There is a place at the corner of 3rd and King that is crusted in bricks and is only open during the summer. It is a house of horrors, a cathedral, and a community in itself. For six months out of the year from April to September (and if we’re lucky October) the brick façade from Willie Mays Plaza comes to life. Crowds of people pour out of trains from the Peninsula, street cars if they’re coming from the City, and boats if they’re coming from the East Bay, all in the consistent colors of orange and black.
In years prior the two block walk from the King station to the cathedral was one of that did not show much else besides abandoned warehouses and construction projects. Today the area comes to life hours before a game as newly established bars are packed with the day’s assembled masses. The bars are always busy. In darker years the crowds drank to forget. This year the drinking has been in celebration, a not so familiar feeling to the orange and black faithful.
To the east of the stadium lies San Francisco Bay whose presence becomes more and more vivid the higher and higher you climb to find your seat. From up there it is easy to forget about a game being played just below you as you see the giant cargo ships roll into the Oakland Harbor. When the teams were bad, this was the greatest attraction. Today, it is the drama in between the lines at 3rd and King.
Erik Oas is a graduating senior at San Jose State. A member of the radio station KSJS, where he hosts a weekly one-hour sports talk show.
The Bolt Magazine 