ThrowBack Weekend...In the Dome?

[Ken]

I wonder if any of you guys that live in Houston could call the talk shows down there and push the idea of having our throwback weekend played in the Astrodome. I mean, c'mon, how hard would it be to prep the place for three games? Whatever the expense, it would certainly be worth it. I know I'd be a lot more willing to make the trip to Houston to see a game in the dome. Wonder how many ex patriot Houstonians like me feel the same way.

[garyfan]

No way. MMP is a much better place to watch a baseball game than the Dome. I don't miss it a bit.

[Ken]

The current postage stamp the Astros play in is a joke. I haven't been back to see a game in two years. But that really wasn't topic of this thread, nor was it created to inspire a debate. The throwback weekend could be played in the dome with the old rainbow uniforms and it would draw attendance from outside the city.

[texiban001]

Only thing wrong with MMP is the damned seats are too small and too close together. Other than that, I would much rather watch a game their than in the Dome. Just my opinion.

[Coach]

I think you would stand a better chance of the Astros hosting a couple of exhibition games there just before the season starts next year.

[Ken]

OK, like I said I really didn't start this thread for this purpose but here goes...

***The seats were made for anorexic teenage girls.

***The Crawford boxes have transformed what should be routine pop outs into HR's...put an asterisk beside ever player that has ever hit on there.

*** Tal's Hill...HUH?

*** And the fact that the Stadium is downtown is what has detoured me most. Don't want to pay 10 bucks for parking. Don't want to be in Downtown Houston after 10PM.


There...have we got it all said now? NOW. BACK TO THE POINT. A Game or two in the Astrodome per year would draw from outside Houston. People from San Antonio and Austin would make the trip. It certainly would not hurt anything especially in a year like this one where the Astros suck anyway. And all the Juice Box Pop Out HR lovers could stay home that weekend if you hate the Dome so much.

[texiban001]

Why are you being a d*ck about this?? Like I said, just my opinion. I agree with most of the takes you have. Just that the dome was crumbling around both the Oilers and Astros and new stadiums were needed. With this line of reasoning, the Astros would still be playing in Buff Stadium and the football team would still be playing at Jeppesen Stadium. By the way, I never said that I hated the Dome, I just like MMP better. Seems like an older park

[garyfan]

Ken....

Sorry to get us off track..... So back to the topic...

A nostalgia weekend at the Dome would, in itself, be interesting. Before long, we will be starting to get a generation of fans that probably have never been there so there might be a decent crowd going to see the game a novelty.

What I don't know is what shape the Dome is in? Does it still have turf down? Do the concession stands still function, etc. If it would take too much time or money to get it MLB ready that might be a big problem.

Is it being used for anything anymore?

[ikedilligas]

***The Crawford boxes have transformed what should be routine pop outs into HR's...put an asterisk beside ever player that has ever hit on there.

Got to disagree with that one for sure.

Personally, and this is not directed specifically at you Ken, but I am so damn sick and tired of people saying this. Of all the Crawford box homeruns that have been hit, perhaps a dozen could qualify as "pop-ups"

If you look at the trajectory required to reach the Crawford Boxes and clear a 19 foot wall, the ball would have to travel a minimum of 340 feet to clear a 7 foot wall. That is out of more parks than just ours. Even a true pop up, one that is hit at an angle higher than 45 degrees, travels 325 feet by the time it comes back down to the 7 foot level. Maybe not out of all parks but up against thje wall in quite a few of them. Only the home runs that are dropping almost straight down into the front row of the Crawford Boxes fall under the category of which you are describing. And in reality, there just are not that many. This does not include the line drives that barely clear the wall out there because as I said before, those balls would travel at least 340 feet by the time that have come back down to the 7 foot level.

Here is an example of the math required to calculate the height of a wall to make up for a diffent distance. In this example they are talking about softball but the formulas are the same.

web.umr.edu/~lmhall/Fences.pdf

[garyfan]

Ike.... Differential equations in a baseball thread? I'm a big enough geek to love it! Great stuff!

[chandler44]

The media caught the idea of 'ten run' field in 2000 and ran with it, even when subsequent seasons have shown that it's not as big of a hitter's park as ESPN tried to say it was.

With that said, I'd rather watch games in MMP. They mothballed the Dome for good reasons, and it'd be more trouble than it's worth to get it ready for consumption, so to speak.

[Ken]

chandler44 said:

it'd be more trouble than it's worth to get it ready for consumption, so to speak.

I didn't mean to come off sounding like a "d*ck." I just wanted to know if the idea appealed to anyone without going into the extra debate of which park was better. I really never meant for this thread to travel down that road. Nor am I implying that the Astros should go back to playing in the Dome permanently. I'm not fond of the Juice Box, but that's a different debate and I should not have adressed those issues in this thread.

With that said I think Chandler's quote from above is pure speculation on his part. If they can ready the Dome for thousands of Katrina refugees on a moments notice, then readying it for 3 ball games in one weekend of one season should be no problem.

[texiban001]

OK. Misunderstanding, no problemo. MMP definitely has some issues that need to be corrected. Tal's Hill and that damned flag pole needs to be removed yesterday. The other items that need to be corrected are pretty minor, but one thing that needs to happen is the quality of service and concessions for the price you pay. Also, why is the beer always warm when you buy it draft at the stands, but cold out on the concourses? There also needs to be a better selection of beer instead of the same old "Texas Redneck" beers such as Miller Lite, Bud & Bud Light, Coors, etc. ;D

[son goku]

I have a friend who used to work maintenence at the Astrodome, and I can remember when they were building "Ten run" him and I speaking about the good ol' Astrodome. At that point in time he assured me that the building was in dire need of major plumbing, electrical, and mechanical repair. He would tell me that the crew would work endlessly to chase repairs as they became problems and patch fixed almost everything just well enough to get by.

I loved the dome as well, and I have had several conversations with those that actually worked there about what could be done with it... one of my favorites was to move the Express there... only to be told time and time again that it is a tear down and will never again be suitable for 30k+ people.

When the end of the dome was near I can remember restrooms being closed or out of order, water fountains that would not work, and lots and lots of cosmetic problems, and I can only guess the structural problems that lie unseen.

I would be willing to speculate that there is a mess inside that building from mold, mildew, and rust that would take 100+ people a month to clean up enough to make it presentable to the public.

I love the idea of the throwback, I just would say that it would cost one helluva lot more then one would think to pull off, and it will never happen.


Goku

[chandler44]

I think Chandler's quote from above is pure speculation on his part. If they can ready the Dome for thousands of Katrina refugees on a moments notice, then readying it for 3 ball games in one weekend of one season should be no problem.

It might just be speculation, but it's not that much of a stretch to realize that there's a huge difference between being 'ready' to temporarily house a bunch of people on the floor when food/drink is being brought in and being 'ready' to have actual baseball games that require working facilities on ALL levels, working concessions, grass on the field, etc.