Results tagged ‘ Comerica Park ’
A Few Places I’ve Been
I’ve taken several thousand photos since I began traveling and compiling research for TheBallparkGuide in the summer of 2010. (If you’re new to this blog and are curious about where I’ve visited, look at the tag cloud on the right side of the menu or click here.) The vast majority of my photos focus on the elements of each ballpark I visit, but one thing I’ve noticed is that I’ve missed getting photos of myself in most locations. I often travel alone, and while it’s possible to hold the camera at arm’s length to shoot myself, some of these photos don’t turn out that great.
That said, I’ve got a handful of photos taken at different locations that I’m posting below. Click the date to read my blog about the visit.)
The second ballpark I visited, back on July 17, 2010, was Auburn’s Falcon Park. While I was snapping shots of the front of the ballpark, the man who lives next door to the facility offered to take my shot:
Later that summer, I traveled to Cleveland for two games on Aug. 7 and Aug. 8. During the second game, I got a few autographs around the visitors dugout, and then had my photo taken by another fan while sitting on the Indians dugout:
On Aug. 10 and Aug. 11, my wife and I watched two Blue Jays games in Toronto. My wife snapped this artsy shot of me hoping to catch a ball during batting practice …
… and a day later, took one of me along the fence during batting practice. I snagged two balls here:
I toured around Michigan in May 2011, and watched the second of two Detroit Tigers games on May 25. Unfortunately, this game was called because of the rain after a few innings. While the tarp was still on the field, an usher took my photo:
On June 27, I watched the Hagerstown Suns play at Municipal Stadium. Bryce Harper was hurt and didn’t play, but that didn’t stop me from finding his truck in the parking lot and taking a photo of myself in front of it:
Next, on July 2 and 3, I was in the nation’s capital to catch three Nationals games (July 2 was a doubleheader). Here’s a photo of me before the first game, down at field level:
And on the second day, up on a deck in the left field corner:
The third-last game I watched in 2011 was on July 31 at Hadlock Field, home of the Portland Sea Dogs. Before entering the ballpark, my wife took a photo of me out front:
The Sea Dogs are the AA affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, and Hadlock Field is equipped with a mini green monster. During our visit, fans were able to play catch on the field before the game. Here’s me in front of the scoreboard:
And while throwing balls off the wall and catching them:
And pretending to relay them to the imaginary cut-off man. (I can’t lie.)
As always, thanks for reading. If you don’t do so already, check me out on Twitter.
Detroit – May 25
I feel silly starting basically every blog post talking about my excitement of such-and-such a game, but the truth is, I’m always pumped to watch baseball.
And my second game in as many days in Detroit was no exception. After an awesome experience the day before, I was eager to get back to Comerica Park.
The problem, however, was the weather. As you can tell from the rain gear on the front gate attendants in the photo below, it was a wet, dreary day:
When the gates opened, I went into the mostly deserted stadium and made my way right down to the Tigers third base-side dugout:
I then went behind home plate, and you can see the rain-soaked tarp over the field:
Still, there was lots of optimism from the ushers, who said the rain was supposed to hold off until 3 p.m. or so, meaning we could get a couple hours in. After talking with an usher behind Detroit’s dugout, I got him to snap a picture of me:
Today, I was hoping to get some autographs. The day before, I didn’t try, but with no batting practice today, I hoped some guys would sign. Before long, Justin Verlander made his way out of the Tigers clubhouse …
… and didn’t sign for anyone. No biggie; it was neat to see him up close.
Pretty soon, though, a few guys started to sign. Below, you can see Rick Porcello and Max Scherzer signing:
They both signed a ball I had, and so too did recent callup Adam Wilk. Here are their signatures on my ball:
When Porcello was signing for the guy next to me, I snapped a close-up of his glove:
Before long, Tigers manager Jim Leyland came over and signed maybe 20 autographs. I was lucky enough to get him on the sweet spot of my ball:
Remember how the day before, I saw a ton of cool game-used and autographed Tigers stuff? Here are a bunch of signed bats for sale:
After walking around the concourse a bit, the skies started to clear so I made my way out to the left field corner again. I bought my ticket in this area again because it was cheap and allowed you to roam freely pretty close to the field. From my seat, I had a great view of the Tigers pen:
I had to chuckle when Detroit’s relievers made their way from the dugout to the bullpen. Like a day earlier, all but one of the relievers walked in a group to the pen. A few moments later, closer Jose Valverde, sans hat, strutted through left field mugging and giving the two-fingered salute to fans:
As the game was getting close to starting, Ryan Perry started throwing a bullpen session:
This panorama shows the action about to begin:
But less than two innings later, this was the scene:
Ugh. For those who wonder why I always book two games in each MLB city, this is why. The weather quickly became horrible, and it didn’t look like any more baseball would be played today. Look at the sky, and keep in mind this was about 2 p.m.:
I joined the rest of the fans in the crowded concourse and waited patiently for word of a postponement. Nothing came, and eventually, I went back to the game-used memorabilia stand that kept calling my name. The day before, I browsed through some actual lineup cards and decided I had to have one. I bought this Jays/Tigers lineup card that hung in Detroit’s bullpen during a road game. As you can see below, it’s signed by Jim Leyland. (I’m uploading a big file so you can click on it and see all the details. It’s awesome.)
Though there was still no official announcement regarding the future of the game, I saw the Tampa Bay bullpen guys scurry from the dugout over to the pen, pack up their stuff and run back to the dugout. Not a good sign, so with that, I headed out.
At the gate, an usher asked if I was leaving. I told him about seeing the bullpen get packed up, and he admitted that the Rays’ truck had pulled into the loading dock earlier. It’s a bit annoying that the team didn’t let the fans know right away that the game had been called, but I guess the more people who stick around and buy hot dogs, the better.
The rain, by the way, was ridiculous. I RAN back to my hotel, and there were many places on the sidewalks or roads that the water was above my ankles. Needless to say, by the time I made it back to my room, I was completely soaked.
I did, however, take one last photo of Detroit from my window. You can see Comerica Park’s lights, but not much else:
I had a great time in Detroit. Though it would’ve been great to see two full games, I had so much fun that it wasn’t a big deal. If you’re planning on taking in a Tigers game this summer, I’ll have a full stadium review up soon on my website, TheBallparkGuide.com. Please bookmark it and check back often to see which stadiums I’ve reviewed.
Look what I just received
A couple days ago, I went to the mailbox and saw a nondescript envelope addressed to me. I got the impression it was some sort of junk mail wanting me to sign up for a credit card, but I opened it anyway.
Instead of junk, it was this:
Awesome! I usually buy tickets at the box office before the game, but since there’s no shipping charge for tickets bought online, I figured I’d give myself a fun day at the mailbox.
This ticket goes well with this one, which arrived a few days earlier:
I bought low-end tickets for both games, and I’ll see how easy it is to move from section to section. I know what the ushers are like in Toronto, but I’ve heard Detroit’s ushers aren’t too bothersome. So, if I need a more expensive ticket, I’ll buy it for my second game in each city.
Malcolm - TheBallparkGuide
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