I've never really cared for baseball. Especially on television. Not as bad as watching golf on television, which is an insufferably awful experience, but still dull anyway. Strangely enough, for America's favorite pastime, there's not a whole lot going on unless someone hits a ball, or a pitcher hits a batter with a ball, then the batter gets mad and rushes the pitcher, then both teams come out onto the field and every body is hitting each other. Probably won't see anything like that on the Golf Channel.
There is something to be said for going and seeing a game live, however, and experiencing this all American fun in person. Recently I had the wonderful opportunity to do just that. One of my friends had a couple tickets to a Texas Rangers game that he couldn't use so he offered them to me and my friend, Kevin.
The Texas Rangers play out of Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, which is a short drive from my house. It is a beautiful brick and metal structure with reliefs of stars and cow heads on the sides of the building. It sits adjacent a public park and is a stones throw away from Cowboy Stadium. And not far from there is Six Flags over Texas.
As we walked closer to the ballpark, I felt my excitement level start to rise. This was my first major league baseball experience, and like a kid, I stood in awe as we enter the home plate entrance, and walked the ramp into the stadium. I looked around blown away by the size of the ballpark and the 44 thousand other fans that attended that night.
Me, Kevin, and Liam took the escalators up to the third level to our seats. Even though we were high up, they were not bad seats at all. We sat directly behind the home plate and had a good view of all the action on the field. It was exciting from our vantage point to watch Josh Hamilton and Mike Napoli in action. Plus it was the debut of the Rangers new pitcher, Yu Darvish, who is currently burning it up on the pitchers mound.
Of course, what would this all American fun be without ballpark food? After we got out seats, I went to get me and Kevin something to eat. I got two hot dogs, two fries, and two cokes for 28 bucks. Kinda steep, but that was to be expected.
We stayed until the seventh inning. By that time it was getting close to ten o'clock and it was past Liam's bed time. The Rangers were already well ahead and were in no danger of losing to the Seattle Mariners, which was who they were playing that night. And the fact that they were ahead only added to the awesomeness of the experience. My first pro baseball game, and the team I went to root for, won!
I may not be baseball's biggest fan, but this truly was a fun experience, and I can't wait to attend more games. Next time however, I need to look more the part. I'll need to get a Rangers ball cap or a Rangers shirt. I'm think something with Napoli on the back.
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| You're never too young to be a Rangers fan |
