THE GAMES COULD HAVE BEEN PLAYED IN three different countries. SafeCo Field in Seattle had a definite Asian feel. All of Seattle feels like a little UN. No wonder Ichiro was so revered as a Mariner.
Petco Field, Seattle
We met up with my high school friend and his wife for the San Francisco Giants/Arizona Diamondbacks game. Peter is a fan — has the shirt and hat to prove it. I hadn’t seen him in 50 years and we weren’t fully caught up on the train ride from their home in San Mateo so our minds weren’t totally on the game — Marianne said Peter usually keeps score — but this day we were gaily tripping down Memory Lane. ATT Field has changed names to keep up with the communications industry but it is definitely a class place with class clientele. But not such a good team this year.
A reunion and a ball game
The Oakland Coliseum, home to both the Oakland A’s and Raiders, is a dump, no disrespect intended. The cognoscenti tailgate in the parking lot, understandable since the gridiron shows through the outfield grass and the music is latin or hiphop (or both.) A player coming up from Triple A might wonder if he had really reached the Show or was playing in the Dominican League. It is more Spanish than English, churros and burritos replace peanuts and crackerjacks. Despite the maze to get in, its funkiness is its charm. Everyone is family. On the walk in we sang “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” with four African-American brothers.
Latino Day at the Oakland Colisseum
But the weather was wonderful for each game. The rules were the same — except for the DH, the beer was expensive, the hotdogs tasty and the experience wonderfully American. Play ball!
