Monday, September 11, 2006

How the other half lives

Last week, while in Chicago I went to a Cubs game. It was a thrilling match up between the Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates - ARRRRRRR!

Anyway, here were some of my observations from my experience:

1. Wrigley is super easy to get to, much like Fenway it's in the middle of the city right next to a subway line.
2. It's a tiny park, again much like Fenway.
3. The scalpers were ridiculous in their numbers and aggression. (Could have more to do with a last place team than Chicago. However the pan-handlers in Chicago were much more aggressive than NYC or Boston. Then again I could have had "sucker" printed across my forehead).
4. Plenty of bar options around the park, again like Fenway
5. Consession stands were exactly like fenway but they served "Old Style" beer and that was it.
6. Beer served in the stands!!! There is a god! Last call lasted about 2 innings :-)
7. The seventh inning stretch was fun and lively (the Lamont little league team sung)
8. Fans were generally watching the game, although the stands were hlaf-empty and people were dropping like flies even with the game tied. (Again, last place may be more of a factor).
9. I saw the following players shirts in the stands: Prior (4), Wood (2), Zambrano (1), Grace (2), Garciapara (2), Murton (1), Lee (2)
10. The ushers actually checked your tickets through out the game which made it a bit more challenging to walk up to the empty good seats - we still ended up 20 rows back behind homeplate without a problem.

The cubs lost on a wild-pitch in the top of the ninth :-( It was still a better played game then the Paw Sox v. Louisville Bats, although not that much better. I think the pitching was the biggest difference.

1 comment:

  1. Hey, that Paw Sox game let us see Hee-Sop Choi in front of about 3,000 fans. But that was a well played game in Louisville – remember that dude got thrown out at the plate on a sweet relay. A far cry from when Earl saw him at the WBC and 50,000 Koreans were screaming his name. Interesting that there were more jerseys of players that are gone/not active. I’m sure there are some Nomar, Pedro, Damon jerseys floating around the fens, but I think (hope) most Sox fans would be done with a shirt when the guy is gone. Of course Grace is throwback and some day Pedro will be considered old school. And if I was the jersey wearing type, I would proudly wear a Garces shirt even today. When we were in Madison last week I saw a guy wearing a D-Lowe Sox jersey tee. Now that is just sad. WRT “although the stands were half-empty and people were dropping like flies even with the game tied” Um, nope, that isn’t really last place. That’s just Wrigley. I think it corresponds pretty well to when the veer guy stops coming around.

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