BT2K8

Ballpark Tour 2009!!!

2009-01-21T15:30:00.001-05:00

We're back, and we're better than ever! We've made tentative plans for Ballpark Tour 2009 (see below).

The trip begins in Chicago with a White Sox game. But before that, we fly from DC to Chicago and then rent a car. After that, it is:

Starting Saturday May 23 - fly to Chicago - White Sox vs Pittsburgh
Sunday: 4.5 hour trip to St. Louis - Cards vs. KC (1:15 start)
Monday (Memorial Day): 3.5 hour trip to Kansas City - Royals vs. DETROIT
Tuesday: 6 hour trip to Minneapolis - Twins vs. Boston (final year in the MetroDome)
Wednesday: 5.5 hour trip to Milwaukee - Brewers vs St. Louis
Thursday: 2 hour trip back to Chicago - Cubs vs. Los Angeles (Dodgers) - fly home.

View Larger Map

Nationals Park (from 7-8)

2008-07-19T01:07:00.003-04:00

I didn't have a chance to upload these until just recently. I went, by myself, to game on July 8. My seat was amazing -- section 207, row A, seat 9. I could see everything. It was a much better experience than my last two trips to NP ... but the park still sucks.

Here are the pics:

On to Yankee Stadium (Maybe)

2008-07-18T00:58:00.013-04:00

These are the only remaining weekday day games in Yankee Stadium ... for forever. E & I and maybe C and possibly some other people are going to try to make it up to one. Also, J has put out Aug. 15-17 as a possibility to go to say goodbye to the old girl.

Wed, 7/23::Twins::1:05 p.m.
Wed, 7/30::Orioles::1:05 p.m.
Thu, 8/28::Red Sox::1:05 p.m.

Here are the remaining home games, not including the three listed above:

1. Mon, Jul 28::Baltimore::7:05 PM
2. Tue, Jul 29::Baltimore::7:05 PM
3. Thu, Jul 31::LA Angels::7:05 PM
4. Fri, Aug 1::LA Angels::7:05 PM

5. Sat, Aug 2::LA Angels::3:55 PM
6. Sun, Aug 3::LA Angels::1:05 PM
7. Fri, Aug 15::Kansas City::7:05 PM
8. Sat, Aug 16::Kansas City::1:05 PM
9. Sun, Aug 17::Kansas City::1:05 PM
10. Tue, Aug 26::Boston::7:05 PM
11. Wed, Aug 27::Boston::7:05 PM
12. Fri, Aug 29::Toronto::7:05 PM
13. Sat, Aug 30::Toronto::1:05 PM
14. Sun, Aug 31::Toronto::1:05 PM

15. Fri, Sep 12::Tampa Bay::7:05 PM
16. Sat, Sep 13::Tampa Bay::TBA
17. Sun, Sep 14::Tampa Bay::1:05 PM
18. Mon, Sep 15::White Sox::7:05 PM
19. Tue, Sep 16::White Sox::7:05 PM
20. Wed, Sep 17::White Sox::7:05 PM
21. Thu, Sep 18::White Sox::7:05 PM
22. Fri, Sep 19::Baltimore::7:05 PM
23. Sat, Sep 20::Baltimore::TBA
24. Sun, Sep 21::Baltimore::8:05 PM

So, we have 27 more opportunities to say goodbye to Yankee Stadium. One big obstacle is the availability (and, subsequently, cost) of tickets.

Update: J & I got tickets to the Aug. 16 Royals @ Yankees game. Fifty bucks a piece in section Tier 14.

Detroit Tigers @ Baltimore Orioles

2008-07-18T00:05:00.009-04:00

Oriole Park at Camden Yards - Baltimore, Md.

The saying goes, "The old gray mare ain't what she used to be." That saying does not apply to Camden Yards. The park opened in 1992, but the designers had the foresight to put so many great things into this park that it still holds up 16 years later. There's a reason this park has been copied so many times.

It was a pretty exciting game, too. It went back-and-forth, with each team taking a lead, but ultimately a coupe home runs from the Tigers was too much for the Birds in a 6-5 Detroit win. The Tigers are now one game over .500. Speaking of mediocrity, Tigers starting pitcher Kenny Rogers is the definition of mediocrity in his old age. He came into the game with a 6-6 record, a 4.8 ERA, 43 strikeouts and 44 walks. He wasn't very good tonight (6.0 IP, 11 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 1 K, 2 BB, 1 HR, 87 pitches, 55 strikes), but he still picked up the win.

Here's the game recap from Associated Press/ESPN.com.

So, after a few-day delay, on to the review ...

First, getting to the park is ridiculously easy on a weekday night ... if you go one of two ways. The way I went -- the MARC train from Union Station in downtown D.C. -- is $7 one way (no discount for a round trip fare, though) and it drops you off about 100 yards from the stadium entrance. It's comfortable and air conditioned and awesome. I'd suggest it to anyone going to a weeknight game at Camden Yards, but I also suggest getting to the train early. It's a commuter train, so the seats fill up quickly.

The other way is to drive. BAD IDEA. My friends -- including C & E -- tried to drive up to the park from the Centreville, Va., area. They left around 5 p.m. -- expecting a 45 to 60 minute drive -- and got there after the first pitch. In fact, I don't think we got to our seats until the third inning. Typically, they would have had to pay $10 for parking (I think), but we had a parking pass included with our tickets.

It's getting late, so the rest of the review will probably come sometime later. I'll be away for much of this weekend, so I hope to get something up as soon as possible. Stay tuned.

The Best Way to Get to an Orioles Game

2008-07-17T23:50:00.001-04:00

This is the way to get to an Orioles game. Seven bucks each way, no traffic, fairly roomy seats and you can sleep. Beats driving! And yes, I'm wearing a Washington Nationals hat to an Orioles game.

Camden Yards

2008-07-17T12:24:00.003-04:00

I'm heading to Camden Yards tonight to see the Orioles take on the Detroit Tigers. I know that Orioles Park at Camden Yards is 16 years old, but tonight I'm going to look at it as if it's a new stadium. When it opened, it was a pioneering ballpark, innovate and eclectic. Since then, it's been copied (many times), but I want to see if it stands up to the test of time. I'll take a critical look tonight.

