OT: Target Field
Anyone catch the opener for the Twins new park? I'm a Twins fan myself and I gotta say, the place looks beautiful. I went to a game at Comerica for the first time last year and I'm hoping the experience at Target Field can compete. Either way I'm sure it is a vastly improved experience than what the Metrodome had to offer.
I almost feel sorry for the Vikings. Everybody else in town was given a new stadium this year, and they will continue playing in a smelly old building where the occasional chunk of shit falls from the ceiling.
The Metrodome gets loud though, so maybe it isn't such a bad thing.
I actually don't mind football games at the dome. It gets downright deafening when the fans put some effort into cheering. They definitely got shafted though. I'm fine with the Twins new ball park because baseball should quite frankly be played outside, plus the team turned right around and bumped up the payroll 49% with the extra revenue. I just don't see how the Gophers deserved a Stadium before the Vikings though. The Vikings are a team the entire state, plus large portions of North Dakota, South Dakota and Iowa, all cheer for.
has there been any progress lately on getting the vikings a new field? Its difficult for me to believe in this era that the Vikings don't hold enough sway to get a new stadium, when pretty much any team in pro sports is able to get one at the drop of a hat.
April 12th, 2010 at 10:21 PM ^
Playing outdoor football in Minnesota in December and January would be God-awful brutal, worse even than Lambeau. Could be a major home-field advantage, especially come playoff time.
The Metrodome is less than 30 years old. You'd hope it could at least be suitable for one tenant team, especially when Minnesota taxpayers have paid through the nose already for new stadiums.
Was a godawful place to play baseball. You couldn't follow the ball, especially when it blended into the roof. I have no idea how outfielders could catch a flyball. And more than once a Tigers game turned on a popup lost in the dome. I wonder if the Twins might be losing a great home field advantage.
That and now their slap-n-boogie hitters that relied on the turf for ground ball base knocks will suffer.
baseball like outfield walls sheathed in Hefty garbage bags ...
Creely:
What "slap-n-boogie" hitters are you speaking of - Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, Michael Cuddyer, or Jim Thome?
To the OP - I went to an Open House at Target Field about two weeks ago - it's a fabulous ball park. Make sure to make it there next year - I am going next Thursday and am very excited.
@JCGOLD - Yes, there are bills before the Minnesota Legislature for a Vikings stadium. After the successful construction of TCF and Target fields, I'm fairly confident that a Vikings stadium bill will pass this year. Those unemployed construction workers up here in Minnesota could use the work.
I didn't imply that the whole line up is littered with them, just that Alexi Casilla and Denard Span will have to find a different way to get on base instead of just slapping a one hopper 50 feet into the air over the infielder's head.
The Twins have evolved away from "the Piranhas" mindset over the last couple years. Everyday starters Cuddyer, Mauer, Morneau, Kubel, Hardy, and Young are all capable of hitting the ball over the fence. With the cannon-statue mercenary that is Jim Thome DHing once in a while, it's a pretty powerful lineup. The only scrappy speedsters left are Span and the the inexplicable Nick freaking Punto, who will never hit better than .210 or further than short left.
I'm planning on it whenever I get a chance to head back to MN this summer (around We Fest perhaps).
As for the Vikings Stadium Situation: They are just in a terrible situation. The state is facing budget cuts and Zigi Wilf is asking for up to $700 million in public funding. So far, the issue hasn't even made it to the floor and probably won't before this session is done. Although the Vikings are probably the 'favorite' franchise in the state (It's close between them and the Twins), they are also asking for the most money. It seems that most politicians are planning on ignoring the issue until it reaches the critical point and the Vikings actually have a chance of relocating.
However, there has been some progress made in the past few weeks. The Vikings relaunched their 'Minnesota Momentum' movement which outlines the plans for the stadium. Apparently they have gotten a bit more creative with the funding sources. Some politicians have begun talking about it in a positive light, which is a great upgrade from the usual "They are out of their minds" response politicians have given in the past.
The unemployed construction workers may need the work, but should it come on the taxpayer's dime, especially when they've already funded stadiums for the Twins and Gophers?
April 12th, 2010 at 10:37 PM ^
to the game today, and as an A's fan I have to say I'm pretty jealous. Due in part to bringing this new stadium into existence, the Twins will be able to hang on to a larger chunk of the talent they groom. The A's will remain a minor league team, passing along any talent they acquire and gooom to contenders, and then resiging them years after the rest of the league has given up.
April 13th, 2010 at 12:49 AM ^
I always had respect for the A's because they operated much like the Twins. Find and develop great talent only to let it go. I hope you are right and the recent trend continues. Good luck to your A's though. I'll pull for them out West.
April 12th, 2010 at 10:44 PM ^
I spent this past summer in Minneapolis. Let me tell you, driving over to the Metrodome with the windows down and the cool summer breeze blowing in from a great Minnesota evening, just to get out of the car and walk into a friggin' domed ballpark... well, it sucked.
We stayed until the end of that 16-inning game against the Tigers, and after close five hours inside that place I wanted to leap off of the risers. Props to the city and the franchise for getting a respectable ballpark.
April 12th, 2010 at 10:50 PM ^
It's about time that the Twins got an outdoor park. I find it interesting though that it is one of the smallest parks in the country. Definitely an improvement over the dump they played in for the last 20+ years. Also refreshing to see that they're opening up the purse string a little bit too. Carl Pohlad was one of the wealthiest owners in baseball, yet had one of the lowest pay rolls in the league. Good to see that with the new park they're willing to spend a little bit. Scary to think if they had been able to keep Hunter and Santana.