The baseball experience at each field, park, and stadium I visit is interestingly unique in its own way. Sure many of them have bleachers, a concession stand, light towers, quirky outfield dimensions, and historical markers. The outfields are green, the mound’s are dirt, the baselines are symmetrical, the dugouts have lineup cards and bubble gum wrappers. I’ve been to hundreds of fields in my 50 plus years of playing, coaching, and writing about baseball. And I am still, to this date, surprised by what I see at and around a baseball field. Case in point – Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, Scottsdale, Arizona.
Salt River Fields at Talking Stick is the Spring Training home for two MLB clubs – The Colorado Rockies and the Arizona Diamondbacks. When the Arizona Diamondbacks “break camp,” they will head just about 25 miles Southeast to their home field, Chase Field, in downtown Phoenix. The Colorado Rockies have a slightly longer commute back to Denver. But for the Spring games, these two share the Salt River Fields complex. I arrived on Thursday, later in the evening, well after any games were finished. So, I had no expectation of getting into the stadium. It’s less pressure if you think this way, that way if you do happen to get in, it’s an unexpected bonus! Little psychology tip there…
This was about as close I got to being inside – the front gate. I will say, in the many visits to Arizona Spring Training sites, that team and stadium personnel were pretty consistent on allowing people into the stadium during off hours. No game, no entry, I completely understand and always respect their position. Still, I have to ask if there is any chance I could take a quick photo of the field. Many have said no, some actually said okay. Can’t win them all, I think that’s a baseball saying as well.
As I figured, I would not be able to get into the park on Thursday night. I was still happy to have visited and to catch a glimpse of the amazing architecture of the Salt River Fields Stadium. And as I walked across the pedestrian bridge back to my rental car, I couldn’t help notice all the incredible landscape architecture around the stadium.
I even mentioned to one of the attendants leaving for the day that ‘we don’t have cactus(es) in Rhode Island.’ He laughed and asked if I had been to the memorial yet. I said “what memorial?” He pointed behind me, “that memorial, you should check out the USS Arizona Memorial.”
The USS Arizona Memorial Gardens at Salt River is one of the coolest things I have ever seen. Whoever came up with this concept to immortalize and memorialize this event is absolutely brilliant. What an incredible tribute and memorial garden for family, friends, loved ones, literally anyone touched by this tragedy that occurred on December 7, 1941. The bombing of Pearl Harbor, an unbenounced attack on the unsuspecting crew of the USS Arizona, and as President Roosevelt is famously quoted “a date which will live in infamy.” So what is at the Memorial Gardens exhibit? The hull of the USS Arizona…
Humbly speaking, my photos do not do it any justice. There are light sticks positioned over a massive area to create the outline of the former USS Arizona. I was present during dusk hours so the lights did not come on. The stern stretched across the street, the bow stretched into the man made harbor next to the Great Wolf Lodge Resort. Lines and lines of light sticks made up the center sections of the ship, metal rails made up her sides circling a museum for further reflection. At night, with the lights lit up, you can see the complete outline of the USS Arizona in all its size and glory. I walked the gardens, reading the names of the crew, stopping to see if I recognized a name or two on a park bench, and just took in the gigantic emotional feel of the memorial. I have never seen anything so masterful, this memorial is a must see and must stop in Scottsdale.
Salt River Fields at Talking Stick was one of my favorite stops in Arizona. I love the architecture of the stadium and grounds. No baseball game to speak of, no walk around the outfield grass, no pictures of the inside of the stadium, no worries. I got to walk through the USS Arizona Memorial Gardens instead and immerse myself into a beautiful tribute to our US servicemen who were aboard that ship on that disastrous date. It was another beautiful experience in Scottsdale, which is quickly becoming one of my favorite cities to visit. One more day in Arizona for work, then home to family.
The Rhiter 
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