The Miami trip and ballpark visit marked a new chapter for us. In many ways, it was a rebirth and a new start. 2012 had been particularly unkind to us, and when we left for Miami in September, we were pretty much done putting up with the year. But bad vibes aside, the Miami trip marked a decidedly different push for us as a family, and it was the first opportunity to introduce our third member of the family to our little family tradition.

The trip on the whole was amazing. We spent time on the beach, ate great food, met new awesome friends, stayed on a boat, and of course caught a ball game. The most fun we probably had was doing the whole Airbnb thing and staying on the boat. We like the adventure of Airbnb, because you just never know what’s going to happen. The majority of our experiences have been great, and this one with new friends Michelle and Pat was no exception. And Baron made a friend in Mack, their furry child (who they love so much he has his own Facebook profile).

Marlins Park is the newest of all the stadiums we’ve visited thus far, and definitely one of the most unique. You can’t make any complaints about the condition and comfort of this stadium; it’s a gem. Further, it’s a contradiction when compared with other new parks, as the Marlins decided to go against the retro-styled grain and created a park very modern and contemporary. It’s also quite abstract and progressive. And despite the lengthy, controversial process of getting it funded and completed (which you can read about on the wiki page, but I don’t even want to begin sorting out), overall the final product is incredible. Like Houston, and a few others sprouting up, it features a fully retractable outfield wall and roof, perfect for a city whose weather is about as random as salad vehicles. We actually experienced all of the iterations in one evening: open wall/closed roof when we arrived, followed by rain and completely closed, then after the game, open roof and wall with postgame fireworks. Pretty cool all around.

A few notes:

Looking back, I’m happy to have seen the Marlins when they actually were trying to win some games. After the 2012 season, the much maligned ownership went on a fire sale, selling off many of the Marlins top players. Attendance is now down and as of the writing of this post, are on pace to have the worst major league season EVER (13-41 a little over a third through the season…ouch). Who knows what

This was the second time we saw Mark Buerhle win a game, the other being for the White Sox in 2009. This definitely makes me want to create some sort of running stat list for these trips. Because I’ve got time for that.

Pat, one of our new friends, has a really cool job. Aside from being a pilot and a ship captain, he also does freelance work with insurance companies recovering “stolen” (sometimes fraudulently claimed as stolen) boats. He makes trips to Cuba and various islands to essentially steal boats back. I don’t know many people with jobs as interesting as that.

The game:

Cincinnatti Reds – 4
Miami Marlins – 6

Saturday, September 15, 2012, 7:10PM
Time of Game: 2:58
Weather: 76° F, Indoors.

Attendance: 27,502

Winning Pitcher: Mark Buehrle (13-12)
Losing Pitcher: Johnny Cueto (17-9)
Save: Steve Cishek (14)

The hot dog:

(Hot Dog ratings are for entertainment purposes only. Any resemblance to hot dogs, either real or fictional, is purely coincidental.)

The Miami dog was pretty meh, and though I don’t know why, I expected more from the Cuban population Miami provides. As always, there are worse things than a dog at a ballgame, but this one wasn’t particularly memorable.

Score (out of 5): 3 Dogs

Now for photos!

Cheers, and play ball!

Our trip to Atlanta was a pretty exciting one. While many people would consider a drive from Fort Worth to the Georgia capital pretty uninspiring, for us it was to be the last road trip we ever took as a family of two. We found out in October that we were going to be pregnant with our first child (which we’d have just two months later), and decided to take a little “babymoon” trip to Georgia and Pensacola, Florida. We had such a great time, staying in the Atlantic Station area, visiting Stone Mountain, and eating at Hotlanta staples, Ted’s Montana Grill and The Vortex. And when we got out of Atlanta after the game, we got to visit some new friends we met while in Europe, Mark & Tammy Tamayo. And on that note, I should mention we got to eat at the greatness that is Peg Leg Pete’s, the restaurant that Mark manages.

The trip was eventful, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the baseball park and game we attended (especially considering the title of this post). I was actually quite excited to visit Turner Field, less for the park itself and more for the history that surrounds the Braves franchise. Well, that and the chance to participate in an authentic Tomahawk Chop. Turner Field, or “The Ted”, was completed in 1996 as Centennial Olympic Stadium, and was the the centerpiece of the Olympics being held in Atlanta that year. The next year it was converted to a baseball stadium, and just in time too, as the Braves would dominate the National League for nearly a decade following. Some of its features include the giant Coke bottle and Chick-Fil-A cow (who does the famous chop when the Braves hit homeruns) in the outfield, as well as the once Guiness World Record holding HD video board in center field. And you can’t help but notice all those pennants!

