Game #68-Cincinatti Reds

Cincinnati Reds vs. Chicago Cubs April 23rd, 2013 Great American Ballpark It still amazes me how close cities are in the Midwest and east coast. While in Indianapolis for work, I managed to plan another 3 game trip with the first event in Cincinnati. I had no clue that it was only 90 miles from downtown Indy, so after work I hopped in the car for the short drive to the Great American Ballpark. The stadium and surrounding area are really nice. There are some cool statues of Joe Nuxhall, Ernie Lombardi, Ted Kluszewski, and Frank Robinson made to look like they were in the middle of a game, bricks bought by fans laid out in front of the stadium (yes I bought one. It says “Rooting for the Redlegs from CA, Chris Costales”), and the old school rod iron gate entrance has a nice throw back feel. Inside the park has a couple cool features as well. There is the building that looks like a river boat right next to the powerstacks that light off fireworks when there is a homerun, a great view of the Ohio River, and on the back side you can spot the Bengals stadium down the street. There weren’t any fan experience cases that I love to see, where the team can showcase past team awards and fan favorite player memorabilia which is always disappointing. I guess all of that can be found in the Reds Hall of Fame just outside the stadium, but I didn’t have time to explore and I wasn’t sure if I had to pay to get in. The only historic pictures could be found on back lit mosaic pictures that were located in the concourse section. The team does a good job of letting fans know they are the oldest professional baseball team in the league, but I would love to see more within the stadium vs. a HOF. Anyway, on to the game. First, the ticket prices are amazing! For $30 I got a third base seat about 20 rows up. At a Dodger game that would be four times more expensive. The other nice thing is that I was allowed to bring in all of my lenses, so I got some really cool shots throughout the game. This wasn’t a very exciting game, a bunch of bloopers to get guys in scoring positions, but I think that was from lackluster pitching and bad defense. The Cubs took an early lead in the second with a sac fly by Scott Hairston while Cody Ransom hit a solo shot to go up 2-0. In the third Cincinnati cut the deficit in half with a homer that set off the Powerstack firework show in the third and the game would remain that way until the 9th inning when the Redlegs punched in one more run to tie the game. But the last place Cubs scored two more in the 10th to take the lead and eventually the 4-2 win. As a side note, people in OH drive really slow…I mean 50 in a 55 zone. There are a ton of cops, so watch yourself on the road. It definitely makes a short trip seem real long…