Tampa Bay Rays Baseball - Advice Please

[matt1902]

Hi All

We are off to Florida for our honeymoon in May 2011 and I would really like to do something all-American.... a baseball game.

I have noticed that the Tampa Bay Rays have games on with teams like the Yankees while we are over there and I am very tempted but I was wondering if anyone has any advice about going to a baseball game, such as:
> Where to sit (dont want to spend massive amounts but want to have a decent experience too)
> How soon before the game starts you should consider getting there
> How long a game lasts (I notice that in a lot of cases the same team is played on more than one consecutive day - wondering what that is all about)
> And anything else you think it might be worth to know

Thanks

 

[wickesy]

We've been to a couple of pre-season games at Wide World of Sports so I can help with a couple of points.

There's no need to get there too early - half an hour or so before game time will be fine.
A game lasts somewhere around 3 hours.
As you've seen teams will play each other two or three times in as many days. These are a series of games not one long game like a test cricket match would be.

I don't think you can have a bad seat at a baseball game but hopefully somebody who has been to Tropicana Field can give you some hints on the best seats.

Hope that helps.

 

[steve_rob]

Been to a number of baseball games in the States (and Japan in fact) and although I've never been to Tropicana Field, most seating for baseball is pretty similar.

As Wickesy says, there are no bad seats per se, it all depends on what you want to see, and how much you want to pay. Here's a map of the stadium (cause I'm going to refer to section numbers during this next bit): http://tampabay.rays.mlb.com/tb/ticketing/seating_pricing.jsp.

Want to see the dual between pitcher and batter? Sit behind home plate (sections 101-106). Of course, some of these seats (especially the ones coloured white on the diagram) are some of the most expensive in the house, but you'll still get a great view from the less expensive pale blue seats - in fact I'd say being higher up here can be an advantage as you can see more of the field, so don't rule out the upper decks (seats in the 200 range).

Want to sit cheaply and hopefully have a chance to catch a home run ball? Sit in the bleachers at the back (sections 140-150, both sides). However, you might want to bring binoculars if you really want to see the game up close.

Want to see the fielding up close and all the action at the bases? Sit on the 1st or 3rd base lines (sections 114-120, even numbers 1st base side, odd numbers 3rd base side). The nearer you can sit to the front here the better - my personal preference would be to sit in about section 116/118 in the black coloured seats, but anything nearby in the light blue would also be good - I prefer 1st base side as there tends to be a little more action.

Two other things to be aware of - at the moment they only seem to be selling season tickets. Not sure when single game tickets go on sale, but if you can find out the date, make sure you purchase not long after that. While Tampa games rarely sell out quickly, it's always nice to have the pick of the seats to make sure you get the ones you want. The other point is that most of the Yankees games are classed as "Platinum" tickets, which are the second most expensive. If you really don't care who you see them play, it may be worth picking a game against say, the Baltimore Orioles and getting in cheaper.

If you've got any questions feel free to post or PM.

 

[Daftondisney]

We did this as a spur of the moment thing while staying in Orlando in July. We have an 11 year old son and 16 year old daughter. We bought tickets via a ticket master stall in a shopping mall in Orlando on the Wednesday for the Saturday, to see the bay rays play the Cleveland Indians. My daughter swore she would hate it and my wife isn't sporty.

My advice to you is......DO IT!!!!

1. We all loved it! Tropicana Field is ultra modern, spacey and comfortable.
2. Our seats were fairly cheap as I recall. About 20 dollars each and I thought it was a decent view, not behind the plate but still fairly close to the action.
3. We arrived about two hours early for the stadium opening. Working was easy, accessible from Orlando and about 10 dollars.
4. Upon stadium opening it wasn't crowded and there are a couple of plush restaurants inside that you don't have to reserve for (although you can if you choose) that you can eat in before the game. We sat at a table overlooking the pitch and stuffed our faces at the all you can eat buffet while watching the teams warm up. Again, reasonable prices...about 90 dollars for four us!!!! Only condition was we had to vacate the table before the game started...which suited us fine.
5. The game was about three and a half hours lasting from 630pm till about 10pm
6. There was a great club store and even a pool of live stingrays for the kids to see!
7. My daughter even enjoyed the baseball..."oh it's quite like rounders!!"
8. we just went on spec as average spectators but it felt, with the dining experience, like a VIP trip. All for under 200 dollars for four of us.
9. The game was well attended but far from full - about 20,000 in a 50000 stadium, so it never felt stressed.

We did the Man Utd VIP package in October which cost 300 pounds for three of us for a similar package. The baseball was far better value!

Do it. Enjoy!

 

[Daftondisney]

We did this as a spur of the moment thing while staying in Orlando in July. We have an 11 year old son and 16 year old daughter. We bought tickets via a ticket master stall in a shopping mall in Orlando on the Wednesday for the Saturday, to see the bay rays play the Cleveland Indians. My daughter swore she would hate it and my wife isn't sporty.

My advice to you is......DO IT!!!!

1. We all loved it! Tropicana Field is ultra modern, spacey and comfortable.
2. Our seats were fairly cheap as I recall. About 20 dollars each and I thought it was a decent view, not behind the plate but still fairly close to the action.
3. We arrived about two hours early for the stadium opening. Working was easy, accessible from Orlando and about 10 dollars.
4. Upon stadium opening it wasn't crowded and there are a couple of plush restaurants inside that you don't have to reserve for (although you can if you choose) that you can eat in before the game. We sat at a table overlooking the pitch and stuffed our faces at the all you can eat buffet while watching the teams warm up. Again, reasonable prices...about 90 dollars for four us!!!! Only condition was we had to vacate the table before the game started...which suited us fine.
5. The game was about three and a half hours lasting from 630pm till about 10pm
6. There was a great club store and even a pool of live stingrays for the kids to see!
7. My daughter even enjoyed the baseball..."oh it's quite like rounders!!"
8. we just went on spec as average spectators but it felt, with the dining experience, like a VIP trip. All for under 200 dollars for four of us.
9. The game was well attended but far from full - about 20,000 in a 50000 stadium, so it never felt stressed.

We did the Man Utd VIP package in October which cost 300 pounds for three of us for a similar package. The baseball was far better value!

Do it. Enjoy!

 

[Helen B]

I've been a couple of time. First time we sat on the 1st base line, and the 2nd the 3rd base line, both really good views, but the latter was cheaper.

As for when to get there, it really depends on who's playing.

First time was against Anaheim Angels, in June 2006, and it didn't really matter, not a huge crowd and easily got parked.
Second time was Boston Red Sox, in September 2008 (when Rays made the play offs,) and getting parked was horrendous, but we made it in time for the first pitch.

So my advice is, if you're going to a Yankees game, make sure you allow plenty of time.

I'll always remember when we were at the Angels game, the lady behind us, saying there wasn't many there, and the man saying "well we are earlier than normal." That was in about the 5th inning.