The house that K built: Does our stadium really need to be hugging the skyline?
Everyone who discusses the “new stadium” talks about locale. I want to talk about memories.
Year 2023 marks the 100th anniversary of Yankee Stadium. It was modified in the 1970s, then replaced in 2008. The new stadium was built across 161st Street and opened in 2009.
Baseball players are known to be superstitious about everything. In New York, after Yankee stadium was deserted, the ghosts and legends of The House that Ruth Built had only to look out for traffic, then float across the street to get back to their haunting.
The Royals want a newer and better stadium? Great! There’s plenty of room next to the current one. They will save the expense of tearing down existing structures, and may have funds left over for installing public transportation access, which is way overdue for both the K and GEHA Field.
The K is where we brought our toddlers to fireworks Friday nights. Where they ran the bases on Sundays when they got bigger. Where my friend Staci discovered the first foul ball quietly under her seat in the turmoil around us at a playoff game. Where we made friends with fellow season ticket holders. Where my head of white hair as seen on TV when right-handed batters were up, got me thumbs-ups in the produce section at the grocery store.
Where our daughter was when friends texted us that she and her boyfriend were making out on the Kiss Cam.
Imagine having space to entice new memories and traditions: tailgating in a parking lot under shade trees, for instance, on a sweltering day.
I’m from the Midwest, so I can say that shoehorning a stadium into downtown or North Kansas City to claim having an urban ball park is not a Midwestern thing. St. Louis’ Busch Stadium precariously tucked along I-70 is its way of clinging to an East Coast migrant brewery roots image. We’ve never imitated St. Louis on purpose, and I don’t know why we’d start now.
Yankee Stadium’s update set a good example: It’s on an island of finite real estate. The old place sank so low, its bottom floor was dirt. So relocation close by and with the same name, where everyone (including the ghosts) could find it was perfect.
Which brings up shopping around naming rights. Sponsors come and go: some to jail, some out of business. Naming a ballpark after a random product with billionaire backing means nothing to Royals fans. We love the K.
It is the K because of the dedication of Mr. Kauffman’s family to leave something behind that would matter. With all the re-naming of some public streets and buildings because of shameful origins, this one stands free and clear of conflict. Don’t fix it. It ain’t broke.
Favorite memory: looking across the field from my seat during a 2015 playoff game to see cars stopped along the highway shoulder, honking their horns as we closed in on a win. I know how lucky I was to be there, along with thousands of others.
I’ve written about my childhood memories of listening to evening ball games on the radio while watching Dad work his second job, sign painting. Baseball is dear to its fans. Attending games in person is out of reach financially for most families, so this is a great time for the team and its owners to improve what they need to, and concentrate on keeping the magic close to where the memories are.
We don’t need a downtown ball park. We already have our legacy space, which could use a little love.
Let’s go, Royals!
