The Last Stop on the Baseball Tour

Friday, September 28

Last Thursday I was fortunate enough to catch the Colorado Rockies last afternoon home game versus the Los Angeles Dodgers. It was a magnificent day for baseball: sunny and warm with a breeze – the sort of day you imagine when you think of afternoon baseball.

Coors Field is a great baseball park. A lot of thought obviously went into its design. When it opened in 1995, it was part of the wave of “retro” parks. Like the Ballpark at Arlington, its field is irregularly shaped and a lot of effort went into making the park feel welcoming and more like the old Tiger Stadium than the Metrodome. The field is visible from all the concourses around the park, meaning you can see the play while you buy a hotdog. The batter’s eye (the black seats at Yankee Stadium) at Coors Field is a stand of native pine trees with a fountain that erupts with every Rockies’ homerun. Above the batter’s eye are the bleacher seats known as “the Rockpile”. The most notable feature of Coors Field, however, is the 20th row of the upper-deck. This row of purple seats (the rest of the park’s seats are green) marks 1 mile above sea level. The thinner air lets the ball travel 5% farther than at a park at sea level (like Yankee Stadium). Combined with the drier mountain air, the altitude has turned Coors Field into a homerun park.

The game I saw on Thursday had its share of homeruns. The Rockies hit 2 (including a three run shot) and the Dodgers had 2 dingers of their own, but couldn’t come back from a 6 run second inning and got swept by the Rockies 9-4. At the time, the Rockies looked to be out of the playoff picture, but they’ve been playing like a team possessed and now only trail the Padres by a single game for the NL wildcard. They’re playing some great baseball.

The group I went to the game with was a blast. Mike Berg, Fran, Dumas, Michael, Tony, Patrick, Robert and I all sat in some great seats (20 rows off the field just beyond 1st base) that they guys secured for us (for free) when they sang that National Anthem on Tuesday. We played the dollar game (everyone draws a player from both teams: if your player gets a hit, that’s a dollar from everyone – a run is a dollar and a homerun is $3) and passed around quite a bit of cash. Poor Fran drew two stinkers – she ended down quite a bit for the day – but everyone had a great time. What’s better than sitting in free field-level seats at a baseball game, soaking up the sun and a couple of beers in the middle of a weekday?

One of Fran's snaps from the game: Robert, JV, Dumas & Berg

Too bad it doesn't look like we're having any fun...

Thursday marked the last game I’ll be able to attend for the ’07 season. The Spamalot Tour has done a lot for my baseball lifetime list:

Major League Parks: 7
Tiger Stadium – Detroit (RIP – I understand they’re about to finally tear down “The Corner”)
Yankee Stadium – New York
Wrigley Field - Chicago
Minute Maid Field – Houston
Rangers Ballpark at Arlington – Dallas (Arlington)
Metrodome - Minneapolis
Coors Field - Denver

AAA Parks: 6
Cooper Stadium – Columbus
Frontier Field – Rochester
Victory Field – Indianapolis
Principal Park – Des Moines
PGE Park – Portland
Franklin Covey Field – Salt Lake City

A Parks: 2
Oldsmobile Park – Lansing
Covelski Stadium – South Bend

Unaffiliated Parks: 1
Midway Stadium – St. Paul

Though I didn’t get to see a game at Yankee Stadium this season (the Yanks have locked up a play-off spot and trail the BoSucks by only two games in the Division Race with 4 games to go!!!), I compare everywhere I go to the House that Ruth Built. With that in mind, I offer this assessment of my ’07 Baseball Tour:

The Nathan’s Famous Award for Best Concessions:
Frontier Field (Rochester) – look back at the picture of me and that hot dog plate: that is ballpark food heaven.

The Bob Shepard Award for best PA Announcer:
Franklin Covey Field (Salt Lake City) – their PA man had the rich, sonorous tones you want from your PA man. He sounded truly classic.
Honorable Mention: Midway Stadium (St. Paul) – what he lacked in classic sound, he more than made up for in enthusiasm. He really got the crowd into the game (and he sat at a folding table on top of the dugout – that’s worth something!).

