Last night, there was a party at the newly renovated SkyDome (I know the name’s been changed and I’ll touch on that shortly). The Toronto Blue Jays made sure that everyone was invited and had an incredible time thanks to all of the changes that have been made to the ballpark.
The good news started to roll in before most fans even left the house, with GO Transit announcing that they were offering a free trip home from the game! (For those unfamiliar with the Toronto area, GO Transit is an extremely popular bus and rail service for fans travelling within and outside of the city.)
The vibe was palpable walking up to the stadium. This was not going to be the experience that Blue Jays fans have become accustomed to- ‘New SkyDome’ was something else entirely.
Now, I’ve referred to the Blue Jays’ home as the SkyDome my whole life, in spite of the fact that the name was changed to the ‘Rogers Centre’ in 2005. Admittedly, a small part of my unwillingness to adopt the name change is due to my own personal experiences with the Canadian telecommunications giant, but it’s a choice that runs much deeper than simply some dropped calls and recurring wifi outages.
The name ‘SkyDome’ was originally chosen in 1987 after a province-wide contest to choose a name for the newly-built stadium. This was a choice made by the fans and for the fans. And an appropriate choice too with the CN Tower looming above, seemingly stretching up into the clouds.
Given such a long list of new additions, specifically designed with the fan experience in mind, I’ve recently taken to affectionately referring to this stadium as ‘New SkyDome’. After all, as someone who has been to over 100 baseball games here, there’s no doubt that this is a different venue now.
From the moment that I stepped out into New SkyDome, I was immersed in the changes that had been hyped up to me throughout the offseason.
My first stop was to check out the nearby Corona Rooftop Patio, one of the four new ‘outfield neighbourhoods’ that have been added to the park. Perched above right field, the aesthetic gave off an instant, outdoor summer atmosphere, complete with live music. And that was with the dome closed!
After meeting up with two of my closest friends, we made our way to our seats to enjoy the pre-game festivities including a celebration of Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s 2022 Gold Glove Award, Alejandro Kirk’s 2022 Silver Slugger Award, and newly minted Hall of Famer Fred McGriff throwing out the ceremonial first pitch to Guerrero. The latter of which felt like a true passing of the torch moment that set the stage for the night, and hopefully, the season.
As the game got underway, Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Alek Manoah laboured through the first three innings with three hits, three earned runs, five walks, and a single strikeout.
The early damage could’ve been worse for Manoah too, but centre fielder Kevin Kiermaier perfectly timed a jump at the outfield wall that took the elevator ride up the CN Tower.
If former Blue Jays centre fielder Kevin Pillar is Superman, then Kiermaier is likely X-Men superhero Angel. Not only would that play make more sense if Kiermaier had wings sprouting out of his back, but he possesses the same heavenly good looks and is a hero off the field as well. At the very least, he was Manoah’s guardian angel last night!
Kiermaier even knocked in his first home run of the season against Detroit Tigers starter Matt Manning to tie the game.
In keeping with the theme of the night, it was another new(ish) addition on the field that recorded the win in Toronto.
Brampton, Ontario native Zach Pop relieved Manoah in the fifth inning and struck out two batters in 1.2 innings without allowing a baserunner. Since being acquired at the trade deadline last season, Pop has been electric with a 1.75 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, 3 BBs, and 17 Ks in 25.2 IP. While he’s still working his way into high-leverage situations, the 25-year-old reliever is a name that you can expect to Pop up on your radar again this season.
With Pop in the game, Kiermaier and George Springer hit back-to-back home runs to give the Jays a 4-3 lead in the fifth inning.
In the bottom of the eighth, the Jays padded the lead.
First, Bo Bichette hit a solo homer off of Tigers’ reliever Mason Englert.
Then, new additions Brandon Belt and Daulton Varsho teamed up. After a stolen base from Varsho, Belt drove him in with his second hit of the game (Yes, you read that right. That’s twice as many hits as Belt has had up to this point!)
Even the Blue Jays’ most recent acquisition Jordan Luplow got in on the action as he came in as a pinch-runner for Belt and subsequently scored on a three-run home run from Alejandro Kirk.
The Jays went on to win the game 9-3.
Note: Obscene amounts of napkins and a fork are a must to properly enjoy your poutine dog.
Taste: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Presentation: ⭐⭐⭐
Value: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Among the long list of new additions at New SkyDome was the introduction of a slew of fresh and intriguing menu options, headlined by the poutine dog. So, naturally, yours truly had to give it a try!
While four out of five stars may not sound like a ringing endorsement, that’s a massive step up from the norm in Toronto. The poutine itself was delicious and the bun was fresh and doughy in all the right ways. The only thing holding this back from getting a full five stars was the dog itself. Swapping it out for a juicy bratwurst would elevate this to the Level of Excellence and is my personal recommendation for anyone trying to replicate this at home.
As you can see from the picture above, the presentation isn’t the most appealing and gives little to no indication of just how mouthwatering it actually tastes. The paper wrapper wasn’t the most well-thought-out idea as gravy and paper don’t mix particularly well. Serving the poutine dog in a foil wrapper or a narrow cardboard boat would really help secure the dish better, especially as you travel throughout the ballpark. While being Instagram-worthy isn’t a quality that I personally put much stock in, as a major league club you need to be aware of how your product looks when fans are posting on social media.
At $9.99 CAD, the poutine dog was a superb value (at least as far as stadium prices go). There aren’t that many menu items available for $10 or less and the poutine dog is certainly one of the more filling choices for such a bargain.
Overall, while I would personally make a few tweaks to improve the poutine dog, it’s definitely a fun and tasty new option. I'm looking forward to ordering it again throughout the summer!
This year’s home opener was easily the most thrilling baseball game that I’ve attended since 2016. The long list of changes to the stadium genuinely enhanced my experience as a fan and I’m already eager to get back to another game solely to check out every single one of the new additions that have been introduced this season.
Or as I myself put it after getting home late last night:
Check out our brand new podcast: The Out Pitch Podcast!