Philadelphia Phillies

The City of Brotherly Love has gotten its dog on at Citizens Bank Park. I arrived on the night that is the hot dog explorers equivalent of a 10 year-old waking up at Disneyland: Dollar Dog Night. That’s right, all the delicious tubular meat slapped on a bun that you can eat at a buck each. Just stay away from my hand and mouth ladies and gentlemen and you will be fine.

What was unexpected was the quality of the dollar dog. Many stadium downscale the size of the frank of the availability of toppings during this special event, but the Phillies offered up a great tasting Hatfield’s frank with a good variety of topping that included the option of brown mustard. It was also the night honoring one of the Phillie players for breaking some sort of team record or whatnot...I didn’t have time for that….it was dollar dog night.

Phillies ballpark is a newer structure that is an architectural beauty. It is mainly red bricks supported by a terracotta-colored I-beam frame. It looks great and is in a huge sports complex that also houses the stadium the Eagles play in as well as an arena for I assume basketball or hockey (or both, dunno, I don’t watch either). The stairs to the upper levels built onto the outside of the main structure remind me of fire escapes and give the place an urban feel. I really enjoyed the open feeling of the main concourse. It is open to the field and there is plenty of room to maneuver; something Yankee Stadium fell short on. Each level has narrow stainless steel counters along the concourse so you can eat or drink without having to return to your seat. This is actually a huge deal. The outfield wall has some extremely jagged turns in it, tormenting outfielders playing long drives off of the wall. There is a neon Liberty Bell in the outfield that supposedly swings and rings after a Phillies home run (the Phils were shut out so I didn’t get to see it do its thing). In the distance over centerfield you can see the Philadelphia skyline.

Dog:

Bun-not steamed but still fresh.

Taste-Hatfields makes a mean frank, and it tasted just right. For a buck it was delicious.

Price-did I mention it was dollar dog night? Normal price is $4. Both are winners.

Toppings-nice selection AND they had BROWN MUSTARD.

Portability-the Phils use regular aluminum foil. It does a great job of keeping the toppings on but as I mentioned in other posts it can squish the bun.

It Factor-the only dog available on dollar dog night is...the dollar dog. There is a Frank and Steins (get it?) that offers three or four specialty dogs which I was unable to get a look at. They sounded good though.

Ballpark:

Location-not exactly in downtown but in South Philly. Close to being a downtown ballpark but it loses ½ a point for location.

Access-good metro service to the park. And the parking lot is gigantic. I parked a mile away for free parking on the street. Did I mention I am on a budget?

GA Ticket Price-$17 is a little pricey for a seat in the upper atmosphere. Not like over the top in St Louis (no, St Louis…..I have not forgotten) but still not a bargain.

Cleanliness-pretty damn tidy.

Fans-nice turnout for a Monday, and the Phillie fans are engaged from the first pitch.

Ambiance-I couldn’t quite put my finger on it but the Phillies can’t pull out top score here. I tried to channel the spirit of Connie Mack while in the stands but came up a tad short. I think there is a disconnect due to location and the exterior look to the place.

Dog		Ballpark		Total Dog/Game
Bun	5	Location	4.5
Taste	4.5	Access	5
Toppings	5	Cleanliness	5
Price	5	Ambiance	4
Portability	4	GA Ticket Price	4
It Factor	4	Fans	5
	27.5		27.5	55

Despite the small shortcoming on ambiance I really like CBP. It’s is open and airy, pleasing to the eye, great selection of food and dogs, engaged fans and easy to get to and from. The score of 55 reflects that and Phillies fans should be proud of that score. The Phillies are on a slide as of late, but despite their poor performance a trip to CBP to see the club is in order. Hit the park on dollar dog night and make a pig of yourself….I did.

The book based on this blog "Gone to the Dogs" is now 5% funded. You can help bring it to print by visiting the "Gone to the Dogs" kickstarter page at https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/859640299/gone-to-the-dogs-book-about-the-search-for-the-bes?ref=email

New York Yankees

Few landmarks in America are as iconic as Yankee Stadium. It has been in film, print, television and the dreams of wanna be Yankee players. It was the House that Ruth Built...and it was George Costanza’s place of employment. It was THE symbol of pure New York baseball prowess. Until they tore it down.

I was fortunate enough to have seen a game in Old Yankee Stadium. In the 90s I went there on a date with a certain woman from Massachusetts during a sweltering summer day game. We ended up doing things with ice cubes from our drink that were reminiscent from scenes in 9 ½ Weeks. I think everyone that loves baseball probably has some sort of life story that involves Yankee Stadium. That’s mine. At least the PG-13 version.