E will be there with me. I scored sweet seats -- section 32, row JJ -- for a cheap price ($100 for four, including a parking pass), so I feel sorta like I did when we were headed to PNC Park.

More to come ...

More Proof ...

2008-07-16T11:47:00.003-04:00

... that Red Sox fans are ridiculous:

11 of them have bid on one of these. Who in their right mind would pay $5,000 (plus $500 shipping) for a replica of the Statue of Liberty with their favorite team's logo on it?

Los Angeles Dodgers @ San Francisco Giants

2008-07-06T01:38:00.010-04:00

AT&T Park -- San Francisco, Calif.

In a word, WOW. AT&T Park is perhaps the most beautiful park I'll ever see. The stadium itself is beautiful and quirky and accessible, while the view from it doubles its worth. From the upper deck behind home plate, you can see for miles on a clear day, including the Bay Bridge and the other side of the bay. It's absolutely breathtaking. Even the other way, where you can see the city skyline above the stadium, is amazing. While I haven't yet seen every MLB ballpark, I'm pretty confident the views from the other stadiums won't surpass those at AT&T Park.

All in all, this might be the best stadium I've ever been to, in any sport. Seriously. It's a tight race with PNC Park in Pittsburgh, and PNC might have the slight edge, but I could discount that because our seats at PNC were unbelievable. Other than that, it's tough for me to decide which park was better.

We (J, her family and I) were lucky enough to see a great game and a great rivalry, with the Giants hosting the Dodgers. I felt a twinge of sadness when the PA announcer announced Joe Torre, the Yankees' former skipper, as the Dodgers' manager. Here's the game recap in a 5-2, come-from-behind win for the Gigantes.

The Positives

Obviously, the first positive is the view. I don't think any stadium, in any sport, can match it. But that's not all. It's a great park to watch a game, and ultimately, that's what's most important. Even the view from our "View Level" seats (the 300 level in the upper deck) was excellent. And, since baseball is a game with a lot of downtime, there were plenty of other things to look at between pitches. The view from the stadium -- both the waterfront, the bridge _and_ the city skyline on the other side of the park -- was breathtaking and almost worth the price of admission alone. It did get a little chilly in the upper deck toward the later innings, but that's to be expected in Northern California when you're on the water.

(An aside: From some of the stories I heard, it was nothing compared to what Candlestick was like. One story I heard, from J's uncle, had him receiving a winter jacket and gloves from J's other uncle -- who lives in SF -- before attending a game in Candlestick … in July. When he asked what they were for, he heard, "You'll see." He certainly did see - it was nearly freezing with the wind chill in the stadium.)

I know E doesn't like these things (pictures and quotes of history don't make history, if I understand him correctly) but I enjoyed the pictures and quotes on the wall on the way into the stadium, and especially the quotes on the walkway up to the upper level - it made the walk a little more palatable (and it was a looong walk).

Also interesting -- and of note -- the stadium's public address announcer is a woman. I've never heard that before in any other major sports venue. She had a pleasant voice and was clearly into the game. It took a bit to get used to her inflection -- I'm used to the staid, old white guy voice, like Walter Cronkite but in a stadium (listen to Jon Shepherd at Yankee Stadium, for instance) -- but once I did, it was cool. She somehow made the game more exciting than it already was. I have to admit, at first I was skeptical -- I think it was a bit of misogyny :( -- but eventually I got used to it and I enjoyed it quite a lot.

I mentioned the rivalry above; it was pretty intense. There were nearly as many Dodger fans in the stands, and they were fairly loud (We were unfortunate enough to sit in front of a few of them, who insisted on continually dropping the F-bomb, despite the fact that we were sitting with two young girls. I eventually had to tap one of them on the leg and point out this fact, and they calmed a bit, but I still heard a few the rest of the way. But that's not the park's -- or its employees -- fault, and the ushers had pretty good control of the fans). The Giants fans heartily booed former Giant Jeff Kent whenever he was announced. I guess his years of service to the Giants weren't appreciated. Maybe Giants fans were siding with (soon-to-be-convicted perjurer and steroid user) Barry Bonds, after the two had a dugout spat several years ago. Maybe that's why the team store has Bonds' t-shirt. Bad choice, team store. Anyway, the fans seemed pretty knowledgeable and didn't need prompting from the scoreboard or the organ or any other external source. They knew what was going on. The Giants did an excellent job of not bombarding the fans with on-field promotions and advertisements. Come to think of it, I don't remember one the whole game -- although there must have been. In addition, they didn't have any of those lame "Kiss Cams" or "which hat is the ball under?" games. It was refreshing.

Also -- and this is huge -- the ushers did an excellent job of keeping people out of the aisles during action. You'll remember from my review of Nationals Park that this is a big problem I have with the DC park. It's almost not a problem at all in SF. Of course, there were some stragglers coming up the steps, and a few people going down the steps, but not too much to be annoying. Each usher had a sign they'd hold up (see the pics) to discourage people from interrupting the seated fans, and the vendors moved quickly and ducked down when they had to stop to serve a fan. Thank you, San Francisco -- that's how you do it.

The Problems

One problem of the park is the entrance. As far as I could tell, there was only one entrance -- from Willie Mays Plaza in centerfield. Admittedly, I only looked around one corner, but that side of the stadium was blocked off by barricades. There perhaps were other entrances on the other side of the stadium, but it didn't appear that way with the throng of people joining me in entering the park. Plus, since I entered in centerfield and my seat was on the right-field side of home plate in the upper deck, it was a long walk to my seat. Still, there was plenty to see along the way, so the walk wasn't all that bad, even up to the "View" section.

That is one thing I wanted to address. The park does not label the sections by number (ie. the 300 section), it calls the upper deck (the 300 level) "The View" section. While it _is_ a great view (see the pictures), it's a bit confusing when you're coming into the park for the first time, as I was, and trying to find your seats. I knew our seats were in the upper deck, so I just kept going up to the top, but I wasn't sure if there was a 400 level above us or not (there wasn't).

As for ticket prices, we paid pretty handsomely for upper deck seats -- $32 a piece. I saw the price list online, and the seats were normally $20 for a Monday-Friday game and $26 for a Saturday-Sunday game, but since this was a "premium" game (with the big LA-SF rivalry), the tickets were a bit more expensive.

