Twins fans are anxious for Target Field to open
Following are opinions from Mille Lacs County Times editor-sports editor Gary Larson, reporter Luther Dorr and former Times intern Logan Marxhausen who’s now on the sports staff at the St. Cloud State University Chronicle. Note: This feature is written on Monday each week.
********
•Question: Spring training is in full swing for the Minnesota Twins as they head towards their first season at Target Field. How anxious are you to see a game first hand at Target Field?
-Dorr: I’ve been waiting for 30 years to get the Twins back outside and I’m looking forward to seeing outdoor American League games. There will be some weather problems, for sure, but it’ll still be way better for the games to be outside. I imagine there will be some problems to be ironed out in the operation of the stadium but maybe those will be taken care of after the University of Minnesota game and the two exhibition games with St. Louis. The summer months will bring enjoyment for thousands and thousands of Twins fans who have never seen an outdoor Major League game. The positives far outweigh the negatives.
-Marxhausen: I am pretty anxious to get to a game this season, but what really bothers me is if I am going to have to grab my jacket or not. Yes, the game of baseball is meant to be played outside in the natural environment, but having a dome had major benefits. Not worrying about whether the game will be rained out or not was a good feeling. I guess I am just saying I like the safety and guarantee that the dome provided for all fans. Just because the team has moved outside does not deteriorate my passion to watch them play. I want to catch the latest the team has brought together this past off-season and see first hand how the season will turn out.
-Larson: This is a tough one for me. I’m not as forgiving when it comes to pro sports as many are. I remember the late Twins owner Carl Pohlad threatening the state legislature that he’d sell the team to a prospective owner in North Carolina if Minnesota didn’t cough up some stadium money. The potential deal was bogus.
I remember the Twins announcing a contribution for a new stadium that turned out be a loan proposal.
And, I remember what was perhaps the most embarrassing moment in Minnesota pro sports history when Pohlad raised his hand and said “take me” when baseball talked about contraction.
There wasn’t much joy in my heart when it was announced that Target Field would be built.
But, time marches on. And, my nephew Tom Mix, a sportswriter at the Fargo Forum and a huge Twins fan, has invited me to take in a game this summer. Note, I said SUMMER. I know I’ll enjoy the game and the experience. A plus for the Twins is that they almost always field teams with players who are easy to like. So, I am looking forward to games at Target Field.
********
•Question: There are quite a few “obstructed view” seats at Target Field. Would you buy one of those tickets?
-Dorr: Many stadiums have some seats where the view is somewhat obstructed and Target Field has some where fans will be unable to see part of the outfield. For example, some fans won’t be able to see the center fielder if he goes up against the wall. I wouldn’t enjoy having a seat like that but, if it was a playoff or World Series game and it was the only seat I could get, yes, I would buy one.
-Marxhausen: I would absolutely not buy an obstructed view ticket. I go to the games to experience the energy and excitement from the crowd, the determination by players to make a play and to watch this happen. I don’t want to worry about whether I will see what happens next in a play. I would rather sit at home and watch it on the television than attempt to catch part of a game behind obstructed view. Maybe some people would like to do that and that is great that they are supporting a local team, but I would not want to miss a critical play or an intricate part of a game because I am staring at a piece of concrete.
-Larson: The Twins knew before the first shovel of dirt took place at Target Field that there would be areas where fans wouldn’t be able to see the entire field. The Metrodome had some obstructed view seats for baseball and football and most, if not all, stadiums have such seating. So, why put seats there? Revenue, of course. If the attraction is there, people will pay to be in the stadium, even if their view is hampered. For me, the lure of “being there” isn’t great enough for me to purchase obstructed view seats. I’d feel I got cheated.
********
•Question: The 2010 Winter Olympics are over. One of the most watched events was men’s hockey. National Hockey League Commissioner Gary Bettman has stated that the league may reconsider allowing its players to participate in the Olympics, citing the threat of injuries and the lengthy break in the NHL schedule. How do you feel? And how about NBA players participating in the Summer Olympics?
-Dorr: I’d enjoy both hockey and basketball more in the Olympics if professional players weren’t playing. That’s not to say that Sunday’s game between Canada and the United States wasn’t enjoyable. It was a great game, as was the earlier game between the two countries. But a return to having college-age players on the roster for both sports would be fine with me. And if I owned a NHL team, for example, I don’t think I’d like the long break in the schedule, especially if things were going well at the gate and on the ice.
-Marxhausen: No matter what anybody says about the Winter Olympics, I thoroughly enjoyed watching them day in and day out to catch the latest and greatest. This year’s Olympics was full of great stories like Apollo Anton Ohno, Lindsey Vonn, Shaun White, the men’s hockey team, bobsledding and many other winter games. The hockey portion of the Olympics peaked my interest in such a great competitive match-up between Canada and the United States. They put on a great performance for the gold medal game. The NHL players are the best players in the world when it comes to hockey. All the really good overseas and Canadian players play in the NHL and for the league to tell them they cannot play for their country is a humiliation and an atrocity. Let the players decide if they want to participate. It’s not as if it interrupts the season every year, but once every four years. If the athletes want to do it, then nobody should tell them otherwise.
-Larson: Bettman needs to think about this. I’m guessing that there were a lot of folks who don’t follow the NHL who did tune in to the Olympic hockey games. The announcers constantly reminded viewers which pro teams players were a member of, so it was a great way for the NHL to promote its product. Maybe having its players in the spotlight during the Olympics will result in the NHL seeing an increase in viewers the rest of the season. It would be a bad move for the NHL or NBA to cut ties with the Olympics.
I agree with Luther that there was something special about the U.S sending amateur athletes to compete with the world’s best, amateur and pro.
********
Do you have an opinion on any of this week’s questions? Do you agree or disagree with the sportswriters? Let us know by sending an e-mail to editor.millelacscotimes@ecm-inc.com or a note to Mille Lacs County Times, 225 S.W. 2nd St. Milaca, MN 56353. Or comment online.
