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And no wonder, people are flocking to the ballpark. Not only has the team consistently been one of the best in baseball since it opened, the ballpark is one of the best major league facilities I've ever seen. It was designed by HOK Sport of Kansas City (Hallmuth, Obata and Kassabaum, Sports Facility Group), the same architectural firm that launched the revolutionary retro design in Camden Yards in Baltimore. In fact, some snobs consider the Jake just a carbon copy of Camden Yards. Those critics haven't been paying attention.
This first-class facility boasts all the amenities the modern
ballpark fan expects. My wife loved KidsLand. Located on the
lower level past the right-field foul line, there's a picnic
area, souvenir store, concession stand, and playground with slides
and play houses. Of course, there's a multi-level Terrace Restaurant.
I think the first of these was in Toronto's Skydome. The ballpark is plastered with signs and banners honoring past Indian greats. There's a statue of Bob Feller at the main entrance. I've chosen to depict my favorite Indian Hall of Famer, Addie Joss. Rapid Robert is, admittedly, probably the best pitcher the Tribe has ever had, but Addie didn't campaign to get all his teammates voted into the Hall of Fame. Speaking of which, I think if the Indians can retire Mel Harder's uniform number (18), I want to see the Cardinals retire my hero Bob Forsch's number (31). This is definitely a walk-around park. There's so much to see and buy. I usually try to get a program and a stadium lapel pin. I was disappointed not to find a Jacobs Field pin for my collection. With so much to do, I noticed a lot of people leaving the park in the sixth inning. I always stay for the last pitch, and traffic was murder. The home of the Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland tries to make the ballpark a rocking place. The grounds crew dances to the Hippy Hippy Shake. And if pop culture isn't your taste, check out the Cleveland Museum of Art, which incorporates furniture and decorative arts into the same galleries as the paintings and sculpture. I'm really a National League fan at heart. They don't play platoon baseball after all. Still I've always had a place in my heart for the Indians. Maybe, it was the ubiquitous presence of Indian caps across the country. Not a lot of them mind you. But there was always one everywhere I went. (Was there a Clevelander Diaspora?) Maybe it was the underdog factor. Or maybe it was because of the presence of so many ex-Richmond Braves players. See my article on Players. |
The
Jake was opened in 1994. It was named for the Jacobs family who
purchased the team in 1986. Unlike the old Municipal Stadium
which sometimes had seventy-plus-thousand empty seats, since
1995 this ballpark sells out for the season in December. To get
in, I had to pay a scalper on the street. I made up for it a
little bit by parking at the university about a half mile away.
Camden
Yards and the warehouse that lends it name have red brick and
teal green steel beams reminiscent of Fenway Park. The Jake favors
the white steel exposure of Yankee or Tiger Stadium. The tiers
of seats and white background remind one of a wedding cake. The
light fixtures that occupy the concourse are incredibly decorative
in a modern sense. The field lights, however, rise up vertically,
not the usual pole and horizontal bank of lights. They look like
furnace chimneys and remind you that you're in Steeltown.
Speaking
of food, my bratwurst loaded with brown mustard was only so-so,
but Linda's pierogis (meat- or cheese-filled fried pastries)
were excellent. I didn't look very hard for beer since I don't
drink, but I only saw Budweieser on draft. There's also a bakery,
egg rolls, ribs, and well I couldn't try everything.
Speaking
about those great Indians fans. Here's there number one man,
he's in the top center at his drum. For years, he toiled in practically
empty Municipal Stadium trying to rally the troops by beating
his drum. When the Jake was built, he couldn't get season tickets.
The Jake has only forty-two thousand seats, about half of Municipal's
capacity. And they were grabbed by the corporate set. The owner
recognized this disservice to the team's number one fan and made
room for him. Another reason to root for the Indians.