One detractor of the park was the out-of-town scoreboard. As a lot of other parks do, the Giants put it in the outfield wall, in this case in right field. Unfortunately, we couldn't see it from our seats (section 311, upper deck about six or seven sections to the right of home plate, just past first base). If I had to guess, the location of the scoreboard makes it not visible for approximately 1/3^rd of the entire crowd. I'm not sure if this is the case for other parks, but if you've read any of my other reviews of parks, the out-of-town scoreboard is very important to me. Not allowing a third of the crowd to see it is a major faux-pas, in my book.

I could definitely do without the "Build-a-Bear" and the miniature AT&T (whiffle ball) Park in center field, but, of course, I'm not a parent. I'm there to watch the game.

Conclusion

Like I said above, overall, this may be the best park I've ever been to. I'll call it a tie, but I reserve the right to change my mind. Perhaps this is a good excuse to go back to San Francisco; I hope I get a chance to go back to AT&T Park. Apparently, my heart belongs in Frisco.

Ballpark Tour photos - Erik, Day 3&4

2008-07-03T19:26:00.002-04:00

I forgot to include these the first time around.

One ballpark ...

2008-07-01T11:03:00.000-04:00

... that won't be on the Ballpark Tour: the old Tigers Stadium.

A Fresh Look (Part II)

2008-06-29T12:55:00.012-04:00

So I mentioned yesterday that I would take a new look at Nationals Park on my second trip there. J & I went there last night and got pretty good seats, although even the discounted StubHub season-ticket holder seats for $55 a piece weren't all that good (up the third-base line, 50 feet past the bag and in the double-letters -- FF), so there's a strike against the park.

The night did start off well. The park is 100 yards from the Metro station, which is nice in that we didn't have to pay for parking (although, if we did want to park there, there's only 2,000-some spots in the garage -- can't blame the Nats for that, though, it's the city's fault). Also, the entrance is wide with a bunch of gates, so getting in is quick, and the entrance opens up into a nice concourse in center field that displays the park well. Also, the Nats give out free (small) programs, which is really nice.

Unfortunately, later on we got poured on in the sixth or seventh inning, which resulted in a 63-minute rain delay. J&I didn't feel like waiting out the delay (it was raining ridiculously hard), so we jetted. The Os (notice I didn't use an apostrophe there) were up 9-0 at the time. The Birds ended up winning, 9-1. The complete game recap can be found here.

As I mentioned yesterday, I was going to check out the out-of-town scoreboard. Well, that was a HUGE disappointment. First off, once we got to our seats, there was no out-of-town scoreboard to be seen. The Nats use a videoboard as the out-of-town scoreboard (first mistake), so the scores aren't shown until the game started. Now, maybe it's because the Nats are in dead last, so the other games don't matter to them, but as a fan of an out-of-town team, I want to see the scores. The Yankees were playing the Mets in a 4 p.m. start, so the final few outs of the game were coming up, and it ended up being a tight game. I want to know the score. I don't want to see advertisements for the "Battle of the Beltways." I KNOW that I'm at the Battle of the Beltways -- I bought the darn tickets. Huge strike one.

Even worse, the scores would go away between innings. Isn't that when the scores should be up? If I'm watching the game, wouldn't it make sense that in between innings I would pay attention to the out-of-town scores? Not to the Nationals. They would put up lame ads and random flashes of Nationals logos. I hate you, Nats.

The second strike was the view. Rather, the lack of a view. We're in one of the most beautiful and powerful cities in the world, and the view in centerfield is of some lame future apartment buildings? C'mon! Supposedly, there are two or three sections in the park in which people can see the Capitol and the Washington Monument. I wasn't in any of those sections. The designers of the park would've been better off turning the park around and giving us a view of the dirty Anacostia River and the "developing" shoreline. Either way, all you can see from the park is "development." Strike two.

One of the most annoying things about the stadium was the vantage point. As you can see from the photo to the right, the majority of the game we saw people. People walking down the aisle to their seats or vendors, mind you. Now, I don't mind people walking to their seats, as long as they don't STOP and STAND RIGHT IN YOUR VIEW OF THE GAME. What's worse, the VENDORS were doing it, too. Now, I know that those guys lug around those heavy containers of beer, but please don't take your break in my sightline of the game. Take it up on the concourse, where you're not in the way of the game. It really ruined the view, because the angle we were at was right in line with home plate & the batter. Shouldn't the ushers be telling people to wait until between play for people to go to their seats? Shouldn't vendors know better than to stop in the aisles right in front of people? Keep in mind that these seats are $75 if you walk up and buy them on game day. Strike three.

The Nats did make an effort to introduce a bit of history to the ballpark. On the concourse on the third-base side, near our seats, they had several wall postings with the history of baseball in DC. Big props to the Nats for including Negro League teams in these histories, particularly of Josh Gibson (arguably the greatest ballplayer of all time, and not arguably the greatest player to never have played in MLB). The Nats also put up odes to Hall-of-Famers on the cylindrical posts around the concourse. I'm torn about these -- while it's a nice thing for history (especially the Ty Cobb one), they weren't DC players. Kind of reminds you that baseball in Washington has sucked for a really long time. In addition, the wall posters up were kinda like something a high school kid would make for a science fair project. Hopefully the Nats will expand this section. Also, hopefully someday the Nats will have a player worthy of a statue out front of the park (maybe Walter Johnson? He's gotta be worthy of it, right?)

All in all, FAIL. Fail for the designers and the park. I still feel the same way about the stadium, only stronger now. The Nats had a big chance to make this an awesome ballpark, and they didn't do it. What a waste.

An aside: You'll notice in the photo to the left. First off, dude's wearing a t-shirt with fake jewels on it. And I'm not even the one that noticed this. Second, guy was about 25-30, and as you can see from the pic, he's sporting a glove. No, no, no, no, no, no, no!!!!!! Tooooooo old! Any male over the age of 13 -- unless they have their children with them -- should NOT, under any circumstance, bring a glove to the game. These are the rules -- if you're reading this, please follow them. (Credit to E for delineating these rules)

A Fresh Look

2008-06-28T13:46:00.002-04:00

I'm heading over to Nationals Park tonight for the "Beltway Series" between the Orioles and the Nats.

