Nationals Park is... Nice.

Got a look at the New Nationals Park last week and thought I would write a review. But I realized just before sitting down to write that I really didn't see enough of the park to write an ESPN-Rob-Neyer-style review. He usually reviews things like the concession stands and the sightlines from all angles. Turns out that in order to write that kind of review you have to have ESPN footing the bill (in order to buy all of those overpriced concessions) and you have to be willing to basically miss the game, as you wander from one deck to the other. I wasn't willing to do that, so frankly, all I have to go by is my view from twenty rows back in left field and my $7 Budweiser. The Budweiser came in one of those red metal bottles that, for some reason, you can only get at the ballpark. It tasted like Budweiser. The seats (which cost $3 more than the beer) were likewise generic. In retrospect, I should have gone with the $5 bleacher tickets and then just moved down to the arguably better left field seats. It wouldn't have been hard. Even though it was Game Three at the new park, there was no shortage of empty seats. I think part of it was because the Nats were hosting the Marlins, but let's face it - part of it was also because the Nats are pretty horrible. The early returns suggest to me that they actually might be a little worse than they were last season. The teams, and the game (a 10-4 Marlins blowout) weren't pretty. And the park? It was... (thinking of an adjective)... nice. Yeah, I think that's the best I can do. Getting off the Metro, I was greeted by the lights of the park immediately. The walk to the stadium is certainly a lot more pleasant - and a lot shorter - than the walk to RFK. And I like that when you walk in from the Metro you wind up in right in leftfield. But once I walked in and got my bearings, I felt - well not exactly indifferent, but like something was missing maybe. Don't get me wrong - there is nothing really the matter with the stadium. It just lacks that extra something. By my count, this is the sixteenth major league baseball stadium I've been to (including a few now defunct parks like The Vet and three Rivers). With the exception of those two, every park I've seen has had something unique to offer. Fenway, Wrigley and Yankee Stadium have obvious character, as do some of the new ones I've seen, like Orioles Park and The Jake. (Incidentally, I'm watching the Sox play at The Jake as we speak. Did you know it was called Progressive Field now? You have my personal permission never to call it that.) Even the less well known parks have something going for them. KC has those fountains in the outfield. The new Phillies park is beautiful and has that goofy liberty bell out in center. Even Shea (which is probably the current worst park in the NL and, along with Oakland, Minnesota and Tampa Bay the worst in the majors) has the home run apple in center. Nationals Park has a sign in center field that says Nationals and a clock with stars where the numbers should be. Fireworks shoot off behind the scoreboard when a National hits a home run. The view over the centerfield fence is of the watefront. It's nice, but it's not like seeing the Capitol Building or the Washington Monument or, I don't know, anything that might remind you that you are in DC. And again, it's a nice park. And it's really clean, and the views are good, and it's certainly better than RFK. But really, it's just a ballpark. And, after my first visit there anyway, I'm not sure there's much else to say about it.

The Sox are coming off three consecutive good games. I spent Friday evening at Cleveland Park Bar and Grill watching them get two hits and lose to Chien-Ming Wang. Close game but I just had a bad feeling early. Wang just looked too good - I think he finished the game at under 100 pitches - and we really getting any good at-bats. Most people in the bar were glued to the Capitals game (which was a really great game), but there were two Yankee fans standing next to me. With two outs in the ninth, and the Sox down by four, Coco got a bunt single and I cheered wildly. Apparently my humor was a little too subtle for them. "Scoreboard!" one of them said, high-fiving his friend. It seemed pointless to explain my joke to the Yankee fans. So I left immediately after the next (and final) out.

I wished I had been at the bar on Saturday. Becket pitched well, Delcarmen rebounded with a big strikeout of Jose Molina (who is inexplicably hitting .364 at the moment), and Manny hit the longest home run I've seen so far this year. In the bottom of the eighth, with two outs and two on, and the Yankees down by one, the Sox brought in Papelbon. And then there was a long rain delay. I had dinner plans so I missed the end of the game. I guess it says something that that's what I'm choosing to complain about from this game.

Sunday night was long and slow an tedious. Dice-K looked all out of whack and everyone in Boston looked cold. Fortunately, Philip Hughes looked more out of whack. Everyone says that baseball is slow, and usually I try to defend it. But no, on Sunday night it was just slow. We won though, thanks to the pen. David Aardsma and Javier Lopez, of all people, looked pretty good.

And then there was Monday night's game, which I took in at Lucky Strike, the weird trendy bowling alley across from the Verizon Center. Good place to watch a game actually. There's nothing like watching Manny hit a game-winning home run on a giant screen right above the pins. It also helps to be watching that game while you happen to be bowling with several diehard Indian fan friends from college. And it helps even more if you happen to be schooling said friends in bowling. Not to gloat or anything.

A few hot/nots:

Hot

• Clay Buchholz's girlfriend - Have ya seen her??
• Manny
• Youk
• Papelbon
• Jed Lowrie (3 RBI's so far in his first game!)
• This Korean Drummer

Not

• Papi (but he's coming back...)
• Lester
• Schilling's possibly fabricated threat to go to the Yankees