The Ballpark Experience - MarinersVsDodgers's Blog

MarinersVsDodgers's Blog

The Ballpark Experience

Posted on April 25, 2012 at 02:48 AM.

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There's something special about ascending the stairs up into Safeco Field (at least for me) to a broad plaza with the whole field in your view. You go to a stand, grab a hot dog and some garlic fries (a staple point here at the Safe) and get down (or up) to your seat. The National Anthem wraps up and a selected 8 year-old emphatically screams, "PLAY BALL!" and the crowd of 21,223 all applause. Hector Noesi is the starter tonight against the Oakland A's. Jemile Weeks gets up into the batter's box and Noesi takes the mound. Here's the opening pitch:

"AW COMON' UMP, THAT WAS RIGHT THERE!"

You play it off cool, 'Okay whatever, just a die-hard ready to cheer for his pitcher.) The 0-2 delivery to Weeks is on the way...

"THAT DAMN PITCH WAS RIGHT ON THE F'IN (abbreviated for consent) CORNER, YOU A'HOLE!"

You shoot off a quick glance, 'Okay guy, there's kids here at their first M's game, not a good impression.' Weeks grounds it to Ryan. The throw to first is on time...No! He's safe!

"YOU F'N PIECE OF S*** UMP, WHY THE F*** IS JIMMY JOYCE STILL AN UMPIRE (it wasn't Jim Joyce at 1b ump, or at the game at all)"

You look around and everyone else is staring at each other. The person seated four seats to the right mouths, 'What an a**'...and you shake your head with a pissed off grin in agreement.

After four innings I couldn't stand this guy. I got up, strolled around the ballpark, ultimately decided to hit the centerfield plaza up for a more friendly atmosphere. I'm not a softie at sports events, it's just baseball is not the right sport to go to yell and be rowdy at (at least if you're the Mariners- Safeco Field can get pretty dead at times). You just make yourself look like an idiot when you're the only one screaming around a bunch of people enjoying the time with their friends and/or family. Maybe it was because I had seats 13 rows up from first base, that I felt we (the people there) had to be sophisticated. Maybe Safeco Field is full of a bunch of softies, and that guy was the exclusion?

What is your favorite way to take in the ballpark experience?