This story was excerpted from Scott Merkin’s White Sox Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
HOUSTON – I’ve been covering games at what is now known as Daikin Park for 23 seasons and have always wondered one thing: Why is it so hot in Houston?
Ok, I wondered two things.
What is the story regarding the train in left field? It’s easily one of the most standout features in any Major League Baseball ballpark, but I’ve only seen it from the cozy confines of the pressbox or from field level before the game.
During the White Sox three-game visit last week, I changed that scenario.
In getting permission to visit the train during pregame Thursday, Rachel from Astros media relations contacted me to set up a time. We decided upon meeting at 5:45 p.m., a little more than one hour before first pitch in the deciding contest of the three-game matchup.
Before I could make this short journey, Rachel informed me I had to sign a waiver.
Of course … Wait? What?
Now, I come from a long line of neurotics, so seeing this message made me re-think the journey. But I signed, took a few deep breaths and we moved forward.
Amanda, who also works for the Astros, joined the two of us as we walked down the same level as the pressbox, eventually through a side door not available to the public and there were the tracks and the train. As we moved closer and I looked around, I immediately realized how long a drive it is for a player to hit a home run on to or near the tracks.
We met up with Bobby Vasquez, better known as Bobby “Dynamite.” By day, he is a magazine editor, content creator for an international association.
“By night,” Mr. Dynamite added. “I put on some overalls and come up here and watch a ballgame.”
He does more than watch the game. For 26 years, he’s been part of the Astros, starting with the organization as a tour guide for one year. For the past 25 years, he’s been the train conductor and someone who frequently energizes quite possibly the loudest venue in the game from his locomotive perch high above.
“I’m just here trying to pick up some eggs and some bread,” said Bobby with a laugh when asked of how his notoriety has grown over the years. “I’ve seen 1,000 games and not a single one of them is the same.”
Whenever the Astros take the field to start the ballgame, the train runs down the track toward the left-field line. At the end of the top of the first, he’ll run it back over toward left center.
“Then I’ll wait for the Astros to hit a home run or win,” Bobby said. “That’s when all the bells and whistles and smoke and all the fun stuff happens.”
There was another important job Bobby had to tackle on this evening: Showing me how to get on to the train with the least amount of personal harm. There’s a small staircase as you get near the train, but then there’s two metal loops above on the train to climb on and hoist yourself into the vehicle.
Bobby “Dynamite” does this more than a few times every home game. I took one look at the train standing head-high on me at its lowest point and instantly decided I would observe from below.
Thanks to encouragement from the three, I made the climb in and was glad I did. It’s an amazing view of the ballpark and was interesting to see the machinery and the baseballs in the cargo area having replaced the oranges when the park was known as Minute Maid.
Getting out of the train wasn’t quite as easy. I’m short, and my athleticism has waned in the last 10 years. So, when I missed the first attempt at the first step, I had visions of that waiver coming into play.
Luckily, Bobby gave me expert instructions and I was able to get back to write about the experience. I should have been up there when Isaac Paredes homered in the fifth inning, but even as I watched from my view many feet away, I had great memories of this once-in-a-career sort of experience.