A few notes:

Despite only being 81, Turner felt like an oven in the sun. It was a hard go for my darling 7-month pregnant wife…but we managed to seek shelter in the shade often enough.

A bonus to this game was the post game concert put on in the infield by The Avett Brothers. I was late to the party on the Avetts, but had started listening to them a few weeks prior, in preparation for the concert. They absolutely didn’t disappoint, and are now one of my favorite current acts. Plus, it was really cool to experience a concert on a baseball field. (Sure, it wasn’t the Beatles at Wrigley, but it’ll do.)

One thing not lost on me in the moment was this would likely be my last opportunity to see a baseball legend in Chipper Jones. It was, and though he didn’t get a hit, it was still great to be in the presence of an all around baseball icon like Chipper. Seriously, in a game marred by steroids and controversy, he is one guy that has truly stood the test of time.

The game:

Philadelphia Phillies – 3
Atlanta Braves – 0

Sunday, April 10, 2011, 1:38PM
Time of Game: 2:20
Weather: 81° F, Sunny

Attendance: 43,796

Winning Pitcher: Cole Hamels (1-1)
Losing Pitcher: Derek Lowe (1-2)
Save: Jose Contreras (2)

The hot dog:

(Hot Dog ratings are for entertainment purposes only. Any resemblance to hot dogs, either real or fictional, is purely coincidental.)

Not a whole lot to say about the Atlanta dog. Not bad, not memorable. Bonus points for being a beautiful day for a dog and a ballgame.

Score (out of 5): 3.5 Dogs

Now for photos!

Cheers, and play ball!

Admittedly, I’m not the biggest fan of Houston. And honestly, I couldn’t really give you any great reasons why. The humidity is a pain, but we’ve got some of that in Dallas. Whatever the reason is, it’s still in our back yard, and offers the convenience of being a drive away. We were busy in 2010, and already had a really nice vacation that we were recovering (financially at least) from. We had gone to Europe (which I’ll post more of in another post), and simply couldn’t afford to take another trip far away. Luckily, we had Houston still on the list and took advantage. Plus, we got to see my brother and his kids, which we hardly ever get to see. We actually didn’t do much else while we were there…so I’ll get straight to it.

Minute Maid Park is another of the downtown parks that have become a really cool trend in baseball. There’s something really nice to me about having the park in the epicenter of the city’s activities. We walked around in the horrible humidity for a while, and lamented the idea of sitting in the same weather for the game. Imagine our pleasant surprise when we arrived to find out that the walls and roof of Minute Maid Park were closed and the air conditioning was pumping in. While I usually believe baseball is meant to be played outdoors, Houston is the exception. Nothing is meant to be done outdoors there.

The park itself was built in 2000, and was named Enron Field. Just a year later, when Enron went bankrupt among one of the biggest scandals in American history, the Astros bought back the naming rights (for a fraction of what Enron paid) and renamed the park Astros Field. In 2002, Minute Maid approached the Astros about naming rights, and after penning a 28 year deal, the park was christened Minute Maid Park. The park itself was actually the very first park in baseball to feature a retractable roof. We entered the park inside what was once Houston’s Union Station. The train in left-field, which moves along the wall when the Astros hit a homerun (barely ever) and when they win (still rare). That train pays tribute to the historic Union Station.

A few notes:

I shouldn’t give Houston such a hard time. Houston-ites already have it bad enough. They don’t need me piling on.

I’m also bummed that I don’t remember a ton of details from this game…other than Corey Hart adding to our list of All-Stars we’ve seen hit home runs at home.

One thing that was interesting was actually a player who didn’t play. Prince fielder ended a 327 game streak because of flu-like symptoms. It was the longest current streak in the majors and the longest in Brewers history.

The game:

Milwaukee Brewers – 2
Houston Astros – 4

Monday, September 13, 2010, 7:06PM
Time of Game: 3:06
Weather: Indoors/Dome

Attendance: 31,342

Winning Pitcher: Brett Myers (12-7)
Losing Pitcher: Brandon Kintzler (0-1)
Save: Matt Lindstrom (23)

The hot dog:

(Hot Dog ratings are for entertainment purposes only. Any resemblance to hot dogs, either real or fictional, is purely coincidental.)

