Oakland Park Baseball

Tonight I was at the A's vs. Giants game, and I was twice threatened with ejection from the park. The first time I was threatened with ejection was before the game had started, Jason Ellison and Pedro Feliz were in the outfield throwing the ball back to each other, and I knew that once they were done they were going to throw it into the crowd as is the custom of the home team once done warming up.

So, I'm standing there with my glove hoping they'll notice me, and throw a ball to me. Within three minutes of waiting for them to finish thier warm ups, an usher comes over with me to a firm tone and gesturing to get back to my seat. He approaches me and says: "If I catch you here again during the game, I'll throw you out of the park."

This made me wonder why standing here before the game had started was such a defamation of the rules. So I asked why he was going to throw me out of the park for standing where I was standing before the game had even began.

His response was pretty much along the lines of: "Because I've got a badge that makes me more special than you even though you're paying my salary, but I like telling people having fun they can't have fun by using fear tactics." That's not verbatim, but it's pretty damn close to it without getting an answer for my why question when given a verbal answer from this guy.

Anyway, I went through about seven more innings ignoring the fact this guy was a total asshole, and I was having a good time yelling at Oakland fans, and telling them to sit down and return to Raiders Stadium. When one of the A's players hits a solid drive into center field where the ball looked like it might fly over the wall on a bounce, I sprang from my seat and run down to the landing of the bleachers to get ready for the possibility that I could catch this ball. Jason Ellison then made a diving attempt to catch the ball, but ended up blocking the ball with his body to prevent the ball from getting further away from him.

As the play ended, I'm walking back up the stairs to my seat, and here comes the same asshole again saying: "If I see you run down from your seat like that again, I'll eject you." My response to that was: "Good to know Warden."

Amazed that he didn't throw me out for that comment, I went on to watch an agonizing defeat of the Giants, and it's made me realize that my last two games I've gone to haven't really been that pleasant because of some over-zealous power hungry usher.

Peter and I had attended the very first Nationals vs. Giants game and there was an usher who after having to spend nine innings with this last usher, looked like a laid back turtle when compared to this last usher. This turtleish looking usher would constantly ask to see your ticket even if you spent three minutes away from your seat and returned even if he had seen you pass in those three minutes.

This turtlish usher (I'll call him Turtle from now on.) had envoked the wrath of the fans who thought this guy was being too hard on the fans. With individual remarks from the crowd of "Ticket! You gotta Have Yer Ticket!" or, "Terrorists don't have tickets!" To group chants of: "You Suck! You Suck! You Suck!" and "Tiiiiiickeeet, Tiiiiickeeet." It's apparent that they solved this problem with overzealous ushers by replacing them with radical ushers.

This really makes me long for the Candlestick Park days where you could hang bedsheets demoralizing the other team from the rafters all game long, instead of being lucky enough to have them up for two outs. This really makes Oakland A's fans look more devoted than Giants fans, and I think that's a shame.

Wow! I thought you were talking about the same asshole! But there's two!

You should totally send (and edited version) of that story to the Giants front office. I have heard good stories about people who have complained about stuff, and it got changed. I could send one in too, backing you up (so it doesn’t seem like this one guy (you) has a vendetta. Maybe I could add this story:

My previously worst experience with an PacBell/SBC/Willie Mays Park usher was when it was top of the 9th, 2 outs, two strikes, and Rob Nen on the mound. You know the deal: you stand up and cheer on the end of the game! So, our whole section is standing up, but I look over at an usher, and they are using hand motions to tell me to sit down! I said "it's a ball game, not the fucking opera!"

I blame the usher for the fact that the next pitch was a game tying, 2-run HR!

Yeah Go A's

Ahh which is why I love the empty confines of Section 334 Row 1 seats 11-14 at the Big Mac, aka The Net, aka The Alameda County-Oakland Coliseum compared to the edamame eating fans who see SBC as a big Match.com event center. Oh yeah and our old timer ushers are actually (for the most part) some of the coolest guys around)

Damn straight!

AntMoOAK wrote:Ahh which is why I love the empty confines of Section 334 Row 1 seats 11-14 at the Big Mac, aka The Net, aka The Alameda County-Oakland Coliseum compared to the edamame eating fans who see SBC as a big Match.com event center. Oh yeah and our old timer ushers are actually (for the most part) some of the coolest guys around)

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!! YES!

There are so many different ways I agree with this post, although Plaza Level can be fun, too. Not to mention field level (minus the no-signs rule). And thank you for citing its true name: The Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. I also dislike the sushi-nibbling latte-swilling leather jacketed fans at SBC/Pac Bell/McCovey Park. Not that I'm dissing the old Giants fans from Candlestick days with a million pins on their hats and white hairs on their chins. I used to go to many games with some die-hard lifelong old lady Giants fans as a wee lad. It's the fucking Barry Bandwagon yuppie nibblers I can't stand.

However, Oakland has lost two of its best qualities. Mount Davis is a concrete shit pile. Blocking the view of the BART and the hills beyond was the worst thing to happen to that park. No longer can one watch the game through the long fence in center field. No more metal bleachers. No more beautiful view. Also, I really miss the Coliseum fries. They were the best for miles around. Even with garlic on them (mmm, garlic) it doesn't even come close to the richness of flavor they used to have.

Don't forget $2 Wednesdays. How many other parks offer a deal as sweet as that. And none of you Giants fans have any right to point out that they're upper deck seats, since

our old timer ushers are actually (for the most part) some of the coolest guys around)

and will actually let you slip down into the lower deck without question the majority of the time.

Therefore, the Coliseum is the coolest fucking place around.

Well, we do have the free section at SBC.... when I went to school downtown, i could go watch the game durring my lunch brake!