What’s the only thing better than a day game at the ol’ ballpark? How about two back-to-back day games to round out the first weekend of the season, with the Rangers hosting the Mariners at the Ballpark In Arlington? Photographed on assignment for Sports Illustrated.

…and if you’re curious:

• Yes, I like to move around. Arlington has some great angles from up in the concourses and mezzanines, and there are little, if any restrictions on where we can go. And the people are friendly. It’s a great place to work.

• The portraits of Ken Griffey, Jr. and Ichiro Suzuki were shot in the dugout during the game.

• The image of Ichiro at the plate was shot with an old Nikkor 500mm f8 mirror lens with a Nikon F to Canon EF mount adapter available here.

• Yes, there is a certain amount of luck involved in getting a bat-on-ball picture. But at the same time, let’s not forget what Louis Pasteur once said: “Fortune favors the prepared mind.”

• The last two images, of Casey Kotchman being tagged out at home plate by Matt Treanor, were made with remote cameras: one with a 70-200mm lens (at about 135mm) in the inside-first base well, and the other with a 300mm lens in the outside-third base well. If you look carefully, you can see the latter camera in the shot from the first base angle.

* Not-so-subtle reference to “Bull Durham,” for those not familiar with the greatest baseball movie ever made.