:: Life on Planet Dan-E ::
Thoughts, observations, and introspections from an
:: Thursday, July 01, 2004 ::
Friday, June 18.
One way to look at it is that this place set the standard for all other ballparks and everything else was downhill from there. Another way is to see it as one freakin’ spectacular way to start off of baseball park road trip. Never mind that it was a beautifully designed stadium, or that the view from the third base line provided for one of the most picturesque sights you’ll ever behold from any park. Or that the Primanti Brothers sandwich is so gloriously constructed that its mere existence joyously flips the bird at health nuts.
The complete experience starts when you drive there from the outskirts of downtown Pittsburg and enter the city through a tunnel from the southwest, which spits you right onto the Fort Pitt Bridge. Exiting the tunnel hits you with a breathtaking view of bridges, skylines and the three rivers that gave the former home of the Steelers and Pirates its name. You don’t expect it. Entering the tunnel, all you’ve passed was a typical, bland grass-roots American city. Then the view just hits you in a way similar to that of the first time you see Princess Leia’s ship being pursued by the impressive hulk that is the Imperial Star Destroyer. Or maybe not.
Architecture:
This is a completely modern ballpark with a few retro touches such as the bleachers in left field and a press box modeled after the one in Wrigley Field. The comprehensive tour ($3 for students) provided us a walkthrough of almost every nook and cranny of the place: the press box, home dugout and indoor batting cage/bullpen, the walkway underneath the seats where the players walk from their lockers to the dugout, as well as the luxury suites, galleries, and museum of sorts honoring past great pirates. All led by a highly knowledgeable guide who seemed like he was around when the Pirates just formed.
PNC already looks beautiful when seen across the Allegheny River. The steel (what else?) beams compliment the limestone walls form an epic park that Frank Gehry would weep over. It fits in perfectly with the surroundings. Forget parking there, use one of the lots and walk across the Roberto Clemente Bridge (which closes on gamedays) and slowly take the view in as you approach it. This is modern architectural art at its finest.
The asymmetrical outfield has a short right field porch that was supposed to allow for power-hitting lefties to hit splash landing homers and since the inaugural opening there has been a grand total of: one. Wherefore art thou, Barry?
The view from the upper deck provides not just a pretty good view of the field, but also a spectacular view of the Pittsburg skyline, the Roberto Clemente Bridge, and the Allegheny River. The capacity is a little under 40,000 giving it a nice, intimate feeling. All seats along the baselines were canted slightly towards home and they were all comfortable. You’ll have good sightlines no matter where you sit. At $9, our upper deck seats situated between third base and the foul pole were reasonably priced and perfect for what was awaiting us after the game. No matter what you pay, there isn’t a bad seat in the house. *****
Quality of the Food:
I ate a hot dog at every ballpark on this trip just because and PNC’s wasn’t bad. A big, juicy, grilled (a definite plus) frank served on a warm bun and reasonably priced. I found it rather odd however, that the Pirates Mascot, unlike other cites, used a hotdog cannon instead of the usual t-shirt cannon.
But there’s more. You must have a sandwich from the Primanti Brothers stand. Primanti Brothers is to Pittsburg what the cheesesteak is to Philly (more on that later) only better, cheaper, and less famous. Picture a typical sandwich: your choice of meats (roast beef, pastrami, Italian sausage, etc) with cheese between two thick slices of white bread with a hearty portion of fries and cole slaw on the side; only in this case the sides are served inside the sandwich forming one massive, messy, gastronomically glorious (yes I like alliteration) sandwich that for $5, was the runaway stadium food bargain of the trip and the best tasting. (I should probably point out that I ate here twice – once before, once after the game – at their restaurants outside of PNC.)
As if that wasn’t enough former Pirate cather Manny Sanguillen runs Manny’s BBQ behind the right center wall and for $7.50 you get a very good pulled pork sandwich. And, Manny is right there smiling and signing autographs. *****
Beer Selection:
A decent selection of local and mega brews, all for $5.50 or under. Excellent for stadium concessions. The local Penn Pilsner was the perfect compliment to my hotdog and sandwich. ****
Intangibles:
Downtown Pittsburg might look great from the outside but it’s also cool to walk around the area just before the game. Market Square is a small area that has a few shops, bars and restaurants (one of them being Primanti’s) to check out before or after the game. The centerpiece is a skyscraper and it’s accompanying buildings that look to be made entirely of glass. Quite beautiful.
The game itself (vs. Seattle) was pretty good. Seattle ace Jamie Moyer and his scorching 86mph (a speed which, according to radar, he exceeded exactly four times in six innings) fastball befudded most pirates batters for six innings until a near-rally against the relievers had them pulling within one in the ninth. At about 80% capacity, the Friday crowd was energetic and really into the game. Bonus points for being one of the few parks where people didn’t bring inflatable objects to the game. The between-innings entertainment displayed on the huge, crystal-clear jumbotron was, surprisingly enough, entertaining. It had a - wait for it - pirate theme. Maybe I’m just easily entertained but I also found the peiroge race fun to watch.
But none of that compared to the grand finale. We were fortunate enough to arrive at a Fireworks Friday game. During the late innings, a barge floats up the river and weighs anchor right outside the stadium behind right center. Once the game ends, it shoots off an impressive fireworks show that would rival almost any July 4th event.
A great way to end a game and one hell of a way to start the trip. *****
:: Miscellaneous Ramblings by Dan-E at 7:06 PM [+] ::
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