Target Field


So here I am at Target Field...wait, Target Field? Seriously, HKHWR? That's right, for while the stated goal earlier this year was to knock off ballparks of teams I hadn't seen play at home (a goal that will be realized by season's end), and I did endure one at the Metrodome, one of those sweet schedule alignments was noted back in April, and I booked this little weekend jaunt. Yeah, me, and a number of observant schedule hounds: The Vikings are home tomorrow, so it's another two-games-in-one-weekend event for us. This is a rather good September for that, as the MLB and NFL schedule makers have nicely set us up. More on that in a few weeks.

I picked a hotel within walking distance of both stadiums. It was another Marriott one that was converted from a train station. After arriving, I walked over to the very nice Town Hall Brewery, where I talked to several locals over a couple of pints, including the recommended and simply sensational Dortmuder Export Lager.

So, yeah, anyway, I was planning to visit the ballparks of the three teams I hadn't seen this year, and then next year see the four teams who had replaced their ballparks since I was there. But, why put off until next season what you can swing this season? This ballpark makes 37 overall, and, again, leaves me with 2 teams and 5 ballparks to go. As this looked like a really nice one on TV, I did want to see it myself anyway, regardless of the count. It is a drastic improvement over the Metrodome, which I will sit in one more time tomorrow, with its new name tag. Who knows, maybe its football configuration will be less odd. But, that can wait a day. This is about Target Field...

When I booked this trip, I had no idea what was scheduled this evening, only becoming hip to it yesterday: They're retiring Tom Kelly's number 10. It's a great ceremony with all of the great Twins going back to their beginnings being acknowledged. The Twins fans were certainly into it, as is this baseball fan.

So, I had my pork on a stick, I've got on my usual team neutral attire, I got the awesome and unexpected perk of a retirement ceremony, and am now definitely ready for this game. Go Twinnies!

Location: Target Field, 550 3rd Avenue North, Minneapolis

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

25 AAA ballparks visited, 5 to go!

Image
A snapshot of the current AAA venues where I've seen a game. The funny thing about AAA ballparks is I can't think of a single one I didn't really like. Well, at least not after a renovation gave me a second chance to form a first impression. Nor until attendance at unseasonably cold or damp April and May games in some of the northeast stadiums was remedied with second and third games at them in the summer months, rectifying any lukewarm perceptions I may have previously had. Yes, it may have taken a couple of ballgames at them, but each AAA ballpark left me with a very favorable impression. Unlike MLB ballparks, where my journey to see them all started 20 years earlier, my AAA chase is a more recent undertaking. With 5/6 of the AAA ballparks now under my belt, I thought I'd take a look back at the journey so far. Not long after moving up to the Hudson Valley in the mid 2000s, my MiLB ballpark chasing got underway, much like a ballplayer's journey might progress, fro...
Read more

That top-32 National Park list I once created

Image
I'm enjoying watching a few friends near the completion of their National Park quests. Earlier this year, while traveling through the three Florida National Parks, it was likewise enjoyable but also encouraging talking to fellow travelers pursuing their own such journeys: a father and son were hitting their 40th, and one woman was at her penultimate with plans to finish in September. That's all great stuff to me.  These quests also lead to questions from interested observers. "What's the first  #NationalPark  you'll be visiting when this is over?", "What's your favorite National Park?", "What are your top 3/5/10?" These are some of the questions I see posted and get asked. With 44/62 seen, I don't know if it's fair to assemble such a list, but here's how I ranked the top 32 I've visited. Yeah, if I redid it, many spots could flip, but the top 4 or so are pretty well locked in, until one of the 18 I'm missing changes ...
Read more

Tipping and ripping the cap

A belated tip of the cap to this year’s Baseball Hall of Fame inductees. I know the NFL and NBA Halls had their 2010 inductions more recently, and an eventual nodding of the helmets to the former may follow. It’s just that a recent conversation prompted this post. In this era of free agency, the need for players to don one team’s cap over another when their plaque is created seems to be something of a relic, especially when a player has left an indelible mark on multiple teams. Even if the bulk of his career or prime numbers rest mainly with one team, should that team be solely associated with that player when he gave another some great years? Conversely, if, say, a contract or personal quarrel leaves bad blood between a player and the team where his HOF numbers were earned, should that player have the right to select some team where he had less impact? Admittedly, most inductees do lean to one team or another in terms of career dominance, and Wikipedia, under the "Players with mu...
Read more