Tag: The 300s Reviews

The 300s Reviews the Redskins FedEx Field: A Stadium Worthy of Its Team

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Week 5 has come and gone along with Redskins HC Jay Gruden. To be honest, I’m surprised it took this long. The Redskins have been trash for a while now. After winning the division with a 9-7 record back in 2015, they sit at 22-30-1 over the last 3+ seasons and haven’t finished better than 3rd in the NFC East since 2015. Gruden’s firing was even less shocking following the release of this video:

https://twitter.com/PlayoffTrae/status/1180243547418705923?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1180243547418705923&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.complex.com%2Fsports%2F2019%2F10%2Fjay-gruden-weed-young-women

Ha. The ol’ “I’m about to get fired, guess I’ll rip joints and cheat on my wife in public now.” Classic. Way to go, Jay.

Gruden garbage aside, I had the (dis)pleasure of attending this weeks Patriots-Redskins game at FedEx Field. From the moment I first hopped on the metro in Arlington, Virginia, this felt like a home game. Patriots fans were everywhere, and it only felt more packed with nautical blue the closer I got to the stadium. The walk up felt pretty similar to walking to Gillette, considering all the Brady jerseys walking down one long road.

I typically tailgate with my buddies at the Seasonal about a mile from Gillette, so I don’t really know what the actual stadium tailgates are like. That having been said, I was not impressed with the Redskins parking lot scene. There were plenty of Skins fans grilling, but there was a ton of empty space in the lots and barely any sense of the pregame atmosphere that makes tailgating fun. However, there was this guy:

The stadium itself felt like a relic; an ancient gridiron from the days of the leatherheads. Turns out, the place was built in… 1997! I couldn’t believe it. For only 22 years old, I couldn’t believe how worn the place felt. The entrance was also confusing, and didn’t make clear where you were supposed to go until you had already gone in the wrong direction. There were huge beams obstructing views all throughout the 200s, completely blocking off any view of the sky as well as entire 15 yard chunks of field.

That kind of thing is permissible at Fenway because it was built over 100 years ago, before stadium planning and design was a thing. But to build something at the end of the 90’s when your team itself is 60+ years old is downright embarrassing. Although I suppose that’s what happens when you’re owned by Dan Snyder and your team name is the R-words.

If you do decide to go to a Redskins game at FedEx Field, wait until the absolute last minute to buy your tickets. My buddy and I literally bought our tickets as we were walking into the stadium from the tailgate, and paid $120 for seats at the 35 yard line.

Granted, our original seats were obstructed, but there were enough empty seats that we could move around and find a few empty seats here and there. We could’ve bought tickets in the 100’s at the corner of each end-zone for a similar price, or in the 300’s for $70-80. If you buy more than a week out, you’re looking at $180 minimum for seats way up in the 400s. At the end of the day, I would probably go back, but I wouldn’t spend more than $100 and I’d avoid the 200’s unless it’s in the first 10 rows.

LFG

The 300s Reviews: Buffalo Bills New Era Field

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I took my life in my hands and went up to Buffalo to check out this phenomenon they call Bills Mafia. So I’m at the Bills game a couple weeks back and holy hell it was like watching football in the 1950s. The Bills ran the ball FOURTY THREE times including four QB scrambles and only completed 10 passes in a 13-12 win over the Titans. Labatt Blues for everyone! Without further ado, The 300s Reviews: New Era Field….

The 300s Reviews: Guaranteed Rate Field, Home of the Chicago White Sox

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My quest to see all 30 MLB parks has brought me to Chicago this week. To be honest, I’ve been putting off this park for a while, and like my 300s counterpart Big Z, I wasn’t jumping for joy at the chance to see what Guaranteed Rate Field had to offer.

Situated in South Chicago, I’ve pretty much only heard bad things when the White Sox stadium was brought up in conversation. But alas, I’m not in Chicago incredibly often and the quest is to see all 30, so it was time to bite the bullet and check this place out.

I’ve decided to do this review a bit different than my past reviews. Most of the time I’m writing these as a retrospective piece, trying to recall my favorite and least favorite parts of the experience. However, seeing as I was only at this field yesterday, I thought it would be a little fun to give you an exact play by play of how things went down. While I was there, I took brief notes on my iPhone to really capture the essence of what I was feeling in the moment. So I present to you, an unaltered account of my day yesterday at Guaranteed Rate Field.

