The Ballpark Tour

 

Dad and I are slowly working our way through the quest to see a regular season game (or... sure... playoff game) played in every major league stadium. (Places are listed in alphabetical order by team.)

 

	Baltimore Orioles
	Oriole Park at Camden Yards
	May 2004 visit
	Posted April 1, 2013
	From the Backpack ~ Originally posted July 21, 2004
	In the past two years, I have had the pleasure of attending a couple of ballgames at the best of the best… Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Let there be no mistake, I’m not pretending that Baltimore is home to the most aesthetically pleasing ballpark in the country today... But this is the field… the one that started the craze to build quality, appealing ballparks over the past decade. The one that didn’t cost $500 gazillion to build. The one that everyone names in their list of two or three ballparks they would like to use as a model for their city. The one that brought us to the announcement the Bud Selig is considering honoring new ballparks with mid-summer coin flip games instead of alternating between the leagues.

 

	Boston Red Sox
	Fenway Park
	April 2005 visit
	Posted April 1, 2013
	From the Backpack ~ Originally posted April 15, 2005
	Now let me set the stage for you on this one, with my own perspective on this event. My father, as I have noted before around this site, for years worked as a news photographer for a television station. He won an Emmy for his work, and filmed some of the greatest sporting events in New England. NBA finals… Stanley Cup playoffs… And he placed yesterday above them all.

 

	Chicago Cubs
	Wrigley Field
	June 2005 visit
	Posted May 22, 2011
	From the Backpack ~ Originally posted July 17, 2005
	Associated In My Backpack link(s): The Best of Chicago 2005 A Chicago diary… Bob and Dad on tour in 2005
	One interesting side note about the trip to the field. We got off of interstate 90 and drove along West Addison to get to the park. Both of us felt as though the road was quite similar to Veterans Parkway (which you can use to drive in to Fenway). Haven’t done the research to prove it, but we wondered if that had anything to do with the age of the parks and how they were placed into their locales so many years ago.

 

	Cleveland Indians
	Progressive Field
	September 2008 visit
	Posted October 23, 2010
	Associated In My Backpack link(s): The Best of Cleveland ~ 2008
	Behind the gate, a few security officers, attendants, and police officers are walking around. The teams have been taking batting practice, and one of the policemen has been picking up a few of the balls. Seems a bit strange, and he is ignoring those calling to him from the outside… to be specific, the adults calling for him to toss them a ball. As the gates open, the officer walks directly over to a young girl and boy… no more than 7 or 8 years old… and hands each of them an official baseball. He looks right at them, smiles, and tells them to have a great time at the game.

 

	New York Mets
	Shea Stadium
	July 2005 visit
	Posted April 1, 2013
	From the Backpack ~ Originally posted October 25, 2005
	“Mientkiewicz give us our God damn ball back!” Another quick funny story from Shea, and one that completely tells the story of the 2005 Mets. We arrived, and along the outside wall of the stadium was a souvenir stand. I stopped because I thought it would be great to bring my hat and program the twenty steps back to the car and leave it there. (Yes, we parked two rows away from the stadium. I regularly get worse parking spots at the mall.) In one of the cases was a special figure of Mike Piazza. Right next to that was a small statue of Goofy wearing a Mets uniform. Cost of the Mike Piazza figure: $10. The cost of Goofy: $23.

 

	New York Yankees
	Yankee Stadium
	July 2006 visit
	Posted April 1, 2013
	From the Backpack ~ Originally posted February 7, 2007
	Dating back to 1932, the Yankees have honored former players and organizational greats. Monument Park is the home to these plaques and memorials, including a special section for retired numbers. Look… I think the Green Monster is the most unique and important feature involving the field of play that can be found at any stadium. Without question, Monument Park is the best segment of a stadium dedicated to preserving and presenting a team’s history. It may be the best feature at any park… period.

 

	Pittsburgh Pirates
	PNC Park
	September 2008 visit
	Posted October 23, 2010
	Associated In My Backpack link(s): The Best of Pittsburgh ~ 2008
	PNC Park is, quite possibly, the perfect place to see a game. It’s a beautiful facility that truly seems to have everything in place. All that’s missing is a team winning 90-plus games and getting to the playoffs. When this field hosts a winning team, it will be a simply elite facility second to none and perhaps better than any.