¡Bienvenido a Miami!

I’ll spare you the Will Smith lyrics and get right to the details…

In typical Wladyka fashion we showed up at the airport at 3:40 for a 5:00am flight. I had my boarding pass in hand within 10 minutes and tried my best not to nod off while waiting for the security personnel to begin their shift sometime after 4. The only mildly interesting thing to happen at the airport was the woman behind me going to San Juan who became nearly incredulous that the security person would need to see her ID before allowing her through the checkpoint. “Are you serious” she asked the kid checking her boarding pass. Hmm, fly much?

Uneventful flights, rental car and hotel check-in experiences. I will say that my new Garmin is a freaking life saver. Karen (the female Australian voice option) and I have had quite the trip so far and it’s only been 3 days. She may not always lead me down the most efficient path but she always knows how to get me out of trouble. So, if anyone from Garmin is reading this and you’d like some ad space I’d be happy to accommodate you for a discounted fee.

I got to my hotel mid-afternoonish so I scouted out the area a bit and made sure I knew where I was going. Good thing I did this in daylight…Dolphin Stadium is NOT in a good area. I eventually found my way to the ticket office and I was all set for the game.

Game Notes:

I showed up at 6 for a 7:10 start. There were 9 people in front of me in line to get in. Nine. If I’m being honest, Dolphin Stadium was a pit.


I watched some of batting practice with about 15 other people in left field and then moved to the infield where a few hundred fans were scattered about the stands.


The concessionaires at Dolphin Stadium were downright creepy. There were about 2-3 workers per serving window and with prices rivaling Fenway, nobody was buying anything. These people were literally yelling at patrons “Can I help you?!” as they walked by. Not exactly “fan-friendly.” We’re talking $7 for a 16 oz light beer, $8 for a sausage w/ peppers and onions and $5 for a hot dog . On top of that, there were no park specials. No “mega-marlin dog” or “marlin fries” or even “marlin on a stick”. I had a hot dog and a beer but I was not happy about it.

The Marlins ended up winning the game but it was pretty uneventful. I started watching the game in left field but when some very drunk, very obnoxious Braves fans showed up I decided 3rd baseline might be better. It was. You could pretty much sit anywhere you want in the stadium, I wasn’t hassled at all.

High Points:

-Fans sitting next to the opposing bullpen have some pretty funny heckling shenanigans they pull. My favorite was when a pitcher throws a pitch they yell out a high pitched “wooooooooop” and on the return throw follow it with a “wooooooooo”. Even the Braves pitchers and coaches got a chuckle out of that one. Maybe you had to be there??

-I won a free keychain by spinning a wheel and it landing on Billy the Marlin’s face. Here’s Billy:


And the key chain


-During the 7th inning they do a “kiss-kam”. Well, one guy obviously told his girlfriend they were going to be on. Instead of just kissing he got down on one knee and did the proposal thing! She was not pleased. I got the sense that she wanted to get married…and to this guy…but did NOT want her proposal to come on a jumbo-tron. She said yes but here she is (in yellow) practically sprinting away from him (right side of picture with visor) returning to their seats.


-Seeing the Galm Family Stadium Tour and realizing I’d be doing that whole thing in one summer!!!



Low Points:

-During the anthem about 4 notes were on key and the singer had to clear her throat before completing the song. Yikes.

-Creepy concessionaires…I really can’t stress this enough.

-Until the 7th inning, the scoreboard was broken and everyone’s batting average was “zero” and their stats reflected only what they had done in the game.

-The Marlins two championships were recognized on one sign tucked away down the left field line. This was the only evidence in the park about their championships.


There was nothing memorable about this game or the stadium. No food specials, no wacky souvenir guys, no fans! It really did not feel like a major league baseball game.

Overall Grade: D

Game stats:

Teams: Marlins vs. Braves
Final Score: 4-0 Marlins
WP: Scott Olsen
LP: Jair Jurrjens
Time: 2:36
Announced Attendance: 10,462 (bullshit)
Ticket Price: $12.00
Parking Price: $10.00

Trip Stats:
Home team record: 1-0
Miles Driven: 315
Beds slept in: 2
Next Stop: Tampa Bay Rays
Favorite Park: Dolphin Stadium (by default)