GaryMrMets
07-06-2004, 01:42 AM
http://www.southjerseynews.com/issues/july/s070404k.htm
Citizens Bank more park than ballpark
Sunday, July 4, 2004
Dear diary: Went to Citizens Bank Park the other night and had a great time.
Ashburn Alley, what a cool place. Saw the historical timeline, checked out the statues, ate a pulled-pork sandwich at Bull's Barbecue.
Man, did we have fun. Heckled the visiting pitchers in the bullpen, bumped into some old friends on our walk around the stadium.
When we got there, we grabbed a table and had a couple cold ones at Harry The K's resturant. Later, it was really humid, so we went in the air conditioning at McFadden's and saw some people from work and hung out with them for a while.
The game?
Oh, yeah, the game.
No, this isn't another screech about Phillies' first baseman Jim Thome ranking fourth in the voting for the all-star game.
No, this isn't a poke at all the folks who are enjoying the Phillies' new stadium for reasons that have nothing to do with Thome's prodigious offense, Jimmy Rollins' sensational defense and the local nine's chances of finally - finally - winning the NL East title.
It's a great place. It's clean. It's airy. It's grass and dirt and the big scoreboard and brick facing and wide concourses and view of the city skyline.
It's everything we want our sports stadiums to be - a center square, a gathering spot, a fun place to visit, spend time with family and friends, grab a sandwich and a cold beverage and relax.
But does anybody else get the sense that there are a lot of nights when the baseball - you know, the reason the place was built - is just part of the entertainment at this great new spot, and that the team is just a band playing in the background? I mean, you can go to Citizens Bank Park and have a great time and not even pay attention to the game - thanks to the exhibits along Ashburn Alley, the interactive stuff along the concourses, the food and atmosphere at Harry the K's, and the crowd in McFadden's.
Is this bad?
Worse?
One of the seven signs of the Apocalypse - or of another World Series-less season?
Phillies management doesn't seems too worried. They're printing money over there, and the team - thanks in no small part to the problems in Florida and Atlanta - likely will spend the summer at or near the top of the NL East standings.
Maybe it's a first-year thing. Maybe the new stadium is attracting a lot of non-baseball fans, folks who just want to see the new joint and spend a warm summer night in a festive, outdoor place.
That's the way it's been all over baseball through the new stadium boom that began a little more than a decade ago with Orioles Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore.
And maybe it's for the best, baseball-wise.
Maybe the first-place Phillies know they have to play some serious hardball to attract and keep the attention of the big crowds that pass through those new gates to find out what all the fuss is about.
Citizens Bank more park than ballpark
Sunday, July 4, 2004
Dear diary: Went to Citizens Bank Park the other night and had a great time.
Ashburn Alley, what a cool place. Saw the historical timeline, checked out the statues, ate a pulled-pork sandwich at Bull's Barbecue.
Man, did we have fun. Heckled the visiting pitchers in the bullpen, bumped into some old friends on our walk around the stadium.
When we got there, we grabbed a table and had a couple cold ones at Harry The K's resturant. Later, it was really humid, so we went in the air conditioning at McFadden's and saw some people from work and hung out with them for a while.
The game?
Oh, yeah, the game.
No, this isn't another screech about Phillies' first baseman Jim Thome ranking fourth in the voting for the all-star game.
No, this isn't a poke at all the folks who are enjoying the Phillies' new stadium for reasons that have nothing to do with Thome's prodigious offense, Jimmy Rollins' sensational defense and the local nine's chances of finally - finally - winning the NL East title.
It's a great place. It's clean. It's airy. It's grass and dirt and the big scoreboard and brick facing and wide concourses and view of the city skyline.
It's everything we want our sports stadiums to be - a center square, a gathering spot, a fun place to visit, spend time with family and friends, grab a sandwich and a cold beverage and relax.
But does anybody else get the sense that there are a lot of nights when the baseball - you know, the reason the place was built - is just part of the entertainment at this great new spot, and that the team is just a band playing in the background? I mean, you can go to Citizens Bank Park and have a great time and not even pay attention to the game - thanks to the exhibits along Ashburn Alley, the interactive stuff along the concourses, the food and atmosphere at Harry the K's, and the crowd in McFadden's.
Is this bad?
Worse?
One of the seven signs of the Apocalypse - or of another World Series-less season?
Phillies management doesn't seems too worried. They're printing money over there, and the team - thanks in no small part to the problems in Florida and Atlanta - likely will spend the summer at or near the top of the NL East standings.
Maybe it's a first-year thing. Maybe the new stadium is attracting a lot of non-baseball fans, folks who just want to see the new joint and spend a warm summer night in a festive, outdoor place.
That's the way it's been all over baseball through the new stadium boom that began a little more than a decade ago with Orioles Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore.
And maybe it's for the best, baseball-wise.
Maybe the first-place Phillies know they have to play some serious hardball to attract and keep the attention of the big crowds that pass through those new gates to find out what all the fuss is about.