03-18-2010, 01:25 PM
<!--quoteo(post=83217:date=Mar 18 2010, 12:11 PM:name=veryzer)-->QUOTE (veryzer @ Mar 18 2010, 12:11 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=83206:date=Mar 18 2010, 11:16 AM:name=Butcher)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Butcher @ Mar 18 2010, 11:16 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=83202:date=Mar 18 2010, 10:59 AM:name=rok)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (rok @ Mar 18 2010, 10:59 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->Yeah, this traditionalist nonsense gets old after a while. The only tradition that Wrigley is notorious for is losing. I'm not saying that I hate the place, I don't, but I wouldn't be upset if the Rickettses blew it up and rebuilt a replica with modern creature comforts and technology. Would anyone really miss anything about the old structure as long as the ivy, scoreboard and marquee still stood there?<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Here are the things I like about Wrigley:
- It's in a neighborhood. You can see the old apartments/condos/old trees surrounding the park. It's much better than being right next to a highway.
- It's right next door to a Red Line stop.
- There are a few parts of the old structure I really like -- the brick walls surrounding the field. The ivy. The old scoreboard. The way the field and the grass sort of take your breath away as you emerge from the dark tunnel.
- People complain about the troughs, but it's really the best way to keep the line moving in there. Urinals aren't more efficient. They aren't necessarily cleaner. I don't see the benefit of changing that. If the bathrooms were larger and could accommodate more stalls and make them easier to get to, then that would be great. It's hard to squeeze by the mass of pissing people to get to the stalls (which sucks when you're trying to get your daughter to the toilet before she has an accident).
- I know I'm in the minority here, but I like that there isn't a Jumbotron.
Things I don't like or wouldn't mind see changed:
- The seats are too narrow. I'm six feet, 185, and I feel squeezed into those chairs. I can't imagine they're all that comfortable for anyone bigger than me.
- The sightlines in some parts of the park aren't great. If you're under the upper deck, you lose sight of high fly balls.
- Seats behind poles.
- They do something at Fenway that I wish they would do at Wrigley -- the ushers don't let you return to your seat from the concourse if it isn't between half-innings. It really cuts down on the amount of people getting up and walking past you during the game. I had great seats a few years ago for the Cubs/A's interleague game (the one where Walker slid across home, Superman-style). But they were right in front of the gap between the two sections. There was a constant stream of people walking in front of you all game long. Annoying.
- There's nothing about the actual infrastructure that I have any emotional attachment to. I wouldn't care if they updated everything if they kept the things that make Wrigley unique (listed above in the first section).
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I agree with all of that, including the urinals, but not the Jumbo-tron. It drives me crazy when there's a close play and I can't see a replay. Or a great play, but I missed it because a woman with her boobs hanging out just walked by. I don't want to have to scramble for my phone every time there's a big play and what happens if I forget it? Then I'm screwed. Give me a jumbo-tron and let the world see my big fat face cramming a hot dog down my throat during the 7th inning stretch. Got no problem with that, in fact, I demand it.
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I went to one Royals game last year (sat behind the dugout in a seat I paid face for ($35) by walking up to the ticket window). I wound up on the jumbo. Thankfully, I was between wieners.
Here are the things I like about Wrigley:
- It's in a neighborhood. You can see the old apartments/condos/old trees surrounding the park. It's much better than being right next to a highway.
- It's right next door to a Red Line stop.
- There are a few parts of the old structure I really like -- the brick walls surrounding the field. The ivy. The old scoreboard. The way the field and the grass sort of take your breath away as you emerge from the dark tunnel.
- People complain about the troughs, but it's really the best way to keep the line moving in there. Urinals aren't more efficient. They aren't necessarily cleaner. I don't see the benefit of changing that. If the bathrooms were larger and could accommodate more stalls and make them easier to get to, then that would be great. It's hard to squeeze by the mass of pissing people to get to the stalls (which sucks when you're trying to get your daughter to the toilet before she has an accident).
- I know I'm in the minority here, but I like that there isn't a Jumbotron.
Things I don't like or wouldn't mind see changed:
- The seats are too narrow. I'm six feet, 185, and I feel squeezed into those chairs. I can't imagine they're all that comfortable for anyone bigger than me.
- The sightlines in some parts of the park aren't great. If you're under the upper deck, you lose sight of high fly balls.
- Seats behind poles.
- They do something at Fenway that I wish they would do at Wrigley -- the ushers don't let you return to your seat from the concourse if it isn't between half-innings. It really cuts down on the amount of people getting up and walking past you during the game. I had great seats a few years ago for the Cubs/A's interleague game (the one where Walker slid across home, Superman-style). But they were right in front of the gap between the two sections. There was a constant stream of people walking in front of you all game long. Annoying.
- There's nothing about the actual infrastructure that I have any emotional attachment to. I wouldn't care if they updated everything if they kept the things that make Wrigley unique (listed above in the first section).
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I agree with all of that, including the urinals, but not the Jumbo-tron. It drives me crazy when there's a close play and I can't see a replay. Or a great play, but I missed it because a woman with her boobs hanging out just walked by. I don't want to have to scramble for my phone every time there's a big play and what happens if I forget it? Then I'm screwed. Give me a jumbo-tron and let the world see my big fat face cramming a hot dog down my throat during the 7th inning stretch. Got no problem with that, in fact, I demand it.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I went to one Royals game last year (sat behind the dugout in a seat I paid face for ($35) by walking up to the ticket window). I wound up on the jumbo. Thankfully, I was between wieners.