Stadium 11: Coors Field and BEER!!

Anheuser-Busch is the official beer sponsor which means you'll see Budweiser and Bud Lite in most MLB ballparks. In fact they sponsor and are official in 23 of 30 MLB stadiums. This includes Marlins park who has a solid bar in Left Center that Stanton loves to frequent with home run balls.



The problem is the prices of beer at MLB stadiums! I feel that nothing is worse than having to drink a Budweiser (who drinks that?) for a solid 10.50 at Marlins park. You could always go nuts and pay 12 dollars for a premium Corona. (Seriously?)

According to the Business-Journal which I find hard to believe... the cheapest beer at Marlins park is 6 dollars? Good luck finding that high quality beer there.

Also according to the Business-Journal the most expensive place to get a beer is at Fenway park where you are paying a whopping .65 cents an ounce for a beer. This is .15 more cents an ounce than any other ballpark.



This brings me to something amazing at stadium 11: Coors Field in Denver Colorado....


The Blue Moon Brewing company which celebrates its 20 year anniversary is located inside of Coors Field!! Yes a national brand which is quite satisfying is located in the stadium. For a cool 7 dollars, you can drink fresh beer straight from the tap making it the freshest beer you'll ever taste at an MLB stadium. This can make any rain delay at Coors Field seem to fly by easily!

Also celebrating its 20 year anniversary is Coors Field in Denver, Colorado located in downtown Denver.


A beautiful sight line can be seen from the first baseline which are the ever beautiful Rocky Mountains!



Even though I wish they were directly behind the stadium.

Also what really truly won me over was the 4 dollar ticket price that I paid to get into Coors Field! 4 bucks for a game in 2015! Cheap and awesome. Also it is very easy to move around the ballpark which made ending behind home plate on my last visit super easy.

We have also gotten a ball on my two trips to Coors Field! Let's not forget Blue Moon!!

So it definitely has been positive experiences and why it falls in at 11. Why isn't it higher? The other ten just have a better baseball feel and really scream baseball! 

Next up: Top ten! City of brotherly love!

Stadium 12: Citifield and the haunted hotel in baseball.

The Marlins open a three game series in Milwaukee tonight. Most MLB teams stay in the historic Pfister Hotel.



The hotel has been in service since 1893 and is located in downtown Milwaukee. What you do not know is that this place is haunted. Haunted? Well according to the urban legend the original owner, Charles Pfister, likes to overlook the hotel to make sure that things are running smoothly from this balcony.



Fine, no big deal. That is until you hear the stories from MLB players who have stayed in the hotel.

Our own Giancarlo Stanton compares it to the Haunted Mansion at Disney World with its weird paintings.

CJ Wilson has his story:

"I've had lots of experiences there. I was on the computer one night, doing my typical shtick -- surfing the web, sending an email, editing a photo -- and then all of a sudden the lights started flickering. I'm thinking to myself, I'm going to be so pissed if my computer dies. Then the light just shuts off. And then the TV shuts off. And then the light turns back on, but the light at the front door turns off. I just yelled out, "Really?"

I have this thing with ghosts. Just engage them or confront them. Just say, "Hey, man, I'm here to chill out. I'm just here to send some emails, no big deal. Just leave me alone." So after that, I went back to whatever I was doing on the computer, but then 30 minutes later there's scratching in the walls. Now I'm thinking, Okay, it's the Midwest, there could be a possum or something in the wall, right? That's possible, isn't it? All I knew was that there were definitely noises coming from the wall. I just said out loud again, "Can you please just leave me alone? I'm really trying to work here."

At this point, I'm on edge. I'm literally looking to see if there are people in the hallway, if someone's trying to pull something. We'll do that sometimes -- take a guy's key card and hide in the closet or behind the shower and jump out. But then the lights really start going crazy, and I'm like, "Are you kidding me? I don't want anything from you! Leave me alone! Or write it down. Write down what you want. I can't communicate with you through the lights."