I actually remember quite liking the hotdog at Minute Maid. It doesn’t get notched up into the icon tier, but it was good nonetheless.

Score (out of 5): 3.5 Dogs

Now for photos!

Cheers, and play ball!

Early in the day, we took in the views from the iconic, and disorienting apex of the Gateway Arch. A tiny carousel-looking elevator takes you up to a compact room at the top, where you could take in the sights of downtown from tiny windows along the top of the walls. From there we ventured to Pappy’s Smokehouse, a BBQ joint off Olive Street featured on Man vs. Food. We gorged ourselves on smoked meats, and to punish ourselves further, then made the trek over to Krown Kandy Kitchen, where Adam (from MvF) took the milkshake challenge.

Allow me to paint the scene here: we walk in to this somewhat famous den of milkshakes, a tiny place in a quiet area outside downtown St. Louis. Frozen in time, this 50′s style diner features some of the best baked goods and candies in the area. Before we order, we notice on a table near us two people partaking of milkshakes out of your typical parfait-style glasses. We see the prices, $3-4 per shake, and we’re on board. We order two. They hand us empty parfait glasses. Then they hand us the 30oz mixing cups they just made our milkshakes in. Each of the cups fills the parfait glasses FOUR TIMES. We did our best to consume our shakes, but I’m fairly certain I remember neither of us being able to finish them. This is the most full I can remember ever being, on record. I couldn’t stand up straight. But before you brand me a glutton, let me say, I’ve learned my lesson. This will NEVER happen again. Those places need to be frequented on different days.

Food comas aside, we still had a ballgame to attend. We made our way to the new Busch Stadium in downtown St. Louis to rest off our punished bodies. The new Busch Stadium is a great new ballpark, built partially on the same footprint of the old Busch Memorial Stadium, which was collapsed to make way for the new park. It opened in April of 2006, with the final construction pieces finishing throughout the 2006 baseball season. Being a new park, it doesn’t have quite the history yet of many historical parks we’ve visited, nor that of it’s predecessor, but it does hold within its grounds one of the most historical and iconic baseball teams in the league: the Cardinals.

A few notes:

Couldn’t have asked for better weather from St. Louis, especially after the windy craziness from Chicago. It was a beautiful day for baseball.

We’ve been fortunate to see many all-star (and even legendary in some regards) ballplayers hit homeruns, and many in their home parks. David Ortiz, Paul Konerko, A-Rod, Ivan Rodriguez, Derek Lee, Joe Mauer, and many others are among those we’ve seen hit bombs. But among those, none was more impressive and more iconic to me than seeing Albert Pujols hit one off the Big Mac sign in left field, knocking the letter “I” out in the process. He’ll be a hall of famer, and we saw him bust lights out at his home park. Couldn’t be cooler if we wanted it to be.

As if this post didn’t contain enough food references already, I have to mention one more. Like in Kansas City, St. Louis was part of this road trip where we chose to camp out rather than stay at a hotel. We brought with us some leftover Chicago pizza from Giordano’s and Gino’s that we grilled back to brilliance. If you’ve ever been to either of those pizza places, you know it’s worth mentioning.

The game:

Chicago Cubs – 1
St. Louis Cardinals – 3

Tuesday, May 21, 2009, 8:15PM
Time of Game: 2:20
Weather: 80° F, Cloudy.

Attendance: 44,235

Winning Pitcher: Adam Wainwright (4-2)
Losing Pitcher: Sean Marshall (2-3)
Save: Ryan Franklin (11)

The hot dog:

(Hot Dog ratings are for entertainment purposes only. Any resemblance to hot dogs, either real or fictional, is purely coincidental.)

I’ll admit up front, this was a little unfair. After the trip to Pappy’s Smokehouse, and Krown Kandy Kitchen, our ability to taste and/or shove anything else in our stomachs was pretty hindered. Nevertheless, we had to give the dogs a go. They didn’t disappoint, but I can’t remember them really blowing us away either.

Score (out of 5): 3.5 Dogs

Now for photos!

Cheers, and play ball!

As I said in the previous installment on Wrigley Field, Yvette and I really loved Chicago. I think we were surprised to like it as much as we did actually. We have always been huge fans of Boston and of New York City as well, but Chicago always had that tertiary “oh yeah” quality to it. That faded very quickly as we spent time there. The trip from our hotel in the Northwest O’Hare Rosemont area to the more southern “Comiskey Park II” was an interesting one. We decided we wanted to visit the University of Chicago as well, and that train ride took us on a very unique journey through the different cultures and communities of Chicago. That train ride alone is a blog post all it’s own.