I've been very public in my "meh" opinion of NP. In fact, I've said -- many times -- that I think the park is "antiseptic." Don't get me wrong, the park is a great place to see a ballgame (save for the ticket prices), and all-in-all, that's what a park is for. But I said the antiseptic thing about NP before I went on Ballpark Tour 2008, and now that we saw Jacobs, Comerica, GABP and PNC Park, NP looks even more like a dentist's office.

What I mean is that there's no flavor. The outside looks like either a downtown office building or a science building on a college campus (look, prospective students, we have buildings with a bunch of windows on them!)

Anyway, tonight I'll give the stadium a fresh look. I noticed in a few pictures of the vantage point from our seats tonight that the scoreboard is in full view. In my first trip, we sat in right field and couldn't see the scoreboard. I'll actually look at it tonight (so I can see the Yanks/Mets score), and that'll be a start toward a new, critical eye for the park.

I'm going to bring my camera, and I'll chronicle what I notice via images and words later on.

'til then ...

It's things like ...

2008-06-27T14:32:00.002-04:00

these why the 'Tour' needs to hit Yankee Stadium this summer before it closes down.

Dmitri Young Redux (but certainly not a reduction ... in weight)

2008-06-23T11:16:00.002-04:00

Remember the greatest play we saw on the Ballpark Tour? The one where Dmitri Young forgot to cover first base on a dropped third strike and Xavier Nady beat him to the bag? Well, this pic -- from the WaPo this morning, via the D.C. Sports Bog -- perhaps illustrates why Dmitri has such a hard time getting going.

Still, can you imagine the force he creates once he does get going? Wow. That's inertia.

This shot is from The Post's John McDonnell, taken during Saturday's loss to the Rangers.

Future Trips

2008-06-20T13:29:00.002-04:00

E put together this compendium of possible future trips. Hell, let's do them all now ...

Here's some possibilities for subsequent trips:

Northern Mid-west (6 parks, 1412 miles of driving in a rental car after flying in and out of Chicago)

View Larger Map

Northern Mid-west driving (adds 1240 miles onto trip. Might be cheaper than flying though...)

View Larger Map

West Coast swing (6 parks, 922 miles. Remove Phoenix, 5 parts, it's only 566 miles)

View Larger Map

East Coast (drivable) trip (4 parks, 893 miles, including the 2 new parks in NYC next year)

View Larger Map

Including this year's trip and the 2 local parks (Baltimore and Washington), this covers 22 parks. Not included are Toronto, Atlanta, Tampa, Miami, Denver, Seattle, Houston, and Dallas.

Album - Day Four

2008-06-16T22:23:00.000-04:00

Album - Day Three

2008-06-15T18:39:00.003-04:00

Final Ballpark Rankings

2008-06-15T17:03:00.004-04:00

PNC Park - It was small and cozy and felt old school. Plus I like how it looked out over the river. It seemed really old school. You could see the field all the way around the mezzanine level, too.
Jacobs Field - I liked the set-up of it, with some interesting nooks in the outfield.
Great American Ballpark - It was a little big for my taste. It was nice to look out at the river out past the outfield, but the city was the other direction, so it wasn't much of a view. It was third, but the dick usher really brought it down. Maybe I should put it fourth.
ComericA Park - It was HUGE. It seemed as if it was more of a football stadium than a baseball park. Not that it was bad -- it was certainly better than most parks -- but it was my least favorite of the trip.

PNC Park - Small ballpark feel.
ComericA - Walking behind the batter's eye was cool. The tiger statues everywhere were a nice touch, especially at the entrance.
Great American - The view
Jacobs - Great atmosphere and good all-around park.

PNC - looking out and seeing the skyline from the city. Plus the fake yellow bridge was cool. Plus, their out-of-town scoreboard was amazing.
Jacobs - because he's a homer, and he loves the atmosphere
Great American - the view was cool
ComericA - Old school field. His ranking would've been higher if they had a better scoreboard

ComericA - because it's his home park
Great American - the view and he likes big parks
PNC - liked the view and the scoreboard
Jacobs - because the Indians play there (L says, "F**k the Tigers.")

Overall, one thing to note is how important the scoreboards are in a ballpark. The video board is cool, but the scoreboard provides all the information. In my opinion, every scoreboard should have BOTH lineups visible at the same time (Great American & Jacobs), the batter's stats (all of them), the pitcher's complete stats (ComericA & Jacobs) and other random stats. Also, PNC's out-of-town scoreboard was amazing, because it had all the games and it updated the inning and outs and who was on base in real time. The others either just listed the scores (Great American) or had more information but scrolled through the scores (Jacobs), which meant you missed the score you were looking for more than you didn't.

Best game:

A: Nats at Pirates

C: Dodgers at Detroit (homer, plus the shutout. "I would've liked it more if I were more sober.")

L: Twins at Indians (he caught a foul ball, plus his team won)

E: Red Sux at Reds (because it was a great game and because he paid attention the most)

Top two quotes from L:

Luke (to C's friend Kyle): "I'll burn you. I know you don't like that."

A: "What is this place, a morgue?" referencing ComericA when we first walked in. It was nearly silent

Top quote from E:

C: "She's no Doogie Howser," referencing our girl Jessie.

Other bests:

Best Breakfast: Tie. C's mom's breakfast and Adam's breakfast sandwiches with smoothies. E says, "It was NOT the Econo-Lodge."

Best sleeping arrangement: They were all good for me. C got screwed most of the trip. He slept on the floor twice, and as he says, "I had to sleep with L once, too."

Best Bar: Winking Lizard in Cleveland. Good food, and great beer selection. Plus, A spent a half-hour in the bathroom.

Best Bartender: The one L got to teach how to make a Long Island Iced Tea. "Alright, get a cup …"

Best Rest Stop: In Toledo, Ohio, with the marble floors and the attractive front desk girl.

Best Ballpark Food: Tie, Gyros at ComericA or Coney's at Great American

Best Free Beer: the one E got for knocking over his almost empty beer and getting a free one

Best Bloody Moment: the chick trying to jump the fence at the Clevelander and losing her chin.

