Day Five (Game Four) of the Rocky Mountain High Redux started with the familiar complimentary hotel breakfast – and moved on to a trip to the National Ballpark Museum. Before I get to that, however, a couple of observations on Denver and our tour group.
In Denver (on a visit) the 16th Street Mall is the place to be (stay near there if you visit). As noted earlier, the free up-and-down the Mall shuttle runs from 5 a.m. until 2 a.m. – and most of the eating, drinking and entertainment locations remain open until 2 a.m. There are also plenty of shopping opporunities for luxuries, souvenirs and even essentials. (Hey, Minnesotans, there’s a Target right on 16th Street.) Near the 16th Street Mall you will also find a host of museums – ranging from the National Ballpark Museum to the American Museum of Western Art to the Colorado History Center. (More on museums coming.) The Holiday Inn Express our Ballpark Tours stayed at was within walking (or free shuttle) distance of all of the above. That’s one of the advantages of BPT’s lodging philsophy of always staying near the action and attractions.
There are other advantages when traveling with a group like BPT. For example, yesterday – at about lunch time – I received a text from a fellow BPT trekker that informing me of Taco Tuesday at a nearby Mexican Taverna – great tacos for a dollar, and walking distance. My roomate and I were there to enjoy this “find” within 20 minutes. To your left, is an example of the dollar tocos, which were available in hard or soft, flour or corn and beef, chicken, carnitas, seafood and vegetable. The only requirement? You had to buy a beverage – which was no problem for our group.
THE GAME – PIRATES 10 – ROCKIES 2
Now, we did go to the National Ballpark Museum before the Pirates/Rockies game, but let’s take a look at the game first. Viewing baseball is, after all, the number-one purpose of this trek.
Game four of our seven-game trip was another 6:40 p.m. Pirates at Rockies contest. Contest may be a misnomer, as the Pirates jumped out 10-0 lead after five innings and held on to win 10-2. A few observations and highlights (or low-lights) from the game:
- Power was the order of the day. Both teams had ten hits, but the Rockies had eight singles (two doubles), while the Pirates had six singles, a double and three home runs (Starling Marte – solo in the first; Jody Mercer – three-run shot in the fourth; Josh Harrison – two-run dinger in the fifth).
- We did see a 2018 rarity, Pirates’ starter Jameson Taillon pitched a complete game, despite giving up ten hits. (He finished off the Rockies on 107 pitches (70 strikes), walking just one and fanning three, while allowing two runs.)
HOW THE GAME HAS CHANGED
Last night, Jameson Taillon became the first National League pitcher to log two complete games in 2018.
- I got to see a pair of double plays (1-4-3 and 5-4-3) both off the bat of Rockies’catcher Chris Ianetta.
- Pittsburgh scored ten times and left just two men on base.
- The game – despite 20 hits and 12 runs – moved right along, wrapping up in two hours and 34 minutes. The pitchers deserve the credit. For the most part, they practiced a “get-the-ball, throw-the-ball” mound style.
- Despite ten hits, the Rockies were a woeful one-for-twelve with runners in scoring position.
CHARLIE BLACKMON’S 1000th SAFETY
Photo by jenniferlinneaphotography
Rockies’ CF Charlie Blackmon lined a single to right with one out in the top of the sixth inning (eventually coming around to score the Rockies’ first run). It was Blackmon’s 1,000th career base hit. Blackmon had been zero-for-twelve since collecting his 1, 999th hit. The Rockies’ leadoff hitter and 2017 NL batting champion (.331) ended the game hitting .279-21-49 on the season and .302 over is eighth-season MLB career. He got a nice standing ovation that he seemed reluctant to bask in. (The Rockies were down 10-0 when he got the base hit and he is “gamer.”)
You can buy “outside” food, beverages and souvenirs at bargain prices right up to the main gate. Just look for the vendors tall signs.
