A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

mets

Summer of Baseball: Citi Field makes the Mets bearable

OK, let me explain the title – I’m not a fan of the New York Mets. I don’t go out of my way to watch the Mets, so that’s why the title is as it is.

Where the Mets play their homes games, though, puts new definition in ‘amazing.’

Citi Field is an excellent place to catch a game.

Citi Field is an excellent place to catch a game.

Citi Field, which opened in 2009 – the same year as new Yankee Stadium – is a great place to watch ball. Even in the highest of seats, it’s a wonderful spot to watch a game. The views are nice and there’s plenty of space to hide from sun, if you get it.

My trip to Citi this year was meeting a few friends in the city and heading to the game. The easiest way to get to the stadium, of course, is via train. It was quick and you’re dropped right at the foot of the stadium. Shea Stadium’s home run apple is outside and in the shadow of Citi Field, which is pretty cool.

Let’s look at the stadium as a whole.

First, as far as major league stadiums go, this is a beauty. The seats are comfortable. The sight lines are solid. It’s also easy to move around as there’s ample space.

We got there pretty early – pretty much as soon as the gates opened as I like to explore a stadium when I’m going for the first time. Therefore, the lines around the stadium weren’t bad. I had to grab an ice cream while I still could, so that was nice. Walking around the stadium was nice as you could see a bit of everything.

When you first come, the Jackie Robinson area is nice. The Mets museum is also a nice touch. More teams should do this. It’s cool when you can see World Series trophies and not have to be in some upgraded section or take a tour to do so, so I’ll give kudos to the Mets for this.

They also were playing “Meet the Mets” throughout the lower part, which was something I had hoped to hear. I mean … you can’t go to a Mets game and not hear that, can you?

Despite not being a Mets fan, I couldn't resist this opportunity!

Despite not being a Mets fan, I couldn’t resist this opportunity!

One thing I really noticed is how friendly everybody I dealt with was. I know many people talk about New York City people being rude, but everybody who worked at Citi was incredibly easy to chat with, outgoing and nice. I had looked to get my normal pin, but wanted one with Citi Field on it. Unfortunately, there weren’t any. But two people in the gift shops called to the other stands throughout the stadium trying to see if there were any, so that was nice.

I did find out, after, that there are two colored stamps at Citi for the Passport. I wish I had known that as I have two passports and would have loved to have gotten both colors!

There are a few negatives, though. These are small things, so no issues. Prices – like at most MLB stadiums – are crazy. I think it cost me $20 or so for two hot dogs, fries, and a soda. I know the people I was with had a couple of beers and they weren’t cheap. The ice cream was pricy.

But when you go to an MLB game, it’s kind of expected.

That being said, on the positive side, I took advantage of a ticket special and my tickets were right around $20. I can’t complain about that.

This was another stadium without a lineup board. I just don’t see how it’s hard to have something like this. Yes, I know it’s on the big screen. But that’s not the point. Why not have one near customer service. The Phillies have it in the team store. Throw those of us who love that old-school feel a bone and have an intern fill it out each day. It’s not an expensive thing to do.

There weren't many bad places to watch the game.

There weren’t many bad places to watch the game.

Overall, I had a top-notch experience at Citi. The Mets lost this game (and, to be fair, I usually do like to see the home team win – the atmosphere and ambiance is better), but it was a solid game. It was also the MLB debut of Michael Conforto, who I saw play in Binghamton. Jimmy Rollins hit a homer for the Dodgers, so that was a bonus, too.

The only true negative was after the game. We were walking around looking at the spots of where Shea Stadium was. We were taking photos and this person – rude as can be – basically walked right into a photo I was taking with his daughters. He snapped his photo as if nobody was there. One of the people I was with said something and, of course, the guy got his muscles and started talking all sorts of crap – in front of his daughters. Stay classy, buddy.

Still, that didn’t damper a great night for baseball. It was truly enjoyable. And we messed around enough that by the time we hit the train, it was empty and we were on our way.

I need to check out new Yankee Stadium at some point, but more than one Yankee fan has told me that Citi Field is the better experience.

Park Notes:  

Citi Field
New York, NY
Home of the New York Mets
Visited on: July 24, 2015
Opponent: Los Angeles Dodgers

Ratings (out of 10)

  • Stadium: 9.5/10
  • Concessions: 8/10
  • Parking: N/A (took train in)
  • Ambiance: 8.5/10
  • Friendliness: 9/10

I am continuing the Summer of Baseball from 2014 and hope to blog about each new stadium I visit in 2015. Ones visited in the past can be viewed linked up in the 2014 version.

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Summer of Baseball: A game in Binghamton is a nice night

It’s almost crazy to think of a minor league baseball stadium built in 1992 as being old, but as the years go by – it becomes older.

