Game 18: June 22, 2014 Phillies at Cardinals

After the Royals game, we went to Gates Barbecue in Independence, enjoying a good meal. After that we hit the road. As I mentioned in an earlier post, there was no Kansas City to St. Louis flight that could guarantee us arriving on time for the game. So the car from Kansas City was going to take us to St. Louis. St. Louis was about 240 miles away. Driving there would've gotten us in late at night. Why pay St. Louis prices for a hotel room that we'd check into and then leave 11 hours later? Instead we drove halfway, to Columbia and checked in at the very reasonably priced Extended Stay America. They did have free Wifi. That's about all I needed. Then we drove in the next morning.

We stopped when we saw the Gateway Arch.

And I took the obligatory stadium shot.

We then went to Ballpark Village. I wasn't sure what it'd be, but heard good things about it. Ballpark Village, it turns out is a few restaurants/bars, one of which has a truly big screen to watch the World Cup. They did have a baseball field similar to what they have in San Diego and New York.

They had a Cardinals Hall of Fame exhibition. There was something similar in Kansas City and New York, but those were inside the ballpark and free. This was outside the park and cost $12. I passed on seeing it.

We went inside and the view from the outfield was very open.

As were the concourses. I liked the food choices and got a carved turkey sandwich. The sandwich was good, but I did struggle to find a beer that wasn't Anheuser Busch lager. I know what you're thinking. This is St. Louis. Anheuser Busch used to own the team and they're a major sponsor. Well, Anheuser Busch does have microbrews. They did feature Shock Top at the stadium, although they are mostly wheat beers. That's not my preference. I've seen Goose Island at stadiums like Comerica Park. Anheuser Busch is owned by InBev, which makes Leffe Brown. I ended up with a Guinness, not made by Anheuser Busch.

Then I went to my seat. Like Citizens Bank Park, they put home plate in a spot that gives a great view. In this case, it's the Gateway Arch. They also are clever for their outfield seats. Rather than block the view, they put them across the street in Ballpark Village. Thumbs up there.

My seat was even cushioned! The only other place I've had a cushioned seat was in Cincinnati and that was because I was sitting in super premium seats. Thanks again, Janet and Mike for that.

The game featured my beloved Phillies, only the second time I've seen them on this quest. Cody Ashe had a big early hit, driving in three runs.

Unfortunately, that's all the Phillies got. The results were like those in Chicago. The Phillies dropped this one 5-3.

Overall, Busch is one of my favorite ballparks. It's very fan friendly, although some of that fan friendliness is outside the stadium.