Boston Red Sox at Cincinnati Reds

2008-06-15T16:32:00.004-04:00

Great American Ballpark -- Cincinnati, Ohio

Great American Ballpark was the final park of our 2008 tour. As you read before, the home Reds lost to the Red Sox, 5-3, in 10 innings. The Reds were losing, 3-2, going to the bottom of the ninth and the Sux's closer, Jonathan Papelbon, got two outs on the Redlegs. Edwin Encarnacion came up with two outs, and then got two strikes on him. But then he smashed a home run to tie the game at 4 a piece. The Reds had another chance against Papelbon, but blew it.

Then they kept their reliever in from the previous inning, and he gave up two solo shots to Kevin Youkilis and, as E calls him, "the other dick," Coco Crisp. The Reds had another shot to tie it in the bottom of the 10^th. They got two runners on with two outs, but Brandon Philips' shot at tying it fell just short, caught at the warning track by J.D. Drew.

Here's the recap from the local paper.

The day ended up being beautiful. At first, there were some weather reports that predicted thunder storms, but it ended up being 82 and sunny, with a few clouds in the sky. We sat in the upper deck, just off to the right of home plate and about five rows from the top. They were pretty good seats, actually, but it was weird to be sitting in the upper deck. Apparently, the Reds wouldn't let E buy tickets to just one game through their website. He would've had to buy a four-pack, which wouldn't have done us any good. So he bought them through e-bay.

Since it was the Red Sox, the obnoxious Sox fans were out in force. Why is that every Red Sox fan must make a comment to someone wearing a Yankees hat (me -- A) every time they pass by? I had some old couple make a comment. Then, later on, E, L, C and I noticed a guy wearing a Cubs hat and a Sox jersey. We commented that the guy must've been through a lot of torture. E said maybe the guy was just confused. A guy wearing a Sox jersey overheard us and said that it was his friend and he let him borrow the Sox jersey. Fine - no problem. But then he looks at me, nods at my hat and says, "Speaking of someone who's confused." Now why did he need to say that? I'm not confused at all. I was born in New York and I like the Yankees. No confusion here. The Red Sox disgust me. No confusion there, either. Whatever …

As I'm typing this in the back seat of the Jetta, C is driving and noticed an "Emergency Stopping Only" sign on the side of the road. Immediately behind the sign are skid marks heading into a big grass field.

Earlier in the morning, we went to C's parent's place -- where his mom made an unbelievable breakfast for us of waffles, fruit compote, whip cream, sausage, etc. -- and showered up (for reasons left unreported). We hit the road around 10 a.m., and we drove by Eight Mile Rd. and waved at Bunny Rabbit (What up, Eminem?). Then we ran into some troubles trying to get on Rte. 75 South. Apparently, the road was closed for miles. As E said, "Maybe they were trying to prevent any more people from leaving Detroit."

L felt much better today. He sobered up, finally. It only took a day-and-a-half. C soldiered through last night, drinking until after 3 a.m., including a massive Tequila shot after the bar actually closed. He then came back to his buddies' place and slept on the floor and woke up less than six hours later, pronouncing that he was good to go. Total trooper. C wins the award for best recovery time.

Some more highlights:

At the park we ate Coney's, smothered in so much cheese we couldn't see them.
Walking to the Jetta after the game, some girl behind us made a comment that she liked the taste of ass and that she didn't shower that day. Nice.
We saw Mennonites trying to work a vending machine at a rest stop earlier in the day.
My ass was on fire. I kept having to open the window in the Jetta. In fact, car windows were cracked at random moments for random acts of flatulence. That's hot.
Ohio is NOT a highlight. It might be the boringest state ever. As Jessie said at Panini's in Cleveland, Ohio is the 49^th cruddiest state, right ahead of Michigan. "Oh, and what's that one way up north … it's really cold?"
We learned about Michigan left turns. Apparently, you can't turn left at a light. You have to go through the intersection and THEN make a u-turn and then turn right. Makes perfect sense.

I'll add more pics when I get the chance. There's probably another 200 shots to include. But it takes forever, so I need a solid internet connection and time - something I probably won't have until I get back home.

This is A again, one...

2008-06-15T04:58:00.002-04:00

This is A again, one last thing few more updates coming tomorrow when I wake up again along with hundreds of pictures to wrap up the last day of the trip and plan for next year. listen

Powered by Jott

This is A. It's 4:51...

2008-06-15T04:54:00.002-04:00

This is A. It's 4:51 AM, I'm on my way back home from the completion of our Ball Park tour 2008. Good stuff today with Cincinnati and we drove home, it took us about 8 hours and just as we got home, we already started thinking about the next trip to Philly, New York, Boston and then back to New York. listen

Powered by Jott

One unfortunate thing...

2008-06-14T20:00:00.001-04:00

One unfortunate thing at the end of a game the usher was a total jerk to us and wouldn't let us take the picture a group picture at the end of the game what did he say, they have been doing it for a while but not wouldn't let us do it then. And we had just gotten down from the upper back to get down Behind home plate to take the picture and the usher wouldn't do it for us, so that kind of ruined it. listen

Powered by Jott

So the last game's over,...

2008-06-14T19:59:00.001-04:00

So the last game's over, unfortunately the Red Sox won, that put the home teams at three and one for the four games. The Reds tied it up in the bottom of the 9th to send it to extra innings, but then the Red Sox hit two home runs in the top of the 10th to win it. listen

Powered by Jott

It's 1 o'clock, we're...

2008-06-14T13:05:00.001-04:00

It's 1 o'clock, we're on our way to Cincinnati. The letter C's parents, gave us breakfast this morning. It was awesome. Now E, the letter E is checking out truck drivers, seriously. listen

Powered by Jott

LA Dodgers at Detroit

2008-06-14T01:37:00.004-04:00

ComericA Park -- Detroit, Mich.

The home team Tigers captured tonight's game, 5-0. Here's the Detroit Free Press's take on the game.

There wasn't much excitement to the game, except for a short bench-clearing incident late in the game. No punches were thrown, though, so it wasn't all that exciting.

