Day 143

 

Driving up to Turner Field, you can’t help but get that baseball is played here feeling. The exterior red brick of the ballpark stands outs in the Atlanta downtown and you know this is a beautiful field.

     Turner Field day by Tom Walsh

If you want to use the stadium parking directly across from the stadium it’s $12 and gets you right up close. There are other cheaper lots nearby, but for my purposes I chose the stadium. If you drive a Lexus you can park in the special Lexus parking lot. A bit much, but cool if you have the car I guess. I also did like the tailgating section. Before game brawts and goodies can make for a fun time at the park.

Not to judge a book by it’s cover, walking into the stadium you are greeted by the history of the longest continuous franchise in Major League baseball. History reminders of great players like Nierko and Aaron await you in the plaza heading into the gates.

Purchasing a ticket is easy enough as you enter the first sets of gates outside the stadium and proceed to the windows built into the stadium. Pricing on the seats here is not outrageous either. For lower level dugout seats, you can expect to pay $60 and get a great seat in the house. Those wanting to get in cheap can sit in the upper pavilion for $6. This stadium also takes part in a practice I think is ridiculous. They, like some others I have been too, charge a few dollars more for day of game purchases. This to me is idiotic, because it’s like punishing the walk-up crowd. Why should a walk-up ticket cost $2 more? Never will get that.

The ticket attendants are very nice and there is a very helpful atmosphere to their attitudes. Most field attendants are very nice too and of course me walking around with a Rockies jersey lends to bad jokes which I can only smile at. This time I was asked if I knew there was a special section for Rockies fans. I just laughed and asked outside? No it wasn’t outside but way at the top. All in good fun. I laughed and was wished a great time at Turner Field.

Security is tight, but it’s the new world we live in. A first though, I was asked to take off my hat, because people have been known to sneak contraband in underneath. Eventhough it was a baseball game, I smiled took off my hat and said, “No rabbits here.” Maybe I should have left the rabbit comment out, but I had to.

Walking into field you can tell this is Ted Turner’s field. The not so subtle references to TBS programming let you know that. Beyond that though, stepping off the concourse into the field area, my first thought was, “This is a beautiful field.”

 

There is no awkward place in the seating and the field has a large but close feeling to it. Standing in the outfield for batting practice, I knew I would have no problem sitting in these sections. For batting practice you are allowed to catch as many balls as you would like and you can go down near the dugouts until an hour before game time for autographs no matter what ticket you have. There is an announcement to return to your seats and the field attendants were very un Nazi like in the handling of it. It was nice to see and bonus points to Turner Field. 

Stepping out of the field area into the concourse is another thing though, This is definitely the parks weakest area. The concourse looks old and dim lighting did nothing for me. Food is spread out, but you will have to walk a ways if you want a particular food. The stadium has a variety of food vendors but they are not very close to each other by any means.

 

If you are any fan of baseball history, this park is loaded with it. All across the concourses you will find photos of Braves teams who have won pennants or World Championships. Individual players are celebrated too and everywhere you look there is some form of memory.

     “Braves” by Tom Walsh

Unobstructed views and affordable seating make this a must see stadium. Ten being the best I’d give it a 9.2 only subtracting for the not so stellar concourses and sparse food stands. Batting practice is very open and you can roam any part of the stadium before game despite the ticket you may have. I have an appreciation for Turner Field and would see a game there again.

     Turner Field at night by Tom Walsh