Looking Back at 2021: The Trop

 
When a spring training trip didn't seem practical last March, a May visit to the Tampa Bay area proved to be a fine substitute. Along with seeing back-to-back series as the Yankees, then the Mets, visited the Rays, plus a quick visits to Al Lang Stadium and a Blue Jays-Phillies game in Dunedin, I got my first chance to see a game inside Tropicana Field.

My friend and frequent baseball travel partner Dennis said it best, "Baseball in a warehouse." The Metrodome/Kingdome-generation aesthetics just don't grab you. Dark -- even with better lighting than years ago -- and dreary with too much gray instead of tropical colors, the Rays play there. It really doesn't feel like a "home,"  just a place.

This holiday week, I'll take a long look at the venue the Rays seem all too eager to leave once their lease runs out in 2027.




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