The next day, we all show up at the park, and everyone has this uneasy feeling, like we had bad Chinese food or something. I said to one of my teammates, "You wouldn't believe the s--- that was going on in my hotel room last night." And another guy said, "Oh my god. Are you talking about that s--- you heard?" Everybody had a story. One dude got locked in his bathroom and he had to get the hotel to get him out. Another guy had the lights turn off when he was in the shower. Another guy saw something." (ESPN)

Pablo Sandoval: who is a big guy said this

"I don't like the ghosts there. In 2009 I went to take a shower, and I remember putting my iPod next to a speaker. When I came out, it was playing music, and I have no idea why. I left the hotel after that. I didn't want to stay there. In 2010 me and Edgar [Renteria] stayed down the street and paid for it on our own. Then last month, I decided to stay there again. I asked myself, Why do I have to be afraid? The only thing I asked the ghosts was to let me sleep. And they did." (ESPN)

One more story from Michael Young:

"Oh, f--- that place. Listen, I'm not someone who spreads ghost stories, so if I'm telling you this, it happened. A couple of years ago, I was lying in bed after a night game, and I was out. My room was locked, but I heard these footsteps inside my room, stomping around. I'd heard all these stories about this hotel, so I was wide awake at that point. And then I heard it again, these footsteps on the floor, so I yelled out, "Hey! Make yourself at home. Hang out, have a seat, but do not wake me up, okay?" After that, I didn't hear a thing for the rest of the night. I just let him know he was welcome, that we could be pals, that he could marinate in there for as long as he needed to, just as long as he didn't wake me up." (ESPN)

There also have been stories of Marlins players who demanded to sleep in the same room because they were scared of the hotel. (Players normally have their own room) There have been other players that simply will sleep at a neighboring hotel on their own dime. The fear is real, which makes me wonder why MLB teams still stay at the Pfister Hotel?

Stadium 12: CitiField 

Located in Queens at the end of the 7 line is CitiField. The stadium opened its doors in 2009 and has been the new home of the Mets since. The transit on the 7 train can take you a little while unless you take the express route since it is at the end of the line.

As you walk in to Citi Field, you are welcomed with a dedication to #42 Jackie Robinson who was the first African American player in MLB baseball. It is a beautiful entrance and ode to a very brave individual who broke down the color barriers.

That is officially heaven. You will wait the line for the amazing custard and burger and fries that comes from the Shake Shack. I know they have opened a few down here, but nothing beats the novelty of having it there at a Met game.

Games are fun at Citifield. It is a much more fun atmosphere to watch a game at than at its counterpart in the Bronx. They want you to sit and enjoy the fun of Mets baseball. 

So what is missing at CitiField? There is nothing back there. You have the possibility of amazing NYC skyline and it is not there. I mean I get that you can not face west in baseball, but find a way! The other odd part is that this is one of the few stadiums that will not let you sneak in behind home plate even in the 8th or 9th inning, even if it is empty, even if it is 14-0. Seriously? Why do we have to be ticket nazis CitiField? Why

Luckily they make that 7 train an express to get back very quickly to Manhattan...

Next up: Blue Moon brewery at a ballpark??

Stadium 13: Target Field and Updates on this past week in baseball.

Earlier this week I mentioned how random baseball can be especially with no hitters and cycles. I mean the home team thing on Tuesday was kind of cool. Of course write about things.... and then this happens!

Wednesday: Hiwashi Iwakuma threw a no hitter for the Seattle Mariners... Still an amazing feat and still only about 300 of these in MLB History.


It is an exciting moment to be a part of, and thankfully after many years of hoping I would attend one, I did. The last day of the disastrous 2013 season, I was dragged to Marlins park to finish off the season. Little did I know I would attend a very unique no hitter. Henderson Alvarez threw a no hitter but could not celebrate on the mound because the Marlins had not scored yet. With two outs in the bottom of the ninth...they did.

Very cool moment... I have gotten the ticket signed from that day and it is in a very safe location. Some people have seen tons of no hitters in person and recently Keith Olbermann talked about his ridiculously poor luck that made me feel so damn blessed I saw this one in person. 

Friday: I wrote about how the Padres have never hit for the cycle. It took them 7444 games but Matt Kemp did it...

