I could not leave Pittsburgh without taking the PNC tour. I waited until after the Diamondbacks series when the Pirates left for the road so I could get the full experience. If you are thinking about taking one of these behind-the-scene looks at your home stadium (which you absolutely should), I recommend going on a day when the team is on the road. When the team is away, you are given access to the home and visiting clubhouses which is quite a treat.
Once again I must mention that this ballpark is the prettiest I have seen all summer. After being freshly cleaned from the weekend's games, the empty stadium glistened in the sunlight. I think I may miss the smells of the ballpark more than anything when my journey is over. As I moved around PNC I noticed something that I have seen in several other parks that has no connection to baseball, at least to my knowledge. There are pool tables everywhere. Whether it is on the concourse and free to all like in Arizona, or located on the club level as it is in Pittsburgh among others; pool tables are included in many Major League Baseball stadiums. I was told that these tables were installed at the behest of former owner Kevin McClatchy who was a billiards enthusiast.
What I listened to in the car:
Comedy Bang Bang
Doug Loves Movies
How Was your Week with Julie Klausner
WTF with Marc Maron – Michael Keaton
Unfortunately I was not able to bring my camera into the Pirates clubhouse so if you want to see photos of the shark tank you are just going to have to buy a ticket and take the tour yourself. The namesake of the Pirates bullpen (known as the shark tank) sits in the middle of the clubhouse and is quite beautiful. Walking from the clubhouse to the field includes a great quote from Roberto Clemente and a stretching contraption that looks like something out of medieval times. See the gallery above for more photos. The tour ended inside of the batting cages where there is a list of former Pirates batting champions. The Buccos have a strong legacy of great hitters and I am sure there will be more names added to that list in the near future.
My brief stay in Pittsburgh was over so it was time to make my way East to Philadelphia. I stopped by Whole Foods to pick up some grub for the five hour trip and was on my way.
Travel Stats
Miles Traveled: 333
Time in Car: 6 hours 15 minutes
Avg. Speed: 51.23 MPH
Gas Money: $63.02
Gas Price: 3.899
Gallons Filled: 16.163
Sleep Time: 6 Hours 15 minutes
Bottles of Water: 6
Bathroom Stops: 4
Traffic Jams: 1 hour
Food Eaten: Grapes, blueberries, pasta from Whole Foods, pizza from Femi's
Total Money spent today $204.02
Cumulative Miles through today 15,834
Cumulative Time in car through today 288 hours 55 minutes