The Shea Stadium Award for Dumpiest Park:
Midway Stadium (St. Paul) – there is nothing good to be said for the physical park at Midway Stadium.
Runner Up: Metrodome (Minneapolis) – I’m sure that they’ll find outdoor baseball in April a bit chilly at their new park, but I applaud the fans in Minneapolis for realizing that the word “baggie” has no place in baseball.

The 6 Train in the Right field Gap Award for Best View of Transportation Infrastructure:
Midway Stadium (St. Paul) – Train tracks ran the length of the outfield wall and just across the street behind home plate. An engineer honked the train’s horn and waved at us!
Honorable Mention: PGE Park (Portland) – The MAX tracks ran along the outfield wall, though the engineers never honked at us…

The “Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bronx is Burning” Award for Best View of the Surroundings:
Franklin Covey Field (Salt Lake City) - The view of the mountains over the outfield wall was spectacular.
Honorable Mention: Principal Park (Des Moines) - While Des Moines didn’t have any mountains; they showcased the view across the river and to the State Capitol.

The Crazy Squirrel on the Foul Poll that Totally Distracted Suzyn Waldman Award for Best Animal Antics:
Midway Stadium (St. Paul) - They had a pig for cryin’ out loud.

The “Thrilla from Godzilla” Award for Best Homerun Celebration:
Too close to call:
Rangers Ballpark at Arlington (Dallas) - Centerfield Pyro
Coors Field (Denver) - Centerfield Fountains
Franklin Covey Field (Salt Lake City) - “Haircut for Homerun Ball” Promotion: if you caught a homerun ball, you won a free Supercuts hair cut!
Disqualified: Minute Maid Park (Houston): -Minute Maid Train (there were no home team homeruns that day I was there)

The Tommy Lasorda Getting Hit by an Errant Bat Award for Jumbo-tron Fun Award:
Victory Field (Indianapolis) - The “Flex-cam” quickly cutting away from a rapidly disrobing Matt Allen
Honorable Mention: Coors Field (Denver) - Rather than the “Yankee Cap Game”, the Jumbo-tron hide the ball game in Denver is sponsored by a garbage and recycling company. They hide the ball inside garbage trucks that race around the screen.

The “Hey Beerman!” Award for Best Service at Your Seat:
Coors Field (Denver) - Jerry, our usher, walked through the stands offering complimentary sun block and carrying a hand-pumped water mister. Awesome.

The “Dunkin Donuts D Train” Award for Best Baseball Side Betting Game:
Tony Holds for introducing me to the Dollar Game.

The “Lemme Hear Ya” Award for Best 7th Inning Stretch:
Principal Park (Des Moines) & Jeff Dumas root, root, rootin’ for the Cubbies.
Honorable Mention: Minute Maid Park (Houston) - Deep In the Heart of Texas

The Freddy Schuman Superfan Award:

Mike Berg attended more of these baseball adventures with me than any other member of the Spamily. I might even be able to overlook his love of the Angels...

The Phil Rizzuto Memorial Award for Best Use of Baseball Terminology:
Jeff Dumas’ description of the Rangers’ Ballpark as a “bandbox”.

The Yogi Berra Award for Best Sport:
Fran Curry for laughing through her $30+ loss at the Denver Dollar Game
Honorable Mention: The Box Office at Frontier Field giving us our money back in Redwings Dollars for the rain out in Rochester.

The House That Ruth Built Award for Prettiest Ballpark:
Major League: Ranger’s Ballpark at Arlington (Dallas) – I know it was designed to feel warm and nostalgic, but it works. It’s a great place to see a game.
Minor League: PGE Park (Portland) – The place felt like a set for an old baseball movie. The timber supports for the roof and the ivy covered outfield walls were charming, but it was the giant, person-operated scoreboard that really sealed the deal.

And the Grand Prize:
The Game 3 of the 2004 ALCS at Yankee Stadium Award for Best Time at the Ballpark Award:
Midway Stadium (St. Paul): Some of the baseball was downright awful, but I had so much fun at that game. (Probably not as much fun as at Game 3 of the 2004 ALCS at Yankee Stadium…)

I’m grateful that this tour has given me the opportunity to see so many games in so many great parks. I will really miss this part of the tour for the next few months. (The tour does go to Florida during the ’08 Spring Training months…) However, thanks to modern technology, I can easily follow the Yankees quest for that 27th World Series Championship no matter where work takes me!

JV