Jill's Journal: Whether you’re a Los Angeles Dodgers fan or a baseball fan or even the most casual of sports fans, a tour of Dodger Stadium is a slice of Americana well worth taking. We absolutely loved our close-up tour of the stadium.
Celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, Dodger Stadium is the third-oldest major league baseball park in the United States. Only Fenway and Wrigley have it beat. But no one is bigger; with 56,000 seats, Dodger Stadium is the largest in the country.
In this day and age when even the iconic Yankee Stadium has been rebuilt, Dodger Stadium remains fresh and modern, even at age 50. It was the first stadium to feature a cantilevered design, meaning each and every seat has an unobstructed view of the playing field (a very new concept when it opened in 1962).
Here’s the view from the top of the park. Yes, that’s the unusual sight of dirt over the playing field. Dodger Stadium hosts all sorts of events in the off-season, ranging from concerts to papal visits to motorcross and monster truck rallies (hence the dirt!).
This is the Dodger dugout from above…
…and the bench from inside the dugout. How cool is that?
The girls don’t appreciate yet how awesome it is that they got to sit in the dugout!
And drink out of the players’ water fountain…
And get a glimpse inside the players’ tunnel. Seriously, how awesome is this?
Or how about a walk through the Vin Scully Press Box?
The official scorer sits at this table. The legendary Scully is behind the far wall.
Here’s where the organ player sits and plays…Dodger Stadium still has a real, live person on the organ. The current organist has been here for 25 years and she knits in between songs!
This is one of the luxury suites. Three-quarters of the front glass wall slides open for easy access to the attached balcony.
The Dodgers have won five World Series, six if you count their time in Brooklyn.
Speaking of Brooklyn, the Dodgers took their final home plate with them to Los Angeles when they left Ebbets Field.
We’ve never taken the girls to a baseball game, but we would like to now after touring Dodger Stadium. Amazingly, Rob's paternal grandmother bought season tickets (eight rows behind home plate!) when the stadium opened in 1962. The tickets were transferred to Rob's maternal grandfather around her death in 1969. He is gone now too, but his family still has the tickets. They are planning to let them go this year...after 50 years! Baseball isn't inexpensive family entertainment anymore. It costs big money to go to a game now and the price of season tickets rivals that of a small new car.
The views from the stadium aren’t too shabby either. There’s downtown L.A.
One can also see the Hollywood sign and Griffith Observatory from Dodger Stadium, if you can make them out through the smog. The air looks much worse in pictures than it does in person…really!
2 comments:
I sat in those seats at my first major league baseball game! Eighth row behind home plate, I was in the one on the aisle with my big brother right beside me. I'll never forget it:) Grandpa took him to his first game and since Grandpa was gone when I was old enough, Bobby took me to my first game. It was a great day for a game, the sun was shining, the sky was clear and Dodgers WON!!!
That's fantastic! What a great memory.
Post a Comment