Editor’s Note: For the remainder of June we will be counting down our 10 favorite columns as we celebrate summer vacation. Coming in at number 8 on our countdown is a column from September 23, 2013.
Tonight at Minute Maid Park the New York Yankees will face the Houston Astros for the first of three games to end the regular season.
Minute Maid Park Photo R. Anderson
Having been eliminated from the postseason Wednesday night with a loss to the Tampa Bay Rays the Yankees will end their season Sunday afternoon and prepare for next year.
With losses at an all-time record setting pace the Houston Astros will end their season Sunday and will most likely prepare for more of the same next season.
So with two teams facing off with really nothing to play for tonight it makes for an interesting combination of seasons that did not go as planned.
On a personal note when I take my seat for the game tonight it will complete a 12-year journey to see all 30 Major League teams in a single ballpark.
While many in Houston have complained about the Astros moving to the American League the change in scenery allowed me to cross off the Mariners, Athletics, Orioles, Twins, Angels, and Yankees this season.
Although I had already seen all of the National League teams and some American League teams during Inter-league play over the years it would have taken many more seasons to be able to see all 30 teams had the Astros stayed in the National League and I waited for the teams to come through on the regular Interleague schedule.
Tonight the New York Yankees come to Minute Maid Park for only the second time to take on the Houston Astros. When the first pitch is thrown it will complete my quest to see all 30 Major League Baseball teams at Minute Maid Park. Photo R. Anderson
So from a purely selfish perspective the Astros moving to the American League served me well in my quest to see all 30 teams at least once at Minute Maid Park.
It seems fitting in a way that the final team to cross off my list is the New York Yankees since they are both respected and despised among the baseball world.
The Yankees are making only their second trip to Minute Maid Park. I cannot recall why it was that I missed their last visit to town but I definitely knew I would not be missing this one despite the price gouging committed by the Astros.
My ticket that would normally cost $5 was “dynamically priced” to around $26 since the Yankees were coming to town and the front office knew people would likely pay more for the privilege of seeing them.
Of course with that ticket I will get to see the last game pitched by Andy Pettitte as well as one of the last three games pitched by Mariano Rivera assuming that the Yankees are not too far ahead of the Astros by the time the ninth inning rolls around for it to still be a save situation.
I missed the Yankees first trip to Minute Maid Park but I did not miss out on the souvenir cup. Photo R. Anderson
Ironically near as I can tell this will be the first time that I have seen Pettitte pitch in person despite his two and a half seasons playing for the Astros.
I saw many Astros games during that time frame but never seemed to time those visits with nights he was pitching.
So making my first game to see Pettitte pitch correspond with his last scheduled career start seems that much more special. Of course since he has already come out of retirement once it will be interesting to see if the Deer Park, TX native stays retired this time or is urged to give it one more try Brett Farve style.
It is estimated that over 30,000 fans will attend each of the three games against the Yankees which would be more fans than have attended any games this season.
That tells me that there are way more Yankees fans in Houston than Astros fans. Of course it could also just mean that there are Astros fans that waited until the last week of the season to attend a game since all of the previous weeks were too painful to watch.
While the start of the end of the regular season begins today for the Yankees and the Astros it also marks the start of the Tampa Bay Rays last series in Toronto as they push to maintain their hold on the top Wildcard spot.
If all goes to plan I will be rooting for the Rays all the way to the World Series which would certainly make myself and DJ Kitty very happy.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a game to get ready for.
After threatening to bulldoze over a unique feature of Minute Maid Park for the past few years, the Houston Astros made their threats official yesterday when they signed the death warrant for the quirky little incline in center field known as Tal’s Hill.
Tal’s Hill, named for former Astros executive Tal Smith, and a feature of Minute Maid Park since it opened in 2000, will be leveled at the end of the 2015 season and replaced by a $15 million redesign that will be ready in time for Opening Day 2016.
Highlights of the redesign that were announced by the Astros include, field level seats in center field, a new section of seats atop the field-level boxes, an observation tower with a winding staircase as well as a see-through elevator equipped with LED lights with the Astros’ name and logo, as well as adding a smaller, self-contained section of mezzanine seats to replace three sections of current seats that will be removed as part of the redesign.
