Weekend: Houston, Texas

Southern Living, Jun 2001 by Rada, Joe

To a baseball fan, any three-- game home stand constitutes a grand-slam weekend.

Why wait till Friday? To those who love baseball, it's no stretch to define a weekend as any three days our team plays at home. Here's a guide to seeing the Houston Astros in action, plus an all-star lineup of baseball-related ways to spend time between games. Play ball!

Day 1: Pregame Stretches

Get to town early on your first game day and head to Enron Field for a one-hour tour ($7 adults, $3 ages 14 and under; [713] 259-8687). It's a great way to get familiar with the new 42,000-seat stadium the Astros moved into last year. You'll learn about Enron's retractable roof. Shaped like the shallow, arcing flight of a line drive, the 6 1/2-acre lid requires a mere $2.70 worth of electricity to open and close in only 12 minutes. On-field attributes include a slanted center field, an in-play flagpole, and the shortest left field line in the majors (315 feet from plate to fence).

Tour guides rave about the giant video scoreboard, the interactive Kids' Zone, and the variety of concession stand foods. They point out the enormous locomotive that chugs and whistles when the Astros hit a home run, a tribute to the depot that once stood on the site. And they praise the restored Union Station, which serves as main entrance, ticket office, and gift shop.

Secure tickets (prices range $1429), then check in to one of the nearby hotels (see "Sliding Into Home" on page 36) that offer baseball packages. Return before National Anthem time to see both teams take batting practice and limber up with pregame stretches. Then settle in and cheer as Astros second baseman Craig Biggio and first baseman Jeff Bagwell turn double plays. Join the "aaa-louuu" howl when Moises Alou stretches a stand-up double to a sliding triple.

Whether the home team wins or loses, by a baseball fan's standards you're definitely off to a good start.

Day 2: Seventh Inning Stretch

If day two's game is in the evening, you have lots of time to find other baseball fun. Drive to Alvin, 45 minutes south of Houston, to visit the Nolan Ryan Center ([281] 388-1134) on the campus of Alvin Community College. Memorabilia trace the career of the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers pitching star. One display lets you put your face in a catcher's mask, slip your hand into a mitt, and learn what Nolan Ryan's fastball feels like. Then take your appetite to Joe's Barbecue Company, an Alvin mainstay for brisket, ribs, and baseball artifacts.

Drop by Houston's Finger Furniture. Built over the city's first ballpark, Buff Stadium, it houses a baseball history collection. Home plate is in its original spot, surrounded now by showcases of Buffs, Colt .45s, and Astros memorabilia.

At tonight's game, graze on Texas barbecue, Cajun sausage, Mexican fajita wraps, pizzas, burgers, hot dogs, and ice cream. At windows labeled "All Aboard For..." the menu represents the visiting team, with fish tacos when the Padres are in town, pulled pork for the Braves, and cheese steak subs for the Phillies.

If you didn't before, splurge on box seats tonight for a closer view of the action. During the seventh inning stretch, belt out "Deep in the Heart of Texas" as well as "Take Me Out to the Ball Game."

Day 3: The Home Stretch

Your third day promises an afternoon game. Spend the morning hitting sports card shops, browsing for collectibles, and talking stats with other fans. Try Baseball Fever in Sugar Land or Sportscard Shack in the Northshore area for past and present players' cards.

Save money today on the dirt cheap standing room-only area where an over-- size gas pump counts Astros homers like gallons of fuel. Spend your cash instead on a meal at Ruggles Grill, a full-service restaurant with a patio over center field.

Be sure to visit the interactive Kids' Zone. Youngsters can swing a plastic bat at balls of water squirted up from a home plate, stretch a giant slingshot to fire a ball toward a huge catcher's mitt, and run alongside a mechanical Astros player.

After this early game, you have the entire evening ahead. Seek out the SRO Sports Bar & Cafe, and eat steaks while catching more sports on hundreds of TVs, from wall-size to tabletop versions.

Finish the day with a toast to the home team. Regardless of the outcome on the playing field, you have just completed a three-game sweep for a weekend to remember. Joe Rada

For more information: Contact the Houston Astros, Enron Field, 501 Crawford Street, Houston, TX 77002; (713) 259-8000, (713) 627-8767 (ticket office), or www.astros.com. For area information contact the Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau at (713) 437-5200, 1-800-446-8786, or www. houston-guide.com.