Your first time in a major league park...

Jason · 08-06-2010, 03:58 PM

Do you remember the first time you went to a major sports event? I was listening to a guy on the radio today talking about how we never have the sense of awe regarding many things these days. He then recapped the first time as a kid he went to a major league baseball game and the feeling of awe when he came out of the tunnel and walked in where he could see the field the first time.

It flashed me back to 1980. I was nine and my dad was working for a company that was trying to steal a client from a competitor. My dad's boss knew the client was a Phillies fan and decided to take him to a game to schmooze him and because my dad was the salesman for the account he had to come along. When my dad mentioned his son was a huge Phillies and Mike Schmidt fan his boss insisted that he bring me along. (I know it was because they wanted the client to think my dad's company was a family organization but my dad saw it as a chance to take his son to do something we couldn't afford to do.)

I remember walking into Veteran's Stadium. It was a "businessman's special" kind of situation and the stadium wasn't that full. We were on the first base side, about half way down the lower section. When I walked into that stadium and saw the field for the first time, I almost cried. I can still picture the scene...I walked in and Pete Rose was standing at first base talking to Larry Bowa. I can still picture looking up at my dad and the smile that was on his face knowing how much that moment meant to me.

Anyone else remember their first time at a major league park? Did you have a sense of awe?

Cooleyvol · 08-06-2010, 04:02 PM

1979

Our LL team won the league championship and got a trip to St Louis to see the Cardinals play the Mets (big Eastern Division rival at the time).

I don't remember much about the game, but that was definitely my first MLB game.

I agree, the awe is gone. Kids nowadays (at least mine) expect to go multiple times each year. Its nothing for my kids to catch 4-5 MLB games and 3-4 UT football games each year. I didn't see my first UT game until I was 20. Our football tradition now is to attend one road SEC game per year. It lets us not only see the South, but also experience the different stadiums/towns of the SEC.

TribeFanInNC · 08-06-2010, 04:07 PM

Hmmmm....I don't know if I remember the exact first game I went to. I know in 1981 I went to All-Star Game T-Shirt Day (the ASG was in Cleveland that year). I would have been 8 then. I think my dad still has the shirt. I was bummed because they didn't have kid sizes.

I probably went to a game before then, but I don't remember it specifically.

JWay · 08-06-2010, 05:35 PM

I talked my parents into going to the Metrodome in 1997 to see the Mariners, I was 12 at the time, I got to see ARod, Griffey, Edgar, Buhner, saw Jamie Moyer pitch, Buhner hit a HR, then get injured running into the wall chasing a HR. Overall it was a surreal experience, but I remember it more than I do any other game that I've been to.

mirrf · 08-06-2010, 06:15 PM

Friday night game at Candlestick Park either 1979 or 80 which puts me at 8 or 9. It was freezing cold which is nothing new,*every* night at Windlestick is cold.

It was truly amazing. Somewhere in the bottom of the 7th or 8th inning, Willie McCovey comes up to the plate with the tying run on 3rd, winning run on 1st and the crowd goes wild. -Everybody standing in the freezing cold. Then some person behind me starts the chant of "Willie, Willie, Willie" and soon the entire stadium is yelling, stomping, clapping.

Just like the movies, ole' Willie pulls a line drive single to right tying the game up. Giants complete the rally and hold onto the victory.

canadiancreed · 08-06-2010, 06:26 PM

Late july in 1989, we had just come back from a week vacation in PEI and stopped in Montreal to overnight, so went to see an Expos game. Have no idea who they were playing (have the pictures from then somewhere), all I remember is that they had the roof down on a day where the temperature was listed at 104F. That and drunken assholes consistently yelling in multiple languages put a damper on the evening. The size of the place struck me as impressive (you could fit the entire town that I hailed from twenty times over in the place, and I couldn't' fathom how anyone could cover that outfield), but the other patrons ruined it IMO. Didn't see another game until the Ottawa Lynx in 2000, and the same Expos in 2002. Those experiences were a lot better.

GCCWolverine · 08-06-2010, 06:39 PM

Thanks to the wonders of baseball-reference, I was able to find the box score to the first game I ever went to: Seattle at Toronto, July 7, 1992

July 7, 1992 Seattle Mariners at Toronto Blue Jays Play by Play and Box Score - Baseball-Reference.com

I still remember seeing Devon White hitting the seeing-eye single up the middle to win the game in the bottom of the ninth. Certainly not a memorable game, but it was a walk-off in my first game.

pfreek11 · 08-06-2010, 07:17 PM

I was fortunate enough to go to many MLB games as a child; I definitely do not remember my first one, though I'd guess it was somewhere around 1983-84. However, I absolutely remember being awestruck when I stepped into the dugout during batting practice of a St. Louis Cardinals game in the summer of 1991. That was an incredible experience, being surrounded by players and able to touch the field.

