I went on a tour of the Target Field construction site yesterday and I am coming to grips that there will no longer be a baseball stadium across the street from where I work, one of the things that has spoiled me for many, many years — even if it the Metrodome.

Like others, I am struck by how much they have been able to do with what seems like a small “footprint.” The place will have baseball quirks — as opposed to indoor baseball quirks — that are consistent with other ballparks that are part of the sport’s lore. They would have been finishing the “Twins” logo atop the scoreboard yesterday, but the wind kept that from happening. So the “w” was lying on the field and the “ins” was all that was in place.

From a fan’s perspective, you will be closer to the field in comparable seats than you are now. My group’s seats in the fourth row of Section 219 (between home plate and third base) should be a significant upgrade over the front row of the current 220. We saw the lower deck concourse and it is in the contemporary ballpark fashion of being able to see the field from most places while walking around.

If you can find someone who’ll take you into the Champion’s Club dining room before the game (admission comes with the top price $175-$275 tickets, so I won’t be issuing those invites), there will be a window that looks into the batting cages, which are located right behind the Twins dugout. (At the Dome, the cage is behind the right-field seats.) You still have to use some imagination right now, but it should be a good place to watch a ballgame. I’m looking forward to seeing the place when its closer to completion. (The Twins players should be happy with their stuff, based on the way it was roughed out and described.)

The public plaza area is beyond the right-field seats and will serve as the main, downtown-facing entrance to the park. The one thing some people could visualize is what would have happened to Justin Morneau’s line drive home run the other night. The wall in right field will be 23 feet high, just like in the Dome, and that home run would have sailed through the plaza area — with a good chance of ending up at 7th Street Entry after a few hops along the pavement. (Think of the driving contest scene from “Tin Cup”)

It should be a good place to watch and play baseball, especially if you start collecting warm clothes and rain gear now. We’ve had a 28-year break from thinking in those terms, and that part will take some getting used to.

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 28th, 2009 at 10:20 am and is filed under Thoughts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.