Baseball and whiskey: America’s greatest pastimes
This summer marks the first time I attended a Houston Astros’ game. August 20 I watched the Houston Astros and the Oakland Athletics play at Minute Maid Park.
I enjoy watching sports, but I never get to attend any live games because, as a college student, games never meet my schedule or my budget. Luckily, I have a friend who got free tickets from work and chose to take me, the baseball noob.
I was warned that baseball games are long and boring, so I better enjoy who I go with because we will just end up talking the whole time. This was not a problem as I was going with friends. I was also a little too excited to participate in the overall baseball game experience; overpriced beer, overpriced hot dogs, sing-along songs, etc. It must have been my lucky day because our tickets came with $15 loaded on them for food and drinks.
The game was entertaining and surprisingly intense to watch live. I’m used to watching football and baseball at home or on a bar TV, that gives you close ups. It was so much more fun to watch the game in person because I could see the whole game, not just what the channel would allow.
We had pretty good seats, and we could see all that was happening on the field. One of my favorite parts was when the mascot Orbit came out on the field with a miniature Orbit and the two had a dance off.
It was fun listening to each players’ walk-up songs, this was a good conversation piece. Hey, Alex Bregman, I didn’t hear “Calling Baton Rouge;” did I miss it? Check out The Signal staff’s picks for walk-up songs on Spotify.
One of my favorite things about sports in the unification of people through team spirit, and this was proudly displayed at the Astros’ game. When walking to and from Minute Maid Park, it was just a crowd of orange and everyone was friendly. Even Houstonians who were at work, or the homeless around the street, who did not attend the game shouted “Go ‘Stros!” or “Did we win?”
The audience was in full orange and navy shirts, jerseys and hats. The crowd was enthusiastic and joined in on all the sing-along songs and rally parts. One section even tried to get the wave going, but failed multiple times. The crowd was great until the top of the 8th inning, where fans started to leave early.
Way to walk out on your team guys. I blame your lack of faith as discouragement to the team in its time of need.
After the game, we went over to Reserve 101 for a drink. While the whiskey bar is small – like every other place in downtown Houston – the cocktails are fantastic. The staff was friendly and not nearly as uppity as other downtown bars.
The staff didn’t care that we walked in the bar in casual attire and did not have a broad knowledge of whiskies. The bartenders were helpful in selecting our drinks, explaining the differences between the various whiskies and were eager to educate and serve.
The overage atmosphere is the perfect place to sip an old fashioned. Personally, I prefer going to small bars, ocean view, pool tables – you know, Kemah or Seabrook. Drinking at Reserve 101 felt like I was right at home, even in downtown Houston.
After we finished up at Reserve 101, we made our way over to House of Blues to attend the Seether concert. A friend just so happened to have four extra tickets to the concert – just the right amount – the same night we were up there.
I enjoy House of Blues as a venue. The layout is just the right size; it’s small enough you can see from anywhere, yet big enough to hold a large amount of people. The venue was so sweltering hot on the general admission floor, that I had to go outside to cool off.
Though I rarely go downtown, I’m glad I went because I was pleasantly surprised at how welcoming the crowd was in downtown.
Check out the Snapchat story below for photos from my night!
Also published on Medium.
