25. Coors Field
And so this series comes up to the current year. Earlier in the series my posts were interrupted by my 2015 road trip, which encompassed three parks on a long drive from Denver to San Diego.
I had flown into Denver on April 18. After a few days hiking in the mountains and dinner with joshghiloni I headed toward downtown to crash at my childhood friend Rob's pad, an easy walk from Coors Field, the second home of the Colorado Rockies.
First though, we had to walk through some downtown neighborhoods in the first state to legalize marijuana on 4/20. We went past a free concert featuring both Cypress Hill and Method Man. Where, you might ask, was Snoop Dogg? He was playing a very expensive show out in the suburbs, of course! I predict this will all seem very strange if anyone reads this in 20 years when pot will probably be legal everywhere, but I digress.
Coors Field celebrates beer instead of pot. Right off the bat there is a microbrewery near the right field stands, which is touted as the original home of Blue Moon beer. After dinner at a local sports bar (the neighborhood is spoiled for choice) we headed up to our seats in the first row of the upper deck right behind home plate, which I like to call the Jazzbo seats, after my friend who turned me on to how good and cheap those seats are. From here Rob was able to point out some features of the park. For instance, the line of seats that is at exactly 5,280 feet above sea level is painted a dark purple, in contrast to the standard green used elsewhere. This is a cool little local frill, but nothing compared to the fact that you can see the frickin' Rocky mountains out in the distance over the left field wall. This automatically makes the view from Coors Field one of the top 5 out there. In another nice local touch, the area above the batter's eye has been landscaped to look like a mountain scene, with pine trees and a waterfall.
Supposedly there's also a fountain that goes off in the batter's eye after a Rockies home run, but it was a rough night for the home team as the visiting Padres were up by 9 after two innings and ultimately won 14-3. In his role as my local guide, Rob said that in a lot of Rockies games one team or another jumps out to a huge win, and you can't count the other team out under most circumstances because runs can arrive in huge bunches. However, on this night it was clear to even the most casual fan that the Rockies had no chance. A light drizzle drove off some fans. Rob and I enjoyed our beer and talked more than we watched baseball, but that's no reflection on the park.
We could argue about the impact of altitude on baseball, but there's no denying that Coors Field is quite lovely. In addition to having all the usual amenities like giant scoreboards and a wide selection of foods (I opted to forgo the chance to have Rocky Mountain oysters), Coors Field somehow manages to have local touches without feeling generic. I think this may be because it was built relatively early in the ballpark boom, opening in 1995, and still feels somewhat novel.
It's not perfect, of course. You can tell that the Rockies don't have a great history because basically every major and minor accomplishment in Rockies history is chronicled somewhere in the park. Practically every pillar and beam we passed had some sign on it commemorating some piece of statistical leadership by a Rockies player, or a Golden Glove, or a ROY, or whatever. In this respect, I feel that the Yankees have it right: you celebrate titles, and retired numbers, and leave it at that. Oh well, the Rockies are still a young team, with little to celebrate and not much in the way of recent prospects.
The next morning Rob took me to the best Jewish deli in Denver, and then I headed south toward my next ballpark...
Park Rankings
RankParkTeamFirst Visit# Visits
1 Marlins ParkMiami MarlinsMay 23, 20141
2 Wrigley FieldChicago CubsApril 23, 20042
3 PNC ParkPittsburgh PiratesSeptember 25, 20042
4 Jacobs FieldCleveland IndiansApril 17, 199963
5 Miller ParkMilwaukee BrewersApril 24, 20041
6 Camden YardsBaltimore OriolesJune 22, 20121
7 Kauffman StadiumKansas City RoyalsJune 9, 20131
8 Yankee Stadium (original)New York YankeesJuly 28, 20061
9 Safeco FieldSeattle MarinersAugust 25, 20141
10Coors FieldColorado RockiesApril 20, 20151
11 Comerica ParkDetroit TigersJuly 31, 20041
12 Target FieldMinnesota TwinsJuly 25, 20141
13 Turner FieldAtlanta BravesMay 5, 20071
14 Busch Stadium IIISt. Louis CardinalsAugust 8, 20131
15 Nationals ParkWashington NationalsJune 21, 20121
16 Citizens Bank ParkPhiladelphia PhilliesJune 23, 20121
17 Citi FieldNew York MetsJune 24, 20121
18 Rogers CentreToronto Blue JaysMay 21, 20051
19 Cinergy FieldCincinnati RedsAugust 8, 19984
20 Yankee Stadium (sequel)New York YankeesJune 25, 20121
21 The MetrodomeMinnesota TwinsJune 22, 19923
22 Shea StadiumNew York MetsJuly 24, 20061
23 Great American Ball ParkCincinnati RedsMay 9, 20041
24 U.S. Cellular FieldChicago White SoxApril 25, 20041
25 Tropicana FieldTampa Bay RaysMay 21, 20141
Background: Prologue Memory Interlude
I had flown into Denver on April 18. After a few days hiking in the mountains and dinner with joshghiloni I headed toward downtown to crash at my childhood friend Rob's pad, an easy walk from Coors Field, the second home of the Colorado Rockies.