The replacement Yankee Stadium reminds me of the old version. It is built from polished concrete slabs and the round ballpark looks like a hybrid of an old Roman coliseum and the metropolitan museum. A real gothic beauty. Inside the upper edge is lined with white picket fence type lattice which pays homage to its predecessor. It is the gemstone of the Bronx and a fan magnet. The game I attended was practically sold out. It was Old Timers Day, so that may have factored in the huge crowd. It did drive up ticket prices which stung...a lot. Did I mention I am on a fixed income?

Dog:

Bun-fresh. Just the way I like it.

Taste-the Nathan’s Famous frank did not let me down. It earns top score.

Toppings-I love it when they ask if you want kraut or onions before they give you the dog. It saves on waste, but more importantly, it keeps me from having to put it on myself.

Price-$6 is pricey. Not as pricey as the $8 dog in St Louis (no, St Louis, I have not forgotten).

Portability-a new twist on portability. The Nathan’s dog was laid to rest in a firm cardboard boat that has a flip-over lid. Sort of a like a miniature coffin.

It Factor-I was surprised at the lack of diversity in hot dogs in a city that prides itself in diversity. I have been to some minor league parks that had a better selection of specialty dogs.

Ballpark:

Location-downtown Bronx.

Access-Subway, train, walk, bike, you name it. I was staying with a friend in Poughkeepsie and the MTA runs special “Yankee Clipper” trains from the northern towns directly to the ballpark. It was pricey at $30, but you would have to sell a child to afford parking near the stadium, as well as fight some of the world’s most famous traffic. All of a sudden $30 didn’t seem so bad.

Cleanliness-absolutely splendid job keeping Babe Ruth’s house in order.

GA Ticket Price-For the first time I ordered my ticket online (what the hell is a convenience fee?). I was afraid that the Old Timers Game would sell out. And it did. I paid $50 for my seat in the bleachers with no backs. Normally those are $22, which is what I rate the Yankees on, and it is still too damn much for a bleacher seat. Why can the Rockies offer $4 seats at every game, the Nationals the same for $5, Pirates for $13 but the Bronx Bombers for $22? Derek Jeter ain’t that handsome.

Fans-packed full with rowdy and loyal fans.

Ambiance-I know it would make Babe Ruth would roll over in his grave but Yankee Stadium doesn’t exude the ambiance that I thought it would. It’s a concrete manufacturer’s dream that falls short of the charm many of the newer ballparks have.

The concourses also need to be wider. They would probably be ok as is but there is a metric shit ton of kiosks and the like in the middle that makes it hard to get around. It was also one of the harder stadiums to navigate...and I am no stranger to exploring ballparks. This was my 21st MLB venue THIS SEASON. What has impressed me were the people of New York. I have been there on business before as well as other ventures into the city. New Yorkers get a bad rap for being rude and obnoxious. While they can come across a bit short and crass, I have found them to be helpful and mainly polite. They treat most tourists quite well, and that takes a monumental effort. Well, except for that cab driver thing...but that’s a global problem.

Dog		Ballpark		Total Dog/Game
Bun	5	Location	5
Taste	5	Access	5
Toppings	5	Cleanliness	5
Price	3.5	Ambiance	4
Portability	5	GA Ticket Price	3
It Factor	3.5	Fans	5
	27		27	54

While the hot dog/baseball experience at Yankee Stadium scored well, I was again surprised at how the vaunted venues don’t quite score as high as ones I didn’t think would. Price has a lot to do with it. No one can enjoy a dog at the park when they know they could have made a car payment with what it cost to down a tube of processed meat in the bleachers. Teams need to start considering that. In the meantime, I am headed to Philadelphia tomorrow. And then sleeping in my car so I can afford and enjoy yet another dog in bleachers.

Bowie Baysox

The book based on this blog "Gone to the Dogs" is now 5% funded. You can help bring it to print by visiting the "Gone to the Dogs" kickstarter page at https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/859640299/gone-to-the-dogs-book-about-the-search-for-the-bes?ref=email

After a whirlwind tour of numerous MLB ballparks I was back in the minors to check out some Eastern League AAA action at Prince George’s Stadium to watch the Bowie Baysox host the Binghamton Mets. It was my first Eastern League game and the most impressive part? Watching Juan Morillo’s 101 MPH fastball. That’s some cheese.