12:35 pm: Just arrived at Guaranteed Rate Field. So far I feel like I am the only person at the stadium, it’s a ghost town. Checked out the team store, which has a good amount of Cubs gear for no good reason.

12:45 pm: Got a vodka lemonade souvenir cup for 10 bucks. Pretty god damn strong, good price.

12:56 pm: Apparently it’s the mascots birthday. Kind of a lame mascot. No spark, looks dead inside. Although he is named Southpaw, which I appreciate the lame pun for being on the south side of Chicago, and myself being a lefty.

1:07 pm: Decided to do the speed pitch machine. Arm is completely shot. In actual pain. Great form though and hit 60 mph.

1:08 pm: Fireworks mistaken for gunshots. South side Chicago problems.

1:10 pm: Made my way to the upper deck and we have closed concession stands! Supply and demand!

1:19 pm: First inning just ended. So far the best way to describe this place is lifeless. Guy in front of me has taken his shoes off and is reading a Chicago Tribune. I can’t tell exactly, but there also appears to be a 10 year old sleeping a few seats down from him. Beer guy came through and held up a beer, didn’t bark or try to make a sale, and then went back down the tunnel to the concourse.

1:30 pm: Mascot tricycle race. We’re getting desperate

1:38 pm: They’d like you to believe this is Frank Thomas’s number when in actuality it is today’s attendance.

1:48 pm: Apparently you can’t leave the 500s section if you have a 500 level ticket. Calling kangaroo court on this one. There’s no food open up here, so I will fight my way down to the main concourse.

1:53 pm: There are an excessive amount of people making balloon animals. Just had to mention that.

1:58 pm: Not sure if it’s the sweltering heat or last night’s hangover, but I’m starting to have an existential crisis about being at this game and killing another 7 hours til my flight home.

2:06 pm: Grabbing a vanilla cone to try and lift my spirits.

2:15 pm: Cone made things worse.

2:30 pm: Actually watching some of the game now. Moncada with a 3 run double! There’s audible cheering! We may just have life yet.

2:32 pm: And we’re back to deafening silence.

2:35 pm: Jose Abreu with one of the worst slides I’ve ever seen to kill a nice 2 out rally.

2:39 pm: Remember how I said it was the mascot’s birthday? They’re giving out fucking birthday cake. This place is so bizarre.

2:40 pm: “Overall moist and flavorful for a mass produced cake.” – Laurel B

2:44 pm: The cake has now led to heartburn. Luckily I always keep spare Tums on me.

3:16 pm: Just saw a grown-ass man spike his drink because he missed a foul ball. Hardest I’ve laughed all day.

3:18 pm: I think that’s all she wrote for my day in Chicago, overall just an incredibly strange place to watch baseball. Definitely not my least favorite stadium, but it’s probably bottom 3 for me. Crowd started coming alive as the runs were coming home, so this place has the potential to be fun when it wants to be. Time to catch a flight.

Official review: 6.4 out of 10

The 300s Reviews: Not Your Fathers Mountain Ale

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I’ve been excited about this for some time, as I wrote about the new drink when I first heard about its existence. It. Is. Here. In our first video edition of The 300s Reviews, we finally try the Mountain Dew booze we’ve been hearing so much about.

“So now theres an alcoholic Mountain Dew? I want to try it. I need to try it. But its dangerous territory. I’m gonna have to force myself to just sip it like I’m taking communion because if I black out on Mountain Dew booze and ruin the soda for myself I don’t know if I can continue on in this world.”

The 300s Reviews: Camden Yards

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Camden Yards. The mecca of the retro ballpark. This was my 12th stop on the quest for all 30 stadiums and I have to say it did not disappoint.

When I visit new stadiums, there are several factors I try to take into account: the design, the food, the crowd, and the neighborhood. It would be nearly impossible to rank anything based on one of these alone so let’s break it down.

The Design:

Fairly unique. The warehouse in right field is obviously what most people would recognize immediately. The bowels of Camden are very reminiscent to the fields of yesteryear as there is no visible sightline of the field from the inside. The brick work also made me feel like I was at an actual baseball field. In other words, it was modern without being too polished (looking at you Yankee Stadium). I also noticed it felt very clean. Who would have thought something in Baltimore would give me that vibe! Seating was pretty good as well. I took a few laps of the stadium and it didn’t really seem like there was a bad seat in the house, so kudos to the design team.

