Day 2 - Kansas City

Start: Ottawa, KS
Stop: Kansas City, MO – Kauffman Stadium – Kansas City Royals vs. Texas Rangers
Finish: Columbia, MO

Today we woke up at around 9 AM and got ready to leave the hotel at 10:30 AM. After the hour drive, we arrived at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, MO. As we were driving towards the parking lot, Arrowhead Stadium popped up out of nowhere. It is truly a sight to behold. Kauffman Stadium, which is right next to it, is not so bad itself. There is currently construction going on at both Arrowhead and Kaufmann, which kind of took away from the experience. However, when the construction is complete, the stadiums will both be better for it. Kauffman is getting wider concourses, which is a must. I described them as ‘cozy,’ which is the nice way to put it. Also, they are finally getting outfield seats, which will make it feel more like a major league stadium.

When we entered the park, we went to our seats in the left field corner. The Rangers were warming up right below our seats, so we took that in for a while. Then, we went and stopped by the pro shop to buy our daily souvenirs. Jason bought a mini-bat keychain, Eric bought a program, and I bought a Royals pin. Then, we scouted out the concessions around the lower concourse and decided to get some classic KC food: barbeque. As we sat in our seats, the Leapfrogs from the Navy did a short show. They are parachuters who do stunts as they glide to the ground. One was wearing a Royals jersey, which made the fans there happy. The show was really cool, and they topped it all off with flying the plane over really low.

When the game started, Eric, Jason, and I were very excited to see the Rangers starter because it was his first major league start. All in all, he had a pretty good game. He gave up 4 runs on 2 home runs in 6 innings, which gave him a no decision. In the 8th inning, the Rangers took the lead, 5-4. Then, in the bottom of the 8th, the Royals got 2 runs off of our bullpen and went on to win the game, 6-5. The fans there were pretty fun to be around, and they seemed to be interested in the game. A couple behind us were joking with us all game, which was fun, even though the guy was a University of Kansas fan. They were quite vulgar, too.

This stadium visit was fun and relaxing, just what you want in a baseball game. The facility could be nicer, but they are working on that. I give Kauffman Stadium a passing grade!

Game result: Rangers 5, Royals 6
Record: 1-1