I am not a sports photographer, but here are some shots from last night's game. I was definitely testing the limit of my 55-300.

Texas Rangers won, 6 to 1. I'm a San Francisco Giants fan, but my family are from Texas so I was a Rangers fan last night for the game with the Oakland Athletics. The Texas Rangers are in first place in the America League West. Oakland is third out of four teams in the same America League West.

Several of these photos are of Josh Hamilton. ( Josh Hamilton - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia )

Oakland needs a better ballpark and just 15,000 people showed up for the game. That's a big contrast to the reception the Texas Rangers have in their home field. Hope you enjoy a look at "America's Favorite Game."

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The photo above was taken during the game --- shows how many empty seats there were.

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[GeoJerry]

As a big baseball fan (second only to hockey), I enjoyed this series. Too bad about the fan attendance. I used to live in the Bay Area and it seemed to me that neither the A's nor the Giants enjoyed much support from the local population. The Giants now with their new park and World Series caliber teams and top notch pitching get the fans, but the A's are almost like a farm club now. Too bad. Back in the 1970's, especially, they had some great teams with charismatic Hall of Fame caliber players, and continued with some good teams in the 1980's. But they haven't done much since.

I also have the 55-300 mm but haven't taken it to a Dodger game yet. How far away from the field were you? Your shot from left center field (#4) looks like much better magnification than I'd expect. Is this a crop that has been enlarged?

[daacon]

Nice series , I have seen a few games in the Bay Area (AT&T park or whatever it is called now ha!) Never got to an Okland game but the Giants are one of my favorite teams.

[sealonsf]

The Giants now with their new park and World Series caliber teams and top notch pitching get the fans, but the A's are almost like a farm club now. Too bad. Back in the 1970's, especially, they had some great teams with charismatic Hall of Fame caliber players, and continued with some good teams in the 1980's. But they haven't done much since.

I also have the 55-300 mm but haven't taken it to a Dodger game yet. How far away from the field were you? Your shot from left center field (#4) looks like much better magnification than I'd expect. Is this a crop that has been enlarged?

I've been living in San Francisco for 10 years now and from what I noticed, the fans have been showing up all that time - I think a really beautiful ballpark makes a big difference. The Giants' AT&T Park opened in 2000. Now, of course, with the World Series win in 2010, they sell out every game. In May of this year, they had the 100th game sell out.

I'm not good with distances, but we were in the "bleachers" section so not close to the batter at all. I cropped heavily for the photo you mentioned. The photos of Josh Hamilton were a bit closer since he was playing left field.

[sealonsf]

Nice series , I have seen a few games in the Bay Area (AT&T park or whatever it is called now ha!) Never got to an Okland game but the Giants are one of my favorite teams.

Go Giants! San Francisco loves their baseball team.

[GeoJerry]

I've been living in San Francisco for 10 years now and from what I noticed, the fans have been showing up all that time - I think a really beautiful ballpark makes a big difference. The Giants' AT&T Park opened in 2000. Now, of course, with the World Series win in 2010, they sell out every game. In May of this year, they had the 100th game sell out.

The Giants were still playing at Candlestick when I moved out of the area. Dodger Stadium now looks like Candlestick then... lots of empty seats. Kind of sad really.

A new stadium does make a difference. I was living in Cleveland when the Indians built a new stadium in the early 1990's. Before, they might get 10,000 per game, after the new stadium opened, they sold out every game for 5-6 years. Of course, it also helped that they had some great teams in the 1990's.

The LA Kings also sell out every home game. I expect ticket demand will soar for next year.