Often when I go to a Reds game, I end up in section 140, which is near the right field line and right next to the visitor bullpen. On this night the Reds were losing to the Phillies. Ryan Madson got up, and was just milling around the bullpen when he noticed my 6 month old son, Jackson. We had him in Reds gear and Madson said "cute kid!"

We said thanks, and he grabbed a ball and tossed it up to us. (If you aren't familiar, players don't do much fan interaction while the game is going on.) A minute later we asked if he would care to sign the ball to him, and he said he would. So we tossed the ball back and Ryan asked our son's name. He then said "is he a Reds fan?" to which we said "of course!"

Ryan finished signing the ball and tossed it up. It read "To Jackson, Go Reds! - Ryan Madson."

We were really impressed and thought that was such a cool gesture. We have had the ball on Jackson's shelf since, and you can imagine how excited I was that the Reds have decided to sign Madson as their closer for 2012. That story just got upgraded from cool to amazing.

Most of my experience with scalpers is in Cincinnati, OH, but most of the principles will hold true no matter which ballpark you are attending.  In Cincinnati, scalping tickets is legal. That can't be said everywhere, so it might be a good idea to check that out beforehand online. In a place like Chicago, where it isn't legal, you will still find scalpers, you just have to look a little harder.

The first thing to know when you think you may buy from a scalper, is to have cash. That may sound obvious, but many people don't carry cash anymore, so you may need to make sure you stop by a bank ahead of time so you don't find a great deal and then have to pass on it because you only carry plastic.

When you do walk up to a scalper, it is kind of like buying a used car. Don't sound too interested in what they have. They will ask what you need, and I usually say something like "your 2 cheapest." Inevitably whatever their cheapest is is more than I want to pay. I typically balk at the offer and start to walk away. In most cases, the scalper will walk after you making secondary offers or pulling even cheaper tickets (that he forgot he had) out of his boxers. If I do have an amount I want to pay, I might say something like "I've got $20 bucks, do you have any for $20 bucks?" At this point I have the $20 in my hand, so they know I am serious. Sometimes they will come down and give you a deal, but other times they legitimately don't have anything they can accept $20 for.

Keep in mind that $20 is a number I float out in Cincinnati. Perhaps in a place like Philly, New York, etc. you might just get laughed at. However, there is nothing wrong with getting laughed at in my opinion. The worst they can do is say "no". The key when buying tickets from a scalper is knowing when you have the advantage.

One instance where the buyer definitely has the advantage is when the team stinks. For many years this was the Reds, and most nights they would do well to have a half full stadium. When that was the case, it is a nice bargaining chip to know that you can walk-up to the gate and buy a $5 ticket and sit wherever you want. It doesn't hurt to remind the scalper of this, mainly so they know that you know. Ultimately you have the power in this case because you truly can walk away and easily get cheap tickets.

Another way to get cheap tickets from a scalper, or at least a situation where the buyer holds the edge is when the game has already started. Although I don't like it, many of you probably arrive to a game after the first pitch has been thrown. Most of the time, scalpers or random individual sellers who have extra tickets, don't want to 'eat' the tickets. This simply means they would rather get something for them than have them go to waste. Obviously this concern increases as time passes by. If you are 2 hours early, they won't have nearly the sense of urgency to cut you a deal as they will once the game has started. If you are running late and don't have tickets, you may be able to work a deal to get tickets way under face value.

Moral of the story when it comes to buying tickets from scalpers; don't be scared. Know what you want to pay and be prepared to walk away. That rhymed!

Another great resource for information on how to get cheap and sometimes free tickets to a game is my buddy Andrew Van Cleve. Check out his website here. This guy is a true sports road warrior.

This site was built using a free tool called Weebly. Weebly is designed to be used by people who don't know how to build a website. It is basically like building a website for dummies. After using the free version for awhile, I went ahead and paid for the "Pro" account, which was still very reasonable. This unlocked more features and lets you build up to 10 websites on one account, which is unbelievable.

A lot of things I have learned are trial and error, but Weebly gives you some advanced controls which I have learned how to use to customize ballparksavvy.com. Another thing I really appreciate about Weebly is that they seem dedicated to releasing more and more improvements and new features. The feature set has been enhanced quite a bit in the last couple of years, since I first started. In fact, I would say any Weebly review from 2010 or earlier probably includes things that have since been changed.

Frankly I am happy to recommend Weebly to friends who aren't web designers by trade. At least start with the free sites, which you can use forever. But if you get serious about it, it is worth upgrading to the pro version.

If you have questions about my Weebly review, feel free to contact me about it.

Also, if you happen to need a site built for a small business or other need, I do that too. Check it