Rogers Center - Toronto, Ontario

25 May 2013 - It's strange to say, since I've been a Jays fan all my life, but I honestly thought that the Rogers Center in Toronto would be one of the most challenging parks to get to on the MLB Quest. The reason is a simple one, and one that most Canadians will agree with - air travel in Canada is among the most expensive in the world! Luckily for me, I was approved to attend an educational conference in Toronto, so I was heading back to the Rogers Center for the first time in nearly twenty years! (though it was the SkyDome back then)

Taking a cab to the game, I made sure to give myself plenty of time so that I would not get caught up in traffic. I was fortunate that the Wednesday game had a 4:37 start time, so there was no commuter traffic on the streets.

I was excited to see the Blue Jays again, after they had spent "Yankee money" on free agents during the off season, picking up names like R.A. Dickey, Melky Cabrera, Jose Reyes (injured), Josh Johnson (injured), and tonight's pitcher Mark Buerhle. Though this team has been pretty cold out of the gates in 2013 and are currently last in their division, this is a team with post-season written all over it.

The crowd was small, but intimate and vocal. Over two nights, they gave the opposition plenty of distractions and were generous with their loud support of the home team. I was relieved to see this, as Jays fans have a reputation for having extremely short attention spans and limited understanding of the game. Not on these nights, they didn't. The Jays cruised to back-to-back wins over these two nights, and fans went home happy!

As for the park itself, I was amazed at how well Rogers Center has held up over twenty years. The walkways and entrances all look pristine, the seating shows little sign of wear, and the newly renovated 200 Level concourse (right below the CF scoreboard) offers amazing views for fans. Sure, there are areas that are not as nice, (The ramps are dark and in rough shape, and the washrooms look extremely dated and abused.) but first time visitors to Rogers Center would never guess that it has been a part of Toronto since 1989.

I was hoping that there would be a little more atmosphere immediately surrounding the park, to be honest. Given that it is in the shadow of the CN Tower, being able to sit in a Wrigleyville-style pub area would be a real enhancement to the fan experience. Sadly, fans are limited to a Boston Pizza across the street, unless they want to walk a few blocks to restaurants like Gretzky's or several others.

Last, but not least, comes the hotdog rating! I was tempted before the Thursday game to try the famous Homerun Dog, and I was not disappointed at all. A footlong hotdog loaded with cheddar cheese, bacon, and baked beans, it was an awesome treat for the ballpark. That said, however, I have based the rating below on their Stadium Dog in order to be consistent with other ballparks.

Temperature: 6 / 10
Flavour:         6 / 10
Bun:            5.5 / 10
Juiciness:       6 / 10

Verdict: 2nd last place (Just one point above Oakland)

All in all, not a terribly exciting hotdog. Thanks again to my son, Nigel, for dreaming up the hot dog ratings criteria.

Plans for 2013? Already?

Yep - That's right! We have barely returned from this California marathon, and we are already talking about hitting three parks in 2013.

First, a moderate road trip to Denver will happen at some point, giving us a chance to see Coors Field.  This idea came about when we were waiting for our tour at Warner Brothers Studios to begin, and started talking with a very nice family from Colorado.  I told them all about our quest, and that we'd never been to Denver, and they said that their daughter may have actually been conceived at Coors Field! They were joking, of course, but the horrified teenager beside them didn't see the humour.  I've heard good things about the stadium, so I'm looking forward to a Rockies game next year.

For our actual, for-real, game-on trip of 2013, I believe we will be Florida bound.  My son is a Harry Potter fanatic so, unless we want to travel overseas, we are destined for Universal Studios Orlando.  It looks like a lot of fun, so that is fine by me.  While we are there, of course, we plan to pay a visit to Tropicana Field for a Tampa Bay Rays game and Marlins Park in Miami as well.  I'm looking forward to Marlins Park, as it looks so state-of-the-art and pristine.  Tropicana, on the other hand, has me less excited. 

Tropicana Field, Tampa Bay (above)

Marlins Park, Miami (below)

I like visiting a park where I can cheer for the home team and talk with the locals a bit.  This is not likely in TB.  As a life-long Jays fan, I refuse to wear the colours of ANY other AL East team.  Hopefully they have good hot dogs and get clobbered by an AL team I appreciate, like the Tigers or the Angels.  Either way, I do hope that Evan Longoria is healthy when we are down there, as he was on the DL with a hamstring injury during our California trip.

Angel Stadium

Friday, 27 July 2012 -

Hot dog rating:
Temperature:   8.0/10
Flavour:              5.5/10
Juiciness:            5.0/10
Bun Texture:      8.0/10
TOTAL:        26.5/40