It was the perfect evening for a baseball game. And man have I been baseball deprived. Well, watching in person, anyway. Playing softball has been fun, something to look forward to during the week. But it’s summer! It’s baseball season and I find myself struggling to think of a season where I did not see at least one game. Even in college, I talked some friends of mine into driving to St. Louis to catch a Cards game. It wasn’t hard, come to think of it. Just about everyone wants to go to a baseball game, it seems.
And, it turns out, there is baseball in Vancouver.
The Vancouver Canadians are the Single-A Toronto Blue Jays affiliate. I live in a sports desert so I’m not exactly picky here. Baseball is baseball! And I’ve seen minor league baseball before. My brother took me to a Brooklyn Cyclones game last summer when I was out for a visit. It was really fun!
I didn’t exactly have expectations going to the game last night. I just wanted to watch baseball.
The Vancouver Canadians play at Nat Bailey Stadium, which houses ScotiaBank Field.
A very quaint stadium, made me think of “A League of Their Own.” Intimate setting. Players who clearly love playing the game, beating out plays, making amazing catches. There was even a home run! And the crowd was really into it. I didn’t realize there were baseball fans in Vancouver, so it was quite refreshing.
The game itself was pretty exciting. Started out as a pitcher’s duel. Contact but no hits. Then a couple of hits but no runs. A Canadians home run changed that in the bottom of the 5th and the Canadians went on to win 2-0. Closer got himself out of a jam of 2 on and 2 out in the top of the 9th.
Some pretty exciting baseball!
And turns out I know people who also like to watch baseball. Oh, have I mentioned tickets are cheap? $12.50.
Yep. $12.50. And there isn’t a bad seat in the house, from what I could tell. Granted the stadium is small, but it’s still a nice stadium. Lot of charm and character. The walls are decorated with timelines of the Blue Jays organization, and a local sports journalism and broadcasting Hall of Fame. I got the sense that there is a small but loyal fan base for the Canadians, and perhaps for baseball.