A poster of some of the San Francisco Giants Baseball Stars
When Lewis the Lion flew into America, do you remember that he had spied a baseball pitch from the sky? Well that had planted a seed in his little head that he would love to attend a baseball game if he could whilst in America. Luckily for him, he discovered that professional baseball is played nationwide (Major League Baseball -MLB) most days of the week and furthermore, in San Francisco where he was staying there is a very famous team called the San Francisco Giants. (In fact at the time writing, Lewis the Lion has discovered that they are the new baseball World Champions!). So, he got on-line to find out when the Giants were next playing in their home stadium, the AT & T Park in San Francisco and low and behold, there happened to be a game that very week against the Atlanta Braves! Lewis the Lion couldn’t believe his luck!
Lewis the Lion and Helen get ready for the start of the game!
To add to this lucky streak, his new friend Brent, who was from San Francisco, made sure he could attend by buying tickets for Lewis the Lion, Helen and their friend, Jason.
Jason, Brent and Helen at the baseball
What a kind gesture!
Lewis the Lion and Helen have a baseball blast!
In this way, they would get a taster of a true American sport. Moreover, Brent even bought Helen a Giants’ baseball cap so that she could feel truly American and a part of the atmosphere for the night.
Lewis the Lion is excited to arrive at the AT & T Park
The AT & T stadium is an impressive affair, offering great views of San Francisco Bay as it is just a short walk from the Embarcadero.
Lewis the Lion starts to learn about baseball at the AT & T Park
With a capacity ground of 60,454, Lewis the Lion hasn’t seen anything quite like it. There are even escalators and lifts inside the stands to move the spectators to their seats. In fact Lewis the Lion discovered that the stadium itself is as much a part of going to watch the game as anything else and people could spend as much time enjoying the activities behind the scenes as watching the game itself.
There’s a large variety of food outlets in the stadium
He noticed that there were more than 20 different food outlet stations around the ground, along with merchandise shops selling The Giants’ wares and other activities such as a baseball shoot out behind the pitch itself.
Family fun with shoot outs!
It certainly was a family-friendly environment.
Lewis the Lion looks over the baseball stadium
Brent had purchased tickets for the friends in the viewing bleachers (stands) so for these first-timers to the game, they could appreciate the strategy of the game from above as well as the San Franciscan skyline.
A fabulous view onto San Francisco Bay
A view of the Bay Bridge from the AT & T Stadium
To Lewis the Lion the rules of baseball reminded him very much of a game that he was already familiar with back home that he had played in school: rounders.
Lewis the Lion tries to learn the rules of the game
However, there were a few differences, notably the names of the positions on the pitch, the mound which the pitcher (bowler) bowled from and the sheer speed of the ball between the pitcher and the catcher: these men were finely tuned athletes.
The popular nicknamed ‘Kung-Fu Panda’ bats
Lewis the Lion learnt that Michael Bourn was a particular favourite with the crowd
Player stats on Michael Bourn
as well as a player they called Kung Fu Panda! People even carried cuddly panda bears with them in support of him!
The popular ‘Kung-Fu Panda! ‘
As the game progressed, the friends left their seats in the bleachers to take in the stadium and see the flow of play from a different angle.
Lewis the Lion draws closer to the pitch side
Click here to see some of the run of play. Lewis the Lion loved the crowd participation during the game. It really seemed like a great family night out, with the crowd singing along to some old-time music hall music when they players managed to get a home-run. (When they hit the ball and run around all of the bases). He even had his photo taken with Helen and some friendly San Francisco policemen as you can see here.
Lewis the Lion meets some American police officers
Whilst there, Helen tried one her San Francisco favourites: a clam chowder in a sour-dough bread bowl. Delicious!
Clam chowder at the baseball stadium
However, as Lewis the Lion noticed when he first entered the ground, they really were spoilt for choice when it came to food and drink in the stadium: hot dogs, hamburgers and garlic fries seemed to be other popular choices.
Hotdogs are a popular snack in the stadium
From the lower part of the ground, there were television screens also broadcasting the game live as it was sometimes difficult to see it all in its entirety. However, you were certainly closer to the action as the supporters were warned of flying balls and bats!
TV screens broadcast the game live
The crowd is warned of flying balls and bats!
There was also an enormous scoreboard at the foot of the stadium that displayed the running total. At the end of the game, Lewis the Lion was delighted as San Francisco Giants had won!
The final result of the game: runs and half runs
What a lucky lion he was indeed to see the Giants win in their home-city!
If you are interested to find out more about the rules of baseball, click on this link.
