Take Me Out To The Ball Game

What I know about baseball I've picked up from American movies, Trivial Pursuit ( if there's a sport question about baseball the answer is inevitably Babe Ruth ), and one of the greatest comedy sketches known to man - Abbott and Costello's 'Who's on First'. So it was going to be a great learning experience watching the San Francisco Giants take on the might of the Milwaukee Brewers at the A.T and T Arena. I was in two minds as to whether I should support a team that's named after a profession that makes beer over one that has a name in common with a Western Sydney AFL club ( and who's colours are orange and black ), but what the heck. When in Rome.....

The game started at 1.05, so we decided to get there at noon, just to make sure. Because it was the Sunday of a holiday weekend ( Labor Day on the Monday ), a small crowd of around 20,000 was expected, given the locals would be out of town. However 42,000 fans turned up ( the capacity is 50,000 ), which I put down to the fact it was STAR WARS Day. Should have twigged when I saw a guy in a hooded cassock - thought it was a bit Da Vinci Code weird, but then when a Darth Vader and a couple of stormtroopers walked past, I figured people who go to the baseball in the U.S. are a touch weird.

                                                 May the Force be with you.

We settled in to our seats which were, if I say so myself, not too shabby - 5th level, beween batter and 3rd base. First things first, I headed off for hotdogs and beers. Unfortunately I copped the Asian girl with little English, who was first day on the job ! Our conversation made less sense than the aforementioned Abbott and Costello routine. I finally refurned to our seats with a polish dog, an SF dog, a glass of nondescript Pinot Grigio and a pint of nondescript beer for only US$32 !!! Never again will I complain about the food prices at the MCG.
The game started with the Brewers scoring in the first innings, but after that the Giants took over and won 15-5. Man of the Match was the 'Venezuelan Vigilante' Pablo Somebody who mashed the ball every time he came out to bat. He even hit one ball out of the stadium and into San Francisco Bay.

                                     
                                                   Could be Pablo or possibly R2D2

After 3 hours of watching 'my team' hammer the opposition ( who, I have to say, delivered light beer ), we headed back to our hotel in the unusually named Tenderloin District to relax before dinner.
And that's another story....