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Andrew Clem, Staunton, VA -- Aug 29, 2006 14:09 PM
2 visits. My rating: 9
I saw my first-ever major league game at Wrigley Field in 1963, along with my father and brother Chris. I recall walking several blocks from where we were parked, probably further north. Seeing the big "CUBS" sign on the back of the scoreboard heightened the anticipation. Seeing the inside of this "green cathedral" for the first time left an indelible memory. The Cubs were playing the Pittsburgh Pirates and for some reason (Forbes Field?) I bought a souvenir Pirate button. Our seats were literally just a few rows in back of the Cubs' dugout, and we cheered Ernie Banks and Ron Santo. I recall that I wished that we were sitting in the upper deck, however. What did I know? In August 1998 Jacqueline and I were passing through the Windy City and stopped at Wrigley Field to take pictures, since the Cubs were on the road. During our brief visit there (15-20 minutes?), a predatory tow truck towed our car away, to my immense consternation. ("Friendly"?) Thankfully, a good Samaritan from Chicago helped us find the impound lot so that we could retrieve our car and get on our way.
James Sutton, St. Louis, MO -- Oct 09, 2006 15:09 PM
1 visit(s). My rating: 7
Sorry, but Wrigley isn't all it's cracked up to be. It is a nice looking park and nice backdrop, but you can definately see that it's showing it's age. Don't get me wrong, It's a classic ballpark. I am glad to see that the owners have decided to give it much needed improvements. I went to a game as a kid and snuck in with a friend in 1996 while they were out of town. The downsides would be that some of the fans can get quite drunk and obnoxious and the smell can get bad too.
Wesley Johnson, Kansas City, MO -- Jun 06, 2007 18:33 PM
1 visit(s). My rating: 5
I got a bad seat the one day I went. I was under the upper deck, so no one could hear a thing except the echoes of the crowd. They even had T.V. monitors for us to see (almost admitting that the view wasn't that great). There are also the poles that hold up the upper deck and all you can do is pray one isn't right in front of you (note: when searching for tickets, make sure it's listed as "unobstructed view").
It's a small stadium with one 5 foot wide concourse, so don't make any plans afterwards - it will be a good 1-2 hours before you can get out of the area (I suggest walking to the next El station in the direction you're going).
My recommendation: either pay $$ for a good seat, or take a tour when the Cubs aren't playing.
Mark Bussell, Virginia Beach, VA -- Jun 28, 2008 09:30 AM
1 visit(s). My rating: 9
I can't believe that some people would rate Wrigley as low as they have. Wrigley Field is a unique experience that every baseball fan should experience. From the rooftop seats across Waveland and Sheffield, to the manually operated scoreboard, to the ivy covered walls... it's like stepping back in time when you go to a game there.
I attended my first game there in May of 2004 and although the Cubs lost to the Rockies, that game was one I will never forget. Wrigley is a an American classic and can only be rivaled by Fenway Park.
Joseph Johnston, covington, LA -- Aug 20, 2008 21:35 PM
1 visit(s). My rating: 7
We really wanted to see a game at Wrigley, but you could only order one ticket at a time. We wanted to sit together. So we saw the ChiSox instead. But we did get to tour Wrigley.
It looked just like it did in the pictures, but bigger. The outside marquee is there, plus statues of Harry Caray and Ernie Banks. Stepping onto the field by the 1B side dugouts, I noticed that the brick fence was very low. When the tour took us to an upper-deck view of the field, I asked the guide about the three front rows. He answered that they were added just this year.
The field was set up for a hockey game, of all things.
Sitting in the bleachers, I asked the guide why lights were not placed behind the outfield walls. He said that there was no room. It later occurred to me that if there was room for the recent bleacher expansion, there should have been room for lights in the ‘80s. However, Andrew has stated here that the bleachers were actually expanded over the sidewalks.
The guide stated that the Bears gridiron was smaller than regulation so it would fit. I don’t believe that is true.
Wrigley has no museum (at least that we could see) such as we saw in Atlanta and St. Louis.
