Bill's Journal Entry #5

The Ballpark In Arlington

Date: May 28, 2002

Location: Arlington, Texas

Opponent: Minnesota Twins

Travel companion: None 

Link to my photos: http://cards.webshots.com/cp-30848358-wRRD-album/39440610bUMNVP 

Game Result: This was the one opportunity I was going to have on my 2002 travels to see my hometown Twins as the visiting team, and they didn’t disappoint. Jacque Jones hit a second inning grand slam, and the Twinkies never looked back. Minnesota cruised to an 11-4 victory.

Stadium Summary: When approaching this stadium, one can’t help but be struck by it’s squareness. No, I’m not meaning square in the geeky, Huey Lewis and the News way—although in this case, it truly is “hip to be square”. The outer stadium wall appears to be perfectly square, like it should be in the middle of a city block. In fact, this stadium would look great in downtown Dallas, or any other major league city. It’s architecturally very attractive, reminiscent of many of the classic former urban ballparks of years past. But instead of having a downtown area or a Wrigley-esque neighborhood next door, this stadium has the Six Flags Over Texas amusement park. If you look at the two in the same line of view, the stadium looks extremely out of place. But once you get inside, the stadium is closed on all sides, without any outside view, and that concern quickly fades from memory. The first thing I noticed inside the stadium was the variety of seating. There was plenty of traditional seating in several decks along both foul lines; in left field there is a section with a bent roof, supported by posts that can slightly obscure field views, reminding one of the support posts that were prominent in many now-extinct stadiums; and then there is the office building in center field where people could be seen watching through the windows. In fact, that pretty much summarizes my thoughts on this whole park.  Among the newer stadiums, it does one of the better jobs of reminding you of the classic parks of old.

Most deserved ejection from a game: Alex Rodriguez. In the top of the fifth inning, Bobby Kielty stole second. It was clear to everyone in the crowd (even to us Twin fans) that Kielty was out by a mile on Rodriguez’s tag, a view verified by replay on SportsCenter that night, but the umpire ruled Kielty safe. After the next batter struck out to end the inning, Rodriguez went ballistic while leaving the field. Both he and Rangers manager Jerry Narron were ejected, dropping the average salary of those in attendance at the game at least fifty percent. Rodriguez was right about the call, but he reacted like an overpaid, spoiled brat. Oh wait—he is an overpaid, spoiled brat.

Best body of water adjacent to a stadium—Man-made: Or at least I suspect that it’s man-made. A small lake (or is it a large pond?) on the north side of the park, with plenty of well-groomed grassy and treed areas surrounding it, make for some very nice photos of the stadium—and make a nice break from the acres of paved parking lots on the other sides of this and most major league ballparks.

My first ever souvenir baseball—sort of: When I first set out on this baseball journey, I had hoped that somewhere along the trip, I would get a souvenir baseball—be it a batting practice homer, a ball tossed by a player into the stands, or, best of all, a foul ball during a game. During batting practice, I thought I might have my chance. The Twins’ Doug Mienkiewicz hit a ball toward the third base line foul pole, right toward where I was standing. All I had to do to have my souvenir was stick my hands out and catch it. But as it was coming my way, I decided it seemed hit harder than I wanted to catch bare-handed, and pulled my hands back. It was a good thing—the ball hit and cracked a seat a couple rows behind me. Unfortunately, it ricocheted back onto the field. But that wouldn’t be my last chance. My seat during the game was located two rows directly behind the third base ballboy. At one point, he tossed a ball into the stands—straight at me! I caught it, and I had my souvenir! And then I remembered the guy I saw in Florida, who had given the foul ball he had caught to a nearby kid. And I remembered the kid two rows behind me, who had been having a great time at the game, holding his glove in the air throughout, hoping to catch a foul, while spending the entire game reciting Rangers statistics more fluidly than an accountant. So I gave the kid his ball. On the one hand, the look on his face made my day—but on the other hand, I really wanted a ball. All I could do was hope that the karma police had witnessed what I had done…

A trend continues: Alex Rodriguez’s fourth-inning dinger made me five-for-five in having the home team homer in games I attend.

Worst non-corporate-sponsored stadium name: Kudos for not falling into the stadium-name-as-brand-name-advertisement trap, but “The Ballpark In Arlington”? Come on—there has to be someone in the area deserving of having a stadium named after them!

Stadium grade: B  Some good ideas, and a good look, although an out-of-place look. But load this on a couple big semis, haul it down I-20 to neighborhood in the Big D, and you really would have something!

Overall grade of my experience at the game: B  A Twins win, a souvenir ball (for a few seconds), and a sharp stadium made for a fun evening. Even the weather was cooperative, as the rain didn’t fall during the game (although everyone got wet on their way out to their vehicles).

-- Bill Verkuilen    biggbill@hotmail.com

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