Tal’s Hill, a fixture in Minute Maid Park since it opened in 2000, will be removed at the end of the current season to make room for more revenue generating areas. Photo R. Anderson
Additionally, as part of the makeover, the Astros will move the center field fence in from 436 feet, the deepest in Major League Baseball, to 409 feet while reducing seating capacity by about a hundred seats.
From the ashes of Tal’s Hill’s 30-degree, 27-foot-long incline will arise more space to entertain fans at premium prices.
While not coming right out and saying it, it is pretty obvious that as long as the are corporate sponsors and business willing to pay for premium seating areas teams will continue to build them while reducing the number of seats for the working class fan.
A few years back, the press box at Minute Maid Park was moved up a level to make room for a lounge behind home plate. While reporters still cover the team, I guess the real estate they previously occupied while doing their jobs was deemed to valuable to waste on media members.
A few years back the press box at Minute Maid Park was moved up a level to make room for a lounge behind home plate. While reporters still cover the team I guess the real estate they previously occupied while doing their jobs was deemed to valuable to waste on media members. Photo R. Anderson
So, now where the press box once stood is a super exclusive seating area where tickets likely are $600 to $1000 a game, if not more.
So if even a press box is not sacred, why let a unique feature such as Tal’s Hill get in the way of revenue generating opportunities?
After all, much to the chagrin of team officials while it was popular with the fans for 15 years all Tal’s Hill did was sit there and grow grass.
Marcel Braithwaite, the Astros’ senior vice president of baseball operations was quoted in the Houston Chronicle as saying that, “Communal areas like this are what the fans want. They want to watch the games with their friends and family, they want to see what other game are going on. We are looking to create destination areas, gathering places that enable you to enjoy the game with a good vantage point while enjoying some good food and drink and spending time together.”
It very well may be a generation gap thing but I have always felt that the main reason to go to a baseball game is to see the game on the field and take in the sights and sounds of a Ballpark experience while snacking on hot dogs and other baseball concession staples at my seat.
Through all of my years attending games in both a professional and strictly fan scenario, I have never thought that I want to sit in a lounge or sports bar atmosphere at the Ballpark while a game goes on in the background.
Unfortunately, the new trend in Ballpark design is creating immersive environments and mini bars where one can stay an entire game without actually seeing the action on the field.
Adam Jones and the Baltimore Orioles defeated the Houston Astros on the day it was announced that Tal’s Hill would disappear at the end of the season. As a center fielder Jones had a close up view of the unique incline in the outfield whenever he visited Minute Maid Park. Photo R. Anderson
Of course, these areas need to include Wi-Fi hotspots as well to cater to the constantly plugged in fan of the 21st Century.
It seems to me that is someone is wanting to watch the game on a big screen television and eat pub food with their friends there are cheaper ways to do that then paying for a ticket to the ballgame if one has little desire to watch much of the ballgame.
Of course, in this social media fueled Millennial madness I suppose they feel it is better to tag their Instagram posts with pictures from inside the Ballpark when they take a chance to remember that they are at a baseball game.
So like the press box before it, Tal’s Hill will go to make room for yet another revenue stream in the form of gathering places and towers of light.
At least the outfield is not covered by large billboards that block the architectural elements of the Ballpark. Oh wait, never mind.
Besides making room for more revenue streams, another reason given for the demolition of Tal’s Hill was concerns for the safety of players. In the 15 years that the hill has been there to my knowledge there have not been any major injuries.
Next season the outfield at Minute Maid Park will look very different. Photo R. Anderson
Or to put it another way, I can worry about 99 ways for a player to get injured, but a hill with a pitch ain’t one.
The removal of Tal’s Hill is unfortunate. I also think that it is a mistake. It is not the first mistake that the Astros have made and it will not be the last.
Unfortunately each mistake adds fuel to the fire of me questioning how many more times I will visit Minute Maid Park.
I have already greatly reduced the number of games that I attend each year as I do not find the Ballpark experience as exciting as it used to be. That is not to say that I will no longer support the Astros if I stop going to see them in person.
I have never been the type of person who believes that the biggest fans of a team are determined by being the biggest spenders or the ones who attend the most games.
There are diehard fans in every sport who have never had the opportunity to see their teams play in person either through financial or geographic limitations.
That does not make them any less of a fan. In fact, in some ways it might make them a bigger fan since they actually pay attention to the team more than an amenity such as a revenue generating lounge.
The Astros are winning more so that will bring in a new crop of fans so in the grand scheme of things I am sure they will not miss the hundreds of dollars that I used to spend in their facility.