The Food:

Two words: Old. Bay. They put this shit on everything, huh? Somehow in my near 30 years of existence Old Bay seasoning has alluded me until now. Let me tell you though, it is DELICIOUS. I totally get it. I would put it on my ice cream if it didn’t make me look like a psycho. It really may be the perfect spice. I doused an italian sausage in it as well as my french fries and I’m not sure if I can ever go back. It’s that good. Seasoning aside though, there wasn’t much at this ballpark that you couldn’t find anywhere else. I saw thick strips of bacon on a strip, but alas, my curiosity gravitated towards Old Bay related eats.

Bonus Points – Their own Dippin Dots flavor!

The crowd:

Tough to judge as the Orioles aren’t exactly good this year, but I was kind of expecting more out of a day game on the weekend. It was mostly a family crowd which I kind of understand on a Sunday, but still, I was hoping to see at least one drunk fan escorted out by security. Hands down the funniest thing I saw from the crowd was after the Orioles hit a home run one of the rogue Astros fans in attendance ripped the ball away from a kid trying to snag it in the seats and he threw it back onto the field. The onslaught of boos followed by the man’s gracious bow to his audience absolutely killed me. Kind of a dick move, but still hilarious.

The Neighborhood:

Camden is located right downtown near the inner harbor of Baltimore. I tend to prefer ballparks that are right in the action as opposed to say something like Dodger Stadium or Citi Field that are just so far removed from the downtown areas that even the best of tailgates don’t really help. There are a few bars around that seem like a good time, although I’m not exactly sure how rowdy they get when your team sits in 4th place in your division. Could be better, could be worse.

Overall, I’d probably put this stadium somewhere in my top 5. It was unique enough without being too over the top. I’m actually pretty surprised it took me this long to get there even though it’s only a four hour jaunt from the NY area where I grew up. Glad I got a chance to visit and can’t wait for stop 13 in Washington DC later this summer.

Score: 8/10

The 300s Reviews: Pepsi Fire

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I don’t do these reviews because I’m a masochist, I do it because I’m a man of the people. I do it for you. I’m a big fan of obscure drinks like Surge and Crystal Pepsi. Gotta pick out the diamonds in the rough. The best pumpkin spice latte you’ll ever have will be from 7-11. But for every success theres 10 disasters. I’m here to steer the ship so you know what’s garbage and what is so good that you have to at least try it, bodily harm be damned. With that, I introduce, Pepsi Fire.

Cracking the bottle open and its immediately apparent this is not some half-assed Pepsi marketing ploy; this is something different. The smell reminds me of when you run out of ginger ale and you have to mix Jameson with coke. Not a great start.

Poured it over ice and as its bubbling up I notice an unsettling reddish hue. The things I ingest for this blog.

First sip: It tastes EXACTLY like Fireball, which would have been great for Pepsi five years ago. May have even been a hit for Pepsi had Fireball never been invented. But now the cinnamon carbonation immediately brings back memories of ripping shots at the bar at 1 am. Not exactly what I want to pair with…anything really. Take a sip of this hungover and you might as well just call into work sick ahead of time.

Hey another fun fact, this concoction is WAY worse for you than any normal soda, let alone a diet Pepsi. After I poured it out I took a quick glimpse at the nutrition label before I threw it out and I gasped. Literally gasped. Pepsi Fire has 260 calories and 69 grams of sugar of nutrition in it. Jesus christ. Now I guess thats standard for a Pepsi 20 oz bottle, which I didn’t realize because I’m a devout supporter of asparatime in my diet sodas.

My point is, if you have more than 1 of these a month you are going to be in the dentist chair repairing some serious damage. Which I’d be fine with for a respectable drink, but I cannot knowingly destroy my teeth for Fireball soda. Final verdict: I cannot recommend trying this in good conscience. Pass.

Episode 008 of The 300s Podcast (VIDEO)

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Aaaand we’re back. Episode 008 of The 300s Podcast is hot off the presses and we’re diving into the Celtics offseason, grading Danny Ainge’s recent moves and the Paul George situation. We also debut The 300s Ballpark Reviews with the Miami Marlins, how Aaron Judge has put the fear of god into Red Sox fans, the dominance of Chris Sale and we ask what is wrong with David Price? LETS GET IT.