Indians 5, Blue Jays 4: Our First Game in Canada
By
Zeldink
Posted at 10:38 pm
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indians (44-61) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 0 |
| Blue Jays (54-51) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 9 | 1 |
RHM and I found ourselves vacationing in Toronto, Canada this week, birthplace of one Joey Votto, and decided to take in a Toronto Blue Jays game.
The Bue Jays on the field at Rogers Centre.
We had originally hoped to see former Red Austin Kearns in right field because the Blue Jays were finishing up a series against the Cleveland Indians. Unfortunatey, or fortunately if you’re Kearns, he was traded to the Yankees just before we arrived in Toronto.
Despite the trade, we were treated to a former Red in right. Dewayne Wise was patrolling right for Toronto. After a couple years with the White Sox, he’s having a solid year as a back-up for the Blue Jays.
Rogers Centre was nice for a donut-shaped stadium. The fully circular ones always make for a more convincing, uninterrupted wave. And one did break out. The food choices were outstanding, with everything from the regular ball park food such as popcorn, peanuts, and hot dogs, to some pretty sweet BBQ chicken nachos. The specialty nachos had fresh–not pickled–jalapeños!
The dugouts had no rails, with just steps leading to the bench. I’d hate to be running to catch a foul ball close to that. Ouch!
The beer selection on the concourse level was weak, with Budweiser providing the majority of beers on tap. Where was the Molson? Or LaBlatt? Or any of the craft breweries local to the area. Heck, Steam Whistle is kitty-corner to the stadium and wasn’t to be found. Overall, the beers sucked.
Vernon Wells had a solid game for the Jays, going 2 for 4. Above, he’s scoring the tying run in the bottom of the 3rd.
Unfortunately, when Wells came up later in the game, he missed out on a chance to turn his good day into a game-changing one. He had a bad swing and grounded out to third.
The what-was-left-of-the-Indians had some shaky relief, but weathered 2 solo shots from the Jays to hang on to a 5-4 win.
Rogers Centre was a nice place to catch the game, and just about the cleanest stadium I’ve ever watched a game at. Just make sure you order your tickets early and are ready for a day filled with American domestic beer.
Also, the ushers don’t let you go to your seat during an at-bat. Not sure whether they were afraid you’d get hit by a ball while you were fumbling around for your seat or whether they think baseball games are classical music performances.
You guys must have caught Sunday’s game, that was the game in that series where Wise played right field. At least you got to see him again, what with Kearns and Russell Branyan traded and the three other former Reds who are still with those two teams not playing that night (Edwin Encarnacion, Josh Roenicke, and Justin Germano).
I am at a loss to explain why they serve Crud and Crud Lite instead of Canadian beer at the Rogers Centre. Hal McCoy has called Labatt’s Blue the best beer in the world. I agree with him, and consider myself fortunate to live where I can get a sixpack at the store for less than what they charge for a plastic cup of the swill they pour at the Rogers Centre.
As for those ushers…they just don’t want you to have to make a quick run for it and risk spilling that so-called beer you just bought while you’re still on your way to your seat. Can you imagine how you’d feel if you paid $9.00 for that déchets en bas arrosés (since everything sold over there has French printed on it anyway) and didn’t even get to drink it? 🙂
JK
I don’t know that I would call Labatt’s Blue the best beer in the world–my taste runs more towards craft pale ales and IPAs–but it is definitely the best Canadian mass-produced beer I’ve had while here. (I got a chance to try it at Canada’s Wonderland, the Kings Island of Toronto.) Still, Blue was nice and had much more body and flavor than the traditional American domestics.