HOUSTON — The absence is notable. The nuisance and injury-risk that was Tal’s Hill in center field of Minute Maid Park is gone now, replaced by, well, a normal outfield wall and behind that a beer garden, perhaps a more financially beneficial and viable use of the space.
Will it be missed?
“Oh hell no!” exclaimed Mariners outfielder Jarrod Dyson. “I hated that hill.”
In the offseason, the Astros leveled the grassy knoll that extended across straightaway centerfield that stretched 90 feet across and had a 30-degree incline leading up to a short wall, measuring 436 feet from home plate.