Terrifically memory-tugging, Patrick! I was 10 when this native Houstonian first set foot in the Astrodome in 1965, when it debuted! I remember, still, the sight that unfolded as I trundled up the ramp to our seating section. The roof was astounding to see after 3 years lugging, with my folks, blankets, cans of Off!, and other anti-humidity accoutrements to Colt Stadium!
In December 1965, I saw The Supremes open for Judy Garland, and in '68, I not only saw Jim Wynn hit 3 "Domers" in one game, and in another game, I caught my first (and only) foul ball, off the bat of Giants 3B, Jim Davenport! Here's an article I wrote in 2014, one of my first for The Runner Sports....it's as close as I can come to an actual testimonial for a building! https://therunnersports.com/houstons-astrodome-is-50-hats-off-to-the-grande-dame/ Hope you enjoy as much as I enjoyed this one!
Thanks, Brad! I took a few moments to read your article before I replied- great read. Your family sounds like a lot of fun to take in a ballgame with. The Astrodome holds a special place in my memories too, albeit from a distance. Unfortunately, like Comiskey and Tiger Stadium, I never got a chance to see it in action. Even so, I revere it as one of the temples of 80's baseball, which is why I didn't try to shoehorn it into this article. It deserves its own spotlight piece, or at least a starring role in a companion piece focused on all the lost domes of the era. I hope to do something like that in the not distant future, although it will be hard to match the quality of your piece. I really enjoyed it, and I agree that it's a fitting tribute to the greatest dome of them all.
Kindly keep me in mind, Patrick, as someone who'd love to be asked to collab with you on a future Dome article, or I could condense some key pieces from my several that exist on both TRS, and my "Behind the Astros Dugout" here! That would relieve you, if nothing else, from the challenge of trying to "match the quality" of that, or any other Dome article of mine!
After all, I've entered that building literally hundreds of times, for far more than "just" baseball games! If you've not done mascots yet, I've already got an Astros mascot history all ready to go! Holler whenever!
Awesome. Thanks, Brad. I will definitely pick your brain when I get around to writing about the Astrodome and we can work out to the specifics on a collab! The mascot idea sounds intriguing too.
Thanks, Patrick! If you've not done a dive of any depth into the Royals' mascots (I'm assuming they've had one or, like the 'Stros, a dozen!), I think you'd be amazed (just based on my researching the Space City mascots!). Also, team songs are a hoot, as well...like, hype songs recorded by somebody local. The Astros' decades are filled with those! I won't leave the links here, but if you're interested, you can see both if you take a peek "Behind the Astros Dugout"!⚾😁👍
I haven't done anything with mascots. The Royals introduced Sluggerrr the lion in the mid-90's, and while I've never had any problem with him, I've never found him to be particularly inspiring either. I don't remember them having one before that. But the Royals can hold their own when it comes to music. The official victory song is the Beatles' "Kansas City/Hey-Hey-Hey-Hey (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xvW-Nf9VAw), which is blasted over the speakers after every win. #HEYHEYHEYHEY is also the hashtag we use on Twitter. And even though it's not used in an official capacity, Wilbert Harrison's "Kansas City" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8tZO97uhyE) is a great song associated with all things KC, including the Royals. And don't forget Lorde's "Royals" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlcIKh6sBtc), inspired by George Brett. Dang, it's not a topic I'd given a lot of thought to before, but you may have just pointed me in the direction of a future article. I'll have to check out your work on the Astros for inspiration. Thanks, Brad!
Fun stuff, definitely, Patrick! I just unlocked the mascot one for you and your readers...I'll go remove the pesky paywall from the hype song one, too (it's the first one I wrote, Fall '21, so scroll all the way down for that one on the "BTADugout" side)!
I grew up going to Comiskey, and it was awesome - thanks for sharing your TV perspective. Nancy Faust's organ was great too! Even if you had bad seats, and couldn't see the ball when it was hit in the air, the crowd was so much louder when it's tucked under a roof or upper deck. Once I could see the pitcher and catcher, but a pole was in between! I wish I had visited Tiger Stadium once. If I had a time machine to see one game at an old ballpark, I'm torn between visiting Tiger Stadium for the first time or my ninth game at old Comiskey.
Thanks for mentioning the organ, Andy. I always thought Comiskey looked cool on TV, but that just goes to show you that there's always way more happening at the actual ballpark. I wish I had a time machine for lots of reasons, but I'd definitely throw a trip to Comiskey (and Tiger Stadium) in there while I was at it. I get kick out of listening to people who got to see games at Comiskey, especially in its later years. Like you, they're not shy about pointing out its flaws, but at the same time, the vast majority of them loved the place and wish they could see just one more game there. Thanks for sharing your Comiskey memories!
I think it's the closeness of the upper decks that make me like both ballparks. There just aren't seats like that today in the new ballparks. A couple years ago I was in the first row of the 2nd deck at Busch Stadium, just past first base, and I was SO far from the field. I couldn't even read the players' names on the back. And I would love to see upper deck and rooftop homeruns from the players today. Picture Giancarlo Stanton...and long home runs landing in a beer garden plaza just aren't as exciting as upper deck shots for some reason.
Thank you for the kind words, Ed. And believe me, as a father of three boys who all like going to the ballpark, I know all about the pain of taking a group to a game. Sometimes this game that we all love so much really tries to make it difficult on us.
