My First Opening Day

Since I hadn't been to an Opening Day for baseball, why not start off with a big one? Originally, it was only to be John and Hammy going to the game. John managed to be one of the very lucky few who scored tickets on the Pirates web site, disgruntling hundreds who stood in lines for hours. John woke up ten minutes before the tickets went on sale, sat down in a t-shirt and underwear and had two within an hour. We love the internet.

As the game drew nearer, tickets reserved for season ticket plans became available, and John managed to get four tickets together, so the whole family could go. Now I didn't have to be jealous of my own son, and we could all play hooky and attend the first game at PNC Park. Not only that, we were in the club section with exclusive concessions (more like restaurant) stands in an air-conditioned mezzanine.

The day of game day dawned warm and beautiful with a clear forecast until the end of the game. We packed rain gear and sunscreen and headed to the T station for the ride into town, avoiding downtown traffic but not crowds as the train got so full it didn't even stop at the last half of stops. We were lucky enough to get seats, so it was an easy ride for us.

After arriving in town, we made our way to the Roberto Clemente bridge that gets closed to traffic on game days. It was decorated with balloons and streamers and filled with street vendors and people looking to buy and sell tickets. The atmosphere was like a great birthday party with the beautiful new park as the guest of honor, complete with hundreds of balloons set for release before the game.

It was all happy excitement and awe. John and I inspected the details of the park as we made our way toward the home plate entrance while the kids inspected the clowns and Budweiser Clydesdales. I managed to get pictures while keeping tabs on the kids who could easily get lost amongst all the people.

We came upon the statue of Roberto Clemente first where we stopped to take pictures. The statue of Willie Stargell, unveiled just the week before, came next. Willie never got to see that statue because he died early that morning. In a way, it seemed fitting he would die on a day people would be sad but could still find happiness. And I like to think Chuck Tanner had it right when he said, " I know one thing, And I believe this with all my heart: with Willie's ailing health, the only he'd be able to see opening day at PNC Park and his beloved Pirates, was to go somewhere better. And I am sure that Willie saw it all, even the statue."" Even though I didn't grow up in Pittsburgh and never saw Willie Stargell play, even I could feel the love and respect surrounding the man, and it was clearly visible in the form of flowers put at the statue's feet.

After making the long trek around two sides of the ball park and enduring plenty of griping from Booie about how far it was, we arrived at the home plate entrance where it seemed 90% of all other attendees were trying to enter. John called his dad on the cell phone only to realize he was less than ten yards away on the curb behind us. Even so, it took us a good five minutes to actually see him and his own dad who were using the tickets John originally bought. Many minutes later, we got through the turnstiles and waited even more minutes to meet John's dad and grandfather, so we could walk up and check out their seats.

We circled the ramp in the rotunda all the way up to the third level amidst more griping from a five-year-old who was more than tired of walking and very thirsty. It was all made better when we went through the tunnel and viewed the field. I think I was holding my breath as I came through and saw the city skyline framing the field below. Maybe I shouldn't be this thrilled about a ballpark, but it really is magnificent, not to mention so clean and shiny.

We were brought back to earth when we bought a bucket of wings and four drinks totaling a whopping $36. That made me regret not packing a picnic lunch like I originally planned, but I knew there would be consequences to that decision. At least the drinks and food lasted us the entire game, but that didn't stop us from spending too much money on ice cream treats and popcorn. Food prices are probably my only complaint, but then it's like that whether you go to the movie theater or the ballpark. At least at the ballpark you don't have to smuggle in your own food and drink if you're smart enough to pack them.

Once we found our seats, we enjoyed a typical afternoon of baseball, minus the tear-inducing tribute to Willie Stargell,� and the balloons,� and the doves,� ok, so it was a little less than typical. The Pirates lost, but we had fun. The seats were fantastic, right by first base. Three Rivers Stadium can't even hold a candle to this park. We saw the first hit, the first strikeout, the first homerun (hit by Cincinnati, unfortunately), the first out, the first pitch and tons of other firsts in that park. Too bad no one hit a ball in the water, but it will happen. Hopefully I'll be at that game too.

The rain held off until the game was over but not long enough that we could get back to the T station in time. At least I packed rain gear. I'll trade paying a fortune to eat for having raincoats and umbrellas. Even had we gotten soaked, the day would have been worth it. I look forward to our next game when St. Louis is in town, and I'll get to see the park at night.