IlliniKrush

I think i'm going to go grab moneyball after work today...could use something else to read this summer

Well, i've been back for a while...but haven't made it around to the boards for numerous reasons Anyway, here's some brief thoughts on the parks..i can go into much more detail on some if you wanna discuss or have questions Road trip was about 3,500 miles and was a blast....lotta great memories and experiences. For a die hard baseball fan, this was one of the greatest baseball related experiences i think i could have had Cincy - Definitely better than what people have said about it all year...exceeded expectations i had for the park going into cincy. Good atmosphere, good sightlines, nice big scoreboard provides all the info you could want...probly best scoreboard i've seen by far. Nice view onto the river and into Kentucky. We saw a good game with a lively crowd. I was pretty satisfied with this park. We visited OSU and snuck into the horseshoe and took some pics, however didn't go onto the field..good thing we didn't cause the cops were on our ass anyway...horseshoe is cool though pittsburgh - great park. the backdrop makes this park just spectacular. It really shows you the difference a good backdrop makes. It's very fan friendly, wide concourses, many concessions, get around pretty easily. Walked across the Clemente bridge and down by the river before we went into the park...gotta do that when you get to PNC. However, one thing bothered me and one of my buddies: they overdo stuff. What i mean by this is they turn it into a minor league game. So many damn gimmicks on the scoreboard with this animated pirate, and the music selection definitely takes away from the game experience. A few of you might be saying well who cares...but it's hard to explain without being there. There's just a lot of unnecessary stuff the conflicts with the rest of the park and the atmosphere New York - after stopping by penn st at 230 am and williamsport at 4:00am (little league world series fields), we took a nap in the shea parking lot for an hour and a half. Then saw a rainy game with about a crowd of 5,000. There isn't much to talk about; this place sucks. It's ugly as all hell and there's nothing to it. Interior is definitely a mess to navigate around and it's just ugly on the insides. The backdrop is a huge parking lot...definitely doesn't add to the game experience. Almost no bleacher seating...just a lot of crap going on in the outfield exterior. Gee, i'm glad i got to shea before it falls down or gets blown up. Boston - My favorite park. You can really feel the nostalgia at this place; it still feels really old. Outside the park Yawkey way is a big party area pregame - you can only get in there with a ticket to the game. Great atmosphere...fans are really into the game and love their Sox. By far had the most apparel for their home team of any stadium i've been to. The fans really made this place great. Interesting that they have right field and left field "roof" seats...it's really not the upper deck. And it's only 6 rows...kind of unique to the park. The insides of the park isn't as bad as everyone makes it out to be...i actually navigated it easier than i do Wrigley. Some of the seats are really close together, just as people say...however there's sufficient room. But i just like how it still feels really old and you can feel the history. Really just a great ballpark nestled into a nice tight spot in the middle of a busy neighborhood. Cooperstown - Took 2 days to view. If you read everything (which we did), it will take you more than one day to see everything. There's just so much stuff, so many artifacts and things to look at...but if you are a baseball fan i think you should make a visit out there...and for those of you older than me will probably appreciate it even more because you experienced more of the things in the museum than i have. Countless times i caught myself talking to older men telling me how they were at this and that game and remember watching this game...that was a nice experience. New York - Saw Clemens first attempt at 300, and he blew it. Just didn't have his stuff. Pretty disappointing atmosphere as the place was half empty when the game started on Memorial Day. The park didn't awe me as i thought it would. It's just too new...i think that's the best way to describe it. It's too renovated; kind of feels like US Cellular. Hard to get a feel for the history while inside this park...it feels like it was built in the late 80's or something. Pretty disappointed in it, but it was still good to be there, and we almost saw some history. Philly - An upgrade from Shea, but still pretty poor. The place is just huge. That's about the best compliment i can give it. It really feels like a football stadium more than anything else. Classic cookie cutter stadium with no real unique features. The fans made the game fun as they couldn't hit Leither for anything and some of these fans are just so hostile and hilarious with their negativity towards the Phils. At least they made it a fun experience. The new park is right next to the old one; however there's almost no progress on it. It's really pretty pathetic. Talked to a construction worker who said they were behind schedule, but that it'd be done. Fans can't wait to get out of the Vet, and i can see why. Baltimore - Camden yards is a really nice place. It still feels real new. If you told me it was built this year, i'd believe it. The only thing out of date is the scoreboard and video screen really. They have the same sort of deal that Boston has with Yawkey way outside the park. You can enter the right field patio before the gates open and watch bp. I caught a spiezio bp home run up here with no mitt and my friend grabbing my hood...pretty cool stuff. It's fun to catch hr balls up here. Seemed like a bandbox, balls just flew out of there. Real nice park though, the warehouse is a really really nice backdrop. Pretty solid architectual design. It's what comiskey should have been. Well there's some brief thoughts on some of the parks, i can go into further detail if you have questions or what not.

