Kauffman Stadium is a great stadium for the die hard baseball fan. It's got that perfect baseball feel to it I cant describe it. And the entire area underneath the screen is a series of waterfalls so that's why there is no seats below it. It is also pretty much center field. Behind the screen and all along the outfield wall is a huge deck for people to stand, chill and walk around and look at the various statues and awards. Click below for a better/bigger picture http://img806.imageshack.us/img806/3939/kauffmanstadiumatnight2.jpg Honestly, I like it a lot better than MMP. Its a great place to watch MLB talent for pennies on the dollar. But that kind of stadium would not work in Houston due to the heat and frequent storms.
I went there in July of 2001 to catch a Royals vs. Stros game. It was a nice stadium (and this was before the awesome rennovations), but only the purists of baseball are going to really appreciate it. Its in the middle of nowhere (next to Arrowhead) with very little to do around the ballpark, it was hot as hell that day with very little shade (Missouri can get brutal in the summer, just as bad as Texas), and the team was terrible then (and hasn't gotten much better now). Minute Maid Park is perfect for Houston. Keeps out the bad weather, affordable for families, plenty of accessible parking in a downtown location (with easy exit ability in a city known for horrible traffic). MMP isn't the best ballpark in baseball, but it doesn't have to be. It has to be the best fit for Houston in a summer sport... which it probably is. Same can't be said about the ballpark in Arlington... the only thing that saves having to sit in that heat is watching a decent team nowadays.
I'm not really a Drayton supporter, but this post is ridiculous. Besides the one year where we didn't sign the picks, this isn't really Drayton's fault. He's not our scout. And one draft does not make a farm system. Yeah, dishing out those huge contracts to Bagwell, Lee, Clemens, Beltran (even though he didn't sign), Oswalt, Hidalgo, Berkman (etc.) really seem to say he only wants to make money. If you are going to complain about Drayton, at least make it accurate (i.e. he doesn't spend his money wisely...) Yeah, I bet hearing Drayton say, "We're completely out of it. Everyone should stop coming to the games now" would have gone over really well. You should be mad at Selig, not McLane. Sure, McLane could have acted proactively and maybe scheduled something in advance, but he was hoping they'd still be able to play. Selig made the call on where we would end up playing.
It won't just be a video board... it will also be the main scoreboard as well as graphics board. Much better, and it doesn't really change the look of the park all that much (which can't be said for the new boards in KC and ATL, or even DKR, which look too obtrusive and predominate the landscape). For the Astros, the layout stays the same... but the quality goes up. Win!
They should make the Division title flags in left-center field bigger so Crack-Head Hamilton can see them...
That's how I feel about it too. That pic of the Royal's park looks freaking strange. That crown screen looks so out of place.
