West Coast MLB park tour 2012

Happy First Sunday of football everybody!  You would think that my blog today would be football related, especially since I am on the verge of my fantasy baseball season being over not making the playoffs for the first time EVER, but I am still in baseball mode folks.  In addition to this Friday being the day I go to the MLB Fancave, I just returned from 2012’s Ballpark tour out West.  On a mission to hit up all thirty parks in major league baseball, one of my best friends and I have become the Siskel and Ebert of MLB parks.  With each new park we visit, we find something new to appreciate about parks we have already been to in comparison, and of course we learn to appreciate something new about the game of baseball.  And as we are walking out of each respective park, we always say to each other “I love Fenway”. 

So, the first park we hit up in California was Petco Park in San Diego.  It was a day game against the Braves and the weather was perfect.  We stayed in the hotel connected to the park so the process of pre-gaming and getting to and from the game could not have been easier.  Both the park and the hotel were new, clean, and modern.  All things that are very important to me!!  I am not much of an ‘old charm’ type of person (with the exception of Fenway charm). Before the game we had lunch and drinks at a great little sports bar where we sat outside and enjoyed the city of San Diego.  So far, all this would make you think that Petco was my favorite park, but I should have known that something was up the night before when we arrived into town and the Padres game had just ended.  The streets around the park did not flood with people as they do when a game ends in Fenway, and the people that were on the streets were all decked out in Braves gear.  Hmmmmm….  So as we sat behind home plate in amazing seats, beers quickly in hand because there were no lines, we quickly realized “wow, this place really lacks in atmosphere” in terms of engaging the crowd.  There was no music played between innings, no fun games on the big screen to engage the casual fan who could care less about the game, minimal announcing, and very few people there who even cared about the Padres or could name more than one player on the team.  Not to mention, that we didn’t see one person eating peanuts or a hotdog the whole game.  HUH??  At the end of the day, the convenience, cleanliness, comfort level of the park were amazing, but if you want a down and dirty ballpark experience with ballpark food and real fans, Petco is not the place for you.

Next, we drove up the coast to Anaheim to see our beloved tanking Redsox take on the Angels.  Now for those of you who aren’t aware of geography (like myself), Anaheim is pretty set off from action and is a good 45 minutes to an hour outside the city of LA.  Needless to say, there is not much to do around the park and accessibility is definitely not a strength of Angel stadium.  Case in point, it was five dollars to park which tells you something about location.  There were a few bars and restaurants nearby however, and the area around the park appeared safe.   We pre-gamed at a hole in the wall local gem that one of my favorite Fancave dwellers recommended to us.  We were shocked and pleased when the bill came and beers and mixed drinks were a whopping four dollars.  We did however enter the park hungry and were not happy to see that the food options were slim.  I will take the blame for that one though… not the fault of the park!  Honestly though, there isn’t much to note about Angel Stadium.  I compare it to watching a baseball game in RFK, which was the home of the Nationals their first few years.  There were definitely more fans of baseball at the Angels game which was nice, however oddly enough it seemed to be 50/50 Redsox to Angels fans which I thought was a little strange.  We ran into Don Orsillo before the game just hanging out, talking to fans in the park, which did make for an exciting night before the game even started.  Once at our seats, we noticed a lot more fan engagement than at Petco Park.  It was interesting because everyone around us appeared to have brought their own food… ziplock bags of peanuts, and candy, homemade sandwiches, etc.  It was kind of funny to watch, however I guess I was jealous because I left the park hungry!!  After the game, the schlepp to our hotel in LA was not ideal but of course we were glad we made the stop in Anaheim and got to see some AMAZING players on the diamond.  The Angels have one good squad despite their slightly disappointing season.  That is really what the whole night was about… baseball 101 would be my theme of the experience.

Our next endeavor was Dodger Stadium, also referred to as Chavez Ravine (who knew).  We had a day off between the Angels and Dodgers game to explore LA, go to the beach, shop Rodeo Drive, etc.  As we explored LA, we asked multiple people about where we should go before the game to get the ‘Dodger experience’.  It was interesting because everyone we asked, would hesitate, and then spat out “Well, there is this dive bar called Short Stop that people go to?”   Always with a question mark at the end. That definitely raised a red flag for us, but we were determined to try it.  We should have known what we were getting into when we drove past it multiple times in broad daylight, despite the GPS stating that we had reached our destination.  Our destination was a black narrow building, with no windows and no sign, that looked like it had been shut down ten years ago following a crime scene investigation.  We walked in anyways, and even sat down at the bar.  I think that we were both trying to ‘roll with it’ but honestly, I was a little scerrrred.  First of all, I couldn’t even see a foot in front of me because it was so dark.  Secondly, there was this random room next to the bar that had no tables and people sitting around the edges of the room like they were waiting in line at a DMV or something.  It was hard to comprehend what that room was all about though because you could barely see.  Ok, I am rambling on and on about this bar that we didn’t even get a drink in, but it makes the point that Dodger Stadium was in the GHETTO!!  Despite being in the ghetto however, the park had the most beautiful view of the mountains, the setting sun on the clear sky, and again perfect weather.  We sat in great seats, again behind home plate, and we were impressed with the food and drink options (which include Dodger Blue Margaritas that are bright blue).  Despite being the third oldest park in baseball, Dodger Stadium provided a great viewing experience.  It was hard to tell how into the game Dodgers fans really were, but there was a lot of fan engagement.   They played music to get people involved, it was ‘take your dog to the park day’, people were eating peanuts and drinking beer, and the majority of the fans were decked out in Dodgers gear.  I knew I was going to have fun at this game regardless for many reasons.  The week prior the Dodgers acquired four Redsox in a blockbuster trade and Beckett was on the mound, Shane Victorino, whom I will always love was recently acquired, The Diamondbacks had Tyler Skaggs on the mound who is one of the best rookie pitching prospects right now…  Needless to say, I was a little rowdy at this game and had a GREAT time in Dodger Stadium. 

All of that being said, one of our most random observations at all the parks we have been too is that  there is a common thread of fans being obsessed with their team’s version of the Hawiian short sleeved collared shirt.  I am not even sure what else to say about that…  

Happy Sunday Funday to all!! 
-CL