U.S. Cellular Field was built in 1991 season, after 81 years in the original home of the White Sox, Comiskey Park. It was initially named Comiskey Park II, until 2003 when U.S. Cellular bought the naming rights. It’s gone through many iterations and renovations over the years, some due to fan complaints, namely the very steep upper deck (which we sat in) that was the subject of many fan’s scorn. On the other side of the coin, perhaps one of the most recognizable features of “The Cell” are the pinwheels on the centerfield scoreboard, a holdover from Bill Veeck’s original installation at the original Comiskey Park. They make up part of the “exploding scoreboard” that was one of the first to feature a combination of fireworks and lights when the Sox would score home runs.

A few notes:

We had a little better weather at the game on the South side, or at least we were more prepared for the briskness of the Chicago wind.

Probably the only major complaint we had at The Cell was because our seats were in a high deck, our ability to roam the park was pretty restricted. Despite that, we still got to take in a pretty incredible view and ballgame.

The game:

Minnesota Twins – 2
Chicago White Sox – 6

Tuesday, May 19, 2009, 8:11PM
Time of Game: 2:40
Weather: 73° F, Light Wind.

Attendance: 26,696

Winning Pitcher: Mark Buehrle (6-1)
Losing Pitcher: Scott Baker (1-5)

The hot dog:

(Hot Dog ratings are for entertainment purposes only. Any resemblance to hot dogs, either real or fictional, is purely coincidental.)

Much like Wrigley, there was no question where this dog was going to score. It only gets docked half a hot dog because it wasn’t quite at the level of Wrigley’s a couple days earlier. But it’s still miles above many we’ve had. Kudos Chicago for meeting expectations.

Score (out of 5): 4.5 Dogs

Now for photos!

Cheers, and play ball!

Chicago is an undeniably unique and wonderful city. From Sears Tower to Lincoln Park to El-Trains to that big, shiny, reflective bean thing in Millennium Park, Chicago is bursting at the seams with culture. And no Chicago culture tour would be complete without visiting one of America’s most iconic ballparks…Wrigley Field. You simply cannot look out from the seats of the “friendly confines”, see the ivy walls, the old scoreboard, and the unofficial rooftop seats, without feeling transported to the glory days of classic hardball. Wrigley was stop #2 in our 4-stop summer road-trip through Kansas City, Chicago, and St. Louis. In short, Chicago did not disappoint.

Wrigley Field was originally named Weeghman Park when it was built in 1914 to host the Chicago Whales. In 1916 the Cubs began use of the park, when chewing-gum billionaire William Wrigley, Jr bought the park in a trust with Weeghman. The field went by Cubs Park from 1920-1926, until it was finally dubbed Wrigley Field. It’s the oldest National League park in Major League Baseball, and the second oldest park in all of the MLB to Fenway (1912). The iconic Ivy was planted in the outfield in 1937, and has served as one of the most recognizable stadium features in baseball ever since. I could go on and on.

We had a great time at Wrigley, and sat in some of the oldest seats in baseball. Can’t beat that.

A few notes:

The weather was chilly in the sun…and as an added bonus we weren’t in the sun. We shivered in the Windy City (and oh was it ever windy) shade, but still loved every minute.

In the late Spring of 2009, Conan O’Brien was taking over The Tonight Show from Jay Leno. I won’t go into all of the details here about the weird story all of that turned out to be, but we did get to experience a little bit of history on our day in Chicago related to Conan. He did a cold opening montage that featured him running across America to move into his new Studio in L.A. from New York. Part of his run ran through Wrigley, and we were there to witness the filming. Here’s the cold opening…(Chicago is at about the 2 minute mark)

I also found this video from the stands that day. Really cool moment.

Another cool note, and something I actually didn’t know before researching this article, is that Wrigley was also home to the Chicago Bears from 1921 to 1970.

The game:

Houston Astros – 6
Chicago Cubs – 5

Sunday, May 17, 2009, 2:20PM
Time of Game: 3:00
Weather: 50° F, Windy and Sunny.

Attendance: 40,478 (Plus some people in rooftop seats.)

Winning Pitcher: Brian Moehler (1-2)
Losing Pitcher: Rich Harden (4-2)
Save: Chris Sampson (1)

The hot dog:

(Hot Dog ratings are for entertainment purposes only. Any resemblance to hot dogs, either real or fictional, is purely coincidental.)