The ballpark is located near two highways making it easy to get there by car (although the traffic associated with the north east must be considered) and has one of my favorite amenities: free parking...at least in the north parking lot. The stadium itself is a low slung, semi-circular edifice that really has only one distinguishing feature; a miniature lighthouse about 10 feet tall in the right field children’s play area. Other than that it is the standard fare of AA parks that were built in the 90s. The forest that stands just beyond the outfield wall is testament to its location, which is not in downtown Bowie. The textured block on the exterior is pleasing, but the tall glass windows around the press box area behind home plate just isn’t that baseballish looking (I invented that word. It’s my blog man).

Dog:

Bun-fresh, and rivals Pittsburgh as one of the best.

Taste-the Esskay frank was darn tasty and helps out the dog tremendously.

Toppings-impressive for a AA venue.

Price-$4.25 isn’t too over the top considering the size of the frank, but not cheap enough for top score.

Portability-the cardboard boat. There is no way it holds in the toppings if the dog takes a spill.

It Factor-there is a good selection of specialty dogs, albeit hidden away at one kiosk. Nice for the size of the park.

Ballpark:

Location-not really located near any large population center. I suppose if you lived in one of the burbs near it you could walk to it.

Access-mostly a drive-to park. But...did I mention there is free parking?

Cleanliness-good job keeping the park clean.

Ambiance-unfortunately, I just wasn’t feeling the baseball vibe at this ballpark. It’s sort of generic and doesn’t do the job.

GA Ticket Price-the $12 seats were pretty good as far as view and location. But a minor league team needs to offer up some cheaper seats, even if they are on a grass berm.

Fans-I was surprised at the low turnout considering it was a Friday and there were fireworks after the game. Location might have something to do with it, or the fact that there is an MLB team both a short distance north and south of the Bowie.

Dog		Ballpark		Total Dog/Game
Bun	5	Location	2
Taste	4.5	Access	2
Toppings	4.5	Cleanliness	5
Price	4	Ambiance	3.5
Portability	3	GA Ticket Price	3
It Factor	4	Fans	3.5
	25		19	44

I love the minors, and there is no such thing as a bad minor league game...just some that are better than others. The game was interesting with a lot of scoring (and pitching changes). Bowie could do with a new ballpark and I think they know that. Their dog was pretty tasty and is recommended, and I would not skip the chance to see the Baysox at home. But with the Nationals offering $5 GA tickets about an hour’s drive south the Baysox have some pretty stiff competition...even with a 101 MPH fastball.

Washington Nationals

I finally arrived at our Nation’s Capital (that’s Washington DC for all of my OK and WV friends). I was apprehensive about driving since I have heard so many people talk about getting bogged down in gridlock and not getting anything accomplished. Then I realized they were talking about the government and not the city itself. Ba da dum.

Actually, the traffic was not that bad, I have, after all, lived in Tulsa during the great road construction project of 2012-13 (you would have had to been there). I was REALLY surprised at how easy it was to get to and from Nationals Ballpark. Even though I had to pay ten bucks to park, which in DC is a steal. But hey, I am on a budget. Ten buck buys a lot of peanut butter. And I was surprised at the ticket window. In one of our country’s most expensive cities the cheapest seat was just a sawbuck...that’s right five dollars. Are you listening St. Louis?

The ballpark itself is very modern. It has a parking garage built into it (not the $10 parking I assure you) and is adorned with large chrome baseballs on the outside, a large circular message display that looks like a giant halo greets you at the centerfield entrance. It has clean lines and a red cement flood speckled with multi-colored anti-slip flakes. The concourse is very wide and mostly open to the field. The food booths are very modern and have cool DC-related names like “Steak of the Union,” “Senator’s Sausage,” etc. The outfield wall has some sharp angles and a digital out of town scoreboard in the right field wall. Plus, the entire stadium is either red, white or blue. How is that for a patriotic tie-in? Overall it reminds me of 21st century modern meets Ikea meets airport. Not a bad thing. It is very unique and tasteful. I give the Nationals credit for bucking the retro-park trend (that’s so 20th century anyway) and doing their own thing. They did a fine job designing a ballpark.

Dog:

Bun-fresh, albeit a bit mushed from the wrapper.

Taste-the Hatfield’s frank was pretty good.

Toppings-better than I have run into lately, but they need a bit more for top score.

Price-$5 is not too bad for a MLB venue. Others do better but still a decent price.

Portability-the Reynold’s Wrap type foil does a dandy job, but tends to smash the bun. You are not losing a morsel in that wrap job.

It Factor-food choices, and good ones, abound in Nationals Park. But the variety of hot dogs is not so vast.

Ballpark:

Location-it is in the Navy Yard area, which is close enough to call it a downtown ballpark.

Access-metro, walk, bus, boat.

GA Ticket-$5 is a sweet as it gets. The Nats know how to bring ‘em in.

