I watched the World Series live for 20 bucks

I don’t know anyone who works for the Washington Nationals or Houston Astros. But here’s how I saw a game of the 2019 World Series live for only $20 AND it was perfectly legal. (None of that sneaking in stuff.)

It was Sunday, October 27, 2019. A light breeze drifted through the DC air, but overall, it was a good night for baseball. Game 5 of the World Series was tonight, and the series was tied 2-2. Regardless of who won tonight, it would be the last baseball game played at Nationals Park for a long time, as Games 6 and 7 would be back in Houston. (Also, little did we know, the baseball season would be suspended indefinitely due to the coronavirus, so like a long time before baseball would be played again.)

I arrived via metro to the stadium around 8:15pm, just after the first pitch. I had read on the news earlier that day that the president would be in attendance today, so I knew security would be tighter than ever. I knew the lay of the land a bit, as I went to a game a little over a month earlier. 

My plan was to walk around the stadium and work up the courage to ask a stadium employee to let me in for free. Long story short, I did not work up that courage, so I ended up ambling around looking like an idiot for 20 minutes before realizing this was never going to happen. However, I had an ace up my sleeve. 

I heard a rumor that one of the hotels near the stadium had a rooftop bar with a wide view of the entire field. I had no idea if it was true or not, but I figured why not try it. Quickly, I searched up hotels near Nationals Park and found a couple that could work. 

The first one I tried was the Hampton Inn and Suites because it was directly across the street from the stadium and looked tall enough to have a good view from the outside. The lobby was decorated in Nationals gear and I looked for the elevator, acting like I was a guest in the hotel. Suddenly, a lady asked me, “Why are you here?”

I explained my situation, how I wanted to watch the World Series on the cheap, but also not wanting to be yelled at or kicked out of the hotel. Fortunately, she responded, “Well, you’ve come to the right place!” I exhaled a sigh of relief. She pointed me in the direction of the elevator and I took it to the top floor. 

I emerged at a gigantic rooftop bar, complete with TVs, more Nationals decorations, and a buffet full of unhealthy tailgating food. I had hit the jackpot; the only thing left was to see if I could see the field from here. I gladly paid the $20 cover charge and walked in.

There it was: the field. It felt like something out of Field of Dreams, except with much less corn. You could see pretty much the entire infield and most of the right outfield. It was like I was in the stadium, except instead of paying $1000, I paid 50 times less and got free food. A pretty good deal for a college student on a budget.

Although the Nationals lost the game I saw live, they still won the series and I went to the championship parade down Independence Ave (right along the side of the National Mall) a couple days later. I saw the team lift the Commissioner’s Trophy in person and celebrate the first World Series in DC since 1924. Overall, this was a good week, to say the least.