Tal's Hill
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tal's Hill, at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas, is a 90-foot wide, 30-degree incline hill in center field. 406 feet back from home plate, this purely decorative hill has a flagpole stuck right in the middle of it, which is considered in the field of play. This hill has caused some of the most replayed catches in recent baseball history, and plenty of controversy as well.
One of these events was in a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, when Houston Astros outfielder Lance Berkman denied Rob Mackowiak of an extra-base hit when he made a twisting and turning, reaching-back, tumbling spectacle of a catch as he ran up the hill. However, Astro's outfielder Craig Biggio was not so lucky, as Tal's Hill can be unforgiving. When Biggio ran after a fly ball hit by the Philadelphia Phillies' Pat Burrell in May 2005, he mistakenly looked up at the ball, hit the base of the Hill and fell flat on his face. Burrell was credited with a triple. Richie Sexson once hit the upper part of the flagpole with a 500 ft, devastating hit, that became a double since the flagpole is in play.
Such events have caused controversy among fans and players alike. Lance Berkman was quoted as saying, "If the ball rolls onto the hill, it's not steep enough to roll back, so you have to go get it. Then there's the chance of running into the flagpole that's on it and getting hurt.” Fans started an online petition to remove the hill and flagpole, the petition has since been discontinued.