Unfortunately, I think this was my least favorite park so far. It might've been because our seats weren't as good as at the first two parks. We sat in left field, just to the right of the foul pole as we were facing home. The pole got in the way a few times. Still, there were a few good plays we had a good vantage point for, like Marcus Thames amazing running catch that caused him to slam into the wall in left and a home run blast from Magglio Ordonez that landed one row back and about 10 seats to the left of L and I (A).

The inside of ComericA was ... meh. It was seemingly cavernous, and besides the centerfield statues and batter's eye, it was kind bland. It seemed much bigger and less intimate than the first two ballparks, like it was a college football stadium instead of an MLB park.

The outside of the park was nice, though. Stay tuned for pictures. The massive tigers at the entrance are cool. Also, the team does a good job of chronicling its history with a bunch of historical pictorials placed at intervals throughout the concourse level.

Right now -- 1:58 a.m. on Saturday -- E and C are out with C's friends. L and I are crashing on C's friend's house's couches. I'm exhausted and didn't much feel like hanging out at another bar. L used up all his drinking fun last night with four Long Island Iced Teas. Unfortunately, I deleted some of the pics that I took of L falling asleep on a patio chair outside of the bar last night. He seems much happier now that he's sober and sleeping on the couch next to me. I can't wait to go to sleep.

Tomorrow we've got a decent length drive over to Cincinnati for the Reds vs. Red Sux. The young phenom Volquez is on the hill for the Reds, taking on the wily old knuckleballing veteran Tim Wakefield for the Sux.

E and I were lucky enough to meet up with E's wife's (my bff) former co-worker and current friend LG at the park and at the bars. She seemed happy as heck, and we had a good time with her. It was good to see her. I hadn't seen her since E's wedding.

Well, this is short, but we're on the road in about seven hours and I'm driving. E and C should be home soon (bar closing is 2 a.m. here in Rock City). I'll post the photos tomorrow.

We're in the 9th inning ...

2008-06-13T22:50:00.003-04:00

We're in the 9th inning at Comerica Park. It's actually probably my least favorite park so far on the tour. And the game has been a little lackluster, started late due to rain. Tigers up 3-0. More updates to follow. listen

Powered by Jott

___ to the game. We...

2008-06-13T20:13:00.002-04:00

Headed to the game. We had a 40 minute delay for the rain but now we're here and it looks like we're gonna get things going. They cleared it up a little bit and sky is fairly clear. We've got the foul pole right in front of us, unfortunately. We're about 12 rows up from the field in left field, and weather is starting to be enjoyable. listen

Powered by Jott

Album - Day Two

2008-06-13T16:21:00.002-04:00

Game Two - Minnesota at Cleveland

2008-06-13T15:29:00.004-04:00

Jacobs Field AKA "Progressive Field" -- Cleveland, Ohio

The game was pretty forgettable -- a 12-2 win by the Indians over the Twins -- but the rest of the night was eventful, ending with a belligerent L throwing water on me (A) and telling all of us that he was "just fine, thank you."

After the blowout, we headed out to the bars and met up with L's cousin & her husband, out on a free pass with the babysitter taking care of the little ones. They were hungry for an adult night out, so we did it up pretty well. We went to the Clevelander, the Boneyard (where they have free peanuts that you could toss on the floor, or at each other) and finished the night at Panini's.

Panini's was the highlight. We got there about 11:30 p.m. They make these disgustingly decadent sandwiches, which are basically everything bad for you put in between two thick slices of bread. They have spicy ham, cole slaw, a fried egg, cheese, all topped with French fries that the "chef" smashes in there with his spatula. The spatula likely hadn't been cleaned for at least a decade.

I'm writing this from the car (C's Jetta), where E is driving like an asshole (L adds, "As usual."). He just got air over train tracks. Our usual refrain, "Ah, it's a rental." It's most certainly not a rental. It's C's lease. BTW, if any Volkswagen officials out there want to sponsor our next Ballpark Tour, we're seeking bids for 2009.

The game was a blowout from early on. The Indians scored five runs in the bottom of the third to make it 6-0, then scored in each of the next four innings to run away with it. Some rookie for the Twins (Macri) hit his first home run of the season to make it 6-1, but the Twinkies never had a chance. Livan Hernandez was on the mound for Minny, and he got shelled. Straight, slow fastballs do not usually fool major league hitters (or minor league hitters, or Little Leaguers).

As you probably read earlier, L was lucky enough -- or had a big enough elbow into the back of the old man sitting a row ahead of us -- to catch a foul ball off the bat of Ryan Garko. I'll post the pic later.

C just reminded me of one of the crazier things that happened last night. Early on in the night, at Clevelander's, some drunk girl thought she could jump the three-foot fence separating Clevelander's patio from the sidewalk. Well, thought she could. She bit it, hitting chin-first. From eyewitness accounts -- yeah, we asked -- the girl actually lost a few teeth and literally had a piece of her chin HANGING OFF. Apparently, it was nasty. We could see blood everywhere from where we were sitting, just inside the door to the bar. After we walked out, somebody from the bar had washed all the blood down with water, so we didn't get to see it.

So, back to Panini's. C was fortunate enough to meet a young lady from Ohio. A recent college graduate, Jessie was a huge Indians fan and was looking for a job in human resources. She graduated from the University of Toledo and was waiting for her friend to finish having a crying argument with her boyfriend, so C invited her to sit at our table and while away the time. As C puts it, his conversational skills start at, "Hey, how's it going," and end with, "Alright, take care." in between is a lot of silence. Instead, E carried much of the conversation. Jessie lamented the fact that now she was out of college, she had to pay her own bills. "Real life sucks," she said.

Earlier in the day, we had lunch at Smokey Bones, a local barbeque place (just before we went and spent ridiculous amounts of money on "souvenirs" from Dick's Sporting Goods and a few other places in the mall). My taste buds thought the bbq was awesome, but unfortunately my stomach didn't agree, so I spent the rest of the day farting my brains out. That's until the contents turned liquid, then I spent about 30 minutes in the bathroom at the Winking Lizard bar before the game ridding myself of said contents. I also started taking shots of Imodium straight from the bottle. Good times.

Anyway, like I said, I'm writing this from the car, so hopefully we'll find an internet connection sooner rather than later so I can post this thing. I'll put up some pics with this, but it takes forever to load the 70-some pics we took last night, so I might just add a few now and the rest later.

