I love baseball as much as football, but in totally different ways. Football is about high energy weekends and giving it all you have while rooting for your team. Baseball is about relaxing, sipping a beer on sunny afternoons and childhood memories.

Geaux Rangers!

Astros/Braves was my first game. I grew up a fan of both teams, and when they were in the same division I used to drive over to Houston and catch a game or two every season. Ah, the Astrodome. LOL

My biggest memory was Maddox versus Bagwell in a game the Braves had all but won. Bottom of the Seventh, and Greg has a freakin no-hitter going. Up strolls Jeff and I was screaming WALK HIM! WALK HIM!

It wasn't a PERFECT game at that point, just a no-no, and Maddox had already made Jeff look bad twice. I knew it, and I'm pretty sure Jeff knew it, but Maddox never gave in to anybody as we know.

I don't remember the count, but I remember the sound. WHACK! The dame thing barely made it into the flower bed over the left field wall, but it grazed the top of the Astrodome the whole way.

Anyway. Braves win...a ONE HITTER! I still have my score card from that game. :-)

I love football and baseball, and played both. Growing up in the Houston tv viewing area, (but in the sticks) it was Astros all the way, even though, like the Saints and Oilers, they sucked too.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...stros_logo.gif

I wasnt just a casual fan. When I was a kid, if the game wasnt on tv, I would listen to the entire game on radio, pitch by pitch. I was glued.
Now you tell me, what kid today has the attention span to listen to baseball on radio?

But I remember being excited about the game just coming on the radio. And whenever we would just drive by the Astrodome, I was ready to jump out of my skin with excitement. I was stoked just going to the stupid Rodeo-- because it was in the Astrodome. (although seeing Sonny & Cher was a life experience.)

So you can imagine how pumped I was as a kid to actually get to go IN the Dome and see a game. It was all I could do to not explode when we walked into the concourse, and I could see the turf. Every player was a
movie star to me. We had Bob Watson, Cesar Cedeno, and my favorite, Jose Cruuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuz. Going to an all-white school , I looked up to Cruz, who showed me it was ok to be Spanish. (not that I care what color anybody is, but just think like a kid for a moment -- no kid wants to
be different, not in the 70s. Every boy needs a man he can look at and say, "Oh, I'm like him. Ok.")

Knuckleballer Joe Niekro pitched for us. (His brother Phil was a Brave.)Our opponent was the San Francisco Giants, with Willie McCovey-- wow!
Every pitch, every inning. I didnt go to the can. I didnt want to eat. Between innings, I watched the players throw warmups. If there was absolutely nothing happening on the field, I marveled at the spiderwork ceiling of the Astrodome, and the giant flags, and the giant scoreboard-- all colored bulbs, and this one weird part of the Dome that looked like the bridge of a ship. I wondered what went on in there. To this day, the Astrodome is the most interesting building on earth. (Reliant Stadium sucks large green donkey.... I hate- hate - hate it. )

We sat in the mezzanine, (orange section) home plate. Best seats you can get, though I've sat everywhere and love every seat there thats not under an overhang.

So the game was tight, but the Astros led till the 9th, when the Giants scored two, then we didnt score, and --- the game went extra innings!!!!!! I was the happiest person in the building. A scoreless 10th, scoreless top-of-the 11th, and then guess who came to the plate. Jose Cruz. It was like a dream when he launched a bomb to left-center. (this is the old Astrodome dimensions -- even fewer homers than the updated walls of the 80s-- and it was still a pitchers park afterward!) It was gone! Astros win. Cruz is the hero. I have the program.

So that was then. Minute-Maid is just ok. Lots of bells, whistles, yuppie stuff, and stuff to distract kids, so maybe they'll sit still. Mostly, like Reliant, its named after a corporation, and the fans look like "clients" to me. I dont recognize these brick-colored uniforms, supposed to look like an east coast team in the '30s. That was never us. Sometimes they even wear pinstripes. And I dont know when black became an Astro color. Its supposed to be orange and blue. And later the rainbow rocket blast, with the space-odyssey 2001 lettering.