 

Yeah...smile...Matt Kemp. So guess what team still hasn't hit for a cycle? That's right those wonderful great amazing...Miami Marlins. But do not worry!!! We will start a cycle watch as it is bound to happen! They are due! 3614 games since the Marlins have hit for a cycle. I want our announcers to sound like this.

Recently: Just because I think this is hilarious.

Remember baseball is still a kids game. 

I'll get to Marlins news tomorrow after the Cardinals finish them off.

Stadium 13: Target Field 

Located in Downtown Minneapolis, Target Field opened in 2010 and is an outdoor baseball facility. It was much needed after playing in the Metrodome... (29 on this list)

Target Field is a beautiful stadium that really tries to incorporate both the history and modern aspects of baseball. There are statues all over the exterior of the stadium to represent the heroes of Minnesota baseball.

The food in the ballpark is amazing as well. Barbecue that made you simply melt by how amazing it was. 

Butcher and the Boar provided this amazing feast of riblets.

Why does Target field only fall in 13 on this ranking... The sight lines do leave a little to desire and you also at this point on my criteria need to give me more. Make my experience unique and as much as I love the Midwest and the Twin Cities it just didn't meet it. They definitely made an immense upgrade over the Metrodome. 

Next up: Back to an Empire State of Mind. 

Stadium 14: Comerica park and Marlins trade history

The Marlins...like every other team in MLB...make lots of trades. Sometimes they are met with good intentions and sometimes they are not. The Marlins are always accused of firesales, and I want to look at a few to see what they were then and how they should be perceived now...

May 1998: What is known as one of the most lopsided trades in MLB history. The Marlins traded away Bobby Bonilla, Jim Eisenreich, Charles Johnson and Gary Sheffield for Mike Piazza and Todd Zeile. The Marlins a week later so they would never have to pay Piazza, traded him to the Mets for Preston Wilson and randoms...

Yes he was a marlin!

Pro: Preston Wilson played four decent seasons with the Marlins even though he was a strikeout king! 
Con: Look at all the amazing names going elsewhere.... 

Result: This was absolutely a cost cutting measurement in which the Marlins lost out in a very big way!

2006:  Josh Beckett, Mike Lowell, and Guillermo Mota were traded to the Red Sox for four minor-league prospects: shortstop Hanley Ramírez, and pitchers Aníbal Sánchez, Jesús Delgado, and Harvey García


Pro: Hanley Ramirez, as detrimental and a cancer as he was, did win a batting title for the Marlins. Anibal Sanchez was a stud and has one of the five no hitters in Marlins History. Mota was washed up and done. Mike Lowell (who I loved) was nearing the end of his career.

Con: Josh Beckett still had some amazing years left in him and that was tough to swallow. Jesus Delgado and Harvey Garcia never accounted for much.

Result: Marlins even in their market correction made the correct choice. They received two large pieces that produced more with less money than Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell did over what was left of their careers.

2012: Jose Reyes, Josh Johnson, Mark Buehrle, John Buck, Emilio Bonifacio and cash considerations to Toronto for Yunel Escobar, Adeiny Hechavarria, Henderson Alvarez,Jeff Mathis, Justin Nicolino, Anthony Desclafani and Jake Marisnick. Note: Yunel escobar was later traded to Tampa for Derek Dietrich


Pro: Marlins did shed a lot of salary but picked up so many pieces. Hechavarria is a budding star with the Marlins. Alvarez when healthy has no hit stuff as evidenced in 2012. Mathis has been an OK backup. Nicolino is now starting to see a future with the club. Desclafani would of been a great asset and he is one with Cincinnati. Marisnick just didn't fit here but has done ok elsewhere. Even Derek Dietrich has become a solid slugger with the Marlins

Cons: It looked bad? Reyes is a solid hitter but had many injury issues. Buerhle is dependable so thats a loss. Josh Johnson never recovered from TJ surgery. John Buck (puke!). Bonifacio never could get on base.

Result: Marlins made an amazing trade that everyone criticized! They made all the right decisions and came up on top even tough many though this was a bad trade. 

Finally this trade 2006: Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis for Cameron Maybin, Andrew Miller, Mike Rabelo, two random pitchers, and Burke Badenhop.