First though, we had to walk through some downtown neighborhoods in the first state to legalize marijuana on 4/20. We went past a free concert featuring both Cypress Hill and Method Man. Where, you might ask, was Snoop Dogg? He was playing a very expensive show out in the suburbs, of course! I predict this will all seem very strange if anyone reads this in 20 years when pot will probably be legal everywhere, but I digress.
Coors Field celebrates beer instead of pot. Right off the bat there is a microbrewery near the right field stands, which is touted as the original home of Blue Moon beer. After dinner at a local sports bar (the neighborhood is spoiled for choice) we headed up to our seats in the first row of the upper deck right behind home plate, which I like to call the Jazzbo seats, after my friend who turned me on to how good and cheap those seats are. From here Rob was able to point out some features of the park. For instance, the line of seats that is at exactly 5,280 feet above sea level is painted a dark purple, in contrast to the standard green used elsewhere. This is a cool little local frill, but nothing compared to the fact that you can see the frickin' Rocky mountains out in the distance over the left field wall. This automatically makes the view from Coors Field one of the top 5 out there. In another nice local touch, the area above the batter's eye has been landscaped to look like a mountain scene, with pine trees and a waterfall.
Supposedly there's also a fountain that goes off in the batter's eye after a Rockies home run, but it was a rough night for the home team as the visiting Padres were up by 9 after two innings and ultimately won 14-3. In his role as my local guide, Rob said that in a lot of Rockies games one team or another jumps out to a huge win, and you can't count the other team out under most circumstances because runs can arrive in huge bunches. However, on this night it was clear to even the most casual fan that the Rockies had no chance. A light drizzle drove off some fans. Rob and I enjoyed our beer and talked more than we watched baseball, but that's no reflection on the park.
We could argue about the impact of altitude on baseball, but there's no denying that Coors Field is quite lovely. In addition to having all the usual amenities like giant scoreboards and a wide selection of foods (I opted to forgo the chance to have Rocky Mountain oysters), Coors Field somehow manages to have local touches without feeling generic. I think this may be because it was built relatively early in the ballpark boom, opening in 1995, and still feels somewhat novel.
It's not perfect, of course. You can tell that the Rockies don't have a great history because basically every major and minor accomplishment in Rockies history is chronicled somewhere in the park. Practically every pillar and beam we passed had some sign on it commemorating some piece of statistical leadership by a Rockies player, or a Golden Glove, or a ROY, or whatever. In this respect, I feel that the Yankees have it right: you celebrate titles, and retired numbers, and leave it at that. Oh well, the Rockies are still a young team, with little to celebrate and not much in the way of recent prospects.
The next morning Rob took me to the best Jewish deli in Denver, and then I headed south toward my next ballpark...
Park Rankings
RankParkTeamFirst Visit# Visits
1 Marlins ParkMiami MarlinsMay 23, 20141
2 Wrigley FieldChicago CubsApril 23, 20042
3 PNC ParkPittsburgh PiratesSeptember 25, 20042
4 Jacobs FieldCleveland IndiansApril 17, 199963
5 Miller ParkMilwaukee BrewersApril 24, 20041
6 Camden YardsBaltimore OriolesJune 22, 20121
7 Kauffman StadiumKansas City RoyalsJune 9, 20131
8 Yankee Stadium (original)New York YankeesJuly 28, 20061
9 Safeco FieldSeattle MarinersAugust 25, 20141
10Coors FieldColorado RockiesApril 20, 20151
11 Comerica ParkDetroit TigersJuly 31, 20041
12 Target FieldMinnesota TwinsJuly 25, 20141
13 Turner FieldAtlanta BravesMay 5, 20071
14 Busch Stadium IIISt. Louis CardinalsAugust 8, 20131
15 Nationals ParkWashington NationalsJune 21, 20121
16 Citizens Bank ParkPhiladelphia PhilliesJune 23, 20121
17 Citi FieldNew York MetsJune 24, 20121
18 Rogers CentreToronto Blue JaysMay 21, 20051
19 Cinergy FieldCincinnati RedsAugust 8, 19984
20 Yankee Stadium (sequel)New York YankeesJune 25, 20121
21 The MetrodomeMinnesota TwinsJune 22, 19923
22 Shea StadiumNew York MetsJuly 24, 20061
23 Great American Ball ParkCincinnati RedsMay 9, 20041
24 U.S. Cellular FieldChicago White SoxApril 25, 20041
25 Tropicana FieldTampa Bay RaysMay 21, 20141
Background: Prologue Memory Interlude