I of course had to be at the first Twins game to ever be played at Target Field. Your devoted rube, Twins fan, baseball fan and part time reporter has filed another report.
Note: click on enclosed photos to enlarge them.
HUGE DAY at Target Field....the major highlights....
-Rained hard until around 2:30...rain stopped and never started again....cloudy & cool
-2:45 pm ...formal ceremony to unveil the Carew statue outside the ballpark...Carew, Oliva, Killebrew were all there.....many speeches by dignitaries.....statue was covered and Carew pulled off the cover....big bronze statue....very impressive...see photos below.
-Twins are now in the first base dugout....good view into the dugout from our seats.
-All the construction workers who worked on the ballpark had an official parade around the field before the game.
-Flag and flag pole from Met Stadium are being reused...out in right field....formal raising of the flag prior to national anthem.
-Construction workers sang the national anthem as a choir.
-4 Hennepin County commissioners threw out the first pitch.
-Carl Pavano throws first pitch....Skip Shumaker (2B baseman) is the first batter.....see photo below.
-First pitch lined to O Dog...knocks it down...throws him out...first official entry in the score book is "4-3".
-Denard Span has the trifecta...first hit (triple)....first run scored....first home run.
-Joe Mauer's first at bat at Target Field....called out on strikes....ouch!
-Pavano gives up back to back dingers....
-Most touching moment...prolonged standing and loud ovation for Jacque Jones....he had to step out of the box to gather himself....unfortunately he strikes out....he did however make a nice diving catch in right field.
-Most disturbing moment - Pat Neshek gets lit up...can't finish the inning...Cards put the game out of reach with a 5 run 8th inning.....like watching batting practice.
-Observation #1...people are more interested in eating than watching the game....the lines at the concession stands were unbelievably long in the lower level throughout the entire game....20 deep the whole game
-Observation #2... due to the openness of the ballpark, I predict that many people will not actually sit in their seats, they will just roam around the place and watch the game from the concourse....several good gathering places - outdoor bar in left field and two little bars in the upper level right behind home plate.
-The ballpark looks really impressive under the lights.
-Fun facts...I engaged with.....Roy Smalley, Rod Carew and Dave St. Peter...
-Gained immediate credibility from Smalley when I told him I was at the Met and saw him pop out to UL Washington for the final out of the last game ever played there...he was amazed that I knew that obscure fact....he got into telling me about how he was feeling as he stepped up the plate.......didn't want to be the one to make the last out.
-Final score: Cards 8...Twins 4
-Fans were absolutely GIDDY!!!
-One more historic game to add to my list ......I have now witnessed the following events in Minnesota baseball history....last game at Met Stadium, first game at the dome, last game at the dome, first game played at Target Field (Gophers vs. LA Tech) and the first Twins game ever played at Target Field.
