My original sporting event plan for Tuesday was to attend the noon start between the Beloit Snappers and Kane County Cougars in Geneva, IL. However, when Monday night\u2019s game between the Seattle Mariners and Chicago White Sox was postponed and rescheduled as a straight doubleheader beginning at 4:05 pm Tuesday afternoon, I changed my plans \u2013 the first doubleheader (straight or split) I have attended since September 10, 2004.<\/p>\n
Monday night was the 35th postponed game in the 19 year history of U.S. Cellular Field making Tuesday night\u2019s doubleheader the seventh doubleheader played between the Seattle Mariners and Chicago White Sox \u2013 obviously all played in Chicago.<\/p>\n
Parking<\/u>
Since I was driving from work, I had to pay to park. The White Sox are charging $23 to park in their lot this year \u2013 up from $1 last season.<\/p>\n
Obtaining Tickets<\/u>
Monday night\u2019s game was half-price night. Thus, the official ticket exchange policy stated that fans could trade in the value of their Monday night ticket for any future game. However, it seemed as though most fans chose to trade in Monday\u2019s tickets for Tuesday\u2019s doubleheader. I parked in the lot as the first game was starting and realized that lines, about 100 people deep, were waiting outside each ticket window. The White Sox had not opened enough windows \u2013 obviously not expecting such a large walkup crowd.<\/p>\n
I found a group of fans who actually had complimentary tickets for both Monday and Tuesday night\u2019s games. They gave me tickets for Monday night\u2019s game but I realized I would have to \u201ctrade\u201d these tickets at the box office and was not willing to wait in line. Thus, I took the tickets and walked the other direction in search of actual Tuesday night tickets. As I was walking, the next box office had a window open with nobody waiting in line. I sprinted to the window and the window had just opened! I traded the ticket I received for a ticket to Tuesday night\u2019s game and was on my way into the ballpark before the hundreds of people waiting at each gate.<\/p>\n
Game 1<\/u>
In the first game of the doubleheader, the White Sox managed to defeat the Mariners 2-1 with only two hits. It was the first time since June 22, 2006 that the White Sox won a game with only two hits and the first time since June 23, 2001 that the Mariners lost a game when only giving up two hits.<\/p>\n
Game 1 was the second shortest game (in time) I have ever attended. The game lasted a total of 112 minutes. The shortest game I ever attended (109 minutes) was on June 21, 2002<\/a> when the Chicago Cubs defeated the St. Louis Cardinals by the same score 2-1. The only other game I attended that was under two hours (114 minutes) was April 6, 1994<\/a> when the San Francisco Giants hosted the Pittsburgh Pirates.<\/p>\n Between Games<\/u>
Since Game 1 took so little time, Game 2 started at 7:11 pm rather than starting the customary 30 minutes after Game 1. After Game 1, I decided to walk to the Gate 5 ramp to see if people were still waiting in line for tickets. There were no longer any lines (it was 90 minutes later). As I was walking across the bridge, I noticed an advertisement hanging along the railroad tracks that cross over 35th St.<\/p>\n