St. Louis Cardinals 3 at Toronto Blue Jays 4 (11) - September 13, 2024

My buddy Sharpy, who has accompanied me on sports trips for over 30 years, is celebrating his 60th this month and as we are not getting any younger, I thought it a good opportunity to finally see a Blue Jays game from the hotel at Rogers Centre. Officially known as the Toronto Marriott City Centre Hotel, it has 348 rooms, 70 of which overlook the diamond. The entrance is near Gate 15 and just inside is the Sportsnet Grill, from where you can watch the game as well, though reservations are required.

I arrived on Friday around 2 p.m. and was able to check in. The room we were given was in right field, directly above the Rooftop Patio, one of the new social areas that we explored last year.

We went to the game the following day as well and I took the shot of the room from outside; it is the smaller set of windows above ROOF, separated by a pillar. The windows open and there are two chairs, so you are part of the crowd, though not counted in the attendance. It is impressive how seamlessly the hotel is integrated with the ballpark.

During games, maximum capacity for these smaller rooms is just six, but even that would be too many as there is really only space for two people to comfortably watch. There are larger rooms that allow for more people, though even then, the windows are not that big so having a huge watch party is not advisable.

When I got to the room, the roof was closed, but shortly thereafter they opened it as it was a perfect night for baseball.

We watched some infield and batting practice, a cool experience in a mostly empty stadium. We grabbed dinner at the grill and headed back to the room to watch the game.

As you can see, there is not a lot of variety in the photos, as you are limited to being in your room. Still, you can enjoy your own private bar (beer bought at the LCBO) and restroom. You can also have the game on TV, where there is about a 15-second delay, so you can watch the replays quite easily.

The moon made an appearance; as we were above right field, we could not see the CN Tower, but we did get a view of the scoreboard, which those rooms above center field did not. It was a very cool experience to watch the game from here and we ended up with one of the best of the season.

The Game

Kevin Gausman started for Toronto and gave up four straight singles to get things started, with two of them weakly hit, so only one run scored. After a strikeout, rookie Thomas Saggese grounded to right, but Nolan Arenado was forced at second on a smart play by Addison Barger, although the second run crossed the plate. Lars Nootbar then popped out, and we breathed a sigh of relief as the big inning did not happen. In the Blue Jays fourth, George Springer walked and stole second, Nathan Lukes singled him to third, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. doubled him home, and Spencer Horwitz hit a sac fly to tie the game. After Will Wagner flew out, Alejandro Kirk singled home Vladdy and the Jays had the lead.

Gausman pitched 7 innings and left with the lead, but Génesis Cabrera gave up a game-tying homer to Saggese, his first major league dinger. The bullpens were otherwise perfect and we went to extras still tied at three. Neither team scored in the 10th, and the Cardinals could not muster anything against Erik Swanson in the 11th. In the bottom half, Guerrero Jr. was intentionally walked to lead off and then Leo Jimenez's bunt was misplayed into a single that loaded the bases. Wagner grounded into a force at home, but Alejandro Kirk followed with a deep fly that fell in left field to give the Jays the thrilling win.

The Jays defense was stellar on the night, with Vladdy making three spectacular plays that saved runs, both at third base and first base. It was such a fun game to watch and gives hope that 2025 might see the Jays return to contending status, especially as the Jays swept the Cardinals. Update: the Jays went 1-5 on a trip to Texas and Tampa Bay, so I think the hope for 2025 was a bit premature.

After the game, the stadium cleared out, but of course, we got to stay in the room and watch the cleanup. The roof was eventually closed and remained so the next morning, though it opened in time for the game that afternoon.

Due to that afternoon game, we had to check out at 10 a.m. to allow for the room to be made up for the next guests. If you are interested in booking one of these rooms, a night game is probably best as you can watch the teams warm up and the stadium come to life, and then enjoy some late night drinks at the Grill or one of the other bars in the area. 

Notes

It was a foggy morning on Saturday and the CN Tower was shrouded early on. Not worth the $47 to go up at that time.



I did a small tour of some bars and was delighted to find a beer called Sittler 10 Point Lager, which is named for Darryl Sittler's 10-point game in 1976. That game was the first professional sporting event I attended so I had to order one. When I asked the bartender if he knew the reason behind the name, he professed ignorance, so I explained it to him. He was so impressed that he gave me the beer on the house.

Next Up

A family trip to Atlanta where I'll see some MLS and college volleyball, and then the college basketball season sees me in the Dakotas. After that, the Club 124 meetup in Los Angeles for the Clippers new Intuit Dome takes place in early November. Check back for updates along the way.

Best,

Sean