Baseball Trips

It’s hard to believe that by the end of this season, I will be a mere three stadiums away from reaching my goal.  Looking back on that night in October 2010, I don’t regret anything.

It’s been an amazing three seasons of baseball, and life.  I fully admit, I am a quiet and shy person.  I know, hard to believe, but it’s true.  In this journey to see a game at every Major League Baseball stadium, I have learned so much about myself, and about our country.

Growing up, I always thought it would be amazing to see a game at every stadium, but thought it would never happen.  It wasn’t until the playoffs in 2010 that I made the smartest decision in my life.  I told my parents, and they thought I was crazy.  Crazy, yes, but the good kind of crazy.

Going into the 2011 season, I had been to three stadiums: Chase Field (Arizona Diamondbacks), AT&T (San Francisco Giants), and O.co Coliseum (Oakland Athletics).  By the time the season ended, that number would be nine.  I spent ten night on the road in the Midwest going to seven cities, seven games and six stadiums.  It was a blast and I was hooked.  It turns out, I love to travel.  Fun fact about me is that I collect baseball bats.  Since I love baseball bats and was in the Midwest, there was no way I was going to miss a chance to visit Louisville.  This was my only stop that didn’t involve a baseball game, but was just as fun.  I took the tour and was able to see how a baseball is made; plus a souvenir mini bat.  I was so pumped by the time I got back, that I couldn’t wait to go back on the road again.

I planned on visiting the East Coast for 2012, which was really exciting for me.  I was most excited about Fenway, celebrating it’s 100 anniversary.  This time, I planned a little bit of extra time to see the sights.  Being in New York City, I had to go to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, especially since my grandfather came through Ellis Island.  It was only fitting that I was there in 2012, 100 years after my grandfather came through there himself.  Getting to see Washington, D.C. was amazing.  I made my way from the train station to the Lincoln Memorial before heading to the game.  Unlike 2011, I did a few trips.  And let me tell, you, flying back and forth across the country is not that much fun.

2012 was different because I did two multi city trips, and then a few weekend trips.  The total number of stadiums went from nine to eighteen.  Should have been nineteen, but things happen.  I will be going back to Baltimore this year and I’m hoping for a much better result.  Exciting things I got to see were: Chipper Jones final home stand of the regular season and a game in Houston’s final season in the National League.

The most exciting thing I have experience though, happened this weekend in San Diego.  My original trip to San Diego was scheduled for September 7th, but as a luck would have it, a family member is getting married that day, forcing me to change my plans.  I was scrambling to find another game to go to in San Diego, determined not to miss the stadium this year.  Looking at the schedule, I saw it.  The New York Yankees were going to be in San Diego on a weekend.  Perfection.  I was so bummed that I didn’t get to Mariano Rivera when the Yankees were in Oakland earlier this season, well not too bummed since we swept them, that I knew this was the game to go to.  The baseball gods smiled upon me.  The Yankees went up 3-0 going into the bottom of the 9th inning, which meant one thing, Rivera was coming in.  Rivera came into the game to a standing ovation from the fans and chants of RIV-ER-A!  It was amazing and touching.  Flash bulbs went off with each pitch and a roaring cheer when the final out was recorded.  This was Rivera’s first and only save at Petco Park.  No doubt, this will be the best memories from all of my baseball trips.

Mariano Rivera pitching at Petco Park in San Diego, CA

Road Trip!

This year, my annual baseball trip is a slew of mini trips. I love it!

My original baseball trip in 2011 was 10 nights of pure baseball magic. I had such a great time, but was instantly craving another trip. Last year, I did a couple of trips. Two big trips and then three quick weekend trips. While I love the quick weekend trips, they are extremely exhausting. This year, I knew was going to be a challenge. You see, I just started a new job at the end of April, so time off is not really something that I get. Taking a week off to go on vacation would be highly frowned upon, especially since I’m a temp. I take a week off, they find somebody else to do my job. Not good.

Setting up this year’s trip was fun in a crazy way. I am going to a total of 9 stadiums this season, and only missing 2 days of work. I’m pretty proud of myself for that one. All of the games are weekend trips, except for two of them. Let me tell you, flying back and forth across the country in a weekend is not ideal, but worth it in the end. For me at least. Today, I got to Denver so I can finally get to Coors Field. I was in Colorado a few years back, but my boyfriend at the time didn’t like baseball (don’t get me started) so he refused to take me to a game. Monday, I fly to Milwaukee for the Brewers game. Now, I have been wanting to go to Miller Park for some time now. I have family that’s from Wisconsin and they all say it’s really nice. But that’s not why I’m excited. I’m excited because of who the Brew Crew is playing. My beloved Oakland A’s as part of Inter League play. YES! As soon as I saw that on the schedule, I told myself, I don’t care what’s going on, I’m going to at least one of those games. Here we are and I am going. My boss started laughing when I told her why I wasn’t going to be at work on Monday. Good thing she’s a big A’s fan!

My favorite part of being on the road, aside from the baseball games, is the road. I love seeing the country and now have a massive itch to travel. Don’t offer for me to come places on the road because I will seriously consider it. I love being able to see places I would never have thought to go to, and I get to meet some really nice people too. I try to make time to see the sights in places I go to and I’m big on taking pictures. It’s nice to look back at the pictures and relive those memories. I almost had a nervous break down when my laptop crashed, not because it sucked not having a computer, but because I was worried I’d lose the pictures from my trips. Lucky for me, they were all recovered!

I love Twitter and getting to talk to fans. So many people have been asking me my favorite stadiums, which ones they should check out and what not. I feel so cliché when I say Fenway and Wrigley are my favorites, but I really do love them. I have such a hard time picking favorites because there are so many great stadiums. Check out my trip pages for some more information on stadiums! I like Cleveland because not only is Progressive Field (The Jake) a really nice ballpark, but I had a great time checking out the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame while I was in town. Plus they had some amazing food there. St. Louis is another good one. The ballpark is amazing and I love the views of the Gateway Arch in the outfield. Speaking of the Arch, totally something to check out! For $12 you can go to the top and look out over the city, but go early in the morning and make sure it’s a clear day. I wish I could pick a favorite, other than O.co, but there really is way too many stadiums to pick from. I would recommend to anybody to go out on the road to check out all the stadiums. Best choice I’ve made.

Check back tomorrow for my thoughts on Coors Field. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!