When I made it to the downtown, it looked like a sports complex dropped in the middle of the city, with Quicken Loans Arena right next door. Maybe because it was a Thursday, but it didn't seem that crowded for a popular matchup.
Trying to find parking wasn't that hard. There were a lot of lots and garages near the stadium. The downside was that even third-party parking lots cost $20. It could have been an effect of the two teams playing. There was a parking garage attached to the stadium with its own security entrance in left field. That was pretty cool.
The one weird thing about this game was that the gates opened just one hour before the game. Most of the other stadiums I've been to open their gates 90 minutes before start time. That doesn't give a lot of time to get peanuts, souvenirs and get to your seats.
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| The stadium view from my seat |
Of course, I got a hot dog. I put this horribly tasting stadium mustard on it. I finished it but I didn't enjoy it. The hot dog itself was good though. I got a hot chocolate and fries later in the game.
There was a huge scoreboard above the left-field bleachers and third-level bleachers in right field, which wasn't used for this game, that blocked a lot of the backdrop. The only opening was behind center field but there were seating and dining. Not much of a view of the city.
Seating looked good for most of the stadium. Not a lot of obstructed seats. The only thing I noticed was a big overhang on the first base side that blocked a lot of the view for those sitting in the back rows. My seat, again, was behind home plate in the upper 500s section. I felt a little further away from the game compared to Cincinnati but it still wasn't that bad. It was worth the $30-something I paid.
The game featured a great pitching matchup, at least on paper, between Chris Sale of the Boston Red Sox and Trevor Bauer of the Cleveland Indians. Things didn't go well for either pitcher as neither of them lasted six innings. The final score was 13-6 Indians.
The Indians were first on the scoreboard with four runs in the bottom of the second. Roberto Perez, Giovanny Urshela and Francisco Lindor had back-to-back-to-back RBIs. They scored their fourth run on an error.
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| Indians starting pitcher Trevor Bauer |
The Indians scored six more runs between the fifth and seventh innings, including home runs from Jay Bruce and Lindor and RBI doubles from Perez and Yandy Diaz. Moreland hit his second home run in the top of the ninth but it wasn't close to enough for the Sox.
I made my down to the field-level seats towards the end of the game. With the game being a blowout, most of the fans started to make their way home early. Again, I don't see why people sit this close. While everything is at eye level, you don't get the full view of the field. Being in the upper sections allow you to see pretty much everything.
Of the four stadiums I visited on this trip, this would be my least favorite. The backdrop, or the potential of one, was blocked by the scoreboard and bleachers. The area around the stadium wasn't anything special. I didn't see a city where you can spend most of the afternoon before going to the game. This truly felt like an "arrive, see game, leave" situation.
This was the last day of a 5-day, 4-game trip. Well, six days if you count the drive home. It was a great time. I'm pretty sure that crosses off all of the ballparks I can drive to and I'm thankful for that. Eh, I could drive to Toronto if I wanted to.
I have 16 stadiums left. I plan on doing 4 a year for the next 4 years. I'll figure that out in the offseason. This is it for 2016, though. So, with 14 stadiums down, I want to go over some fun facts.
I've seen the Washington Nationals play 3 times (so far).
The home team is 5-9.
The Pirates game on August 21 was my first extra-innings game.
I've been to 8 games in August, 2 in June, 2 in July, 1 in May and 1 in October.
The collective scores have been 60 (home) and 79 (away).
Thanks for reading and following along.
