Photo courtesy of Daniel L/Unsplash.
As baseball stadiums go, Globe Life Field is still relatively new. What’s it like to see the World Series champs Texas Rangers play a game there? Let me enlighten you.
The first thing Globe Life Field hosted was actually a high-school graduation, since the Covid-19 pandemic delayed the start of the 2020 baseball season. Eventually, sports resumed play, and the first regular-season Rangers game took place on July 24, 2020.
Even though the stadium has been open for four years, I had never been to a Rangers game in their new digs. That all changed during an August 16 visit with my friend Dylan. The reigning-champion Rangers were hosting the Minnesota Twins.
Friday night baseball in an expansive, (fairly) new stadium—what could be better? To celebrate, I documented my experience with a running diary. Here’s how it unfolded.
Live diary from Globe Life Stadium
5:40: I board the trolley from my hotel—what luxury! The AC is doing its best work. Unfortunately, its radius is quite small and it still feels like 103 degrees inside. I make trolley friends with a man who’s visiting from Maine and going to the game with his father. Very endearing, though I wince when he tells me nights in Maine are already in the 50s. That sounds lovely.
6:15: The giveaway for the game is a commemorative World Series hoodie. The woman at the gate tells us it’s a sweater. Dylan asks if she’s felt how hot it is outside, and she notes it’s a short-sleeve design and we can wear it later in the year when it gets colder. I’m still shocked Bill Belichick fashion has extended this far into the zeitgeist.
6:45: We wait in line for Hurtado BBQ, which recently opened up at the stadium. It is worth the wait.
Photo courtesy of Joey Held.
7:05: We arrive at our seats—which are not the ones pictured above, though that’s a fun view—and settle in for a great game. Manuel Margot leads off with a 16-pitch at-bat before flying out to left field. The crowd is simultaneously rankled and pleased by eight consecutive foul balls, none of which land in our section.
7:12: Carlos Santana follows up with a one-pitch line out to center. Max Kepler ends the inning with a fly ball to right on the first pitch of his at-bat. What a rollercoaster.
7:15: Every at-bat looks like a hit from these seats. I’m 0-for-4 in correctly predicting the result based exclusively off of the ball’s trajectory.
7:20: Rangers Captain does a giveaway right by us! This is like seeing Buc-ee at Buc-ees. I try to snap a selfie, but he’s already on the run to his next destination. I did my best.
Photo courtesy of Joey Held.
7:24: The Twins’ Royce Lewis gets our first hit of the game, a grounder up the middle. The section, still buzzing from Captain’s appearance, doesn’t seem to mind.
7:30: Rangers pitcher Andrew Heaney strikes out the side after the single. Between innings, the in-game entertainment crew starts a t-shirt toss. A man three rows ahead of us catches a screaming line drive of a shirt shot from a cannon. Get him a roster spot immediately.
7:33: Dylan says Adolis García is hitting poorly this year. He bloops a single to center for the Rangers’ first hit. He must have heard the comment.
7:38: The Rangers are on the board! Wyatt Langford hits a deep fly to left center. Matt Wallner makes a leaping catch to rob the home run, but Garcia scores on the sacrifice fly. Rangers go up 1-0.
7:46: The following inning, Minnesota’s Ryan Jeffers hits a solo home run over the left field wall using a bat designed like a pencil. He quickly erased that lead.
7:51: A kid a few rows ahead of us has a baseball glove and is desperate to get a ball from a player. He is disappointed thus far as he watches balls routinely tossed to other people in the stands.
8:15: I walk around the park to explore the many activities at Globe Life Field. The World Series trophy is on display. People are holding the Boomstick Triple Play, one of the most impressive snacks you can get at the stadium. A man asks another man where he got the feast, and he becomes frantic when the description isn’t specific enough. Never stand in the way of hungry people. I ask the man if I can take a picture of his food. He’s gracious enough to pose, despite the heaviness of his meal.
Photo courtesy of Joey Held.
8:23: I snag a free green screen picture with Captain. I’m glad they let me in the dugout. As I walk back to my seat, Carlos Santana hits a three-run homer. Trailing 4-1, the Rangers make a pitching change. The following at-bat is almost a home run to right, but García leaps over the wall and snags the ball out of the air. The crowd rewards him with a standing ovation.
8:31: Marcus Seimen hits a home run with two outs in the fifth inning, which means we all get a free taco from Taco Bueno! The crowd hasn’t been this jazzed since the t-shirt contest.
8:38: The Dot Race keeps the excitement going. The premise is simple: Three dot “mascots” of different colors run around the warning track from left to right. Red has 22 wins; blue has 26. Green has a mere 11. I picked the green dot to win before I saw these stats. Green falls down two seconds after the start. It’s not looking good.
8:39: GREEN WINS THE RACE. I never doubted that dot.
Photo courtesy of Joey Held.
8:50: Wyatt Langford knocks a single into left field, then advances to second on a throw to third. He has two of the Rangers’ three RBIs as the lead is trimmed to one: Twins up, 4-3.
9:06: Leodys Taveras tries to steal second and is called out. The replay review is inconclusive, so the call stands. The crowd is furious. I’m less mad because I have cookie dough in an ice cream helmet.
9:15: “Friends in Low Places” by Garth Brooks plays between the seventh and eighth innings. It’s the earliest I’ve ever heard it in a public place.
9:23: A “Get Loud” enormous tarp covers a full section. The big screen shows the fans lifting it up with a mixture of excitement and trepidation. I have flashbacks to when we’d do that big parachute in gym class.
9:32: The kid is still trying to catch a ball. He is again unsuccessful. He does have a cooler mini helmet than I do, though. That light blue really pops.
9:41: Minnesota’s Jhoan Duran strikes out his first batter in the bottom of the ninth with a 101.7 MPH fastball. I can feel the wind from the speed of the pitch all the way from my seat.
9:44: With two outs, Taveras hits a chopper to second. He hustles down the line and just beats the throw. He’s called out, but the Rangers aren’t having it. They challenge the play; the call is quickly overturned. A “let’s go Rangers” chant has started.
9:45: LET’S GO RAN-GERS *clap clap clap clap clap*
9:46: Taveras steals second successfully this time, though it’s a super close play at the base. Everyone is clapping, riddled with nervous energy.
9:47: Marcus Semien strikes out to end the game. The fans are bummed. Not me, though. I had a great time—and scored some lovely souvenirs!
Photo courtesy of Joey Held.
This article first appeared on Good Info News Wire and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
