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Book Time

Talk about a dream come true. A chance to take in  every ballpark in the majors leagues in one season while collecting a bunch of real life fan experiences.  That is what you'll find in the recent book by Johanna Wagner titled The View from the Stands:  A Season with America's Baseball Fans. In the 159 page book, you get to hear about her actual experiences from Tropicana Field to Cinergy field durring the 2002 season. Here is a quick excerpt from the book:


Tropicana Field

Toronto Blue Jays @ Tampa bay Devil Rays

April 12, 2002

Box 110, Row R, Seat 1A

When I entered Tropicana Field, I was surprised to discover an air of excitement inside. I immediately found some friendly ushers in the outfield seats shagging balls to give to the young fans. One of these men, Sam, immediately greeted me and handed me a ball. He had lived in Pittsburgh and had followed the Pirates up until he retired in Florida. He called for Ben Grieve to toss me a ball, and the right fielder pleasantly complied. There were not many people at the game this early, nor would many arrive before the first pitch. The upper deck had been closed to keep staffing to a minimum.
It quickly became evident that the team had many ardent, loving fans. One man I met had arranged his delivery route with his boss so he could finish near the stadium each day in time to catch the evening's game. How many teams with this string of losing seasons have inspired such lotalty? Many of the people sitting around me were originally from some other city - mostly New York, it seemed. Though they recognzied the team was young, they were frustruated by the team's inability to execute. Their thorough understanding of the game was apparent as they critiqued the players' base running and pick-off moves
As you can see, in just one game the author was able to catch the pulse of what going to a game in Tampa is like. In my opinion, she nailed it. I suggest this book for the people who grew up on the game of baseball. It was a special thing for me to grow up on this great game. For me it was the Mets, in New York, even though back then the Mets teams of late 70s were pretty bad. For you, it may be some other team. This being a Devil Rays site, feel free to write in on what team you grew up on!