Ultimate Baseball Road Trip (141 page)

The view and amenities aside, AT&T Park is a terrific place to see a game. But the bells and whistles are everywhere you look. From the authentic cable car near the Arcade seats in center field that dings its bell for home runs, to the many advertisements that have been incorporated into the fabric of the park, AT&T is designed to entertain. Most of these gizmos must be experienced in person or they lose some of their effect. For example, anyone who’s seen a game televised from San Fran knows there is a giant mitt, fashioned after the old four-fingered ones from the 1920s, in left-center. But do those same TV viewers know that the mitt was created by scanning a 1927 mitt into a computer file—every bump and wrinkle—then rendering a computer router to be exactly thirty-six times the size of the original? This ballpark is full of such surprises. Incidentally, for a player to hit this old-style mitt with a batted ball it would take a poke of well over five hundred feet. Though the Giants have offered to donate one million dollars to a lucky fan if any player hits the glove on the fly, no one has hit the target yet.

Though this park is no Candlestick, the winds are still very much a factor. The gales off the Bay hold up fly balls that would float out of warmer, more humid ballparks. AT&T routinely yields fewer than one home run per game on average, making it an ideal park for fly-ball pitchers.

Fenway has its Monster Shots and AT&T Park has its Splash Landings. With arches built into the brick wall and an out-of-town scoreboard built into the arches, the right-field boundary of the field is impressive enough. But more than this, home runs that clear the wall can sail over standing-room fans, square pillars, and into the waters of McCovey Cove. As if this spectacle weren’t enough, the pillars shoot mist into the air to enhance the celebration. Though splash home runs were primarily a Bonds phenomenon, it’s even more exciting when other players reach the drink because it happens less frequently these days than back when Barry was popping balls over the fence.

Okay, so they could have built the ballpark somewhere else and avoided the quirks. But at least AT&T comes by its quirks naturally. For instance, there are no bullpens, simply warm-up mounds alongside the fences. Wrigley Field has a similar quirk, and the argument seems to rage among critics of this ballpark as to whether or not the team put these in by choice or necessity. But we don’t much care. We don’t find the bullpen location nearly as odd as the color of the warning track, which is dirt in the infield but rubberized in the outfield between the foul poles. Also odd to us is the fact that the dirt of the pitcher’s mound is decidedly lighter than the traditional rust-colored infield. Either that or they water it less.

AT&T is a beautiful ballpark that makes us nostalgic for the game. Perhaps we’re saps, but we like ballparks that feel like ballparks, not shopping malls, and in this regard AT&T delivers. One nice touch is the orange-and-black clock above the JumboTron that simply reads “San Francisco Giants.” Four pennants fly in right field, one for each year the San Francisco Giants have topped the National League. Also adding to the classic feel of the ballpark are the many other flags—flags go a long way in our book. Attached to the small roof, flags flap fiercely in the considerable wind, one for each team in the majors.

Between the decks in the left-field corner constitutes a poor place for the retired numbers, especially for a team that has a history as rich as the Giants. There are two “NYs” that have been retired, one for John McGraw and the other for Christy
Mathewson, both of whom played before players wore numbers. Number 3 belonged to Bill Terry, who hit .401 in 1930, marking the last time a National League player topped .400. Number 4 was worn by Mel Ott when he led the league in homers six times between 1932 and 1942. Number 11 was worn by Carl Hubbell, a nine-time All-Star who stitched together five twenty-win seasons from 1933 to 1937. Number 24, of course, belonged to the great Willie Mays. Though his accomplishments are too numerous to detail fully, Mays was an All-Star for twenty straight seasons, a Gold Glove Award winner for twelve straight seasons, a two-time MVP, ranks fourth (until A-Rod passes him) on the all-time home run list, and is considered by many to be the greatest player ever. Number 27 belonged to Juan Marichal, the nine-time All-Star who averaged twenty wins a season for ten years and posted a career ERA of 2.89. Number 30 was worn by Orlando Cepeda, a six-time All-Star who smacked 379 dingers and won the MVP in 1967. Number 44 was worn by Willie McCovey, who tied Ted Williams with his 521 home runs and drove in 1,555 runs. Number 20 belonged to Monte Irvin, whose greatness was recognized in both the Negro and Major Leagues, and who was one of the first players called up after the color barrier was broken. And, finally, Number 36 belonged to Gaylord Perry, whose lifetime ERA was 3.11 over nineteen seasons, during which he won 314 games and recorded 3,534 strikeouts. Perry was also the first pitcher to win the Cy Young Award in both leagues.