Pro: Badenhop threw a solid two seasons with the Marlins.... Willis really never panned out after this. 

Cons: Everything. This was one of the worst trades in MLB history. Maybin was a joke who could not get on base, Miller could not keep an ERA below 6 including all of his BB, Rabelo was a backup catcher at his best. Miguel Cabrera continues to be one of the best hitters in baseball almost ten years later!!! It is like getting rid of Stanton before his prime for peanuts. 

Result: In my eyes, one of the worst trades in MLB History!!!!!

Detroit hosed us and they play in

14. Comerica Park


Opened in 2000, Comerica park is located in downtown Detroit which has a horrendous reputation as being a terrible city. I will not change your mind as it is one of the worst, if not worst cities in America. It is isolated from many other things but located in a crummy park of town. The Detroit Lions stadium shares its neighboring.

I expected a terrible stadium but was shocked to see that it wasn't too bad. Tigers greet you everywhere you look at Comerica.



There is a love and passion for the Tigers that for a second makes you actually forget that you are in Detroit, Michigan. I did enjoy my time there and the fans were fun and friendly.

If it were located anywhere else in America, I would rate Comerica higher. The experience of being in that city is not very pleasurable with run down buildings and life everywhere... so sadly it stays at 14.

Next up: back to the twins!

Stadium 15. Safeco Field and baseball randomness

Baseball is very very random. I love it but people are usually bored during games and will sit there and go after the stats. I am a statistics person, so I love it. There are so many of them that it just makes you go nuts. This is where you find out random things and go wow. Records will be broken in games that you never even knew there were records of!

Every year after Christmas, but before the New Year, Jayson Stark of ESPN comes out with an article detailing the Strange but True events of the previous year in MLB. Most of it is very random but makes you chuckle. Especially the dumb injuries.

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/12081854/mlb-strange-true-2014

There are some quality gems in there.

So lets start with the Marlins yesterday who are the one team that has scored the least amount of runs this year so of course they score 14 runs yesterday on 17 hits.

-The Marlins set a franchise record 10 runs scored in an inning when they teed off the Red Sox with 10 runs on 10 hits in the frame.



- JT Realmuto set a franchise record of RBIs in an inning with 5. I thought that mark would of been hit already.
-JT also hit a home run, triple, and a single but was short of a cycle.

-There have been 306 cycles in MLB History

-No Marlin has ever hit for a cycle in the 23 seasons of Marlins baseball.

-The San Diego Padres are the only other franchise that hasn't had a player hit for a cycle and they have been playing 47 seasons out there.

-There are also 291 no hitters in MLB History. The Marlins can claim 5 of those. The Padres can claim none....

In even weirder baseball news. On Tuesday the home team won every single baseball game and went 15-0! That feet has never occurred in baseball history and the closest we have come to that was 12-0 in 1914! The home team wins about 54 percent of their games so the probability of it happening was .000968 or .00968 percent. It was probably even lower since the Marlins were one of those home teams....

This event was capped off when the Mariners walked off in extra innings at.....

15. Safeco Field! (love that transition?)

Located in the South downtown district (SoDo) of Seattle and neighboring Qwest Field, Safeco Field is easily accessible by train from downtown Seattle and Tacoma. Safeco opened in the middle of the 1999 season. 

Safeco has great views of the city from the first base side and sounds of the train station right behind it. 

It was the last stop of my 32 stadium tour which does bring a smile to my face . The seafood selection at the park was outstanding but the park does not quite have that baseball feel. The biggest debbie downer was the alcohol police roaming around the stadium making sure there was no underage drinking. I have never ever seen that at a stadium. I even saw them harass some kids with pop because they swore that they spiked their drink. How is that even remotely ok??

The late sunset over the city really makes this a great sight to see and I was happy that this is where my tour ended up. Safeco still falls in the middle of the pack because there are just stadiums and experiences better than this!

Next up: RAWR!

Stadium 16: Wrigley Field and the seventh inning stretch.

