Deadspin.com take on Wrigley Field

[mjohnson71]

Not very kind in their weekly baseball stadium review.

 

http://deadspin.com/5288450/why-your-stadium-sucks-wrigley-field

 

 

This is a new weekly feature in which I (and maybe you, too, readers) detail the various reasons for hating your ballpark. This week: The Chicago Cubs' Wrigley Field.

 

Confined: In 1914, Weeghman Park was built quickly and on the cheap — by the same architect who designed Comiskey Park, only Weeghman was done at half the cost and in two months' time — for the doomed Chicago Whales of the Federal League. Many, many years later, under a new name and with a new tenant, the place became a massive, rollicking Sigma Chi in which one could, if one wanted, occasionally glance toward the green expanse in the middle to enjoy some epochally bad baseball. Wrigley Field is now what passes for a shrine in baseball. It's altogether apt that the ballpark was built on the former site of a Lutheran seminary and just down the street from a German-style beer garden. Wrigley Field now exists somewhere between the twin poles of piety and unholy, [expletive]-faced crapulence. It's fitting, too, that Wrigley was where, in everyone's favorite overrated baseball film, The Natural, Glenn Close chose to stand her white ass up in a shaft of God's own sunlight, not just because the place is famous for its obstructed views, but because in the modern age Wrigley has laid claim to the sort of virginal purity that Close's character idiotically represented. "Wrigley Field," as architecture critic Paul Goldberger wrote in The New York Times in 1988, "is a place that is innocent of instant replay, of vast electronic scoreboards as cluttered with advertising as Times Square, of baseball as a business." It is infallible. A brick-and-ivy pope of a ballpark. This accounts for the hue and cry any time someone reveals Wrigley to be the big, ringing cash register it's always been — when, for instance, the odious Sam Zell suggests selling naming rights to the joint, or when someone cooks up the outrageous idea of playing baseball there after sunset. Don't touch Wrigley, everyone cries out. Leave it be. And meanwhile great hunks of concrete come raining from the rafters.

 

A story about the fans: A 26-year-old youth-baseball coach goes to a baseball game in October. He is an asset to his community, by all accounts. He is wearing a ballcap and headphones. It is 2003, and this is a very important baseball game, which helps explain why, in a matter of hours, six cop cars will be stationed outside his home for protection, and why the Illinois governor will himself suggest that the young man enter the witness protection program. Steve Bartman is about to become the greatest, non-bovid villain in Cubs history, simply for the crime of making a play on a foul ball that, not incidentally, would've been a routine out in any stadium with enough sense to build some foul territory. But this isn't a story about Wrigley. This is a story about Wrigley's fans — the ones who drove a youth baseball coach and an asset to his community into deep seclusion, the ones who wallow in the subjunctive (what might've happened had Moises Alou come down with the ball?) while blithely ignoring what actually did happen in that Game 6, in that very inning, in fact. What happened was this: Shortstop Alex Gonzalez and his frying pan of a glove, booted a dead-certain, inning-ending double-play ball onto Addison Street. The Cubs lost that game because of a bad baseball play, not because fate, in the shape of 26-year-old kid wearing headphones, wanted to consign them to more years of exquisite suffering. Any Cubs fans who think otherwise aren't worth the troughs they have to piss in.

 

The view from the stands (everything sic'd): "I half expected to find the Ark of the Covenant before I found my seats, and the smell was like taking a Fantastic Voyage inside a penis." (The Gentile Golem) ... "Wrigley Field is a complete dump. I usually don't make it a point to agree with Ozzie Guillen, however, he is right that Wrigley Field needs to be demolished. ... The crumbling upper deck that drops chunks of concrete to the lower levels (a net was installed to protect people), the piss stains everywhere you look, and the absolutely horrendous food that is a blight on Chicago's good name. Wrigley, like the Cubs, is a complete loser." (Erik T.) ... "unless you memorize the stadium layout, you have a 30% chance of purchasing an obstructed view seat. the concourse smells like piss. most importantly, wrigley has its own scalping company, so tickets are absurdly expensive ... the village people perform annually" (Aaron B.)

