I've been a Twins fan for about 25 years now, although it's been a while since I've been to a Twins game. I think the last time I was at the Dome for a ballgame, Kirby Puckett was still playing. My brother and his friend are season ticket holders to Twins games, so when the opportunity arose for me to buy a few games from them, I jumped at the chance. My first game at the brand-new Target Field was this past Sunday, and even though we lost to the Atlanta Braves 7-3, I enjoyed the experience.
I invited my dad to the game as an early birthday/Father's day present, and as we looked at the light rail schedule, we realized that this was one of 12 games where we could take a bus from St. Cloud to the Big Lake light rail station, so we took advantage of the cheap ride which got us to the light rail station in plenty of time. Attendants at the light rail station were very helpful, and after buying a family roundtrip pass for the day, we boarded the train and were on our way!
After a quick trip on the train, we were soon at the Target Field light rail terminal. Dad and I followed the crowd upstairs to gate 6, where we had our tickets scanned and finally entered the ballpark. We had a ways to walk because our seats in section 103 were on the opposite side of the stadium, but were just in time to hear the day's starting lineup. When we got to our seats, I was amazed how close we were to the field. We were in row 7, in prime foul ball territory!
Unfortunately for the fans, Twins starting pitcher Kevin Slowey dug himself a hole in the first inning, and the Braves had scored 4 runs before the Twins even got to bat. I was looking forward to seeing Braves rookie right fielder Jason Heyward play, because he's been dubbed the next Hank Aaron. Heyward didn't disappoint, as he had 2 hits on the day, scoring the first run on a broken-bat double to right.
Every Braves player except left fielder Melky Cabrera had a hit on Sunday, and after Slowey had allowed solo homers to Braves second baseman Martin Prado and first baseman Troy Glaus, Slowey was done for the night. I was surprised Twins manager Ron Gardenhire used so many reserves in his starting lineup, because shortstop Trevor Plouffe, third baseman Brendan Harris, catcher Drew Butera and second baseman Nick Punto were all hitting under .225. These "heavy hitters" went a combined 0-for-13 on the day with a walk and a fielding error.
It was a tough day on the field for the Twins, as they could only muster four hits off Braves starter Kris Medlen. If it wasn't for left fielder Delmon Young's three-run homer in the seventh, the Twins would've been shut out.
Right before the bottom of the ninth, Dad and I made our way up the stairs of our section to catch the end of the game from the standing area by gate 29 in right field, and then decided to circle back around to gate 6 to beat the crowd leaving the stadium.
It turned out to be a long day, but even though the home team lost, I still had a good time. I got to see my first interleague game, see Joe Mauer bat and get a hit for the first time, and experienced my first major league game in an outdoor stadium. I'm coming back for games next month against the Rays and White Sox, so I'm hoping for a win and a healthy lineup on the field next time. If you haven't been to Target Field yet, I would highly recommend it, although take some time to soak it all in first, because it's easy to get caught up in your surroundings. Play ball!
I invited my dad to the game as an early birthday/Father's day present, and as we looked at the light rail schedule, we realized that this was one of 12 games where we could take a bus from St. Cloud to the Big Lake light rail station, so we took advantage of the cheap ride which got us to the light rail station in plenty of time. Attendants at the light rail station were very helpful, and after buying a family roundtrip pass for the day, we boarded the train and were on our way!
After a quick trip on the train, we were soon at the Target Field light rail terminal. Dad and I followed the crowd upstairs to gate 6, where we had our tickets scanned and finally entered the ballpark. We had a ways to walk because our seats in section 103 were on the opposite side of the stadium, but were just in time to hear the day's starting lineup. When we got to our seats, I was amazed how close we were to the field. We were in row 7, in prime foul ball territory!
Unfortunately for the fans, Twins starting pitcher Kevin Slowey dug himself a hole in the first inning, and the Braves had scored 4 runs before the Twins even got to bat. I was looking forward to seeing Braves rookie right fielder Jason Heyward play, because he's been dubbed the next Hank Aaron. Heyward didn't disappoint, as he had 2 hits on the day, scoring the first run on a broken-bat double to right.
Every Braves player except left fielder Melky Cabrera had a hit on Sunday, and after Slowey had allowed solo homers to Braves second baseman Martin Prado and first baseman Troy Glaus, Slowey was done for the night. I was surprised Twins manager Ron Gardenhire used so many reserves in his starting lineup, because shortstop Trevor Plouffe, third baseman Brendan Harris, catcher Drew Butera and second baseman Nick Punto were all hitting under .225. These "heavy hitters" went a combined 0-for-13 on the day with a walk and a fielding error.
It was a tough day on the field for the Twins, as they could only muster four hits off Braves starter Kris Medlen. If it wasn't for left fielder Delmon Young's three-run homer in the seventh, the Twins would've been shut out.
Right before the bottom of the ninth, Dad and I made our way up the stairs of our section to catch the end of the game from the standing area by gate 29 in right field, and then decided to circle back around to gate 6 to beat the crowd leaving the stadium.
It turned out to be a long day, but even though the home team lost, I still had a good time. I got to see my first interleague game, see Joe Mauer bat and get a hit for the first time, and experienced my first major league game in an outdoor stadium. I'm coming back for games next month against the Rays and White Sox, so I'm hoping for a win and a healthy lineup on the field next time. If you haven't been to Target Field yet, I would highly recommend it, although take some time to soak it all in first, because it's easy to get caught up in your surroundings. Play ball!
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