Miller Park

I enjoy the summer as it allows me time to visit different major league parks. Wrigley is a favorite since I am a Cubs fan. And a trip to St. Louis and Busch Stadium is always a good experience. Over the last few years I've also attended games in Kansas City, Denver, Philadelphia, Washington D.C. and Minneapolis. And within those same years I've seen the Brewers play in Miller Park. This past week we went back to Milwaukee to see the Brewers play the Cardinals. Outdoor baseball is always a good thing, but when traveling to see a game, it is always a good thing to be guaranteed a game to be played. And in driving to the ballpark, storm clouds neared as the wind picked up, but once inside the stadium those winds could not be felt and the skies began to clear. The roof was open - although it began to close for a little while a half hour prior to first pitch - for a warm night of National League baseball.

 As the Brewers, Milwaukee hasn't had a great deal of success (although they've seen their team in the World Series while most Cubs fans haven't). Names like Molitor and Yount are some of their Hall of Famers and above is Robin Yount (CF and SS) enshrined outside the home field entrance.

 Many of my age group know Bob Uecker for his Miller Lite commercials or his starring role in ABC's Mr. Belvedere, but older fans know him as a major league catcher. And those in Wisconsin know him best as the play by play voice of their favorite team. His home run call, "Get Up, Get Up, Get Outta Here - GONE!" is attached to the Brewer Mascot's home run slide. Whenever a Brewer hits a home run, Bernie Brewer slides down onto a porch waving a Milwaukee flag as Uecker's home run call lights up. The slide is a take from the older County Stadium tradition of Bernie Brewer sliding down from his chalet into a giant mug of beer. Honestly, I miss the mug and would be a little afraid of sliding too recklessly down this slide.

 A favorite tradition for young and old is the Sausage Race presented by Klement's. Bratwurst, Hot Dog, Italian Sausage, Polish Sausage and Chorizo race on the field from left field, behind home plate and finish in right field foul territory. It appears to be a competitive race among those who don the outfits and Italian won the night we were there.

 Not necessarily one of my favorite ballparks, but as I mentioned earlier, when traveling from a distance we are guaranteed to see a ballgame. I think the lighting could be better as watching it on tv and in person there is a yellow tint. I'm not sure about a character to the park either, but there aren't many bad seats and parking and accessibility has to be among the best in the nation. And all the workers we encountered couldn't have been more accommodating. We were welcomed to Miller Park by many, and told that our newest child would receive a commemorative paper for framing of his first major league game.

StubHub was a winner for us on the night. With a 2 1/2 week old and warm temperatures we found a great deal on the ticket reseller web site. Infield Club Seats were available for $25 a piece. With temperatures in the 90s and humidity levels nearing a similar number the club seats were good for my wife and son to cool down while still being able to watch the game on nearby monitors. The bar area was always occupied by Brewer and Cardinal fans, and the area opened up to the suite holders, too.

And the above is for those who haven't seen the Sausage Race.