Stefanos K, Boston, MA -- Apr 23, 2009 21:52 PM
1 visit(s). My rating: 5
Wrigley Field is alittle overrated seeing pictures or the the main area one update they should do=Videoboard concorces=dark & dingy bathrooms=Not many Very putrid.unlike Fenway Park this place is actually as it appears very close to disrepair and you Cubs fan may disaggree with me the ivy is ugly.The Cubs Beat the the Pirates 6-0 in May 2005.
Richard Zachary, Chicago, IL -- Aug 11, 2011 02:54 AM
10 visit(s). My rating: 5
Back in the 1960's, I used to escape (literally) to Wrigley Field at least 20 times per summer. Out the back door, onto my badass gilt-colored Schwinn, west on Dempster St. to the Skokie Swift terminal. Lock up the bike, take the train to Addison, walk east to the ballpark. Train fare was 25 cents, and bleacher seats were a dollar fifty. After the second inning, the street vendors would give you a 50% discount.
The ballpark had the same general lay-out as today, without the fanfare and fireworks for every damn homerun. As you walked up the ramp to grandstand, the tiers of seats were much closer than where they are today. Mini pizzas were hawked on every level, with Ron Santo's mug on the vending carts. Schlitz Beer was sold by the can. Practically everybody smoked cigarettes or puffed on cigars.
After a hiatus of some forty-one years, I've started attending Cubs games again. The field is in markedly better shape than it used to be, pruned and spruce as a golf green. The lighting and ambience during night games is exquisite. The fans are hip and yuppified, looking like a catalogue. The Ron Santo pizzas are no more.
It's still the coolest place on earth.
Andrew Clem, Staunton, VA -- Jul 30, 2012 17:06 PM
4 visit(s). My rating: 8
I had a fairly good idea of what to expect when I saw my second-ever game at the "Friendly Confines," and my main reaction was wonderment at how they have squeezed so much into such a tight space. Limited restrooms and food concessions have been added in the upper deck, which are still difficult to reach, via back-and-forth ramps. Very little room in the "concourse" in back of the lower deck, only about 15 feet wide max. With a seat all the way back ("Aisle 219, Row 23"), I suffered from tunnel vision; the luxury suite floor in front wasn't much higher than my head. It's a pretty good view of the infield, aside from the support beams, that is. TV monitors help, but more are needed. The way the lower-deck rows near the right and left field corners bend inward toward the diamond creates a nice, comfortable ambience. Ironically, so does the large overhang, which keeps most of the lower-deck fans shaded, almost like you are inside. The expanded bleachers and the new video screen in the right field corner do not detract from the authentic, old-time scenery. I loved it. "Go, Cubs, go!"
Shane S, Columbus, OH -- Apr 06, 2013 09:35 AM
1 visit(s). My rating: 9
Wrigley is a gem. While the Cubs have experienced an excessive amount of futility, "The Friendly Confines" is a packed house for every summer-time game. Even if your favorite team is not from Chicago, you need to experience a game at Wrigley. For my baseball mind it's the Clippers, our local minor league club, first, and the Yankees second because for nearly thirty years, the Clippers were their AAA team, and some great players have spent some time playing ball in my hometown. You might recognize these names who went through the Yankees farm system- Derek Jeter; Don Mattingly; Jorge Posada; Bernie Williams; Mariano Rivera; Brad Ausmus. Yet I have digressed. Wrigley is simply worth the travel. It is the only NL stadium remaining from the Golden Age of Baseball (the '20's-the '60's). This is a place where the game's past and present intersect. The scoreboard is hand-operated, and there is no jumbotron. Its age provides you with a connection to the Greats of Baseball's past and present because many have played games here- ex., Albert Pujols, Ernie Banks, Willie Mays, Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Ron Santo, Nolan Ryan, Roberto Clemente, Pete Rose, and Greg Maddux.
Michael G, South Amboy, NJ -- May 26, 2014 14:25 PM
1 visit(s). My rating: 9
It's Wrigley Field need I say more..