 

"My dad took myself and my younger brother to a game in the bleachers (I was 22 and my brother was a naïve 13 year old at the time). About three innings into the game the woman in the row next to us passes out then wakes up abruptly and throws up all over the guy in front of her, I'm talking an explosion that would make the Catalina wine mixer clear out. The woman gets ejected and as she's being dragged out starts slurring "Don't eat the hot dogs! Let me go its your hot dogs that made the throw up! I buy this stadium every game!" The crowd spends most of the inning watching this. One inning later another intoxicated gentleman arrives searching for a seat, he notices the two vomit soaked benches in front of him being the only open seats in the section so of course he should turn away and look elsewhere. Of course not, the guy disinfects the seat with some beer and wipes off the romance with his bare hand, sits down and spends the rest of the afternoon soaking it all in." (Andy S.)

 

Next up: Angel Stadium. Got any horrible experiences to share? Send them to craggs@deadspin.com.

[1908]

I'm shocked.

[javy knows my name]

I loled about 5 times. The quotes from the other sportwriters were really funny.

[erik316wttn]

Hey guys, Wrigley doesn't have a jumbotron or a retractable roof! And I was too stupid to find where my seats were! And there were drunk people, at a baseball game of all places! For shame, Wrigley Field. For shame!

[Andy]

Wrigley sucks because:

 

- It's a cash cow

- Reactionary fans got on someone for interfering with a foul ball in a pennant-clinching game

- There are drunks there

- Concrete chunks fell from the upper deck once

- There are posts that obstruct some seats' views (something no one ever complained about when it was Tiger Stadium)

 

Got it.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

Wrigley sucks because:

 

- It's a cash cow

- Reactionary fans got on someone for interfering with a foul ball in a pennant-clinching game

- There are drunks there

- Concrete chunks fell from the upper deck once

- There are posts that obstruct some seats' views (something no one ever complained about when it was Tiger Stadium)

 

Got it.

 

Wrigley is awesome because:

 

It's old.

The non-obstructed seats are close to the field.

The neighborhood is like a big frat party.

 

 

Other than that, I got nothing...

[TruffleShuffle]

i find it hard to believe that wrigley would get a negative review as a result of them soliciting people to write in with their worst experiences there, and then selecting the worst of the worst to put in their article.

[Outshined_One]

I wouldn't take any of it seriously.

[salukifudd]

The reason I still get chills at Wrigley is when I walk up the steps and see the field, the wall and ivy, and the backdrop. I love Wrigley because of this. I don't know if it's possible to get the same reaction in any other field, but going to Wrigley for what seems like the millionth time, I still look forward to this hair raising moment. Yeah, it's cheesy, but no matter how many times I walk up the stairs, I am excited. I will be there tomorrow and I am looking forward to this event alone. I'll breathe a fresh breath of (trough covered) air and know I am home.

 

The paragraph about Bartman is perfect.

[Andy]

Wrigley sucks because:

 

- It's a cash cow

- Reactionary fans got on someone for interfering with a foul ball in a pennant-clinching game

- There are drunks there

- Concrete chunks fell from the upper deck once

- There are posts that obstruct some seats' views (something no one ever complained about when it was Tiger Stadium)

 

Got it.

 

Wrigley is awesome because:

 

It's old.

The non-obstructed seats are close to the field.

The neighborhood is like a big frat party.

 

 

Other than that, I got nothing...

If that's really all you got, then I hope you don't go, because you'd be taking a seat from someone who wants to be there, quite frankly.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

If that's really all you got, then I hope you don't go, because you'd be taking a seat from someone who wants to be there, quite frankly.

 

Feel free to list something awesome about Wrigley Field not covered under those three. (I'll throw in day baseball as well, although that's not technically part of the field).

 

I like going to Wrigley, but with apologies to Dusty, it is what it is.

[GhostRunner]

Yeah, it's cheesy, but no matter how many times I walk up the stairs, I am excited.

