For one day -- and many more, hopefully -- it was the way it used to be, the way it should be.
The traffic was lined up on both Coventry Rd. and on the Queensway long after Lynx starter John Maine had taken the mound to start the opening-day doubleheader yesterday as a crush of fans descended on the ballpark.
Maybe Maine was a little wild or maybe he was just trying to be fan friendly by extending the top half of the first inning as long as he could by throwing 39 pitches.
TRAFFIC GETS CRAZY
Out in the parking lot, about an hour before the game, before the traffic started to get crazy, one group of fans tailgated, enjoying their refreshments from a cooler on the back deck of their van.
A father and daughter played pitch and catch.
One of the first of 7,651 fans into the park walked down to the first row of seats next to the visitors' dugout and spread his arms wide.
It was as if he was welcoming the season itself or, better yet, the state of mind that is baseball.
It was an errorless sky, but there was one figurative cloud.
As construction around the ballpark continues, the Lynx have had their number of parking spots cut from a high of 2,500 to just 800.
FANS TURNED AWAY
Along with 500 spots they can use at a building across the street, that's just 1,300 spots for a 10,000-seat stadium. There were some reports yesterday of fans being turned away because of the parking crunch.
Okay, so you cynics are saying the Lynx won't need more than 800 spots if attendance continues the way it has the last few years.
But the issue is if the Lynx do manage to grow their fan base this year, will it be possible for them to succeed given the constraints being placed on them now?
The bottom line for fans: If you want to park close to the stadium, get there early.
chris.stevenson@ott.sunpub.com
