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Nationals Park |
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Washington DC |
(picture)
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Number of Games: 2 |
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First Game: August 14, 2008 |
Mets 9, Nationals 3 |
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Most Recent Game: August 15, 2008 |
Rockies 4, Nationals 3 |
In 2008, I spent a quick 3 nights in DC updating my ballpark qualifications with the new park so I could still say I'd been to all the major league parks. I'm going to fall behind in 2009, as the confluence of hard economic times, two new ballparks in expensive New York City, and a brand-new baby will prevent me from doing baseball travel. I'll catch up as soon as I can, of course, but Nationals Park will be my last new one for at least a year. Much of this trip was a repeat of the RFK Stadium trip from a couple of years earlier: games on consecutive days with kid sister Kathleen and college buddy Tom. An enjoyable time was had by all...in a far superior ballpark.
I would imagine it's only a matter of time before the elegance and simplicity of the name "Nationals Park" goes the way of the corporate-influenced dodo. But whatever shall the new name be? As the economy began its massive collapse in August of 2008--gas was $4 a gallon, and we were but a few weeks away from the 2008 Market Meltdown--my kid sister and I considered the possibilities. The best corporate names are so local that they blend in seamlessly with the local atmosphere (Coors Field and Tropicana Field, to name two). What would we similarly associate with Washington DC? Kath and I considered it, and thought about our government and its debt to foreign countries. What if those countries agreed to forgive some of our debt in exchange for the naming rights to Nationals Park? As much as I hate selling off stadium naming rights, I'd think it'd be worth it. I therefore propose that Nationals Park, if it is to go coporate for its name, change its name to The People's Republic of China Stadium. Seriously. Let's consider that. We could make a good dent in the debt that way.
Nationals Park has a lot of promise. First of all, among ballparks I've been to, Nationals Park has a shot at matching Fenway Park's inimitable "experience approaching the ballpark" category. The exit from the Metro at Navy Yard station deposited me onto a road closed-for-traffic that leads a couple hundred yards to the ballpark. As of 2008, there were one or two hawkers along the way, but if the team ever gets good and established, we can look forward to a walk through baseball sights, sounds, and smells that will be as good as anywhere.
The ballpark itself felt like it was in an ordinary DC neighborhood. Apartments were across one street, the Anacostia River another,
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Written May 2005.