans throughout the region and hope they all will join us at Nationals Park for the upcoming season."
The 2009 Caravan wrapped up with visits to Amidon-Bowen Elementary School in Southwest Washington, Children's National Medical Center and an autograph signing prior to the Washington Wizards game. During the Amidon-Bowen appearance, the players read to the students from the Dr. Seuss classic Oh The Places You'll Go, and answered questions about their careers. The Nationals donated over 3,000 books to the school, with each student receiving books to take home, through the team's partnership with The Heart of America Foundation. The school's library also received a new set of children's books. The Nationals took this opportunity to announce a new partnership with Everybody Wins!DC, the largest children's literacy and mentoring organization in the Washington Metropolitan Area. The players and broadcasters then visited with patients in the atrium at Children's National Medical Center before moving to the various wards to visit patients in their rooms. The final stop on the Caravan was an autograph signing at the Verizon Center prior to the Washington Wizards game vs. the Phoenix Suns.
A limited number of excellent season tickets are still available throughout the ballpark and can be conveniently purchased by using the recently introduced Grand Slam E-Z Payment Plan. Fans interested in season ticket plans may call a Nationals Sales Representative at 202-675-NATS (6287) - Option #1, then Option #2 or by logging onto nationals.com/tickets.
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