Was there really any question what this hotdog would score? Let me put it to you like this. I typically like my hotdogs plain with some ketchup or mustard. I also don’t love onions. On this day, you couldn’t have stopped me from getting those grilled onions on that dog. One of the best dogs ever. Period.

Score (out of 5): 5 Dogs

Now for photos!

Cheers, and play ball!

The trip that involved Kansas City was a really exciting one for Yvette and I. We had already been a lot of places, not to mention stadiums, but for some reason, the idea of getting on the road again across middle America had us in stitches. Kansas City was the first stop in a three-city, four stadium tour in the summer of 2009, which also included St. Louis and both Chicago ballparks. Kansas City is an underrated place, teeming with great food and culture. Even though we didn’t stay long, and it rained incessantly, we enjoyed our time nonetheless.

Kauffman Stadium was built in the early 70′s, but underwent major renovations starting in 2007 and going through the summer of 2009. The game we attended was in May of 2009, and the park just felt brand new. Adding to the sheen of everything was the incredible amounts of rain we received during the evening, making everything appear brand…spanking…shiny…new. We were concerned that the rain would ruin our parade, as we were leaving the day after for Chicago, but luckily we got the game in after a 2.5 hour delay.

A few notes:

Obviously our lovely weather streak ended, with the 2.5 hour delay as punishment for our previous good fortune.

We were excited to see a brilliant young pitcher who was making waves around the majors. Zack Grienke came in and pitched pretty lights out.

Staying in a tent in the pouring rain, which began again after the game, was less than fun. But it’s all about the memories, right?

The game:

Baltimore Orioles – 1
Kansas City Royals – 8

Friday, May 15, 2009, 8:10PM (Well…10:45pm is more like it.)
Time of Game: 2:46
Weather: 63° F, Drizzle.

Attendance: 38,353

Winning Pitcher: Zack Grienke (7-1)
Losing Pitcher: Adam Eaton (2-4)

The hot dog:

(Hot Dog ratings are for entertainment purposes only. Any resemblance to hot dogs, either real or fictional, is purely coincidental.)

We weren’t expecting much, as the KC Dog isn’t really known outside of Missouri for being anything awesome. Bonus points for being dollar hot dogs that night.

Score (out of 5): 3 Dogs

Now for photos!

Cheers, and play ball!

After spending a few days in sunny San Diego (I think it’s prounounced Sawn Diago…), we headed up Highway 1 toward the City of Angels. The trip up the coast was relaxing and beautiful, even if it took us twice as long as the 5 would’ve. After a few stops in Venice, Huntington Beach, and of course the Disney “mall”, we made our way into the valley and toward another iconic ballpark: Dodger Stadium.

Dodger Stadium has been around a while, and because of that, it’s got some mojo that’s hard to explain. Perhaps it was memories from my childhood spent in California, or maybe the overall feeling that Dodger Stadium is from an older era. Whatever it is…we loved being in California, and loved being at Dodger stadium.

A few notes:

Same story as in San Diego, the great weather that seems to encompass Southern California was in full effect once again.

Joe Torre made his managerial debut for the Dodgers in 2008, after managing the Yankees for about a dozen years, and it was great to see a game he managed. I may hate the Yankees, but as with all great historical figures in baseball, there’s no denying the impact Torre’s had on the game. Always good to see a legend at work. (And I’m glad we saw him when we did; he retired in 2010.)

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that this trip was made 100% more awesome by the simple fact that we also got to go to Disneyland while we were in LA. Yvette has been basically begging to go back since. Soon, I think.

Dodger dogs! Need I say more?

The game:

Chicago White Sox – 2
LA Dodgers – 0

Thursday, June 26, 2008, 12:11PM
Time of Game: 2:58
Weather: 74° F, Cloudy.

Attendance: 37,956

Winning Pitcher: John Danks (5-4)
Losing Pitcher: Clayton Kershaw (0-2)
Save: Bobby Jenks (17)

The hot dog:

(Hot Dog ratings are for entertainment purposes only. Any resemblance to hot dogs, either real or fictional, is purely coincidental.)

Like the Fenway Frank and the Chicago Dog…the Dodger Dog is pretty iconic. Overall the dog was pretty good, but not quite the caliber you go in expecting.

Score: 4.5 Dogs

Now for photos!

Cheers, and play ball!