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Posted: Tuesday September 12, 2006 10:22AM; Updated: Tuesday September 12, 2006 2:55PM
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Milwaukee Brewers
Miller Park
Milwaukee, Wis. :: Opened: 2001 :: Capacity: 41,900
John Biever/SI
Average Ticket Price: $18.11
 
Average Cost of Concessions and Souvenirs: $60.00
How expensive is stadium parking?
• FREE: 1%
• $5-$10: 72%
• $10-$15: 23%
• $15-$20: 1%
• More than $20: 0%

Is public transportation a viable option?
• Never: 26%
• Worth it if you have a lot of time and patience: 25%
• A good option to avoid rush hour: 12%
• Pretty easy if you know the system well: 33%
• The only way to go: 0%

How would you rate traffic getting to and from the game?
To the game:
• A slow-moving parking lot: 1%
• Slow, but usually steady: 14%
• Moves well outside of rush hour: 26%
• Aside from the occasional bottleneck, it's good: 45%
• A smooth ride at all times: 13%

From the game:
• A slow-moving parking lot: 8%
• Slow, but usually steady: 37%
• Moves well outside of rush hour: 15%
• Aside from the occasional bottleneck, it's good: 33%
• A smooth ride at all times: 5%
How would you rate the number of restrooms for men and women?
• Bring a map: 0%
• It depends on your section: 1%
• Never more than a short walk away: 13%
• A satisfactory amount: 19%
• Plenty: 59%

How long is the wait to use a bathroom?
• Always available: 60%
• 1-5 minutes: 38%
• 5-10 minutes: 1%
• More than 10 minutes: 0%

How would you rate the variety of food/beer concession options?
• Limp hot dogs, bland peanuts, even blander beer: 0%
• Nothing fancy, but the staple foods are tasty: 4%
• A little variety of food and drinks available at specific locations: 12%
• A nice variety but locations are spread out: 33%
• You name it, they have it around almost every corner: 50%

How much will a meal at the ballpark cost you?
• $5-$10: 25%
• $10-$20: 66%
• $20-$30: 6%
• $30-$40: 1%
• More than $40: 0%

How would you rate the entertainment options aside from the game?
• Nonexistent: 1%
• So many games/promotions and scoreboard highlights that the game is lost in the background: 2%
• Typical mascot antics/scoreboard quizzes and fun music: 20%
• Some unique promotions/antics, but it sometimes distracts from the game: 12%
• A nice balance that draws your attention when the game is stopped but doesn't distract from the action on the field: 63%
"This park is so nice it feels like it should be somewhere else." From the unique tailgating scene in the parking lot before games -- "sometimes people have so much fun outside they don't come in" -- to the retractable roof that "prevents icicles from forming on hats in April," this park has everything a Midwestern baseball fan could want. Brats with special sauce, the sausage mascot races, $1 cheap seats: It's enough to make one forget the generally substandard product on the field. Still, "considering that Milwaukee is the smallest market in baseball and the team has not been successful in a long time, the Brewers draw incredibly well and the fans clearly support the franchise." "Stay away from the back rows in the outfield sections; many are under an overhang, and you can't see where a fly ball is going."
"Miller Park probably has the best tailgating atmosphere in pro sports, besides maybe Kansas City for football." However, "if you don't tailgate, there is nothing worth going to around the stadium in terms of bars and restaurants." A short drive will get you to a tour of the Miller Brewery and "probably the most underrated zoo in America." Water Street downtown offers a plethora of "great meals" and a number of inviting bars. "They should have put the park near downtown Milwaukee. I still don't know why they didn't."
2006 record: 65-78 (all statistics through Sept. 10)
Players worth the price of admission: Prince Fielder (.273 Avg., 24 HRs, 70 RBIs), Chris Capuano (11-10, 3.49 ERA, 163 Ks)
If only the people who made the decisions about what happens in the stands made the decisions about what happens on the field, the Brewers would be a juggernaut. From the tailgating to the sausage mascot races to the wide selection of food and beer, Miller Park is a model of customer-relations success. The only missing piece is that team thing, which has yet to produce the type of results its young talent promises. But with names such as Prince Fielder and Ben Sheets, the building blocks are here. Let's just hope the front office has the foresight to keep those elements in place instead of cutting salary and running to the comfort of their glamorous workplace.

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