Baseball can be long and when at the ballpark just sitting for three hours we get tired... The Seventh inning stretch which occurs in the middle of the seventh was incorporated as a break for the players and fans as well to get loose. The bigger tradition is to stand up and sing take me out to the ballgame which all ballparks in America do. Now some ballparks get cute and add something else to it.

Baltimore: Thank God I'm a county boy
Houston: Deep in the Heart of Texas
Texas: Cotton Eyed Joe
Angels: Build me up Buttercup

but there is nothing like the seventh inning at Wrigley Field. It all started with Harry Carey as an announcer for the White Sox simply singing to himself, take me out to the ballgame during the 7th inning. The owner of the White Sox decided to turn his mic on one day and everyone heard and loved it.... Eventually he turned this tradition over to Wrigley Field.

Harry Carey eventually died but his tradition lives on as a new celebrity or local will take his role and sing the standard at every home game. 

Trust me you will get chills standing and singing along. I am also a sucker for the lovely seventh inning stretch

16. Wrigley Field....

Wrigley Field is a mecca! Why on earth could it be so low on the list!!

Wrigley Field opened its doors in 1914 and is now 101 years old and counting. Yes, the Cubs have not won the World Series at Wrigley Field as this clearly reminds them. 

Means year of the cub. Years since division, national league, and world series titles. Should read 06/69/106

They are the lovable losers and fans simply go out there to have a good time. They love their cubbies but there is just a sense of doom that enters a fanbase when something as silly as this:

occurs in their lives.... Just wait for it... Things are going too well in Wrigleyville!

Wrigley Field is located in the middle of a residential neighborhood in Northern Chicago which made simple additions and construction to Wrigley Field almost impossible. They did not play a single night game at Wrigley until 1986 when MLB forced them or else they would not be allowed to have playoff games in Chicago. Even then, the number of night games was limited. It was only recently that they were allowed to play weekend games at night!

The Ivy is iconic and spends all season growing to create a luscious looking outfield. 

The bleacher seats are always a party and the old school hand operated out of town scoreboard is always a treat to see!

Wrigley Field is an icon! So what is the problem with Wrigley....

ITS A DUMP!!! It is run down and falling apart. The seats are made for tiny people. And don't forget the obstructed seats.

Or the possibility of missing fly balls because of the low ceiling

Wrigley field was in dire need of a renovation and finally...after many fights with the city they got this put in....

If Fenway can fix it up.... You can too Wrigley....Maybe one day you'll 

But right now.... you.... 

Next up: my 32!

Stadium 17: Miller Park and races...

The new trend of MLB baseball stadiums is to have races. Sometimes it is a local theme sometimes it just doesn't make too much sense. We have the Presidents Race in Washington


The lovely Sea Creatures in Miami


The Legends Race of Arizona


And then the silly ones:
The Tool Race in Atlanta


and Denver reminds you to take care of your teeth!


But it all started in Milwaukee with the Great Sausage Race:

Commenced in the early 90s, it pits a race among one of the three things people in Milwaukee love which is sausages. The other two are cheese and beer which astounds me that they don't love heart attacks as well.

The race is between bratwurst, polish, italian, hot dog, and chorizo. People do place bets on these guys and it can get intense. It did have a famous incident attached to it when Randall Simon who then played for the Pirates thought it was funny to do this....

He was suspended three games and arrested for the incident... whoops... 

These races are a growing concept that amazingly is getting bigger by the day as 25 percent of the stadiums now incorporate some form of this. This all started though with the Brewers.

17. Miller Park:

The first of three stadiums mentioned named after beer companies of the United States is Miller park. It opened in 2001 and is a retractable roof stadium.

It is actually one if not the only stadium in America where people will tailgate for the game!

We know about the sausage race and we know it has passionate fans to create a fun atmosphere, so what is it missing. The location isn't optimal as it is located way west of downtown. There are no sightlines to offer at the stadium and it has a mascot that does not interact with fans, instead opting to stay next to his slide. 

He waits there for a Brewers home run so that he can slide down...what a dream life!

I love Milwaukee, I love the people, I love the atmosphere but I needed more, which is why it only landed at 17. (Sausages and all)

Next up: Take me out to the 2nd oldest ballpark in America