With Tal’s Hill disappearing the next unique feature that the Astros will likely want to get rid of is the train that moves and whistles whenever the Astros hit a home run. I am sure there is some revenue generating option up there on the tracks with the train out of the way. Photo R. Anderson
The locomotive of baseball continues to chug along and people get on and off of the train at various stops along the way.
Speaking of trains, I suppose the next unique feature that the Astros will want to get rid of is the train that moves and whistles whenever the Astros hit a home run.
After all, it is not like the site of the Ballpark is built on the grounds of the old Union Station railroad yard where it would make sense to have a locomotive as a tie to the past. Oh wait, never mind.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I am off to mourn the loss of a pile of dirt.
After receiving a one year stay of execution, the appeals process for a historic ballpark in Orlando, FL. ran out last week.
As a result, the grandstands of Tinker Field began to crumble in the name of progress.
Think of almost any baseball player from the 20th Century, and odds are pretty good that they stepped foot on the infield grass of Tinker Field at one time or another.
For several years one of the highlights of my birthday was seeing Cal Ripken, Jr. and the Baltimore Orioles play at Tinker Field. Photo R. Anderson
From Spring Training for Major League Baseball, to full seasons of Minor League Baseball, the quaint little ballpark in the shadow of the Citrus Bowl was a unique venue where a who’s who of baseball players played from 1923 to 1999.
The last professional affiliated baseball at Tinker Field occurred in 1999 with the Orlando Rays who were the Double-A farm team for the Tampa Bay Rays.
While the Orlando Rays were the last of the Southern League teams to call Tinker Field home, they certainly weren’t the only ones.
The Orlando Twins, Orlando Cubs and Orlando Sun Rays were among the many teams to call Tinker Field home.
The Orlando Juice of the Senior Professional Baseball Association (SPBA) even spent a season playing on the diamond at Tinker Field in 1989.
Although it had been over a decade since the last professional baseball team called Tinker Field home, the lack of a primary tenant was not the reason that the ballpark was relegated to face the wrecking ball fo progress.
This ticket stub allowed me entrance to Tinker Field where I ended up meeting one of my favorite baseball figures Earl Weaver outside the third base dugout. Photo R. Anderson
Eventually it was the shadowy neighbor looming over right field that signed Tinker Field’s death warrant.
While time and neglect certainly played a role in the demise of the nearly century old facility, it was a massive expansion of the Citrus Bowl that hastened the demise of Tinker Field.
The expansion of concourses crept into right field to the point that Tinker Field could no longer function as a professional baseball field due to an outfield depth that would make a Little Leaguer feel like Barry Bonds sending everything he hits over the fence.
Tinker Field becomes the third ballpark from my youth to be torn down joining Memorial Stadium in Baltimore and Baseball City Stadium in Haines City, Florida. Photo R. Anderson
So, despite being declared a national historic site, the demolition of Tinker Field is in full swing with the goal of removing every trace of grandstand, bleacher and dugout before a June Rolling Stones concert takes place at the Citrus Bowl.
Of course, while I can’t get no satisfaction in the fact that the stands where I spent spring and summer nights of my youth will soon be reduced to dust, I can take some solace in the fact that the actual playing field will be saved as a small nod to the history that occurred there.
There is also some solace in the fact that many of the seats from Tinker Field were removed and will be sold to fans for use in their dens and Florida rooms.
Still, despite saving some seats and the clay and grass part of Tinker Field, it will not really be Tinker Field anymore without the grandstands and bleachers that once echoed with the sounds of the crack of the bats, cheering fans, and the Caribbean accented shouts of a peanut vendor who looked an awful lot like O.J. Simpson.
Tinker Field becomes the third ballpark from my youth to be torn down joining Memorial Stadium in Baltimore and Baseball City Stadium in Haines City, Florida. Sadly, in the years to come they will likely not be the only Ballparks that I will only be able to visit in my mind.
Of the three lost Ballparks the loss of Tinker Field hits the hardest as it is the one where I made the most baseball memories.
Tinker Field was where I first was able to see a live Spring Training baseball game on my birthday which is a tradition I still try to maintain each year.
Tinker Field was where I met and spoke with the late Earl Weaver on the third base line during is time managing the Gold Coast Suns of the aforementioned SPBA.