To think that 1992 was more than 20 years ago will age a park, especially at the Double-A level. When NYSEG Stadium, in Binghamton, was built in 1992, it was quite the stadium. And over the years, it’s been used for other things, including high school football.

Home of the B-Mets.

Home of the B-Mets.

But, in the landscape of baseball, it’s an older stadium. Though one thing is certain – it’s still a pretty nice stadium.

I usually make a few trips to Binghamton per season as it’s an easy trip, never a problem to park and there are no issues getting tickets. There isn’t a bad seat in the house and, unless you go on a few uber-popular days, you can usually lounge a little more when there. I’ve sat on both sides of this field, as well as in the “upper deck,” which came on this trip. The third-base line is better if you want to avoid the sun.

You really are pretty close to the action, which is always a bonus. There’s a train yard out over the left-field wall, so sometimes you may get a train going through. That’s kind of a cool thing, though. The fences are average or so in length, which gives you the opportunity to see some homers.

The day's lineup.

The day’s lineup.

There aren’t a ton of bells and whistles with this stadium. They do quite a few games and such and there’s a kids area down the first-base line. The food selection is decent and the prices are OK, but not stellar. Case in point – I purchase two hot dogs and a soda. The soda cost about as much as the two dogs and if I had wanted French fries, they would have cost more than $4. A little steep when consider the hot dogs were $1.75 each, if I remember right.

As a hot dog nut, I wouldn’t classify those served in Binghamton as the best I’ve ever had a game and it’s not even close. But, I did enjoy them as they were cooked right and tasted just fine. I’d go above average on the hot dogs, say a 3.5 out of 5 or a 7 out of 10.

Keeping book, as always, on my Eephus League Halfliner.

Keeping book, as always, on my Eephus League Halfliner.

If you are looking to watch a baseball game, this is a good spot. The seats are pretty decent and you have a good amount of room. But if you are looking for a lot of extras, this might not be a place for you.

In recent years, there have been rumors about the Double-A team leaving Binghamton, which possibly could open the stadium up to be a Single-A team. This stadium, actually, would be really top-notch for that level (especially in the short-season Single-A New York-Penn League), though drawing fans might take a hit in that regard. Still, even with the rumors, Double-A ball remains in Binghamton and, hopefully, it will stay that way.

Park Notes:

NYSEG Stadium
Binghamton, New York
Home of the Binghamton Mets (AA affiliate of the New York Mets)
Visited on: Monday, May 26
Opponent: New Britain Rock Cats (AA affiliate of the Minnesota Twins)

Ratings (out of 10):

  • Stadium: 7
  • Concessions: 6
  • Parking: 8
  • Ambiance: 7
  • Friendliness: 9

I am embarking on a summer of baseball with the plan to hit a minimum of 10 stadiums this summer. Hopefully, there will be more than that. I will report on each park that I hit on the blog.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Mets fetch $2.49 on eBay auction; move forthcoming

Pitchers and catchers report in fewer than 10 days. So, needless to say, I’m extremely excited for the start of baseball season. That being said, the recent (and ongoing) follies that are the New York Metropolitans have been entertaining to say the least. Besides all the drama going on with the owners, faltering ticket sales (for a stadium going into its fourth season), and other crazy things, the Mets have recently revoked the press credential for a media member for… well, telling the truth. They said they didn’t like how he reports.

The gift that keeps on giving.

Being a fan of an NL East team, it’s fun to watch the floundering Mets. As a baseball fan, it’s a little tougher because it’s not good for the sport overall. I wasn’t sure it could get any worse than Frank McCourt and the Dodgers debacle, but the Wilpons are starting to make McCourt look like the owner of the year.

Anyway, the reason for this post. I was chatting briefly with a friend and making fun of the Mets. I made a comment about winning the Mets on an eBay auction. It sounded like a fun blog post. So, below is my thoughts…(please remember, this is all meant to be funny… so laugh a little). It’s satire, too, so there’s no need to think about lawsuits! 

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Mets sold on eBay auction; team to be moved

The New York Mets baseball club has been sold via an eBay auction. The selling price was $2.49 and attracted four bidders with the opening bid at 99 cents.

(Note to editors: That is $2 dollars, 49 cents. Not 2.49 million or billion). 

The winning bid came in at the last second from the owner of the website “A ‘lil HooHaa.”

“I placed the bid on a dare figuring there had to be some Mets fan out there who wanted this team more than I did,” said new owner P.J. Harmer, a lifelong Phillies fan. He noted he doesn’t plan on changing his allegiance toward the Phytin’ Phils anytime soon.

Hat logo

“Never,” he said. “I’m a Phillies fan until the end. This is a business investment. Heart and wallet are two different things.”

The Mets have been in distress for a while now. With the Bernie Madoff scandal helping to slowly take down the former owners, the Wilpon family looked to bail quickly. It’s believed they thought they would at least get 100 bucks for the team.

