Week 3, part four

Definitely the biggest sporting venue I've ever been in.

On friday I went to my first baseball game. I didn't really know how baseball worked (as someone in my house sarcastically pointed out, "it's not cricket you know!") but a group of us British interns were accompanied by some Americans and a Canadian, so all was well!

One of the most striking (just realised that that's a pun!) things about the game was the show that surrounded the sport. The National Anthem preceded play and music was played as the players walked out and warmed up. Phrases like "GREAT HIT" and "STRIKE!!" kept flashing onto large, omnipresent screens. Even as the game was played, t-shirts were thrown into the crowd by mascots, food was given away by official sponsors, and there was even a mascot race around the pitch!

Constant images, adverts and information updates!

It was deemed perfectly acceptable to leave your seat to buy food, which people did frequently. Food could be ordered by mobile phone, using the stadium's wi-fi. That fascinated me. I should clarify, the game we saw was the Los Angeles Dodgers vs. the Washington D.C Nationals. This was considered quite a big game by people who know about these things, many more of my housemates wanted tickets for this game, but they were sold out by the time they tried to book.

The Sharknado!

Baseball is all about entertainment. Whenever the crowd was too quiet, a "noisemeter" would flash up, and encourage people to cheer louder. People also joined in with a "dance break" which happened during the middle of the Innings. The fans who were dressed the wildest were also given free merchandise.

The mascots were the founding fathers, accompanied by a sharknado, as in, from the Sharknado film I mentioned in a previous post. Seeing the Sharknado come out was a personal highlight. The game lasted for 3 hours, but I didn't actually leave my seat (beforehand I acquired a box with a hotdog and nachos...although according to the Americans we were with, popcorn and peanuts are traditional baseball match food). Now I actually know what the "strikes" and those running people mean! Well, vaguely...

I think I may have a better understanding of the baseball "hype" in the U.S now. It's completely absorbing if you allow yourself to get caught up in the party-like atmosphere. Maybe there's still hope for me as an enthusiastic sports spectator, just not in England...