twins/mlb
Phil Miller covered three seasons of Twins baseball, but that was at a different ballpark for a different newspaper. Now Miller returns to the baseball beat after joining the Star Tribune as the Gopher football writer in 2010, and he won't miss the dingy dome for a minute. In addition to the Twins and Gophers, Miller covered the Utah Jazz and the NBA for six years at The Salt Lake Tribune.
First impressions: Cincinnati's Great American Ballpark
Posted by: Phil Miller under MLB, Twins game coverage Updated: June 22, 2012 - 1:30 PM
Great American Ballpark (press box view)
CINCINNATI -- This is my first trip to the Queen City since 2001 and my first time seeing Great American Ballpark, which sits right across the Ohio River from my hotel in Covington, Ky.
After checking in this morning, I dropped my bags, made it across the John Roebling Bridge -- opened in 1866, 17 years before Roebling’s Brooklyn Bridge -- and headed into downtown Cincinnati for some Skyline Chili.
I wasn’t sure this was my best pregame meal option. Despite the out-of-town hype, a local guy pooh poohed it. But I’m glad I went. I had a plate of chili and a Coney dog, both buried in cheese. The waitress talked me into a bib, and I’m glad she did. The brown chili sauce would have crushed my light blue shirt.
After that, it was short walk to the ballpark. Folks who’ve seen a lot of stadiums have given me pretty ho-hum scouting reports about this place. Nothing too special, you hear, pretty vanilla.
Nonsense. Maybe it helped coming in with low expectations, but I already like this place. It feels pretty intimate, with all these red seats hovering above the sunken diamond. The press box, on the third level, gives me a view of the river beyond the right-field wall, with the sloping hills of Kentucky out beyond. The steam ship in center field gives it a sense of place.
So I’m fired up to watch one of the National League’s best teams -- and especially the incomparable Joey Votto -- playing at home on a summer weekend.
The Twins' hitters should love it, too. This place is a home run hitting paradise.
Check back for updates.
ADVERTISEMENT
more twins blogs
-
Twins Insider
Twins: Trying to keep a lousy homestand from getting any worse
The Twins have benched a couple of struggling regulars but are sending a struggling...
-
StribSports Upload
Boom! That's a walk-off grand slam for Twins' No. 1 pick Buxton + video
Byron Buxton, the Twins' No. 1 pick in last year's amateur draft, hit a...
-
TwinsCentric
TwinsCentric: Offense is looking to its heart
The Nos. 3 and 4 hitters need to shoulder the load for the Twins.
Post By Category
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
inside the StarTribune
-
425 Portland Av. S.
Minneapolis, MN 55488
(612) 673-4000
- Company
- Subscriber Services
- Website
- Buy Ads
- Store
- Connect with Us
© 2013 StarTribune. All rights reserved.
StarTribune.com is powered by Limelight Networks
Newspaper Subscriptions
eEdition
RSS
Newsletters