75th All Star Game
Here on the third and final page of our photo essay, we see the latter stages of the game, and what Minute Maid Park
looked like (inside and out) once the festivities came to a close.
Opening up
The retractable roof remained closed until the 7th inning.
In the shot on the left, the massive roof panels have started their
slow trip to convert Minute Maid to an open-air park. By the way,
the NL is turning a double play in this shot.
Following God Bless America during the 7th inning
stretch, a long-standing tradition at Astros games was upheld. That's
when the fans join in the singing of Deep in the Heart of Texas.
At this point, the final roof panel has almost completed its trip
across the field.
The view from above
For a change in scenery, I moved to the upper deck to
take some photos. On the left is the seating section known as the
Crawford Boxes. They are called this because Crawford Street runs
just beyond the wall behind left field. Also, these seats are simply
too close to home plate. Home runs fly into the Crawford seats with
alarming regularity. As proof, consider the location of the left fielder
as "exhibit A." He's virutally sitting in the Crawford seats!
The other photo shows a panoramic view of Minute Maid
Park -- with its bizarre outfield walls -- from high above home plate.
I like the nightlife, baby
Within just a few minutes of the final out of the 9-4
AL victory (remember, this one counts!), journalists had flooded
the field to conduct post-game interviews and "stand ups"
for local-news shows.
The fans have flooded the streets surrounding the ballpark
on the right. Here, the nightlife directly across the street from
the park on Texas Street is beckoning.
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