"The oldest and fiercest rivalry in Baseball make history and meet on new grounds in Europe"
An epic weekend with sold out crowds in London for the first ball game ever played on European grounds. The weekend kicked off on Friday June 28th at the London yards at Truman Brewery, a complementary three day baseball festival with fans from all over the world attending to what is known for most as the best rival in all of baseball, the New York Yankees vs Boston Red Sox. Since we had been in Europe for 6 months at the time, The London Yards event kicked off everything we needed to make us feel at home from batting cages, ball park hot dogs, peanuts and cracker jacks, radar clocked pitching into washer machines, a fan fest store filled with London Series memorabilia and of course beer gardens!!!! A huge TV screen playing Yankees and Red Sox success and past history of the two teams rivalry to educate the European fans about the game being played on new grounds. A bucket list experience indeed!
The following day, Saturday June 29th, history was made when the London Series opened up for the first game ever played on European soil in London, UK. The MLB couldn't have chosen two better teams for this historical event. Filled with fans from all parts of the world, who were excited to learn about the game of Baseball together with many fellow Americans who made the trip to London to witness history. The London Stadium what is known as West Ham United's home field, is a beautiful stadium with spectacular sights. The stadium of course is built for Soccer but they did an incredible job transforming it into a Baseball field.
Watching the British fans soak in the fun and just listening to the "oohs and aah's" from the crowd during the teams batting practice before the game, which is always fun after towering balls are hit into the outfield stands was a blast. The players from both teams were interacting more then usual with the fans which to us was very cool, as it really gives the Europeans a good feel of what a baseball game is all about, the ball park atmosphere.
The first game of the two game series had it all, from Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan assisting on the games ceremonial first pitch, to the first MLB home run hit in Europe by Yankees Aaron Hicks which had the crowd going wild through out the stadium. It had all the first of everything in baseball in Europe! Some of the best memories we have was meeting the British fans and fans from all places of the world and helping out with questions and their perspective on baseball, Priceless moments.
The game ended up living up to the hype for all fans and the baseball world with a crazy first inning of 12 runs combined by both teams. We have never seen a baseball game where both starting pitchers are pulled out in the 1st inning, and a game with plenty of home runs. A final score of 17-13 with the Yankees coming out on top, was a great game with lots of action, perfect for the MLB introducing themselves in European grounds.
If you missed out on the 2019 London Series, not to worry as the MLB has a contract thru 2020 and London will see the MLB return with the St. Louis Cardinals vs. Chicago Cubs coming into the UK for another two game series featuring two historic National League teams! For any additional information, you can get the latest updates Here!
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