I believe we are nicely positioned to rise above the .500 mark tonight with the Giants' Matt Cain on the hill. He's a fantastic pitcher but he's all hard luck versus San Diego. My optimism runneth over...
[UPDATE: I began writing this in the afternoon. Matt Cain got no run support this evening. Padres won. They are above .500. I WAS RIGHT!!!]
I mentioned, in an earlier post, that I wanted to discuss the "fan experience". Since I attended Friday night's "Chase Headley Walk-Off-Win Bonanza" I figured I'd address that "fan experience" now. The items up for discussion are as follows:
- OBSTRUCTED VIEW SEATS: People who complain about obstructed seats are, in general, a useless lot. When constructing a park where the objective is to get the fans close to the action and you've included a historic brick building into the park, you run the risk of cutting off some viewing angles. Get used to it, crybabies! Having qualified my opinion on people who cry about obstructions, let me say that sitting in Field Pavilion Section 124 SUCKS!!! Can't see the Jumbo and difficult to track all of the other boards simply because I'm not used to it. The 2B by Eck in the 9th required me to jump out of my seat and run down the aisle to see if it cleared the LF's head....it did. I then craned my neck to see the replay. It was nice. I was locked into these seats because I was with a group so there was little I could do about the view but in the future I'll be sure to grab a better seat. I advise you do the same..... or at least keep your mouth shut about those obstructed view seats (click below to continue reading).
- DIRECTIVES FORM THE SCOREBOARD: Seriously, stop telling me to make noise. I know when I should be standing and clapping. I also know when I should just be standing in anticipation. Just because you have fancy graphics doesn't mean you need to use them. I'll try to tell fans when to make noise.....kinda like when you're teaching someone to play Blackjack because you don't want them to take the dealer's bust card and ruin everyone's night. It'll be just like a hand of Blackjack except no money will change hands......
- GAME DAY PROGRAMS: Ooops! Because I was required to socialize at the game in question I didn't dive into the program.....and I forgot it there! Crap! But it was free, small and will allegedly be given away at every game. Dope!
- UN-INFORMED UNIFORMED FOOD STAND PERSONNEL: It came to that point in the game where I needed to switch from cold to hot beverages and boy did those in uniform have a difficult time directing me. I was told to go see a person who then directed me across the way to another who then looked to her partner for guidance.....who then sent me to the appropriate stand. Need a flow chart for that? If I had time I'd make one......since I don't..... PLEASE GET THIS FIXED, MR. GARFINKEL! Every employee should know EXACTLY where all concessions are located. In customer service it's simply not good enough to say "I don't know." Or in this case, to keep sending someone down the line, in hopes that they find what they're looking for. I'm done sounding like grumpy old man.
- YOUNG PLAYERS GETTING IT DONE: When ever young, home-grown players contribute to a win, it's a recipe for a great "fan experience".
- FIREWORKS: They were cool.
I agree whole-heartedly: NO CRYBABIES! Seeing as the ticket salesman/woman notifies you when purchasing that you are buying an obstructed view, I too believe there is little to complain about. I do take issue with your assessment of the scoreboard cheerleading though, my esteemed Avenger-in-Chief. This is San Diego after all. And while I fully appreciate and commend your continued efforts by way of this blog to get San Diegans excited about our franchises, at the end of the day, most people in the stands just don't know enough about baseball, or are not paying close enough attention to the game to know when to stand and cheer on their own. As much as I love this rag-tag group of San Diego sports fans, I will concede many of them need a little enlightenment when it comes to knowing when something noteworthy is about to happen. I've written long enough to comment further about the concession stand folks, but have you ever asked any of them for a scorecard to score the game on? Wow. Just... wow. I might as well have asked them for an anti-gravity device. 2 of them responded to me with a look on their face as if to suggest they were thinking: "What is this 'scorecard' you speak of?"
ReplyDelete@Matt
ReplyDeleteI'm a dreamer..SUE ME!
Like any endeavor in life, baseball is most satisfying when one is continually trying to educate him/her self. I expect fans to try and become more knowledgeable about the game they are following.
For example:
Will Venable came to the plate last Monday with an opportunity to hit for the cycle, a feat yet to be accomplished in our franchise's history. EVERYONE should have been on their feet. As I watched on TV there was not a soul standing.
Lesson one: stand when witnessing greatness or the possibility of greatness.
Lesson two: make noise on all two strike counts. Support your pitcher. Sound boards are not needed.
Lesson three: Keep score at a game. People are clueless as to how/why you would even score a game. Share the process with someone and encourage them to do the same.
The lessons go on and on, many of which, I may be unaware of. I like to learn so maybe some readers will drop some ideas in the bin and my fan experience will be enhanced. I could ask for nothing more.
Your job Matt, is to take what you know and share it with your fellow fans.....in this case, the fans of San Diego, who all too often have other things on their minds.
Spread the Gospel of Baseball!
Maybe instead of crying about how a volunteer tried to help you out, you should be thankful that they pointed you in the directions of someone who could. I went to Costco yesterday and ask for help and the old bag said, "I don't know, it's not my department" then walked away! I'm sure the food service guy making $4.25, is not thinking Nordstrom's service. Bad Blog!
ReplyDeleteFIRSTLY:
ReplyDeleteThey didn't point me in the "right" direction. They pointed me in the direction that was away from them. That's not really considered "helping" someone, it's called getting rid of them. There are a million concession stands to walk up to all stocked with people wearing uniforms. I don't need help in that area. I need help narrowing the concession stands down from a million to approximately 1...because you know...I'm there to watch a game.
SECONDLY:
Well which is it: a volunteer or someone who is getting paid $4.25?
The assumption that I'm running under is that they are being paid in which case they owe it to themselves (pride) and their employer (person who is helping to put food on their table) to do your absolute best.
Of course maybe that's just me. I was always taught that you should do your best and in my book, passing the buck is not acceptable. Clearly you think that it is. The idea that you only have to put in the bare amount of work necessary because you are "too good" to work at such a low wage is the definition of entitlement. That's a "you" problem.
Now that we have established what your work ethic is...or in this case, is not...let's examine the idea of a multi-million dollar organization employing volunteers: I don't think they do when it comes to customer service positions. As a company that is dependent on the public's perception the Padres would be wise to pay a wage that extracts a top level of labor from their employees. And why wouldn't they pay the wage....they're a multi-million dollar company? That would just be cheap not to mention an extremely poor business model.
I would have posted your comment anonymously as well.