To be perfectly honest, I still get that "little kid" feeling when I go to a game (ditto NHL & NFL games). There's something about that first glimpse of the field that gets me every time.

Chicagofan76 · 08-06-2010, 07:26 PM

1985, the year i began to like my all time fav player (see left). dont remember any other details i just remember sitting in the RF eating area and watching the game and baines.

Goody · 08-06-2010, 08:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GCCWolverine

Thanks to the wonders of baseball-reference, I was able to find the box score to the first game I ever went to: Seattle at Toronto, July 7, 1992

July 7, 1992 Seattle Mariners at Toronto Blue Jays Play by Play and Box Score - Baseball-Reference.com

I still remember seeing Devon White hitting the seeing-eye single up the middle to win the game in the bottom of the ninth. Certainly not a memorable game, but it was a walk-off in my first game.

Wow, Jeff Nelson.

Goody · 08-06-2010, 08:35 PM

It was the Kingdome, so it was weird. Place looked larger than life inside...but kinda creepy at the same time.

July 8, 1987 Milwaukee Brewers at Seattle Mariners Box Score and Play by Play - Baseball-Reference.com

But it was a great game. My father and I got box seats right above the visitors dugout from my older sister's husband who worked at a car lot in Seattle. We could see the Brewers players through the space between sections of the dugout roof. I remember Cecil Cooper beating the hell out of the dugout and swearing profusely after his 3rd K.

Walk off home run in the 11th by the M's.

Bobbuttons · 08-06-2010, 11:15 PM

My first game in a big league park was August 14th, 1993 in Three Rivers Stadium. I was a Pirates fan back then. My favorite player growing up, Andy Van Slyke, wasn't playing, as he was suffering from chronic injuries that pretty much derailed his career. Bob Walk started for the Pirates as they hosted their second ever series against the Florida Marlins. A young slugger that had just been traded to the Marlins two months earlier from San Diego, Gary Sheffield, hit a home run in the first inning and another in the 3rd. Orestes Destrade also homered for the fish as they rolled to an 8-3 victory. I was 18 at the time. After seeing the the Pirates go from the NL Championship Series to letting Bobby Bonilla, Barry Bonds, Sid Bream and Doug Drabek all go to free agency, I'd had enough. I decided to start rooting for the Cleveland Indians, after a 105 loss season and back to back 76 win seasons. I figured that at least this team was used to losing. Then they inexplicably turned it around after I started following them.

http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1...140PIT1993.htm

Hurkman · 08-06-2010, 11:38 PM

May 9, 1993. It was Mother's Day, and my dad had gotten tickets from one of my friend's dads. That guy just so happened to be a lawyer, so at age nine, I was sitting in the box seats on the third base line in Veterans Stadium to watch the Phillies take on the St. Louis Cardinals. Curt Schilling started for the Phillies against Bob Tewksbery. They won that day on a two out grand slam in the eighth inning from Mariano Duncan off of Lee Smith, and Ozzie Smith made the final out, but that's not what I remember.

What I remember is my brother, who was all of six years old at the time, getting plowed over by some 30-something year old man trying to catch a foul ball. My brother smacked his head on his seat, but he was ok. The crowd got on the guy so much that he left the game with his kid, and my brother got a signed Darren Daulton ball out of it. He still has it. To this day, almost 20 years later, I've never come that close to catching a foul ball again.

May 9, 1993 St. Louis Cardinals at Philadelphia Phillies Box Score and Play by Play - Baseball-Reference.com

Left-handed Badger · 08-07-2010, 03:37 AM

Never been. Some of us dont live in cities.

Now, I did visit relatives in DC and saw a Redskins vs. Saints game. When I was 14. I only remember worrying of the possibility that my numb, frozen toes had broken off in my shoes circa 4th quarter.

Goody · 08-07-2010, 03:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Left-handed Badger

Never been. Some of us dont live in cities.

Odd statement. We lived about 2 hours outside of the nearest MLB city, but we employed this thing called a automobile...

LFC1892 · 08-07-2010, 07:52 AM

2009

Staying with friends from Garden Grove, CA on our 3rd US trip and we got a guys season tickets to the Angels vs Blue Jays. Incredible just to be at a MLB game and didnt care who was playing! Oh yeah, and it was Ervin Santana Bobblehead night...bonus!

May 6, 2009 Toronto Blue Jays at Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Box Score and Play by Play - Baseball-Reference.com

The Angels got spanked 13-1.

Cooleyvol · 08-07-2010, 08:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JWay

I talked my parents into going to the Metrodome in 1997 to see the Mariners, I was 12 at the time, I got to see ARod, Griffey, Edgar, Buhner, saw Jamie Moyer pitch, Buhner hit a HR, then get injured running into the wall chasing a HR. Overall it was a surreal experience, but I remember it more than I do any other game that I've been to.

