June 3, 2009 [LINK / comment]

Modest proposal for "QualComm"

Jack Murphy Stadium I recently got bogged down trying to unravel a mind-blowing puzzle about early Wrigley Field, but have now finished some minor tweaks on the Jack Murphy Stadium (a.k.a. "QualComm") diagrams.

On a related note, I came up with a "modest proposal" for renovating QualComm Stadium in a way that would make it better suited for football only. (Baseball fans often gripe at the stadium design compromises that detracted from the baseball experience, but the same was just as often true for football fans at multi-use stadiums.) Many people know that the first ten or so rows are so low that spectators can't see what's happening on the football field, which is why they covered those rows with decorative tarp during the 2003 Super Bowl. The only way to really fix that problem is to lower the playing field by a few feet. Ideally, they would also rebuild the lower deck with a steeper slope in the rear so that the fans in the back rows would get a better view as well. To see my proposal, you can either go to that page, or just click on the image above to see it in a pop-up window.

I was going to tie this into the recent hot streak the San Diego Padres were on, but they have lost all but one of their games over the past week, so never mind.

U.Va. beats #1 U.C. Irvine

The University of Virginia Cavaliers defied the odds and staged a huge upset by winning the NCAA baseball regional tournament in Irvine, California over the weekend. They beat the top-ranked (and #6 seed) college baseball team, University of California at Irvine, twice no less, and they also defeated San Diego State (!). Next they will face Ole Miss in the NCAA Super Regionals in Oxford, Mississippi. See virginiasports.com.

Last week, Chris Graham of the Augusta Free Press complained about how the NCAA disrespected UVa by sending the baseball team all the way across the country to face a top-ranked opponent, but the Wahoos stepped up to the challenge and proved everybody wrong. Maybe with further playing success and producing major league talent like Ryan Zimmerman, UVa will get chosen to host an NCAA baseball tournament one of these years. Davenport Stadium would certainly be a fine venue for such a big event.

COMMENT by: John Crozier, of Rockville Centre, NY on Jun 04, 2009 16:21 PM
the problem with your proposal to lower the field 5 feet is the water table under that stadium is high, so if they dug deeper, they would hit water...or at least that's what i've heard.

COMMENT by: Andrew Clem, of Staunton, VA on Jun 07, 2009 23:24 PM
Yes, I was afraid that might be the case since "QualComm" was built in a former river valley / wetland area. But if they can't figure out how to lower the field, I don't see how they can make that stadium really suitable for watching football games.