Ed Katzman, Chicago, IL -- Aug 01, 2014 12:32 PM
10 visit(s). My rating: 7
I'm a Sox fan but I've been many times, especially as a teenager. We used to ride the C&NW downtown, transfer to the L, and go to the park. We were about 14 when we started doing this. I remember the Cubs bragged that they kept 22,000 seats available for sale on game day. In those days I sure it wasn't hard. There weren't that many season ticket holders. Often the upper deck was closed. The field itself was beautiful. Ivy walls great. Before about '69 there were no baskets on the front edge of the bleacher wall and fans would reach out and catch the ball. The fans didn't throw back HRs in those days. I've always been surprised how fast they put up the last pitch as ball or strike on the CF scoreboard. It's almost impossible to look up after the pitch and see it change. Later, when I moved back to town after grad school, I lived in the tall building you can see over the scoreboard. I remember coming home from work and looking at the flag to see if the Cubs had won or lost. Sat in the bleachers for the 2 home games of the '83 NLCS. First game big win for the Cubs. Later sat in those tiny skyboxes. Fun park but tiny area under the stands.
Zach LaFleur, Fowlerville, MI -- Dec 21, 2014 08:06 AM
1 visit(s). My rating: 7
Well now, Andrew, what are the Cubs going to do by opening day 2015? (During the 2014 off season, they tore the 1938 bleachers completely down in order to rebuild them hopefully in time for next season)? They would be better off if they could find a way to increase the field size to what it was from 1914 to about 1937 because left center to right center was really too close from 1938 until last year! I actually favor a design similar to the old Comiskey Park but many rooftop neighbors wouldn't because they would be shut out permanently plus they don't have the property available with Waveland and Sheffield Avenues just outside the ivy covered wall and used to even have overhanging bleachers in the corners when they added on back in 2006! I know, have a big overhang on the new double decked bleachers in center field while having a 436 to 447 foot distance out there, (also push the power alleys out further while shortening foul lines some, but not much), as these have been the longest in the National League for years?
Lincoln Glab, Hume, MO -- Apr 15, 2016 19:21 PM
10 visit(s). My rating: 7
The best thing about Wrigley is your view from your seat, almost any seat, unless it is behind a post, of which there are many. Watching a game at Wrigley IS what baseball is all about. As soon as you leave your seat though, the magic disappears. You lose at minimum, a full inning, just working your way out of the seats to get to an entry portal, to the concourse, wait forever to get into a bathroom, grab a beer at a ridiculously long line, give up on ordering a terrible hot dog and make your way back to baseball heaven. (Not to mention trying to get TO Wrigley, with parking, traffic, etc.) The REAL fans are great, but a majority of the people there are there to drink and socialize. Ask many who the starting pitcher is and they yell "BEER!!!"Love seeing games there, hate getting there, leaving or getting up!!!
Shane Schirmer, Medina, OH -- Oct 09, 2019 16:51 PM
10 visit(s). My rating: 9
Wrigley is an experience! What more can you say? It's more than a game, it's a true experience. Like stepping back in time. In this day and age, it can only be rivaled by Fenway for a true baseball experience. Organ music, a brass band, ivy on the walls. It's simply fantastic. If only Yum-Yum donuts still sat outside the third base side of the ballpark. Yum-Yum's fell victim to corporate greed, but at least they were wise enough to keep this park. What a beautiful, beautiful place.
Did I mention the rooftops? No other experience like it. I literally could wax poetic about Wrigley for hours.
Alex D, Alexandria, VA -- Sep 28, 2023 16:27 PM
4 visit(s). My rating: 9
I've been to 4 games here, including a scheduled doubleheader on 6/28/14 (Nats @ Cubs) and most recently, the game on 9/8/22 (Reds @ Cubs). Score for the pre-renovation Wrigley in 2014 is infinity / 10. There was something utterly transporting about seeing a baseball game with limited music (mostly organ), no jumbo video scoreboard, and the announcer calmly saying the name of every batter as they approach the plate. It was a magical time machine, basically. The best baseball experience of my life. The night game in the bleachers was fun too, as I met a famous Cubs fan who talked throughout the game with me and my girlfriend. Then as we filed out (Nats took both games of the double) he said "now you can't say all Cubs fans are ****s". Post reno it's still exceptional but something has been lost. Seeing the 2022 game with the DH in effect next to that ivy was seriously depressing. DH is an abomination