Going on the road and...

2008-06-13T12:03:00.001-04:00

Going on the road and a longer post will be coming soon because I didn't have internet connection this morning. So as soon as we get internet connection, put something up, put some pictures up but we are on road. He's driving like shit like usual and yep, plans on the breaks for no reason. Here we go and stop to fall asleep because he keeps yanking the wheel around. So, we'll be in Detroit a few hours. listen

Powered by Jott

That's 10:45 that morning....

2008-06-13T10:56:00.001-04:00

That's 10:45 that morning. We're already a few hours behind schedule. I was actually alive amazingly and for some reason we are watching an NKOTB video on VH1. Hit it. listen

Powered by Jott

So, it's 3:00 in the...

2008-06-13T03:15:00.001-04:00

So, it's 3:00 in the morning, we're done now for the day. We're gonna head to bed, Elle(?) is trashed and see in the ear(?) if I'll be sober or not. Sober is ____ on Sunday. And we're gonna go sleep, wake up in the morning and drive to Detroit for the next leg of our trip and we're staying at Elle's cousin's place tonight. I'll try to put a photo gallery as soon as possible and update the data(?) as soon as I get internet connection. listen

Powered by Jott

Final score Tribe wins...

2008-06-12T22:18:00.001-04:00

Final score Tribe wins 12 to 2. Great game for the Tribe not so much, but it's such a great game to watch, but there were highlights including L catching a fireball and the Ice cream was awesome too. Actually, it was custered, custered. So, good game we're gonna go out and have some fun now. listen

Powered by Jott

Ryan Garko(?) just hit...

2008-06-12T21:06:00.001-04:00

Ryan Garko(?) just hit a foul ball an L(?) actually caught the ball on the ____ off his hands. We've got a picture him, we'll post it later. It's the 5th inning and the Indians are up 10 - 1. listen

Powered by Jott

So, Lavon Hernandas...

2008-06-12T20:11:00.001-04:00

So, Lavon Hernandas of the Twins just gave up a three run shot to, that Sinsoochoo, it barely cleared the fence, it was going about 300 MPH. After Lavon has already blown it and given up three runs earlier in the inning and then a couple of errors. And so now is it six nothing, Indians... listen

Powered by Jott

We are at the game now....

2008-06-12T19:22:00.001-04:00

We are at the game now. Seats are almost as good as last night, where right at the first base line that 10 more of that in the field just behind the dirt on the first base line twins already have 2 hits in a row first and second with a 2 outs. listen

Powered by Jott

On our way to the Ball...

2008-06-12T19:00:00.001-04:00

On our way to the Ball Park now in Cleveland, ___ taking on twinkies(?). We're just coming from the Winking lizard, where I stunk it up in the bathroom. And, we're getting our tickets now with the correct date on them hopefully. [unclear speech, please listen] listen

Powered by Jott

We're in Cleveland now....

2008-06-12T16:28:00.001-04:00

We're in Cleveland now. Stop by Earl's cousin's place to sleep over and A's(?) got the shift. So, he had to get a modium(?). We all got new have to well except for C. He's running the same old tiger's set Cleveland 30. listen

Powered by Jott

First Album

2008-06-12T08:58:00.000-04:00

Game One - Washington at Pittsburgh

2008-06-12T07:53:00.004-04:00

PNC Park --Pittsburgh, PA

So, the Tour started out on a positive note. Our first game, the Nats at the Bucs, turned out to be an exciting game. Notice I didn't say "good" game. It was anything but. It's very clear why these two teams are near the bottom of the standings.

Here's the game story from the local paper. Here's how the Nationals official writer saw the game. And here's the Pirates take on it.

The Pirates won the game, 3-1. According to the box score, there were only two errors in the game, but that's the scorer being awfully generous. There were at least four or five plays botched that could've gone for errors ... for each team. It was some miserable baseball, to say the least.

I think our seats qualify as the best price-to-location ratio I've ever seen. We payed just over 30 bucks each, and we sat almost directly behind home plate, less than 20 rows up. You can see just how close we were from some of the pictures I'll soon upload to the site.

We ended up sitting behind two guys who were alumni of the school I (A) used to be the SID at. They were plenty pleasant, until the one guy told me I was dumb for quitting the job and becoming an editor. He also said "Everyone wants to write a book." Thanks for the pick-me-up, buddy. But he was pretty cool to us the whole night and even laughed at my jokes, so I guess he can't be all that bad.

Speaking of jokes, have you seen Dmitri Young? The Nats have him listed at 6-2, 300 lbs. on their web site. There is no way he's that slim. He is by far the most out-of-shape professional athlete I've ever watch play. He makes the athletes in the Sunday softball I play in look like physical specimens. In addition to the play I mentioned earlier -- in which Young wasn't paying attention on a dropped third strike and didn't cover first, allowing the runner to beat out the play -- we also saw Young run 125 feet to chase down a pop foul, only to fall backward on his ass and have the ball bounce less than three feet from him. Sad thing is that the right-fielder (who had to run 250 feet) and the second baseman (200 feet) both had a better shot at the ball. I'd say, "Well, at least he can rake ...," but Da Meat Hook went one-for-four and left three guys on base to drop his average to .265. All-Star, Gold Glover in the making, I tell 'ya.

The coup de grace of the game was when the Bucs' closer, Matt Capps, came on. Apparently, he's a fan of the country music. So before he comes on, the stadium starts BLASTING some cruddy country song and they play a video up on the massive video board in left field. Not exactly "Enter Sandman," like when Mo Rivera comes on for the Yanks. The best part, though, is the video. They show old clips of Capps coming on, interspersed with clips of rampaging cattle. It almost seems as if the Pirates staff are trying to equate Capps to a cow. Cheap shot, if you ask me ... Dude only weighs 255, at, well, 6-2. Alright, he's a fatass (I'm kidding). All joking aside, Capps mowed down the Nats in the ninth for his 16th save. Not bad for a closer for the Buccos.

Overall, a great start to the Tour. Not a great game, but we had a great time. The game provided plenty of fodder to laugh at, and held our attention throughout. That can't be a bad thing.