“I don’t know what they will do with the $2.49,” said Mets PR slack Jay Horwitz, who recently made headlines when the team yanked the press credentials of a reporter based on them reporting negative things about the Wilpons and the Mets. “They were thinking about re-investing the money, but their main investing person is currently being held up for the next 150 years or so.”

With normal big-time investors balking at the idea of pouring money into a cash-sucking machine, the Wilpons came up with the idea to sell the Mets via eBay.

“They thought it would be a way to give average people the chance to own a professional baseball team,” Horwitz said.

After securing the OK from baseball commissioner Bud Selig, an old pal of Fred Wilpon, the Wilpons placed the team on eBay with a starting bid of 99 cents and an auction set to run 10 days.

However, the Metropolitan front office created another gaffe when it forgot to put a minimum on the team price.

“Our legal crew never told us this was necessary, so we didn’t do the research,” Horwitz said.

After five days, only one bid — at 99 cents — had been placed. The price had gone up to 1.75 with one day remaining.

New home jersey.

The bid was placed with no plans on winning the team. But as the clock timed down, nobody else bid.

“The funny thing is, I paid more for an autographed Chase Utley card on eBay than I did the Mets,” the new owner said. “In fact, I spent more money on certified autographs of minor leaguers than I did the Mets.”

The future of the Mets has already been decided.

“I’m moving them to Devils Lake, North Dakota,” the new owner said. “I figure nobody watches the Mets anyway, so why not see if we can drum up some interest in North Dakota?”

Devils Lake had a population of 7,141 in the 2010 census. The town features a municipal airport, which will allow teams to fly in and out for games. The team will be looking for a field as soon as possible. Lake Region State College is in Devils Lake, but the school does not have a baseball team.

“I hear North Dakota is quite a nice place,” said Mets third baseman David Wright, who has been the subject of trade talks involving the Yakult Swallos, a Japanese professional team.

Rumors are any players who make more than the league minimum would likely be traded for whatever the team can get to make sure they don’t have to keep the high salaries. Single-A and Double-A players will be in high demand.

Former sports writer Jerry Beach has been named the new general manager. Beach said he’d be moving to Devils Lake soon so he could find a place for the team to play and maybe see about selling a few tickets.

“We’re thinking about having open tryouts when we first move out there to see if there’s any good talent hanging around,” Beach said. “Remember, good players can come out of North Dakota. Look at Chris Coste.”

He said it will be a tough sell early because the Mets play in the National League East and there’s no traditional rivalries with other teams in the Midwest. Therefore, the new ownership is looking to make the game feel more like a minor league game, with in-between-innings games, prizes and giveaways.

Items such as bucking bronco night, paper bag night, and “burn your New York Mets jersey” night have been planned.

Speaking of uniforms, the new duds will be scaled down a bit to save costs.

Sponsorship has been sold for jersey backs.

Riley’s Bail Bonds has signed on as a sponsor and will pay to have its name on the back of each jersey, eliminating the need for names on the back.

“The likelihood of the players being known is going to be slim anyway,” Beach said. “So we figured we’d make money the best we could. Why not sell every piece of space with ads? It appears to work in soccer.”

The Mets new ownership have been in discussions to sell Citi Field to the New York Yankees as a practice facility. The ownership feels that they can get some operating capital from the sale.

The goal, too, is to have the majority of players making the league minimum until the team can stabilize.

Away jersey

“Let’s be realistic here,” Beach said. “There are a lot of things we need to do. And the Mets don’t have a large fanbase now as it is, so we have to build everything from scratch. And there’s no Casey Stengal to start things with here.”

There will not be an immediate change in on-field management, but that will be evaluated as the season progresses.

Beach said that with moving to North Dakota, he also needed to hire a special weather consultant, so he turned to long-time Mets fan and high school classmate Matt Edwards to man that position.

Edwards said he feels the weather patterns might save the season, though he’s not sure it’s what the people want.

“Tornado projections are weak for this summer, meaning we won’t even get a homestand wiped out by Mother Nature during a 38-124 season,” Edwards said.

Alternate jersey

The new ownership and management said they feel they have a strong team of people who will play a part in shaping the team as it moves forward.

“This is not a joke to us,” Beach said. “Though I’m sure the going will be rough early, I look forward to having a ticker-tape parade down College Drive in Devils Lake soon enough.”

As long as the Mets can find a place to play, they will open their home schedule April 5 against the Braves. Beach said if any Mets season ticket holders still remain, they are welcome to Devils Lake and would be offered a grilled hot dog as part of their season ticket package.

“We can’t turn our back on the dozen people who actually supported the Mets the past few years,” Beach said. “The least we can do is give them a hot dog, and if necessary, a folding chair along the third-base line.”

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