In the O.C.

This past weekend, I went out to Orange County to spend some time with my brother. For my birthday, he had gotten me tickets to see an exhibition game between the Red Sox and Dodgers at the L.A. Coliseum. I didn't know it at the time, but this turned out to be a pretty big event -- the largest crowd ever assembled to watch a baseball game (115,300 was the announced attendance). Needless to say, the Coliseum is huge, and our seats were in the very top row in the far depths of center field. The game was interesting at a number of levels, aside from the sheer number of people:

- It was only 201 feet down the left field line, with a 60-foot screen above the wall. This caused the Dodgers to use five infielders and two outfielders for the entire game.
- I've never felt so much in the minority as a Red Sox fan. I'd say that probably 90-95% of the fans there were Dodgers fans, wearing their Dodger Blue. Most were also Hispanic, which is an entirely different way to feel like a minority at a baseball game. It reminded me more of a big soccer crowd at Rio than what I'm used to at ballparks here in this country.
- They operated a free shuttle lot from Dodger Stadium, about 6 miles away, but by the time we got there an hour before game time, there were so many people already waiting for a ride that the expected wait time was two hours. This led to a wild ride across town, where eventually, we got a ride to the game from one of my generous friends.
- The Red Sox won 7-4, and even though most fans had left by the 9th inning, it was still plenty loud as the Dodgers mounted a late comeback. I came away very impressed.

Aside from the game, we tried (in vain) to find outfits for me and the groomsmen for the wedding. Men's Wearhouse doesn't rent suits, apparently, and I cannot bear the thought of wearing a tuxedo at my wedding so we're going to have to find a Plan B.

The weekend ended with me returning the favor to my brother, and taking him to an Anaheim Ducks game with Tracy and her friend. I hadn't been to an NHL game in a few years, but although it was a sellout, the crowd was much more tame than the night before. The Ducks won in a shootout in overtime, and everyone went home happy. What a weekend!