Pics are coming soon, as soon as Picassa uploads them all (slooooooowly). More updates coming ...

No updates last night...

2008-06-12T07:25:00.002-04:00

No updates last night because the EconoLodge we stayed in doesn't have wireless internet connection like it promises on it sign. Couldn't update with pictures. One interesting note is that L and C are spooning and Eric is sleeping as far away from me as possible, in my bed. Over and out. Red Rover. Red Rover. listen

Powered by Jott

Just a note, Pennsylvania...

2008-06-12T00:00:00.002-04:00

Just a note, Pennsylvania Sucks we turned around 6 times in Pittsburgh trying to find the right %^$&%$ highway and there is no freaking hotel on this side of the highway here. We are going to have go all way Ohio which is another cruddy state just to find a hotel. listen

Powered by Jott

Arr! Pirates wins, 3...

2008-06-11T21:59:00.002-04:00

Arrrrrrrrrgh! Pirates wins, 3-1. listen

Powered by Jott

We just saw the play...

2008-06-11T20:42:00.002-04:00

We just saw the play of the year, the Nationals catcher Jesus Flores dropped the 3rd strike, and Dmitri Young wasn't paying attention, so Xavier Nady actually beat out the throw to first base. Play of the year... listen

Powered by Jott

Halfway through the...

2008-06-11T20:27:00.002-04:00

Halfway through the game just started the bottom of the 5th inning. Pirates are up 1 nothing. The Nationals -- despite being in Pittsburgh -- still suck. They made two straight errors in one inning, on simple plays. listen

Powered by Jott

We've finally made it...

2008-06-11T19:19:00.002-04:00

We've finally made it to the game. Ballpark's beautiful and E is celebrating Pittsburgh by drinking Iron (pronounced Arn) City beer out of a plastic cup with a straw. That says classy -- just like the city. listen

Powered by Jott

We just tried to take...

2008-06-11T18:40:00.002-04:00

We just tried to take a ferry over to the Pittsburgh game and we got on the wrong boat. Currently, we don't know where we're going. Also at the bar, Eric knocked over his drink -- a dollar(?) and 25 beer -- and got a free beer out of it. Idiot. listen

Powered by Jott

2008-06-11T16:18:00.000-04:00

C here, posting from my phone.

We're still in the road, about 10 minutes away from PNC Park. Just caught a great view of the Pittsburgh skyline.

Gonna try to grab some food at Station Square if we ever make it out of traffic.

Stay tuned for more...

On the road, not even...

2008-06-11T14:04:00.002-04:00

On the road, not even an hour and E's already asleep. Oh, and somebody already farted ... it was me! listen

Powered by Jott

Foreman(?), full tank...

2008-06-11T12:11:00.002-04:00

Four men, full tank of gas. It's light out. Only one is wearing sunglasses. 235 miles to go. listen

Powered by Jott

Preparing to leave

2008-06-11T09:00:00.002-04:00

I'm not sure we have directions for where we're going. Good thing C's got an iPhone!

I still haven't finished packing. A's going to be here soon so we can go for a run - he said an easy 1/2 hour run today. Then showers, haircuts, and heading to Sterling to pick up C and L.

Hey, this is A, updating...

2008-06-11T07:37:00.001-04:00

Hey, this is A, updating the blog from Jott. Just trying to test this thing out and this is probably how we are going to update the blog for most of the trip. Hope to update you soon. listen

Powered by Jott

The Trip Begins

2008-06-11T07:07:00.000-04:00

We are four guys, all in our late-20s-early-30s, headed out on a tour of five Major League ballparks. We start today, June 11, and will be done by Sunday, June 15.

We are: A, C, E & L.

We start in Sterling, Va., just outside of Washington, D.C. Our first game will be tonight in Pittsburgh. Ironically, the Bucs play the Nats. Nothing like starting out the tour with two last-place teams. Hey, they did play a great game last night, with Lastings Milledge hitting a two-run bomb to dead center in the top of the ninth for a 7-6 win.

After Pittsburgh, we head to Cleveland. The Tribe takes on the Twinkies. Then on to Detroit. I can't wait to see Detroit - not the city, mind you, but the ballpark. I love the old-school script D on the Tigers hats ... I might pick one of them up. Plus my boy DM is a big Tigers fan, so I might just pick him something up from the park.

From Detroit, it's down to Cincinnati (yes, I can spell Cincinnati!). The Reds (great name) play ... aw, who cares?

I (A) have never been to any of these parks. Not sure about C, E or L. We got pretty good tickets for all the games. It was surprising to see the difference in pricing at all the parks. Pittsburgh's ticket prices were pretty low, in comparison. We got good seats for just over 30 bucks on StubHub.

I have NO idea where we're staying. Apparently, the first night we're just going to find some random hotel on the side of the road. Maybe we'll just sleep in the car. Apparently, L & C have some friends we're going to stay with along the way. Never met them (the friends, that is ... I've met C & L).

Speaking of the car, we'll have four grown men in a Jetta (I'll let you make the comment about four men driving a Jetta). E is the smallest of us, and he's about 5-10, 175 lbs. I'm probably the next smallest at 6-2, 200 lbs. This might be a long trip.

L put together the weather and pitching matchups:

Wednesday - Pittsburgh - 87 and sunny - Lannan (4-6, 3.47 ERA) vs. Snell (2-6, 5.65 ERA)
Thursday - Cleveland - 87 and partly sunny - Hernandez (6-3, 5.32 ERA) vs. Laffey (3-3, 2.98 ERA)
Friday - Detroit - 84 and isolated t-storms - Lowe (4-5, 4.15 ERA) vs. Galarraga (5-2, 3.70 ERA)
Saturday - Cincy - 80 and isolated t-storms - Masterson (3-0, 2.59 ERA) vs. Volquez (9-2, 1.56 ERA)

It's 7:21 a.m. on the first day of the trip. I've been up since 6 a.m. because I'm so excited (oh, and I'm normally up at 5 a.m. on weekdays, but whatever). We're leaving at about 11 a.m.

I'll try to update this blog as often as possible on the trip, especially with pictures. I'm not sure what our internet connection will be like, but I'll do my best. I might update via Jott, too. Gotta figure out how to set that up ...