A few additional thoughts. You can save a lot of money on snacks if you buy them outside the game – and the Rockies have few rules about outside food or beverage. In fact, amateur vendors work the area right up to the main gates.
For this game, our seats were in right field and (for those Minnesotans who remember sitting above the RF “baggie” at the HHH Metrodome) we did miss a two or three plays in deep right or center.
BBRT’s new, semi-official correspondent Mike Bailey tried one of the Rockies’ newest concessions – the Triple Play Dog (hot dog topped with pulled pork bacon bit and purple slaw). Just $7, he said it was a meal in itself and gave it two thumbs up. “It was so good, I didn’t even want to put mustard on it. I just wanted to enjoy the taste.” The sweet Berry Kabobs ($8) also drew kudos. More on concession in my next post; when I will look at (consume) the Rocky Mountain Oyster Po’ Boy and Baseball Roundtable’s traditional ballpark Bloody Mary.
Now, let’s step back in time to BBRT’s pre-game visit to the National Ballpark Museum.
The National Ballpark Museum
We made it down to the National Ballpark Museum – 1940 Blake Street, just a half-block from the stadium. A great visit ($10 Adults – $5 Seniors – Kids under free). Here, you enter through a 1909 entrance turnstile from Shibe Park and are treated to artifacts from 14 classic ballparks and more. Among the most prominent displays are: Shibe Park/Connie Mack Stadium (Philadelphia); Crosley Field (Cincinnati); Tiger Stadium (Detroit); Comiskey Park (Chicago); Sportsman’s Park (Saint Louis); Fenway Park (Boston); Yankee Stadium and The Polo Grounds (New York City); and Ebbetts Field (Brooklyn). And that’s just the tip of the iceberg in this store front-sized museum.
Minnesota Fans May be Interested in this Harmon Killibrew Item
Museum Manager Raelee Frazier, who you are likely to find on site, is a knowledgeable historian and adept story teller. I came across a poster of old Griffith Stadium (one-time home of the Washington Senators) signed by Harmon Killebrew. It read “A whiff of ‘Bond Bread’ for B’s Ballpark Museum, Harmon Killebrew, HOF ’84.” Ms. Frasier filled me in on the notation. The “B” was for Bruce (B or Mr. B) Hallerstein, who created the museum. The reference to a whiff of Bond Bread was noting Killebrew’s appreciation of the sweet smell of the product of the General Baking Company, which was located near Griffith Stadium.
The museum visit was a wild and wonderful trip back in a baseball time machine, thanks to the museum’s creator and curator Bruce “B” Hallerstein. You’ll find such items as seats and usher uniforms from classic (and, in many cases, long-gone ballparks); concourse lights from Ebbetts Field; and a piece of the Fenway Wall. You can also spot more personal items like autographed baseballs and bats from stars of the past, like Don Drysdale’s 1961 Dodgers uniform and a Reggie Jackson commemorative bat. And, there are unique and quirky items like a commemorative statue of Don Larsen’s World Series perfect game; a Chicago Cubs pinball machine; and menus from Mickey Mantle’s New York City restaurant.
There is all of this and much more. Definitely worth a visit if you are a baseball fan or a history buff. You should leave yourself plenty of time to peruse this jam-packed, but well-organized and labeled collection. Here are a few photos to help tell the story.
Sign from Shnibe Park – from the days when kids of all ages came to the ballpark on their own,
These usher’s uniforms were once a common sight at Fenway Park.
Concourse lights from Ebbetts Field.
Seats and histotic information from parks long gone. Did you know, for example, that exactly 11,111 home runs were hit at old Tiger Stadium?
Tomorrow, another Pirates-Rockies game, food and beverage reviews and a a museum visit that covers everything from Babe Ruth’s baseball glove to John Denver’s guitar to the 2014 Denver County Fair’s “World’s First Pot Pavilion.”
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Member: Society for American Baseball Research; The Baseball Reliquary; The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.
