Astros/Cardinals 5-11: Part One: Busch Stadium

By: Guido

While it is a very nice looking ballpark, Busch has just way too much crap going on. Whether it's because the common fan lacks the attention span to watch the entire game or too many idiots are bringing their toddlers to the game, who knows?

The merch stands and food stands are fine. The store doesn't bother me either. It's all the other crap going on. You've got a batting game and speed pitch deal that I know is common place anymore at ballparks, but is it really necessary? Shouldn't the "Best Fans in Baseball" be watching the game rather than clowning around?

Another attention grabber would be all the garbage that's showing on the jumbo screen. Games, fan contests, marriage proposals and ads flash in front of your eyes. With the guessing games, people actually take it seriously and cheer if the selected the best answer. Like it matters! No one cares if you correctly picked which hat had the ball under it or what the attendance is. You shouldn't cheer that. You should be cheering that it's over and the next inning is starting.

The worst thing about Busch is all the singing and dancing going on. Kids from the ages of 5 to high school are singing and dancing their hearts out. Why? Is this what the creeps in St. Louis like? They're goddamn pervs! I know it's to put asses in the seats, but if the only way you can do it is by offering schools a chance to do dance/choir/gymnastics before the game, you need to reevaluate your team and fanbase.

When you have to put on a show just to keep people at the game, then you've already lost those people. That's what gives Wrigley it's charm. No gimmicks. No performances. Win or lose, it's always baseball.

Astros/Cardinals 5-11: Prologue

By: Guido

This wasn't my first trip to Busch stadium. Actually, I doubt I could even guess how many times I've watched a game there. Most of them have been fairly enjoyable. I've yet to witness the Cards defeat the Cubs at new or old Busch.

I've been to far more games at Busch as opposed to games at Wrigley. This is mainly due to location as it's such a bitch to navigate through Chicago and find parking and the red line. Parking around Busch is plentiful but the price is usually too high. But at least you can actually park by the stadium. That's the one advantage Busch has over Wrigley.

I do plan on attending a Cubs game this season. The way things are going, I could probably score some cheap tickets now and then watch them win the division in the fall.