American flag (nationally celebrated June 14). motherhood. apple pie, and baseball. What can be more American than that frequently mentioned list?
Today's discussion will center around the U.S. pastime, baseball; more specifically, Oklahoma State University's (OSU) men's diamond fellows.
For one reason or another, I had not attended a local game in Our Town's new O'Brate Stadium on the OSU campus. That was the case until the recent weekend series that included Mother's Day. Mother's Day brought home 2 of our children to celebrate the special day with Lady Deborah and me. Youngest Robbie, 39, who lives in east Dallas, and yours truly, took this moment in time to attend a Saturday night game, and watch our favorite team win easily over the visiting Southeast Missouri State University Redhawks. The stadium parking lot on the north side of the facility is huge, accommodating 600 vehicles. There was a large crowd during that great weather evening, but we did secure one of the last open parking spots. We entered the facility through the large center field gate, and were immediately struck with how impressive this stadium is for Our Cowboys and Our Fans. The homey atmosphere grabs you, as soon as you walk inside the ballpark. We saw many groups enjoying cookouts on furnished outdoor grills. Each separate group is like a private party in its own unique way, as they ate burgers, hot dogs, chips, soft drinks, and plenty of other (?) drinks, too! But, when you think about it for about 5 seconds or less, that is what American baseball is all about; a great time to be had by all!
I leisurely walked around the inside the stadium in a counter-clockwise direction, locating our excellent seats down the first base line, behind the visitor's dugout. I frequently stopped to notice the indoor hitting structure beyond the left field wall, the OSU bullpen and several rows of spectator seats above it, the huge Cowboy dressing room, the entrance to the Club Level and Suites on the second floor, a bar where an assortment of adult beverages may be purchased, large restrooms, and lots of concession areas, selling food, drinks, and assorted OSU memorabilia. Wow!
The stadium has 3,500 permanent seats, and has the capability to expand to 8,000. Upstairs, it has 11 suites and 400 premium club level seats. The stadium is named after Cecil O'Brate, a multimillion $$$ donor who lives in western Kansas, and the first game was played February 21, 2021. The opening was delayed for almost a year due to the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic.
Back to discussion of my first game impressions.
As I got settled in my seat, my eyes immediately fixated on the HUGE video scoreboard in left field. This piece of information is 2,000 square feet in size, and is constantly telling the fans when, what, where, and how concerning all the baseball action on the beautiful playing field, directly in front of them, The scoreboard is incredible, for sure! Of course, my wandering eyes were everywhere for several innings, trying to insure my brain absorbed all the early evening activities I was seeing. The live game itself was also entertaining, as Our Cowboys were playing well, getting lots of hits, and, ultimately, scoring many more runs than our non-conference competition that night. Since Mr. Robbie lives in the Dallas metroplex, several hours drive from Our Town, I do not get to enjoy his company often. Therefore, this was a double treat for me, Robbie's company, and and my first in-person OSU baseball game at memorable O'Brate Stadium,. Several times that evening and the following day, Mother's Day, he and I remarked to each other just how much we enjoyed our outing together at the ol' ballpark.
Yes, sir, Our Town definitely has a "keeper", the new stadium, home of our beloved Cowboy baseballers. It is a structure for all to be thankful and proud! Simply said, Go Pokes!
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