While I saw numerous Spring Training games at Tinker Field, it was Minor League Baseball that really grabbed my attention and stoked the desires of younger me to work in sports promotions at a ballpark. Photo R. Anderson
Tinker Field was also where I saw the Clown Prince of Baseball himself, Max Patkin, perform his shtick on a sunny Florida day.
While I saw numerous Spring Training games at Tinker Field, it was Minor League Baseball that really grabbed my attention and stoked the desires of younger me to work in sport managment at a ballpark.
During our trips to Tinker Field my mom and I were often joined for a few innings by team president, Pat Williams, who was also the General Manager of the Orlando Magic at the time.
Watching Pat Williams, I used to think how cool it would be to be a team executive getting paid to watch baseball.
I have yet to fully realize that dream of spending all of my summer nights as a Minor League Baseball employee, but I may yet before all is said and done. If I ever do achieve my goal of working in Minor League Baseball it will be because of those nights at Tinker Field.
I last visited Tinker Field in 1999 when the souvenir stand was offering clearance merchandise. The Rays were moving to a ballpark at Walt Disney World and it was easier to sell everything at a discount instead of moving it to the new facility.
I ended up getting an Orlando Rays fitted cap. To this day I am amazed that the employee correctly guessed my hat size just by looking at me. I am also amazed that in the years since, my head has grown to the point where I can no longer comfortably wear the fitted wool cap.
I don’t know what happened to that vendor but I like to think he lived out his remaining years comfortably after his days at the ballpark were over randomly telling people on the street how big their heads were.
I last visited Tinker Field in 1999 when the souvenir stand was offering clearance merchandise since the Rays were moving to a ballpark at Walt Disney World. I ended up getting an Orlando Rays fitted cap that I treasure to this day. Photo R. Anderson
The Orlando Rays’ time at Walt Disney World was short lived. The team moved to Montgomery, Alabama and became known as the Biscuits.
To this day, there are still no Minor League Baseball teams in Orlando making the decision to tear down Tinker Field an easier pill to swallow for some.
Others point to the peeling paint and overworked plumbing as reasons that it is best to raze the ballpark instead of spending money to preserve it and bring it up to current code.
In Houston, people are dealing with a similar potential loss of a treasured sports fixture as the pending demolition of the Astrodome seems all but certain.
Recently fans were allowed inside the Astrodome as part of its 50th birthday celebration. The long term fate of the so called “eighth wonder of the world” is unknown.
Like Tinker Field, the Astrodome last hosted professional baseball in 1999.
With each year that passes it seems more and more likely that the Astrodome will also fall victim to a wrecking ball despite its historical significance.
The loss of the physical building, while difficult, does not take away the memories that occurred in those facilities.
Just as I am sure that there are people with fond memories of whichever Ballpark they grew up with, I can close my eyes and still picture Tinker Field the way I remember it right down to the tennis ball throwing peanut vendor, and the sounds of the rattling ceiling fans that tried their best to cool the gathered masses on those humid Florida nights.
I prefer to think of Tinker Field like it was, and not like the neglected facility it became.
The wheel of progress is always turning and sometimes it brings a bulldozer with it to raze the buildings of our youth.
Ticket stubs like this one from a Spring Training game at Baseball City Stadium, and memories, are all that are left from the three Ballparks from my youth that have been torn down. Photo R. Anderson
I guess the morale of the story is to treasure your brick and mortar Ballparks while you can while building up memories that can last long after the Ballparks are gone.
Or as Simon and Garfunkel would say, “Preserve your memories, they’re all that’s left you.”
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some Ballpark memories to preserve.
Earlier today, the Baltimore Orioles and Chicago White Sox tested the baseball equivalent of the old adage about what happens when a tree falls in the forest and no one is there to hear it.
Instead of a forest though, the two teams were in the nearly empty Oriole Park at Camden Yards for a Major League Baseball game in which the Orioles defeated the White Sox 8-2.
The National Anthem was still played, and a stretch was still made in the seventh inning complete with the John Denver song that has entertained Birdland for the better part of four decades; but something was definitely missing.
The Baltimore Orioles became the first Major League Baseball team to host a game with locked out fans. Photo R. Anderson
With only players, team officials, some scouts and members of the media allowed inside the Ballpark, the game marked the first time in MLB history that fans were locked out of the Ballpark when a game was going on.
While there were fans who gathered to watch the game from outside the gates, no ticketed fans were allowed through the turnstiles.