Worst of all, the Astros, who had Nolan Ryan, Mike Scott, Neikro, J.R. Richard, Larry Dierker, Don Wilson, Joaquin Andujar, and Ken Forsch, no longer have pitching- and havent since they moved to MM.

The Astros are terrible and hopeless again this year. And there wasnt a damn thing wrong with the Astrodome or the Rainbow Jerseys.

But I cant wait to go to the ballpark.

Nice thought!

What about the Red Sox start to the year? That's a bit of a suprise, no?

Its awesome, just like when the Yankees lose. A Yankee loss is a win for baseball, because they're always trying to buy a championship. Baseball shouldnt be a game of monopoly-- it should be baseball.

Glad to see the Royals winning. Hate to admit it, but I'm also happy to see the Reds winning. There's something I like about the whole Cincinnati
Sports tradition. Small town like us. (talking N.O.) tight.

Here's something interesting. Both the Red's world series runs in recent history came courtesy of the Astros. In the 70's it was because we gave them Joe Morgan and Dennis Menke--- thats when the Big Red Machine took off. Then in the 90s, we let em get away with Billy Hatcher and Bill Doran. Another W.S.

Man I remember Curuuuuuuuuuz. 'Member Rafael Rameriez - Braves SS from back in the 80's? Do you remember the Braves knocking a damn good Astros team out with a totally lucky stab by Jeff Blauser at SS for Atlanta?

Man I was a baseball junkie back then...and hey Mike, when I was a kid I was also completely in awe of the Astrodome. One of my earliest memories...even in my life...was seeing ELVIS in the Astrodome. I was 4. I remember being there and seeing all the glitter on the stage from damn near the top of that thing!

Oh and I totally forgot Joe Morgan was in the Astros organization. Somewhere along the way I attached myself to J.R Richard. I guess I must have seen him dominate against the Braves on TBS or something, but I'll always remember him.

As for the new Stadiums, I agree with your sentiment, but if you haven't done so you should check out the ballpark in Arlington. That truly is a great place to see a game.

I do remember Rafael Ramirez well. He ended up playing for the 'Stros, and platooned with Craig Reynolds, whom, my aunt used to babysit. RR was a badly needed stick, as our roster was filled with great pitching & defense, but our best hitters hit about .230. Also, he looked crosseyed, and I think he used the Force, when he threw to first.

What I remember about J.R. Richard was vs. the Reds, who we hated. I mean, we didnt just want to beat them, we wanted to beat them. We dont think Pete Rose "hustled." We think he played dirty. All of em wanted to talk sh**. Ray Knight started a bench clearer once, just running his mouth. freakin Reds. Even Nolan Ryan got into the hostility, when one of their pitchers took to doing this "in your face," humping pose, after a strikeout. Ryan started mocking the guy after he struck out Reds. It was beautiful. Anyway, J.R. could get the bases loaded, then strike out the side, and leave em stranded. Just burn their a$$es.

Im glad to hear someone else was fascinated by the Astrodome. Everything about it was interesting: the worlds biggest air conditioner. the giant flags. remember the huge gulf sign? just sitting in the yellow section was like looking off the cliff of a mountain. the colors everywhere, the "exploding" lighted scoreboard... the super-bright turf. what the hell were those swamp trees at the bottom of the dome for?
and did you ever just look up at the catwalks on the roof and wonder who has the guts to walk those?

... and you saw Elvis. I remember when that happened. This girl on my school bus came back with pictures. It was a whole day's worth stories.

--------Well, the Astros got the 2nd lowest attendance in Minute Maid history last night. Good seats are available. I know they suck, but it
is the Cubs --- whom we're supposed to be nasty to. Just another reminder what a pathetic sports town Houston has become.

HEY SF, come watch an Astros game with us.