Don't feel like it's cheesy. Regardless of a few negatives, Wrigley Field deserves the reverence it receives from the majority of baseball folks.

 

No one should feel embarrassed about feeling some emotion when they visit Wrigley Field. In fact, be proud that you're still able to experience and appreciate it.

[bukie]

If that's really all you got, then I hope you don't go, because you'd be taking a seat from someone who wants to be there, quite frankly.

 

Feel free to list something awesome about Wrigley Field not covered under those three. (I'll throw in day baseball as well, although that's not technically part of the field).

 

I like going to Wrigley, but with apologies to Dusty, it is what it is.

I'd probably add:

 

- Ivy covered walls

- The Bleachers experience (is it the only park where you can only get to the bleachers if you specifically have a ticket for them?)

- The rooftop views (despite the recent commercialization of such, still a unique feature)

- The scoreboard

- The flags (divisional, retired numbers, pennants)

- Other than the obstructed view seats, every seat allows a great view of the field.

- Near complete lack of distractions from the game (although the annoying "races" from the new center screen are annoying).

- The seventh inning stretch (cribbed by almost every other park these days)

- The Chicago dogs (not the regular ballpark dogs, get the actual Chicago dogs)

 

Sure, it's not perfect, and it's probably getting close to needing either a huge renovation or complete replacement, but it has many unique features that you either don't see anywhere else or have been copied just about everywhere else because it worked so well.

[UMFan83]

Why are people shocked that the article talks about Wrigley in a negative light. The segment is called "Why Your Stadium Sucks"

[otis89]

Why are people shocked that the article talks about Wrigley in a negative light. The segment is called "Why Your Stadium Sucks"

 

Yeah, and it's pretty obvious they're going to do this for every single stadium in MLB. I doubt they ripped on Wrigley any more than they will on any other stadium.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

- Ivy covered walls

 

Cribbed from other parks.

 

- The Bleachers experience (is it the only park where you can only get to the bleachers if you specifically have a ticket for them?)

 

The experience of sitting out in the sun, drinking beer and watching the sporting event with other fans in non-assigned seating? That's duplicated all over the world in almost every sport.

 

- The rooftop views (despite the recent commercialization of such, still a unique feature)

 

Fair point, but if you aren't sitting in them, I'm not sure how it affects your experience.

 

- The scoreboard

 

Don't like it, personally. Falls under the category of "old for old's sake."

 

- The flags (divisional, retired numbers, pennants)

 

Almost every park does this.

 

- Other than the obstructed view seats, every seat allows a great view of the field.

 

That was on my list of things I do agree is awesome about Wrigley.

 

- Near complete lack of distractions from the game (although the annoying "races" from the new center screen are annoying).

 

They've been doing this for awhile. I've never had a problem being distracted at sporting events unless I wanted to be, but others' mileage may vary.

 

- The seventh inning stretch (cribbed by almost every other park these days)

 

Wrigley also cribbed this.

 

- The Chicago dogs (not the regular ballpark dogs, get the actual Chicago dogs)

 

Don't think I've had one, can't comment.

 

My point here isn't that people shouldn't like Wrigley. It's just that it's a mixed bag, and there's room for people to believe the positives outweigh the negatives, and there's room for the other way around.

[manbearcub]

well thats just a ridiculous assessment

[Magnetic Curses]

i don't umderstand why they would include the testimony of a sox fan, though. if this is a segment on why YOUR stadium sucks, he should have to include his thoughts on comiskey.

 

wrigley has its good and bad, but most of the new-era stadiums are more inspired by wrigley than any other ballpark, right up to the gentrification of the urban areas in which they're built.

[bukie]

- Ivy covered walls

 

Cribbed from other parks.

And yet, still unique and signature to Wrigley.

 

- The Bleachers experience (is it the only park where you can only get to the bleachers if you specifically have a ticket for them?)

 

The experience of sitting out in the sun, drinking beer and watching the sporting event with other fans in non-assigned seating? That's duplicated all over the world in almost every sport.

