America's Pastime

To commemorate my upcoming trip to Philly and Baltimore to watch baseball, I decided to throw in my two cents on the ballparks I have already visited.  Once I visit Citizen's Bank and Camden Yards, I will include my review of those.

Turner Field - Atlanta Braves:

My first major league game in 1997.  Braves/Cardinals.  Ended up going about 13 innings and ended 1-0.  I have been to a few more games at Turner since that one.  Of course, the atmosphere here is more electric when the Braves are competing for a playoff spot, but overall, it is a great park.  A little too big at times, with a lot of empty seats, it can still get loud when the Braves put runs on the board.  Even up in the nosebleeds, there isn't really a bad seat in the park.  Also, you can bring your own food and drink into the game, so you save a ton of money.  Nothing like watching a game in that Atlanta heat though.

Cinergy Field/Riverfront Stadium - Cincinnati Reds:

Only went to one game here.  It was a dump with a ton of empty seats.  The location in the city was great, but the Reds made a wonderful decision to tear it down and build a new park. 

Great American Ballpark - Cincinnati Reds:

Went to a few games at Great American, and it is a phenomenal place to see a game.  The second series the park hosted was against the Cubs, and I was able to go.  The night before, Sosa hit his 500th on a nice warm night, but the day game on Saturday was cold with a breeze coming off the Ohio River.  Griffey got hurt diving for a ball, and the Cubs fans in the outfield were heckling him.  This park is definitely and upgrade from Cinergy.  It is one of my favorite places to see a game.  The Reds took a lot of seats out, so it does not look as empty, and the view of the Ohio River is incredible.  The fans, granted they haven't been in a playoff race for a while until now, were rather uninterested.

Old Yankee Stadium - New York Yankees:

What a dump.  We sat in the bleacher seats for an afternoon game, and it was literally 98 degrees outside.  Saw Mo Rivera lose the game in the 9th to the Royals.  The fans were awesome though.  Definitely 100% behind their team.  More cutthroat that any of the other fans I have seen though.  Losing was simply unacceptable for them.  Hopefully New Yankee Stadium gives the same feel with a better park, although Yankee fans were proud of their dump in the old park.

Shea Stadium - New York Mets:

The park was definitely nicer than Old Yankee, but the atmosphere was terrible.  They were booing their own team the whole game and chanting for Willie to get fired.  There were a few interesting characters we ran across, but they did not make the experience any better.  We encountered a rain delay, and after the storm, there were no fans remaining, but we were not allowed to move any closer to the field.  I highly doubt Citi Field's atmosphere is any better than Shea's.  It is probably just a little nicer.

Fenway Park - Boston Red Sox:












The Mecca of all the parks I have been to so far.  We were at the game that broke the consecutive sellouts streak held by Cleveland.  They were playing the Orioles, and the fans were fully behind their team.  The only difference between Red Sox fans and Yankee fans are that Red Sox fans wouldn't ever boo their team.  There are certainly better places to watch baseball but no better atmosphere.  Whether it was the wave that lasted 10 minutes and ended with a JD Drew home run or 30,000 Boston accents singing Sweet Caroline, this place is amazing.  Fenway franks are second to none, and even better is the fact that a cop on the field let me grab a handful of dirt from the park.  They don't make ballparks like this anymore.

Busch Stadium - St. Louis Cardinals:














Hands down, the best view from any park I have ever been to.  With city hall and the arch in the background, this park is a gem.  The fans support their team, but they aren't as rabid as the fans on the east coast.  Everybody is in their Cardinals red, but this truly has a Midwest feel.  I didn't go to Old Busch, but the new park is really nice with some great food.  Also, there isn't a bad seat in this park either.  I would think it is one of the better new parks in the league to see a game.

Of course my goal is to make it to every major league park, but there are a few parks I am more excited to see.  Of course Wrigley is a must.  Also, the Jake is at the top of my list, but we will start with Philly and Baltimore this weekend.