Terrifically memory-tugging, Patrick! I was 10 when this native Houstonian first set foot in the Astrodome in 1965, when it debuted! I remember, still, the sight that unfolded as I trundled up the ramp to our seating section. The roof was astounding to see after 3 years lugging, with my folks, blankets, cans of Off!, and other anti-humidity accoutrements to Colt Stadium!
In December 1965, I saw The Supremes open for Judy Garland, and in '68, I not only saw Jim Wynn hit 3 "Domers" in one game, and in another game, I caught my first (and only) foul ball, off the bat of Giants 3B, Jim Davenport! Here's an article I wrote in 2014, one of my first for The Runner Sports....it's as close as I can come to an actual testimonial for a building! https://therunnersports.com/houstons-astrodome-is-50-hats-off-to-the-grande-dame/ Hope you enjoy as much as I enjoyed this one!
Thanks, Brad! I took a few moments to read your article before I replied- great read. Your family sounds like a lot of fun to take in a ballgame with. The Astrodome holds a special place in my memories too, albeit from a distance. Unfortunately, like Comiskey and Tiger Stadium, I never got a chance to see it in action. Even so, I revere it as one of the temples of 80's baseball, which is why I didn't try to shoehorn it into this article. It deserves its own spotlight piece, or at least a starring role in a companion piece focused on all the lost domes of the era. I hope to do something like that in the not distant future, although it will be hard to match the quality of your piece. I really enjoyed it, and I agree that it's a fitting tribute to the greatest dome of them all.
Kindly keep me in mind, Patrick, as someone who'd love to be asked to collab with you on a future Dome article, or I could condense some key pieces from my several that exist on both TRS, and my "Behind the Astros Dugout" here! That would relieve you, if nothing else, from the challenge of trying to "match the quality" of that, or any other Dome article of mine!
After all, I've entered that building literally hundreds of times, for far more than "just" baseball games! If you've not done mascots yet, I've already got an Astros mascot history all ready to go! Holler whenever!
Awesome. Thanks, Brad. I will definitely pick your brain when I get around to writing about the Astrodome and we can work out to the specifics on a collab! The mascot idea sounds intriguing too.
Thanks, Patrick! If you've not done a dive of any depth into the Royals' mascots (I'm assuming they've had one or, like the 'Stros, a dozen!), I think you'd be amazed (just based on my researching the Space City mascots!). Also, team songs are a hoot, as well...like, hype songs recorded by somebody local. The Astros' decades are filled with those! I won't leave the links here, but if you're interested, you can see both if you take a peek "Behind the Astros Dugout"!⚾😁👍
I haven't done anything with mascots. The Royals introduced Sluggerrr the lion in the mid-90's, and while I've never had any problem with him, I've never found him to be particularly inspiring either. I don't remember them having one before that. But the Royals can hold their own when it comes to music. The official victory song is the Beatles' "Kansas City/Hey-Hey-Hey-Hey (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xvW-Nf9VAw), which is blasted over the speakers after every win. #HEYHEYHEYHEY is also the hashtag we use on Twitter. And even though it's not used in an official capacity, Wilbert Harrison's "Kansas City" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8tZO97uhyE) is a great song associated with all things KC, including the Royals. And don't forget Lorde's "Royals" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlcIKh6sBtc), inspired by George Brett. Dang, it's not a topic I'd given a lot of thought to before, but you may have just pointed me in the direction of a future article. I'll have to check out your work on the Astros for inspiration. Thanks, Brad!
Fun stuff, definitely, Patrick! I just unlocked the mascot one for you and your readers...I'll go remove the pesky paywall from the hype song one, too (it's the first one I wrote, Fall '21, so scroll all the way down for that one on the "BTADugout" side)!
I grew up going to Comiskey, and it was awesome - thanks for sharing your TV perspective. Nancy Faust's organ was great too! Even if you had bad seats, and couldn't see the ball when it was hit in the air, the crowd was so much louder when it's tucked under a roof or upper deck. Once I could see the pitcher and catcher, but a pole was in between! I wish I had visited Tiger Stadium once. If I had a time machine to see one game at an old ballpark, I'm torn between visiting Tiger Stadium for the first time or my ninth game at old Comiskey.
Thanks for mentioning the organ, Andy. I always thought Comiskey looked cool on TV, but that just goes to show you that there's always way more happening at the actual ballpark. I wish I had a time machine for lots of reasons, but I'd definitely throw a trip to Comiskey (and Tiger Stadium) in there while I was at it. I get kick out of listening to people who got to see games at Comiskey, especially in its later years. Like you, they're not shy about pointing out its flaws, but at the same time, the vast majority of them loved the place and wish they could see just one more game there. Thanks for sharing your Comiskey memories!
I think it's the closeness of the upper decks that make me like both ballparks. There just aren't seats like that today in the new ballparks. A couple years ago I was in the first row of the 2nd deck at Busch Stadium, just past first base, and I was SO far from the field. I couldn't even read the players' names on the back. And I would love to see upper deck and rooftop homeruns from the players today. Picture Giancarlo Stanton...and long home runs landing in a beer garden plaza just aren't as exciting as upper deck shots for some reason.
Miss some of those old ballparks.
Going to a Braves game Saturday afternoon with wife and six friends. Crazy expensive these days. Enjoy your articles Patrick.
Thank you for the kind words, Ed. And believe me, as a father of three boys who all like going to the ballpark, I know all about the pain of taking a group to a game. Sometimes this game that we all love so much really tries to make it difficult on us.