Friday, August 31, 2001
Thursday, August 30, 2001
Day 2: Milwaukee Wisconsin. We drove up there from Cleveland on Monday morning. We left at 9:00 and got there at about 4:45. We walked around most of the stadium and took a lot of pictures. After that, we went to the TGI Friday's that they have inside the stadium. We sat at a window seat and watched batting practice. It was cool because they were hitting balls against the plexiglass right next to us, and into the open air section of TGIF that was right next to us. I imagine that sitting there during games would provide the best seat in the house. We were sitting in right field, in the second level of the first deck. They were good seats, and provided a good view of Bernie's Dugout (where Bernie Brewer slides down the slide when the Brewers hit a home run). The game was definately more exciting than in Pittsburgh. Richie Sexson hit 2 home runs, and the Brewers beat up on the Pirates. After the game most people stay there because they play music and close the roof. It's pretty cool to watch the roof close, and when it finally does the fans their applaud. I wonder how long that will last before the novelty wears off though. After that we left, and I bought a Sausage Race t-shirt. By the time we got outside they had already opened the roof again. I'm not sure why they close it and then re-open it, but it gives the fans some entertainment I guess. Next stop: hotel, and then on to Detroit.
First stop: Pittsburgh, to see the brand new home of the Pirates; PNC Park. Getting to the stadium wasn't too much of a problem (except for the fact that none of the street names in Pittsburgh are labeled). We parked on the 7th floor of a parking garage right across the river from the stadium. We were able to get some good pictures of it from there, before proceeding to the bridge that leads across the river. Walking across the bridge you are looking at right / center field, and you can see the large PNC Park logo displayed outside of the left field wall, facing the river. It's a great looking park from the outside. We entered in center field and walked around the stadium on the inside for a bit. They have a nice art gallery inside that is mostly sports related. They have a lot of great looking paintings, as well as some other items. We checked out the team shop also, but it was pretty small and didn't have a wide selection of stuff. From there we walked around the inside of the park on the way to our seats by the visitors dugout. The walkways were pretty wide, but still congested from the people who have no common sense and want to stop and talk to people right in the middle of it. Finally we got to our section and headed for our seats.
We were sitting 5 rows from the field in the club seats, right next to the camera bay and the visitors (Astro's on this day) dugout. A lot of players were warming up and we were able to see them all coming and going pretty easily. There is a nice view of the bridge and downtown area over the right field / center field wall. We had a day game, so I couldn't see how it looked at night, but it'd probably be a great view. The stadium has dark blue seats and a beige brick exterior / interior. It has some unique characteristics to it, including the river shots counter that shows how many home runs have landed in the river. At this point it still reads 000. They also have a multi tiered walkway in left field from the lower concourse to the upper. A lot of people stand there throughout the game to get a good view of the action. The game itself was boring, especially because the Pirates have such a poor hitting club. On this day they had 4 players in the starting lineup that were hitting above .230. That's just terrible. The Astro's didn't play much better on that day, but still easily won.
After the game we walked around the outside by the river and took some more pictures, before heading back across the river and eventually back to Cleveland to get ready for our next stop: Milwaukee on Monday.
We were sitting 5 rows from the field in the club seats, right next to the camera bay and the visitors (Astro's on this day) dugout. A lot of players were warming up and we were able to see them all coming and going pretty easily. There is a nice view of the bridge and downtown area over the right field / center field wall. We had a day game, so I couldn't see how it looked at night, but it'd probably be a great view. The stadium has dark blue seats and a beige brick exterior / interior. It has some unique characteristics to it, including the river shots counter that shows how many home runs have landed in the river. At this point it still reads 000. They also have a multi tiered walkway in left field from the lower concourse to the upper. A lot of people stand there throughout the game to get a good view of the action. The game itself was boring, especially because the Pirates have such a poor hitting club. On this day they had 4 players in the starting lineup that were hitting above .230. That's just terrible. The Astro's didn't play much better on that day, but still easily won.
After the game we walked around the outside by the river and took some more pictures, before heading back across the river and eventually back to Cleveland to get ready for our next stop: Milwaukee on Monday.
I just got back from a vacation this year that included my second baseball road trip. We went to 4 cities, 4 parks, 7 teams, 1340 miles in 4 days. Pittsburgh / PNC Park on Sunday. Milwaukee / Miller Park on Monday. Detroit / Comerica Park on Tuesday. Cleveland / Jacobs Field on Wednesday. Stay tuned for my impressions of each!
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