Alright screw work let's talk some parks. I'm going to start a new thread...give me a few minutes to type some stuff up

Rice is going to have to get it done behind their #3 tonight

well, i guess this is an appropriate thread to make my return on as some of you know i went on a baseball road trip at the end of may after i got out of school. it was a good time, and i'll write some details on the parks when i get around to it. anyway, between being gone on that trip, the lack of an immediate ethernet connection at my house, working 2 jobs, and the sox sucking for a while, i haven't been around. bu that'll change now that i can be on the message boards at my current job right now. where heather lee is i don't know...haven't seen her on aol recently either.

I was in St. Louis this afternoon to watch the cards shutout the cubs 2-0, which was more enjoyable than listening to the Sox lose on the way home... Anyway, i leave tomorrow morning with 2 friends for a 7 park, 9 day roadtrip. The schedule is my signature if you want to follow and see if i happen to catch any amazing games....or rainouts If you guys want i can give a rundown of the trip and what i thought of the parks and the cities when i get back, and the overall experience of a baseball road trip. I'll catch you all later.

I'm sick of this bulls***...would have been thoroughly pissed if they didn't throw at someone this inning. No point brining in Koch only to bring in another guy right after that...Colon should take it upon himself anyway

f*** YOU JULIO, f*** YOU HAIRSTON...NICE JOB COLON

Please refer to the post i made at 3:36 am

Wells, one thing i always wonder is why he turned it around in New York. They made his ass get it together...something no one here knew how to make him do, and then he got injured. And no, i wouldn't have done a wells/ritchie trade...i was actually outraged over that deal, not so much the wells trade. I did not want to give up on Wells and i knew ritchie wasn't jacks***...i thought wells would work, i'll admit that. Now, hindsight is 20/20...however, that's how you judge GM's, you judge them on how their stuff pans out. When he wants a contract extension he doesn't say "didn't this deal look good to do at the time?" Of course it did to him...but he's based on the results of the deal...that's the reality of being a GM

When did i say anything about defense? I don't know how much u can manage defense. But not just this year...the past few years he has sucked with his bullpen moves, IMO

Show some damn fire, don't play valentin against lefties, and learn how to manage a damn bullpen to start with

Well more of his "big moves" have backfired, ala wells and ritchie back to back years...sucks we gave up Kip Wells who would win 15+ games with anyone but the damn pirates. When i said you have to come through on more than half, that also includes how each move is weighted, i.e. a minor move that works isn't anything compared to signing wells...and even if we didn't "give up anything" for wells, it didn't help our team at all, and it's still a failed move

Hey Heather.... :fyou :fyou :fyou :fyou :fyou :fyou :fyou :fyou :fyou :fyou :fyou

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO EEEEEEEEEEEEEE OOOOOOOOOOOOOO Maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaglio!!!!! Just gotta laugh at these stupidass commercials

My sense of humor must have vanished somewhere in the studying i've been doing all damn day and night....

If he married you then he.....nevermind

I love you too heather :fyou

Ya kinda like 2 years ago or whatever year it was where he thought it was a normal fly ball and was camping under it...and then it landed in the 15th row

There's no way in hell i'd give up a 1st round pick to sign sissy Chuck Finley

Heather if half your moves work and half don't, thereby leaving you essentially at the same place, you aren't a good GM. You get paid to come through on more moves than you fail on

We need to start beating good teams instead of just looking ahead to the schedule to beat up on some s***ty teams...that's not going to get you anywhere

Boo f***ing hoo DETROIT SUCKS

I had to come up with something on the spot, and thought this was catchy...not much reasoning behind it i guess

He was right with most of the s*** about Mesa...and Mesa did lose the world series for em