During my four summers in the San Francisco Area, I went to quite a few Oakland A's games, 10-15 a season. I lived in the East Bay, so it was convenient, and with a military discount, it was cheap, too. I did, however, make it a point to head across the bay at least once a season to Candlestick Park to see the Giants and National League baseball.
I'm amazed that the Giants drew as well as they did, because Candlestick was a complete and absolute dump! It made Veterans Stadium in Philly and the other "concrete donuts" look good. It was cold, cavernous, and uninviting, and that was for a day game! The famous San Francisco marine layer fog made summer nights damp and frigid. The only ballpark where people wore parkas to night games, in JULY! It was in a terrible neighborhood, far from anything but the freeway. I learned that San Francisco fans loved their Giants. If they had a decent ballpark, who knows how they would fill it?
Well, the Giants built a gem along the bay, only farther north, close to downtown in the South-of- Market neighborhood. It is everything that Candlestick wasn't, warm, intimate, and a real destination. They built a great ballpark for San Francisco, and the people came.
One neat feature of the park is the baseball quotes that are scattered throughout, including this one from "Field of Dreams" that is most appropriate. I can hear James Earl Jones' voice booming down the concourse. "People will come, Ray, they will most definitely come."
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