With no fans inside the Ballpark, home run balls and foul balls went uncaught. Parts of the Ballpark were so silent one could likely hear a pin drop. Orioles Skipper Buck Showalter noted after the game that it was so quiet that he could hear the bullpen phone ringing from the other end.
As strange as playing in an empty Ballpark is, today’s game was merely one of many things to occur during a strange week for the Orioles who briefly told fans that they could not leave the Ballpark on Saturday night and then saw games on Monday and Tuesday completely cancelled.
Baltimore Orioles center fielder Adam Jones and his teammates played a game in an empty Orioles Park at Camden Yards after MLB officials deemed it was unsafe to allow fans to attend. Photo R. Anderson
The Orioles will also fly south this weekend for a “home” series at Tropicana Field against the Tampa Bay Rays after the Rays voiced concerns about visiting Baltimore for the scheduled series between division rivals.
The reason for all of the juggling of the schedule is non-baseball related.
Protests are occurring in the neighborhoods surrounding the Ballpark, which have led to the city of Baltimore imposing a 10 p.m. curfew.
Even with all of the efforts to shorten the pace of play, a regular MLB game could not be finished in time for fans to all get home before 10 p.m. Ironically though, the game in the empty Ballpark was finished in just a little over two hours, which might lead some to believe that the ultimate way to shorten the game is to lock the fans out all the time.
With police and National Guard troops trying to restore order within Baltimore to prevent future acts of violence and looting, the Ballpark will stay silent until it is deemed safe to once again play ball.
Part of the freedom Americans have is free speech and the ability to show displeasure with things in a way that very few other countries have.
The Orioles will fly south this weekend for a “home” series at Tropicana Field against the Tampa Bay Rays after the Rays voiced concerns about visiting Baltimore for the scheduled series between division rivals. Photo R. Anderson
But there are limits to the protection of free speech. Just as it is illegal to yell “fire” in a crowded theater when there is no fire, it is also illegal to burn buildings and other property as a form of protest.
The violence and destruction over the past few days takes away from those members of society who are trying to peacefully demonstrate and have their voices heard.
As is almost always the case, a small minority of protestors escalated things to the level of violence. So, any generalizations about the behavior of all of the protestors would be false. Sadly, the actions of the few far out shadow any peaceful message that the many may have been trying to share.
And while a baseball game being played in an empty Ballpark is likely something that will be forever mentioned as part of Baseball lore and may even warrant a small exhibit at the Baseball Hall of Fame, it is those few individuals who turned to violent protests that caused the community of Baltimore to lose the economic benefit from at least six baseball games.
Granted two of the cancelled games will be made up as a doubleheader later in the season, but the fact remains, the protests took money out of people’s pockets.
Bars and restaurants near the Ballpark did not benefit from the game day crowds and the various vendors who sell peanuts and Cracker Jacks missed out on income from the games as well.
Hopefully the Orioles are able to come home to roost by the time of their next scheduled home game. However, Major League Baseball has made it very clear that fans will not be allowed inside the Ballpark while protests are still actively occurring on the streets of Baltimore.
While it is certainly unfortunate that games are being played without fans and Camden Yards, the safety of the thousands of fans had to be taken into account.
So, while it was a difficult decision to move out of Baltimore, it was likely the only decision MLB felt they could make.
When the dust settles it is the images of the burning police cars and looting that most people will remember more than any peaceful demonstration that may have occurred.
In previous times of despair, such as the aftermath of the Boston Marathon Bombing, baseball has served as a way to unite the community and help heal wounds.
Hopefully baseball in Baltimore can once again unite the community to focus on being one Baltimore cheering together for the men wearing the orange and black.
That is not to say that Esskay hot dogs, and crab cakes can solve all of societies problems. Nor is diminishing the rights of citizens to engage in peaceful demonstrations to stand up when they feel they are being wronged.
Orioles first baseman Chris Davis was one of two players to hit a home run with no fans there to catch it. Photo R. Anderson
Regardless of whether one agrees with the protesters or not, one should agree that they have the right to demonstrate within the boundaries of the law.
It is when those protests fall outside the boundaries of the law that action, even the difficult action of locking fans out of a Ballpark, must be taken to ensure that innocent people are not harmed.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to see what sporting event will be aired next without any fans.
