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The Peep Show of Baseball
© 2002
by Darryl Musick
This report's a little bizarre. Yes, we kinda saw a game played here but not in any normal sense. I'll put the baseball icon on and let you decide with the story below.
Look at a picture of Toronto and you can't help but see the SkyDome. It's right at the bottom of the spectacular CN Tower.
It's one of the most unique parks in baseball and, yet, very generic in feel. It has a retractable roof for inclement weather but the design doesn't stand out as it does in Houston, Seattle, Milwaukee, or even Arizona.
There's already legends of an Urban nature surrounding the park. Yes, it's true that baseball fans were treated to unobstructed views of a couple having...shall we say...relations in one of the rooms of the hotel built into the outfield.
There is accessible public transit nearby...a subway and buses...but many of the outlying stations are not accessible.
SkyDome is located in the heart of downtown Toronto near many restaurants and pubs. Maybe it's just me, but downtown Toronto isn't near as lively as other big cities such as New York, Boston, San Francisco, or even Chicago.
Inside the park, everything is clean. The blue seats and bright green astroturf are kept in good repair. The standard concessions are here, there's just not much else to make the stadium stand out from the pack.
As for accessibility, there are two levels. One with good seat near the baselines and home plate, and another in the outfield. I was a bit dismayed to see that accessible seats cost more than regular seats. We passed on buying them.
It is also not a heartening thing that you have to call ahead to make a reservation to use handicapped parking.
But hey, you said you (sort of) saw a game there? How'd you do that without tickets?
Well, trying to find a place where we could at least get a view of the stadium before we left, we entered through the administrative offices where we were told we could go up an elevator to a restaurant to get a view. We went up and went down a hall where all of a sudden we were in the stadium with no security or employees to tells us where to go, so we stuck around a little bit, walking around checking things out while the Blue Jays played down below. After a couple of innings, we left.
All in all, a rather generic baseball experience at a decent but not great stadium.
STADIUM FACTS:
Tenants: Toronto Blue Jays
Year Opened: 1989
Capacity: 50,516
Surface: Artificial Turf
Accessible via Public Transit: Yes, Subway
Box Office Phone: (416) 341-1234 (for parking call (416) 341-3004)
HANDY LINKS:
Chicago Cubs: toronto.bluejays.mlb.com
Toronto Transit Commission: www.city.toronto.on.ca/ttc/
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