We attended a baseball game between the San Francisco Giants and the San Diego Padres, playing at the Giant’s ballpark, Oracle Park in San Francisco, California. What we thought would be our last game of the year (but actually only our last game of the regular season), and the 8th ballpark we’ve visited in our stretch goal of visiting all of the ballparks (six new ones this year, plus re-visiting the Mariners’ park a couple of times).

Bay Bridge:

Oracle Park:

Team store:

Three times world champions:

Concessions:

Burritos:

View from outfield:

Big Coke bottle:

Big glove:

Cable car:

Ferry next to the ballpark:

View from outfield:

World Series rings:

View from our seats:

Orlando Cepeda memorial:

Mascot:

First pitches:

Out at first:

An advertising boat circled for half the game:

Exploring Oracle Park:

Boats and kayaks next to the ballpark, waiting for a splash home run: 

Our traditional ballpark dessert:

Submarine pitcher:

Runs score:

That was a new splash hit home run:

Final scores:

Padres win, sorry Giants:

The second Seattle Mariners game vs the New York Mets, at the Mariners’ ballpark, T-Mobile Field was originally going to be an afternoon game, but was pushed back a few hours as it was featured on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball.

We were there very early, having done the ballpark tour beforehand, so had ample opportunity to sample more ballpark food:

Julio Rodríguez exercising, having been on the injury list until this game:

Marking the batting boxes:

Jenn with inflatable trident:

Pitching:

Batting:

Cal on base:

ESPN Sunday Night Baseball:

Pitching:

Run scores:

Salmon Run:

Home run:

Two runs score:

Even though I’ve been in this ballpark more times than any other over the years, and had explored in the previous game, plus the guided tour, I still wanted to explore some more, to take pictures from other angles and places:

“Hotdogs from heaven”, a Mariners innovation where they drop hotdogs on little parachutes:

The wave:

Cal Raleigh is nicknamed “Big Dumper” (because he has a big butt), and they played on that by having him read out messages to dump people:

The M’s did rather well:

Mariners win:

Sweep:

Cal interview:

While our coach was at home, we spent a couple of nights in a hotel in Seattle (across the road from the ballpark), to attend a couple of Seattle Mariners games vs the New York Mets, at the Mariners’ ballpark, T-Mobile Field (which I’ll always think of Safeco Field).

The first game was an evening one.

We went in early via the bullpen gate, and grabbed some nachos from Edgar’s Cantina:

The crowd out by the bullpens:

Out-of-town scoreboard:

Retired numbers:

Dave Niehaus, late voice of the Mariners:

The Walk-Off Market, where you can just pick things up and walk out, via Amazon technology:

Root Sports TV set:

Welcome to T-Mobile Park:

Later we got some clam strips from Ivar’s Seafood & Chowder:

Cal heading to the bullpen:

Cal info:

Heading back:

Catching:

Run scores:

Salmon run:

Exploring the ballpark:

Seattle skyline:

Retractable roof over train tracks:

Hit It Here Cafe:

Moose:

Mariners win:

As soon as most people left, flocks of seagulls swooped in to scavage the waste food:

We like it when the Mariners win.

We attended a game of the High-A minor league team Cedar Rapids Kernels, playing against the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, at the Kernels’ Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

The concourse:

Menus:

Burger and fries:

Our seats were in the front row, right behind the net:

Selfie:

Stands:

Mascot:

Other angles:

Spiderman:

You can see where our seats were; look for Jenn with the teal hat and green shirt:

A run scores:

Another run scores:

Pizza race:

3,756 attendance:

Kernels Win: