10. Minute Maid Park - June 9, 2017

The second stadium of this "Texas Two-Step" was Minute Maid Park. Driving from Dallas to Houston was a simple, but long trip. It took a little over three hours to get to our hotel.

Getting to the stadium, though, wasn't bad. We found an all-day parking garage for just $10. For it being a game day, we could not pass that up. The garage was just a couple of blocks from the stadium and the downtown area.

Around the stadium was a little sketchy. There were a lot of homeless people hanging out by the gates. So, if you do head down there, just be careful. We didn't have an issue but you never know.

The view of our seats. My apologies for the glare.

Before the game, we walked around the city for a bit. There is a cool trolley system that a lot of people use for their transit but everything seems to be within walking distance. It looks like a clean city with enough to do before the game.

There were some bars and restaurants just a few blocks away. We grabbed a couple of drinks at one place and then ate at this BBQ place right across from the center field gate. It was so good! Texas BBQ is no joke.

Unlike for the Rangers, we splurged a bit for our seats here. We were three rows behind the Astros dugout on the first base side. I spent less on the Nationals, Orioles, Dodgers and Padres tickets combined. But, my one friend is a huge Astros fan and never been to the stadium, so we appeased him for this game.

We got to the stadium a couple of hours before start time. We saw the Angels take batting practice. This was the first time I got to a game this early, not a fan. I don't see the big deal, especially since we weren't in an area to catch any BP home runs.

The stadium was great. Because of the dome, it takes this weird, rectangular shape. But seeing the train across the left field wall was cool. The video board in right field was huge. And center field had this cool party deck with drink specials.

I took a walk around the stadium and there were a lot of licensed food places. You definitely have your choice of meal here. We didn't eat at the game but we did take advantage of their "buy a large soda, get a free refill" deal. They didn't remove the sticker for the refill, so we bought like 2 cups and had like 9 servings.

Carlos Correa, Marwin Gonzalez and Jake Marisnick
(Jose Altuve is behind Correa)

Anyway, leading up to this game, my friends and I were checking the probable pitchers, seeing what the matchup would be. With injuries and skipped starts, it was all over the place. It ended up being Matt Shoemaker against Brad Peacock. Shoemaker pitched seven innings, giving up four runs. Peacock lasted just three after giving up four runs on seven hits and four walks.

There was a lot of scoring early, 5-2 after four innings. The Angels ended up winning 9-4. Kole Calhoun drove in three runs and Luis Valbuena and Martin Maldonado each had two for the Angels. Alex Bregman hit a two-run home run in the seventh.

Seeing Albert Pujols in person, even if he was just the DH, was awesome. He's been an integral part of baseball for years, so seeing him before he retires was another check mark off the baseball bucket list.

It was also Star Wars night at the stadium. There was a long parade of people dressed as Star Wars characters on the field and people posing for pictures around the concourse.

Overall, this was a great stadium. However, I would not sit that close for a game, even if it's for my own team. The view was alright, but I'd rather look down at a game instead of being eye level. It was a hot day so I wish they kept the roof closed but it did cool down once the sun set behind the stadium.

Now, that I've seen 10 stadiums, I figure I would rank my top 10, in order.

1. Camden Yards
2. Yankee Stadium
3. Petco Park
4. Globe Life
5. Minute Maid Park
6. Fenway Park
7. Citizens Bank Park
8. Nationals Park
9. Dodger Stadium
10. Citi Field

I have four more stadiums coming up, putting the total at 14. Stay tuned.