Last week, I mentioned that I wanted to dig up my ticket stub from the 1984 Citrus Bowl that I attended with my mother, grandmother and cousin.
I have pretty much every ticket stub from every sporting event I have ever attended. So, I knew that if I dug deep enough I would most likely find the stub in question.
Sure enough, in the wee hours of the morning Saturday I found the long lost ticket stub and a few others in a shoe box under my bed.
In 1984 end zone seats for the Florida Citrus Bowl went for $18. They have gotten much more expensive in the 30 years since. Photo R. Anderson
As luck would have it, the shoe box was not the first place I looked for the ticket stub. I searched countless plastic totes in my quest to unearth the 30-year-old relic.
And while it took several days to find the ticket stub, and while I probably should have checked under the bed first, I did discover many other lost treasures, which made the entire search quite successful.
However, the main find, and the entire motivation for the search, was the 1984 Citrus Bowl ticket.
Some fun facts about that particular ticket stub is that an end zone seat at the1984 Citrus Bowl was only $18.
I doubt that one could even get parking at a bowl game nowadays for $18 let alone a ticket to the game.
By comparison, the cheapest ticket to attend the 2014 version of the Citrus Bowl was $45 and went up and up from there. Tickets for the National Championship game this year are averaging around $1700.
Economists will say that with inflation and other factors the $18 back then is comparable to today’s prices, but something tells me it is still more expensive to attend a bowl game today than it was back then based on the epic growth that college football has gone through the past three decades.
I was certainly pleased that I was able to find the ticket stub. However, thanks to the world of EBay and ticket stub collectors, I could have saved myself the trouble of digging through all of those plastic totes and just purchased a ticket from the game online.
I never once considered the idea of purchasing a ticket online, and quite frankly am surprised that there is a market for such things.
Each of the ticket stubs in my collection are attached to a memory of a game I attended as opposed to something I bought online. This particular ticket stub is from the game where I met Earl Weaver who I had looked up to for many years. Photo R. Anderson
As I mentioned before in another column, there are three items that I try to get as a memento whenever I attend a game. Those items are a ticket stub, a game program, and a souvenir cup.
Each of these items are tangible extensions of my memories of attending the game and I collect them for my pleasure without worrying about what I can sell them for later.
Apparently, there is an entire industry based on selling programs, ticket stubs, and souvenir cups to anyone with an internet browser who is willing to pay the shipping and processing.
I get that if you lost a ticket stub for a game you attended as a youngster you may want to replace the item to help maintain a tangible piece to go with your memories of the game, but a larger segment appears to be buying ticket stubs for games that they did not attend.
Big sellers in the ticket stub business appear to be from marquee games.
Want to pretend you witnessed one of Nolan Ryan’s no hitters despite not even being born yet when the game took place?
There is a ticket stub online for that.
A selection of Orlando Rays tickets are just some of the items in my collection. Photo R. Anderson
Want to add a Super Bowl ticket to your collection despite never setting foot in one?
Click, click pay and it is yours.
Have you always wanted to pretend that you were there the night Kirk Gibson hit that big home run in the World Series?
You know what to do.
Want to show your American pride by purchasing Olympic tickets from years gone by?
You get the idea.
In this way, people are purchasing other people’s memories since they did not go to the games that they are buying the ticket stubs from.
I suppose if someone wants to spend the money to own a ticket stub it is entirely their business. However, in all of the years I have collected ticket stubs I have never once thought about trying to make a profit on them.
Every ticket stub in my collection is from a game that I physically attended. From professional football, baseball, hockey, basketball and various college sports, each ticket stub represents a seat that I occupied to witness that particular game with my own eyes.
Some of the ticket stubs are water logged reflecting that I battled through rain to see that particular game.
Others are slightly bent from being stuffed in my pocket while I watched the game.
Each year for Spring Training I try to attend at least one Baltimore Orioles game. The tradition started in the mid 80’s and has taken me to all sides of Florida. Photo R. Anderson
While I certainly do not need to own the ticket stub to prove that I was at the game, selling that ticket stub to someone else just seems like it would cheapen the experience and make me party to a fraud.
I certainly could be over thinking the whole buying and selling of ticket stubs, and may change my opinion at some future point, but for now the ticket stubs shall remain with their rightful owner.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a lot of plastic totes to stuff back into my closet.
Copyright 2015 R. Anderson
Covering the world of baseball one pitch at a time.
Southpaw Musings 