Cleanliness-they do a great job of keeping the stadium spotless.

Fans-I was impressed with the Thursday night turnout. LOTS of fans and they were very vocal for the home team. In a town where everyone is probably from somewhere else, that was also impressive.

Ambiance-I hate to do it to such a great venue, but while it is a clean and modern ballpark it lacks that baseball vibe. It was a bit like a baseball game broke out in the warehouse section of Ikea. I still love the park though despite its shortcoming in the ambiance category.

Dog		Ballpark		Total Dog/Game
Bun	5	Location	5
Taste	4	Access	5
Toppings	4	Cleanliness	5
Price	5	Ambiance	3.5
Portability	5	GA Ticket Price	5
It Factor	3.5	Fans	5
	26.5		28.5	55

My Sweet Seat Benefactor

Weird things happen in DC (hey Marion Barry used to be the Mayor, it don’t get no weirder than that) but sometimes it is good weird things. As always I got the cheapest ticket, when about the 2nd inning a man shows up and asks if I want to sit behind home plate. Well, you know you are not supposed to talk to strangers, but that rule is automatically waived if they have tickets behind home plate. It turns out he is the guy that takes X-rays on site if needed for either team. He gets several tickets for each game in the sweet section and if no one in his family or friends accompanies him he plucks someone out of the stratosphere seats to enjoy them. Who said good people don’t live in DC (although he is technically from NY)? And, he had renewed my faith in Yankees fans. Thanks Doc for the great seat. I was so close the home plate umpire was asking me if the batter had gone around on the swing.

Pittsburgh Pirates

The prodigal son comes home. Pittsburgh was the city where I attended my first MLB game. It was like ‘71 or ‘72 when my dad took us up from WV to see guys like Stargell, Sanguillen, Ellis, Blass and others that made up one of the two powerhouse teams of the National League. The other was the Big Red Machine in Cincinnati with Rose, Bench and company. Those were the days. Players played for one team most of their career, no video replays, no interleague play and players earned less than the GDP of Romania.

It was also the heyday of Three Rivers Stadium. The multi-purpose cookie cutter behemoth that was as ugly as it was useful. To an around 10 year old it was a concrete wonder. And it was new. In case you are wondering how old I am, someone had the foresight to blow up Three Rivers Stadium about….say...10 years ago and build a baseball only gem now called PNC Park. Oh….baseball stadiums last about 30-40 years. You do the math.

Situated near the confluence where the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers form the Ohio River, PNC is one of the best I have visited yet. The navy blue steel girders support a stone and brick beauty. It sports an out of town scoreboard built into the right field wall in throwback fashion and a great skyline view of downtown Pittsburgh, which is just across the Allegheny River, over the outfield wall.

Dog:

Bun-absolutely the best bun I have had to date.

Taste-the Sugardale frank I had in Cleveland was not that great, but the same brand tasted much better in Pittsburgh.

Toppings-good selection that included jalapenos, onions, relish and mustard.

Price-you can’t beat $3.50 for a hot dog at a MLB venue.

Portability-not an efficient use of resources for the Pirates but still rates top score by putting a partial paper wrapper over the dog in a cardboard boat. Why not just a wrapper Pittsburgh?

It Factor-lots of food choices in PNC Park. But not a many hot dog choices to rate top score. Very close though.

Ballpark:

Location-just across the river from downtown Pittsburgh, but close enough to call it downtown.

Access-really, really good. The city closes Clemente bridge to traffic other than pedestrian on game days. That bridge links downtown Pittsburgh to the ballpark. That kind of access commitment rates top score.

GA Ticket Price-a bleacher seat cost $13. Not bad but not cheap enough for the top prize.

Cleanliness-neat and clean.

Fans-super turnout and ardent support, despite the poor showing. PIttsburgh is a sports town.

Ambiance-it is tough to give a newer ballpark the ambiance of an old stadium. But PNC Park does it. An absolutely fabulous place to plant your keyster and down a dog.

Dog		Ballpark		Total Dog/Game
Bun	5	Location	5
Taste	4	Access	5
Toppings	5	Cleanliness	5
Price	5	Ambiance	5
Portability	5	GA Ticket Price	4
It Factor	4.5	Fans	5
	28.5		29	57.5

It was great to see the Bucs again. Even better to meet up with my cousin Dana at the game. I had not see her in a long time, and what better place to catch up than in the bleachers. Even if it was watching our beloved Pirates get trounced. It was also a road trip first. A storm rolled through around the 7th inning and dumped enough rain to cause a delay. We left at that point. With a hot dog in my gut it was tough the stomach the Pirates’ performance in the 11-4 slaughter.