BALLPARK HISTORY

Ballparks are full of history. They each have thier own distinct features, The bricks and ivy in Wrigley, monument park and the mystique of Yankee stadium, the warehouse at Camden, the green monster at Fenway, and more, but when you go to a park its more than to see the game, its to take in the environment. As much as I dislike it, part of going to Turner is listening to the fans do that tommohawk chant. I also enjoy seeing the statues or plaques of players who have contributed to all that history.

Each ballpark also gives you a different perspective of the game. What might be a HR at one park is just a fly ball in another. The site lines, angles and views of a game vary from park to park, even if your sitting in the same general area. Also the in game extras , like the mascot races, or singing the stretch at Wrigley, Sweet Caroline at Fenway, or the 7th inning God Bless America at Yankee stadium.

Another great thing about parks is visiting the local bar near the stadium. Harry Carays and Murphy's in Chicago, Pickles in Baltimore, Hockeytown Cafe in Detroit, Hooters in Anaheim, Rock Bottom Brewery in Denver (and Cinci), Harpoon Brewery in Boston, and Billys sports bar in the Bronx.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

AT&T Park, 2009



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Although it was off season (Jan 09') the park was open for tours and I did the full tour. Got to sit in the dugout and check out the locker room. Also went up into a luxury box. It was cool, although I would have much rather have caught a game there. Great View of the bay and a very nice park. The coke bottle and glove are really nice and a distinctive feature here. Will have to do a trip to California one year and hit all the parks down the coast.




Two statues at AT&T of the great Willie Mays and Juan Marichal.




The right outfield wall is another great feature, you can see in the stadium as your walking on the pier. A great set up with McCovey's Cove behind and the way the bleachers and benches are positioned.

Monday, March 1, 2010

Oriole Park at Camden Yards, 2008

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camden yards
Went there in fall of 08'. Went on a trip with my friend Shawn to Yankee Stadium in its final season and hit Camden on the way. Hung out at Pickles bar before the game and scored free box seats from a lady that had some extras. That's me in the bottom left of the warehouse pic wearing the cubs hat. That day the O's beat the Indians 6-3.


This is a beautiful and classic ballpark and besides Wrigley, its the nicest park I've been to. There is something to the feel with the warehouse.As you walk around the neighborhood around the park, it really has that ballpark feel to it, a lot like Wrigleyville. That is something not all parks have, like Turner.


The scoreboard here was cool. The clock and metal works was nice. The scoreboard was just revamped the year before we went, so we got to see the new version of it.





There is a statue of "Baby Babe" at Oriole Park, who was originally from Baltimore. And although not a statue, there is a plaque of Cal Jr. Maybe someday they will put up a statue of him since he is probably the most recognized Oriole.