 

It's difficult to describe if you haven't done it, but the experience in the bleachers at Wrigley has absolutely not been duplicated all over the world in almost every sport. It's truly a unique experience.

 

- The flags (divisional, retired numbers, pennants)

 

Almost every park does this.

 

Almost every park has flags denoting the current standings and whether the most recent game was a win? I must have missed that elsewhere.

 

- The seventh inning stretch (cribbed by almost every other park these days)

 

Wrigley also cribbed this.

 

Technically, yes, it started as more of a Harry Caray thing. What it's evolved into, though, is something unique (well, it was).

 

My point here isn't that people shouldn't like Wrigley. It's just that it's a mixed bag, and there's room for people to believe the positives outweigh the negatives, and there's room for the other way around.

 

And my point was that there are more discernible unique positives than you initially let on.

[mjohnson71]

The reason I still get chills at Wrigley is when I walk up the steps and see the field, the wall and ivy, and the backdrop. I love Wrigley because of this. I don't know if it's possible to get the same reaction in any other field, but going to Wrigley for what seems like the millionth time, I still look forward to this hair raising moment. Yeah, it's cheesy, but no matter how many times I walk up the stairs, I am excited.

 

Best point. There is nothing better than that feeling when walking out to the seating area.

[CubLover8769]

- Ivy covered walls

 

Cribbed from other parks.

 

- The Bleachers experience (is it the only park where you can only get to the bleachers if you specifically have a ticket for them?)

 

The experience of sitting out in the sun, drinking beer and watching the sporting event with other fans in non-assigned seating? That's duplicated all over the world in almost every sport.

 

- The rooftop views (despite the recent commercialization of such, still a unique feature)

 

Fair point, but if you aren't sitting in them, I'm not sure how it affects your experience.

 

- The scoreboard

 

Don't like it, personally. Falls under the category of "old for old's sake."

 

- The flags (divisional, retired numbers, pennants)

 

Almost every park does this.

 

- Other than the obstructed view seats, every seat allows a great view of the field.

 

That was on my list of things I do agree is awesome about Wrigley.

 

- Near complete lack of distractions from the game (although the annoying "races" from the new center screen are annoying).

 

They've been doing this for awhile. I've never had a problem being distracted at sporting events unless I wanted to be, but others' mileage may vary.

 

- The seventh inning stretch (cribbed by almost every other park these days)

 

Wrigley also cribbed this.

 

- The Chicago dogs (not the regular ballpark dogs, get the actual Chicago dogs)

 

Don't think I've had one, can't comment.

 

My point here isn't that people shouldn't like Wrigley. It's just that it's a mixed bag, and there's room for people to believe the positives outweigh the negatives, and there's room for the other way around.

:clapping: :clapping: :clapping: :clapping: =D> =D> =D> =D>

[Brian]

I'm not that hardcore of a Wrigley FOREVER!! person, and sometimes think about how it would be nice to have a new stadium (still in the city though). But then after I think about it for a bit more it always comes back to the same thing. While there a many great things about new stadiums such as Miller Park, going there and everything about it is like going to a giant warehouse where there happens to be a baseball game going on, going to Wrigley you know this is a place for baseball.

[danonwaveland]

The reason I still get chills at Wrigley is when I walk up the steps and see the field, the wall and ivy, and the backdrop. I love Wrigley because of this. I don't know if it's possible to get the same reaction in any other field, but going to Wrigley for what seems like the millionth time, I still look forward to this hair raising moment.

 

What he said.

 

________________________________________________

Sandberg>Mazeroski>Morgan

[XZero771679666304]

If you demolished all of the ballpark save the bleacher area and field and rebuilt it with much nicer amenities (which I think should be done), I don't think it would detract from the experience at all.

 

I have been to Wrigley more times than I can count, but aside from the view of the field/bleachers/scoreboard (which is uniquely fantastic), the place really does suck.

[Tracer Bullet]

I'm not a huge fan of the bleachers. But sitting in the first few rows of the UD or in the terrace is the best way to watch baseball.

 

If you want a new ballpark, become a Cards fan.