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Sunday, March 30, 2008
Welcome to Nationals Park; empty your pockets
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Washington, D.C. — Greetings from new Nationals (this space for sale) Park in our nation’s capital, where getting through the various layers of security to enter this place today made going to the airport feel like a breeze by comparison.
That’s what happens in a post-9/11 world when the president’s in the house, which he will be tonight for this nationally televised opener between the Nats and Bravos.
(By the way, that space really is for sale. They’ll rename this place soon as they settle on a multimillion naming-rights deal with some corporation.)
As for security, what a procedure the Crusading Everyman was put through: Leave your computer bag outside. Go through a scanner into a little room. Watch as a grim-faced security guy — another Secret Service member told me to “get over there, pal” and I did, immediately — rifles through everything in your bag and turns on every electronic device. Watch the dog sniff your Cohibas.
Oh, then repeat much of this upon entering the clubhouse, where you’re (meaning, me) wanded after emptying your pockets again. Hey, the players had to go through the same thing. Bush is going to stop by each clubhouse before throwing out the ceremonial first pitch tonight.
OK, but enough of that. Let’s get to the stuff you care about.
First off, a Smoltz update. Bobby Cox said he threw great today in the minor league game in Florida. I’ll give you the numbers when I get them from the PR man, but he went five innings without discomfort, according to Bobby. “He gave up five on hits on changeups — said he was throwing them too hard because he felt so good,” Cox said.
Again, I’ll give you the numbers soon as I get them. But Cox said Smoltz is on schedule to pitch next Sunday. “He’s ready,” the manager said. And no, Braves aren’t going to consider using a six-man rotation. “You can’t,” Cox said, and left it at that.
OK, tonight’s gam: It’s chilly already and going to get colder as we get into the late innings. It’s in the upper-40s now, gonna be in the lower-40s before we’re done. But only a slight chance of rain, that’s the good news.
Secondly, the ballpark. The place is very nice, and from my seat in the pressbox I’ve got a view of the Capitol dome beyond the left-field bleachers (any minute now I’ll have a view of Jeff Schultz’s shiny dome to my right, assuming they allow our dubious columnist through security outside).
It’s not a spacious pitcher-friendly ‘park like RFK, but also probably not the hitters’ haven that Philly or Houston is. Looks fair dimension-wise, 335 down RF line, 336 down LF line, 377 in LF power alley, 370 with a higher (14-foot) wall in RF power alley. The power alleys at RFK were nearly 395 feet, just absurd (the signs said 380, but those distances weren’t actually to the power alleys, but rather closer to the lines).
Oh, speaking of pressboxes … Having been warned ahead of time that they plan to open the windows to the pressbox — why do these teams believe that those of us working inside pressboxes care to get the “overall atmosphere” in these instances? Why?! — I’ve come prepared, wearing my lined Eddie Bauer jeans, wool socks, boots, two shirts and sweater, with the coat, fingerless gloves (perfect for typing) and Irish wool cabdriver-looking cap at the ready.
Bowman just informed me he has on four shirts. He’s a large human with merely one shirt, but with four he is bear-like.
Now, the ballpark. Very nice. Reminds me a lot of Philly’s park, and also has some Turner Field-ish touches you can tell Stan Kasten had included. I’m talking about the Chop House in right field and the railings and viewing decks at Turner Field where folks can stand and watch the game while drinking a beverage — there’s a lot of that here.
Is it incredible? No, but we’re jaded or spoiled these days in the era of stunning new ballparks. There’s no distinguishing features, like the view of downtown Pittsburgh at PNC Park, or the bay beyond right field at San Francisco, or the throwback brick-and-exposed-steel of a bunch of recently built ballparks, or the intimacy of the grand old cathedrals of ‘ball, Fenway and Wrigley.
But it’s nice, like Turner Field without the cartoon stuff. I’m told that the cherry blossoms will be blooming beyond the left-field fence by next week. When I asked why the ones all along the river are in full bloom already and not these, I was told they’re a different type. So there.
Anyway, this is a cool place. I’ve not had a chance to take the tour yet, because it took so long to get in. But I can tell you, the visiting clubhouse is the nicest in baseball, or at least tied with Colorado. It’s huge, with dark-wood locker stalls and a weight room that looks like an L.A. Fitness. The indoor batting cage behind the visiting dugout is massive.
Now, without taking a tour of the wide concourses or sampling the available food, I’d say this ballpark would rank on the edge or just outside my top 10, just slightly behind, say, San Diego’s new park and in the general vicinity of Turner Field or perhaps a couple spots ahead of our Atlanta ‘yard.