George Washington saw Moyer pitch...........you're not alone there.

Goody · 08-07-2010, 08:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JWay

I got to see ARod, Griffey, Edgar, Buhner, saw Jamie Moyer pitch, Buhner hit a HR, then get injured running into the wall chasing a HR.

Great story, and I'm jealous...but ARod really should be at the end of that list of names.

Left-handed Badger · 08-07-2010, 06:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Goody

Odd statement. We lived about 2 hours outside of the nearest MLB city, but we employed this thing called a automobile...

I live about 7 hours away from DC, and that is the nearest one for me.

. I've seen my share of players in A-ball before they were stars (most notably Moises Alou, and Derek Jeter.)

canadiancreed · 08-07-2010, 08:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Left-handed Badger

Never been. Some of us dont live in cities.

Neither do some of us.

Although being 15 hours from the nearest ballpark will probably preclude me from seeing another one.

08-06-2010, 03:58 PM	#1
Jason Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 3,855	Your first time in a major league park... Do you remember the first time you went to a major sports event? I was listening to a guy on the radio today talking about how we never have the sense of awe regarding many things these days. He then recapped the first time as a kid he went to a major league baseball game and the feeling of awe when he came out of the tunnel and walked in where he could see the field the first time. It flashed me back to 1980. I was nine and my dad was working for a company that was trying to steal a client from a competitor. My dad's boss knew the client was a Phillies fan and decided to take him to a game to schmooze him and because my dad was the salesman for the account he had to come along. When my dad mentioned his son was a huge Phillies and Mike Schmidt fan his boss insisted that he bring me along. (I know it was because they wanted the client to think my dad's company was a family organization but my dad saw it as a chance to take his son to do something we couldn't afford to do.) I remember walking into Veteran's Stadium. It was a "businessman's special" kind of situation and the stadium wasn't that full. We were on the first base side, about half way down the lower section. When I walked into that stadium and saw the field for the first time, I almost cried. I can still picture the scene...I walked in and Pete Rose was standing at first base talking to Larry Bowa. I can still picture looking up at my dad and the smile that was on his face knowing how much that moment meant to me. Anyone else remember their first time at a major league park? Did you have a sense of awe?

08-06-2010, 04:02 PM	#2
Cooleyvol Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Union City, TN Posts: 6,383	1979 Our LL team won the league championship and got a trip to St Louis to see the Cardinals play the Mets (big Eastern Division rival at the time). I don't remember much about the game, but that was definitely my first MLB game. I agree, the awe is gone. Kids nowadays (at least mine) expect to go multiple times each year. Its nothing for my kids to catch 4-5 MLB games and 3-4 UT football games each year. I didn't see my first UT game until I was 20. Our football tradition now is to attend one road SEC game per year. It lets us not only see the South, but also experience the different stadiums/towns of the SEC. Last edited by Cooleyvol; 08-06-2010 at 04:04 PM.

08-06-2010, 06:26 PM	#6
canadiancreed Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 11,660	Late july in 1989, we had just come back from a week vacation in PEI and stopped in Montreal to overnight, so went to see an Expos game. Have no idea who they were playing (have the pictures from then somewhere), all I remember is that they had the roof down on a day where the temperature was listed at 104F. That and drunken assholes consistently yelling in multiple languages put a damper on the evening. The size of the place struck me as impressive (you could fit the entire town that I hailed from twenty times over in the place, and I couldn't' fathom how anyone could cover that outfield), but the other patrons ruined it IMO. Didn't see another game until the Ottawa Lynx in 2000, and the same Expos in 2002. Those experiences were a lot better. __________________ PT21 PT22

08-06-2010, 11:15 PM	#12
Bobbuttons Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Picturesque Mentor-on-the-Lake, Ohio Posts: 3,708	My first game in a big league park was August 14th, 1993 in Three Rivers Stadium. I was a Pirates fan back then. My favorite player growing up, Andy Van Slyke, wasn't playing, as he was suffering from chronic injuries that pretty much derailed his career. Bob Walk started for the Pirates as they hosted their second ever series against the Florida Marlins. A young slugger that had just been traded to the Marlins two months earlier from San Diego, Gary Sheffield, hit a home run in the first inning and another in the 3rd. Orestes Destrade also homered for the fish as they rolled to an 8-3 victory. I was 18 at the time. After seeing the the Pirates go from the NL Championship Series to letting Bobby Bonilla, Barry Bonds, Sid Bream and Doug Drabek all go to free agency, I'd had enough. I decided to start rooting for the Cleveland Indians, after a 105 loss season and back to back 76 win seasons. I figured that at least this team was used to losing. Then they inexplicably turned it around after I started following them. http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1...140PIT1993.htm __________________ Frankenstein never scared me. Marsupials do....cause they're fast! Gibson swings, and a fly ball to deep right field! This is gonna be a home run! Unbelievable! A home run for Gibson! And the Dodgers have won the game, 5 to 4; I don't believe what I just saw! I don't believe what I just saw!

