Went to my first SF Giants game on Saturday

[Gopher]

A friend from work had an extra ticket for the game Saturday... I wasn't doing anything else, and I'm always up for checking out a new stadium that I've never been to, so I took the offer. The catch was that he wanted to go EARLY, and stand in line for Pablo Sandoval bobbleheads. The game was at 6:00, gates open at 4:00, and we got to the stadium at about 2:30... Place was packed, with several hundred people already in line at each entrance. Luckily, we were prepared and had cooler in hand. A few other random observations:

 

- I was amazed at how lenient security was at AT&T Park... Maybe it's because 9/11 is getting further and further behind us, but this park was definitely not as strict as I remember other stadiums being in recent years. You can basically bring in whatever you want... coolers, beverages, food, etc., as long as it's not glass. Not what I was expecting... Crazy.

 

- Garlic fries are good, but if you want some, get in line early. I grabbed some before the game (around 4:15), and waited in line for about 10 minutes. I glanced at that same vendor stand around 6:00 (first pitch), and I'm guessing that there had to be a 30 minute wait, easy. Dozens of people, and it was NOT moving quickly at all.

 

- Stadium is nice... I've been to a couple of the nicer/newer stadiums... PNC Park multiple times (go to Pittsburgh occasionally for work), Coors Field (I know... it's not THAT new anymore), and will see Target Field in July, and this definitely ranked right up there with the best that I've seen. Of course, concession prices are out of control, but I'm pretty sure that's the case everywhere. I've also been to some of the older venues... Qualcomm, Oakland Coliseum, Yankee Stadium, and dozens of games at the Metrodome, and AT&T Park blows most of them away. Not only just newer, but a really cool atmosphere.

 

- Barry Zito is DEALING this year. I can't help but be extremely happy for the guy, after all he's been through. Of course, the naysayers will ask what the heck he's "been through"... after all, he makes millions a year, and hasn't lived up to expectations. But, everything I've seen/heard about Zito has indicated that he's never once made excuses, never once came across as a pompous overpaid celebrity, and even now (when fans apparently have retracted every bad word they've ever said about the guy, and chant his name like there were another Barry in the house), he just keeps his mouth shut and goes about his business. It's obvious to me that his #1 goal, all along, has been to just pitch well enough to "earn his keep"... Given how much he's paid, that's just about impossible. That's not HIS fault, though, and like I said, he's never made excuses, and always (from everything I've heard) just worked hard and kept his comments/thoughts to himself. Class act, and his early success this year couldn't be happening to a more deserving guy.

 

- Along those same lines... What a game on Saturday night! Classic pitchers' duel, between Zito and Wainwright. Scoreless until the bottom of the 8th, when the Giants are able to scratch and claw for a couple of runs, and hold on in the 9th. What is impressive about Zito this year, as compared to the last 2-3 seasons, is that he's not only pitching well enough to keep his team in the game, he actually looks every bit as dominant as he did for Oakland 6-7 years ago. Last year (and the season or two before that), there were plenty of games where Zito pitched well enough to win, but just didn't get the run support. He never used that as an excuse, yet the majority of SF fans (and even a lot of the media) lambasted him for not living up to expectations. This season, particularly on Saturday, he has been DOMINANT. Ten strikeouts, including one in which he caught Albert Pujols looking to end the 6th... That was the point in the game where I think a lot of people realized that Zito was pitching a GREAT game. The atmosphere in that part, after that strikeout, was unbelievable... I can't remember getting chills like that at a baseball game since the Kirby Puckett era in Minnesota.

 

Overall, a great experience, and I'm definitely glad I took the opportunity to check it out. I don't care what the TV ratings say... baseball is STILL America's pastime. Nothing, at least in terms of sports viewing, compares with catching a good outdoor baseball game on a beautiful Saturday afternoon/evening.

[Bier Meister]

i used to have season tix (split 2 seats with 2 friends) until 02. i owned half, they each owned 25%. i really miss it. i was hitting 5-10 games a year out here, but since we've had our daughter i am lucky to get to 3-5. really is a good experience. i am sure the food has changed a bit, but Orlando's was awesome.