I ranked all 30 ballparks a couple winters ago, but I’ll recap the top 10 or so for those who might not have been blogging here back then. Let me point out, I’m not ranking them based on media amenities or clubhouses or pressbox location, etc. (if I was, believe me, Wrigley and PNC Park, with its nose-bleed level pressbox, would be near the bottom). Nor am I ranking them based on size of seats or available parking, etc (if I was, Fenway would be at the bottom).
No, I rank them based on overall aesthetic appeal as ballparks, as places to attend a game (and yes, I’ve sat out in the seats at every one of the places, at least for an inning or two).
And I didn’t save my rankings from a couple winters ago, so I’m not certain how I ranked them, but this is close, and it’s how I’d rank them right now.
Fenway Park; 2. Wrigley Field; 3. San Francisco (AT&T or whatever it’s called now; 4. Dodger Stadium; 5. PNC Park, Pittsburgh; 6. Camden Yards, Baltimore; 7. Safeco Field, Seattle; 8. Petco Park, San Diego; 9. Cleveland’s Jacobs Field (or whatever it’s called now); 10. Coors Field; 11. Royals Stadium; 12. St. Louis/Philly/Washington, et al (It’s too tough to distinguish or split hairs ranking the latter three, and yes, you could put Turner Field in there, too. I’m probably just jaded on Turner Field from being there all the time and noticing any annoyances that the occasional visitor might not have a problem with).
Oh, and I realize that plenty of people would put Yankee Stadium in their top five. I’m not one of them. Not since it’s makeovers robbed it of so much of its original nostalgiac appeal. Fenway and Wrigley still feel like they must have decades ago. Yankee Stadium does not, from the incessantly loud music during batting practice to the sensory overload of ads, etc.
Favorable pitching matchups: The first couple of pitching matchups look good for the Braves, who have Tim Hudson going against one-time Brave Odalis Perez and Tom Glavine going against Pittsburgh’s Ian Snell in the home opener Monday in Atlanta.
Hudson is 5-1 with a 1.09 ERA in eight career starts against the Expos/Nationals, including 4-0 with a 0.60 ERA in four last season.
Perez? He’s 1-3 with a 5.21 ERA in seven games (six starts) against the Braves, and was unemployed two months ago before signing a minor league contract with the Nationals.
Glavine is 22-12 in 43 starts against the Pirates, including 4-0 with a 2.76 ERA in his past eight. Snell is 1-2 with a 4.73 ERA in five games (four starts) against the Braves, and he’s given up five homers in 12-2/3 innings at Turner Field.
OK, are the denizens ready for some ‘ball? Some real ‘ball? Because in a few hours, we’re starting it, folks. One-hundred-sixty-two (at least) to go.
Let’s do this.
”THE RIGHTEOUS PATH” by Patterson Hood (Drive-By Truckers)
I got a brand new car that drinks a bunch of gas
I got a house in a neighborhood that’s fading fast
I got a dog and a cat that don’t fight too much
I got a few hundred channels to keep me in touch
I got a beautiful wife and three tow-headed kids
I got a couple of big secrets I’d kill to keep hid
I don’t know God but I fear his wrath
I’m trying to keep focused on the righteous path
I got a couple of opinions that I hold dear
A whole lot of debt and a whole lot of fear
I got an itch that needs scratching but it feels alright
I got the need to blow it out on Saturday night
I got a grill in the backyard and a case of beers
I got a boat that ain’t seen the water in years
More bills than money, I can do the math
I’m trying to keep focused on the righteous path
I’m trying to keep focused as I drive down the road
On the ditches and the curves and the heavy load
Ain’t bitching bout things that aren’t in my grasp
Just trying to hold steady on the righteous path
There’s this friend of mine I’ve known all my life
Who can’t get it right no matter how hard he tries
He’s got kids he don’t see and several ex-wives
And a list of bad decisions bout eight miles wide
Trouble with the law and the IRS
And where he’ll get the money’s anybody’s guess
He’s a long way off but if you was to ask
He’d say he’s trying to stay focused on the righteous path
Trying to keep focused as we drive down the road
Like we did back in High School before the world turned cold
Now the brakes are thin and the curves are fast
We’re trying to hold steady on the righteous path
We’re hanging out and we’re hanging on
We’re trying the best we can to keep keeping on
We got messed up minds for these messed up times
And it’s a thin thin line separating his from mine
Trying to hold steady on the righteous path
80 miles and hour with a worn out map
No time for self-pity or self-righteous crap
Trying to stay focused on the righteous path
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