An expert's guide to standing room at AT&T Park
During Game 7 of the NLCS, we met Giants fan Dan Gilbert. You may remember him better as "that dude with the playoff beard and the homemade Brian Wilson jumpsuit."
Dan was standing beneath the giant Coca-Cola bottle in center field for that game with his friend, Scott Leathers. The spot is known as one of AT&T Park's best standing-room locations because of its elevated vantage point and clear sight lines.
I found Scott again two hours before the first pitch of Game 2, this time sitting in the Ghirardelli cable car on the right-center concourse. Not only are the four seats inside the old-school trolley "standing room" in name only, but they also offer protection from the elements -- a huge plus on nights like Monday. So how did Leathers, without an assigned seat at AT&T Park, manage to score a near-perfect view of two dramatic Giants wins within the same week?
It took nearly $1,000 and years of experience.
According to the Oakland native, the first rule of locking down a primo standing-room spot is to arrive early. Scott got to the Marina Gate before noon for a 5:07 PM first pitch on Thursday, ensuring he'd be among the first handful of fans inside the park. It's also key to pack light for the game. Precious seconds spent waiting for stadium security to examine a backpack can be the difference between sitting comfortably in the cable car and huddling among the masses on the concourse. And third, always take a clear route. Scott has practiced the shortest course from the gate to each of his preferred standing locations many times.
Of course, AT&T Park offers several desirable standing-room options for fans who want to see the field but aren't quite as determined as Leathers. For the novice non-seated Giants fan, he recommends the View Box in the stadium's third deck for a solid combination favorable sight lines and available space. The boxes overlooking the left and right-field power alleys, however, are suboptimal.
"Those are very tough areas to get because everyone goes there first," Leather said. "You could just wear some incredibly high heels. I don't know how else you could do it. Maybe grow a foot overnight."
Scott, a self-described "baseball fanatic," doesn't mind arriving at the stadium five hours early. He attended about 20 games at AT&T Park this season and another 40 at O.Co Coliseum, spending a good chunk of his disposable income on tickets. The passion dates back to the final day of the 2007 season, when he noticed that the Padres had tied the Rockies for the NL West lead and forced a one-game playoff.
"I thought, these 163's, these tiebreaker games, are rare," Leather said. "We got on our phones to try to buy tickets and couldn’t get through. I get home, I jump online and I actually secure tickets to this tiebreaker game. And that's when it occurs to me: I have to drive to Denver. So I call my friends. 'Hey, that idea, well, we have to do it now.'"
Twenty hours in the car, 13 innings and one Jamey Carroll walk-off sac fly later, Leathers was hooked.
"I drove back to Oakland and decided that I have to go back for the LCS and the World Series," he said. "I didn't drive those times, but I really got caught in Rocktober. So that was what got me."
Scott hasn't missed a World Series since, traveling to Philadelphia in '08 and '09 and witnessing last season's epic Game 6 and 7 in St. Louis. Although the costs can be prohibitive -- standing-room tickets were going for more than $400 each on Wednesday and Thursday -- Leathers says it's just a matter of spending on the things most important to him.
"I've been extremely lucky," he said. "But I've also managed to prioritize this in a way that not everyone can."
Continuing his six-year tradition, Scott will fly to Detroit on Saturday for Games 4 and 5 of the World Series. While he's looking forward to seeing Comerica Park in person for the first time, the trip will be bittersweet. After all, two more games watched is two more games closer to the end of the Major League season.
"Hey," he said. "Arizona Fall League is right around the corner. We've got World Baseball Classic here in the Bay Area in March. I'll play Nintendo. I'll find something to keep baseball in the veins year-round, 24/7."
-- Ian Kay / MLB.com