A gasoline company has its advertising built into the wall in the left-field corner. The rounded roofs of three cars actually form the wall down near the foul pole. Meanwhile, a cola company has a huge slide built into its signature bottle, located in the Kids Plaza above the bleachers in left, but large enough to be visible to everyone in the park. Advertising in baseball parks has always been part of the game. In the case of AT&T Park, we suppose this is the price we pay for a privately funded ballpark that did not increase the taxes of the citizenry. But the ads do little to enhance the charm of the park.

Above the bleachers in left field resides one of the most expansive kiddie areas in all of baseball. Whether little Giants prefer sliding down the slide that runs through the enormous neon cola bottle, pitching, or running the bases at the tykes’ park, this is the place for fans of any age who have an attention span that doesn’t last the full nine innings.

When AT&T opened for business (it was called Pac Bell then) it offered a rather disappointing spread. Management read our book, though, and subsequently changed the park’s ways so as not to be further embarrassed by our reviews. Or so we like to tell ourselves. Either way, the fare at AT&T is far better than it was back when the park opened. And for this, we applaud the Giants’ efforts.

This delicacy, began by Gordon Biersch back at Candlestick Park, has sprouted many imitators throughout America’s ballpark landscape. While back in the day, you’d spend a few innings waiting for the servers to grind fresh garlic and Parmesan onto your fries, the process has become much more streamlined. Minced garlic is used now to speed things up, and as such, the garlic fries are not as good as they used to be. But still, they are pretty tasty. Just take our friend Anne’s advice and beware of the “garlic hangover” that results from consuming too much.

Josh:
And beware if your travel partner has too much garlic if you’ll be trapped in a road trip mobile with him.

Kevin:
What are you trying to say?

With nothing snappy about it, the Giants Dog sagged in the bun and then on our taste buds. Though they advertise that these dogs are made in Stockton, California in the Swiss tradition (we weren’t even aware the Swiss made dogs!), we recommend avoiding them. You can find a much wiser dog option at the Hebrew National carts.

While the stadium sausage is a pass, the
“Say Hey” Sausages
are a hit. Though the Italian was boiled rather than grilled, a big disappointment, the spicy Louisiana Hot Link was one of the better items in the park. Another good option in the sausage department is the Sheboygan available at the
California Cookout
stands.

The
King Street Carvery
station is a solid option. The trio plate of slider sandwiches (corned beef, beef brisket, and turkey) was quite tasty. The
Crazy Crab
stands have a crab sandwich that Kevin thought was quite good. On cold nights, head for the
Pete’s Coffee
stand or for the hot chocolate at
Ghirardelli.

Avoid the Baby Bull at Orlando’s BBQ. This beef sandwich with barbecue sauce (applied afterward) and garlic-caramelized
onions may sound good, but believe us, it’s not. The meat is steamed and cut along the grain instead of against it. What does this mean to you? Two foot-long pieces of meat that are impossible to bite through that cause a sloppy mess of onions and sauce on your pants. Our friend Paul described eating the Baby Bull as “exactly like eating a whole raw octopus.”

All of the usual beers are available, though like at most ballparks they offer one beer at each station. We guess they don’t want you to waste too much of their time deciding if you’re getting a Miller Light or Michelob.

Luckily the selection of microbrews throughout the park is extensive. Aside from the standard offerings, look for
Firestone
Double Barrel,
Gordon Biersch
Hefeweizen & Marzen,
Lagunitas
IPA,
New Belgium
Fat Tire Amber,
Pyramid
Hefeweizen,
Red Hook
E.S.B.,
Mendocino
Red Tail Ale,
Speakeasy
Prohibition Ale, and
Widmer
Drop Top Amber and Hefeweizen.

Hard liquor is cheaper than beer at AT&T Park and we recommend the Irish Coffee on cold summer nights. It’s good, warming, and liquoring.

A good selection of California wines are available from the California Wine Carts.

Josh:
This red wine has really nice legs.

Kevin:
What are you talking about?

Josh:
The legs, you know.

Kevin:
Did you watch
Sideways
again before the trip?

In this city by the Bay, baseball is a treat. Don’t miss AT&T Park on any road trip where you have the chance to get close. You will hear stories from other fans and you will regret missing this gem with the shimmering and twinkling lights coming in from across the water. You shouldn’t expect San Franciscans to behave the way their Southern California statesmen do. Especially since the World Series win, Giants fans bring as much passion and heart in rooting for their team as the fans in Boston, New York, or Chicago.

Like the city of San Francisco itself, AT&T boasts a younger and hipper crowd than many cities, which comes off a bit more Rock-n-Roll than one might expect for a franchise this old and time-honored. No matter what happens, there seems to be a soundtrack provided. Hipster fans wear attention-grabbing T-shirts that read “Fear the Beard” and “Let Tim Smoke.” Other fans, meanwhile, still wear their old-school off-white flannel (looking) uniforms without names across the back.