08-07-2010, 03:37 AM	#14
Left-handed Badger Hall Of Famer Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: at the altar of the baseball god praying for middle infield that can catch the ball Posts: 2,036	Never been. Some of us dont live in cities. Now, I did visit relatives in DC and saw a Redskins vs. Saints game. When I was 14. I only remember worrying of the possibility that my numb, frozen toes had broken off in my shoes circa 4th quarter. __________________ -Left-handed groundball specialist -Strikeouts are for wimps

08-06-2010, 04:07 PM	#3
TribeFanInNC Hall Of Famer Join Date: Oct 2007 Posts: 4,019	Hmmmm....I don't know if I remember the exact first game I went to. I know in 1981 I went to All-Star Game T-Shirt Day (the ASG was in Cleveland that year). I would have been 8 then. I think my dad still has the shirt. I was bummed because they didn't have kid sizes. I probably went to a game before then, but I don't remember it specifically.

08-06-2010, 05:35 PM	#4
JWay Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Sioux Falls, SD Posts: 5,031	I talked my parents into going to the Metrodome in 1997 to see the Mariners, I was 12 at the time, I got to see ARod, Griffey, Edgar, Buhner, saw Jamie Moyer pitch, Buhner hit a HR, then get injured running into the wall chasing a HR. Overall it was a surreal experience, but I remember it more than I do any other game that I've been to.

08-06-2010, 06:39 PM	#7
GCCWolverine Minors (Double A) Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Amherst, NY Posts: 145	Thanks to the wonders of baseball-reference, I was able to find the box score to the first game I ever went to: Seattle at Toronto, July 7, 1992 July 7, 1992 Seattle Mariners at Toronto Blue Jays Play by Play and Box Score - Baseball-Reference.com I still remember seeing Devon White hitting the seeing-eye single up the middle to win the game in the bottom of the ninth. Certainly not a memorable game, but it was a walk-off in my first game.

08-06-2010, 07:26 PM	#9
Chicagofan76 Banned Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Diamond, IL Posts: 6,339 Infractions: 2/2 (3)	1985, the year i began to like my all time fav player (see left). dont remember any other details i just remember sitting in the RF eating area and watching the game and baines.

08-06-2010, 08:35 PM	#11
Goody Hall Of Famer Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: South Korea Posts: 3,530	It was the Kingdome, so it was weird. Place looked larger than life inside...but kinda creepy at the same time. July 8, 1987 Milwaukee Brewers at Seattle Mariners Box Score and Play by Play - Baseball-Reference.com But it was a great game. My father and I got box seats right above the visitors dugout from my older sister's husband who worked at a car lot in Seattle. We could see the Brewers players through the space between sections of the dugout roof. I remember Cecil Cooper beating the hell out of the dugout and swearing profusely after his 3rd K. Walk off home run in the 11th by the M's.

08-06-2010, 11:38 PM	#13
Hurkman All Star Reserve Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 762	May 9, 1993. It was Mother's Day, and my dad had gotten tickets from one of my friend's dads. That guy just so happened to be a lawyer, so at age nine, I was sitting in the box seats on the third base line in Veterans Stadium to watch the Phillies take on the St. Louis Cardinals. Curt Schilling started for the Phillies against Bob Tewksbery. They won that day on a two out grand slam in the eighth inning from Mariano Duncan off of Lee Smith, and Ozzie Smith made the final out, but that's not what I remember. What I remember is my brother, who was all of six years old at the time, getting plowed over by some 30-something year old man trying to catch a foul ball. My brother smacked his head on his seat, but he was ok. The crowd got on the guy so much that he left the game with his kid, and my brother got a signed Darren Daulton ball out of it. He still has it. To this day, almost 20 years later, I've never come that close to catching a foul ball again. May 9, 1993 St. Louis Cardinals at Philadelphia Phillies Box Score and Play by Play - Baseball-Reference.com

08-07-2010, 07:52 AM	#16
LFC1892 All Star Reserve Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Global Posts: 963	2009 Staying with friends from Garden Grove, CA on our 3rd US trip and we got a guys season tickets to the Angels vs Blue Jays. Incredible just to be at a MLB game and didnt care who was playing! Oh yeah, and it was Ervin Santana Bobblehead night...bonus! May 6, 2009 Toronto Blue Jays at Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Box Score and Play by Play - Baseball-Reference.com The Angels got spanked 13-1.