Mike B's Posts - Ballpark Chasers2024-03-28T10:15:10ZMike Bhttps://www.ballparkchasers.com/profile/MikeBromanhttps://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2187825213?profile=RESIZE_48X48&width=48&height=48&crop=1%3A1https://www.ballparkchasers.com/profiles/blog/feed?user=2sjuemz68e1fp&xn_auth=noHitting the Road with my Dadtag:www.ballparkchasers.com,2017-07-18:1681163:BlogPost:2444142017-07-18T02:38:42.000ZMike Bhttps://www.ballparkchasers.com/profile/MikeBroman
<p>My dad and I are taking a baseball road trip Wed-Sat of this week, I can't wait. It was actually about 5 years ago that my dad asked me if I was going to try to go to all of the MLB stadiums at some point. I had always liked going to different stadiums when I could but I had never made a point of traveling just to see stadiums or thought of seeing all 30 as a goal. At the time, I had seen I believe 5 of the current stadiums.</p>
<p>So, we'll be starting in Chicago to see the Dodgers play…</p>
<p>My dad and I are taking a baseball road trip Wed-Sat of this week, I can't wait. It was actually about 5 years ago that my dad asked me if I was going to try to go to all of the MLB stadiums at some point. I had always liked going to different stadiums when I could but I had never made a point of traveling just to see stadiums or thought of seeing all 30 as a goal. At the time, I had seen I believe 5 of the current stadiums.</p>
<p>So, we'll be starting in Chicago to see the Dodgers play the White Sox. This will be the 3rd time I've been to Guaranteed Rate Field. Next, I'll be seeing stadiums #23 and #24 for me, in Kansas City and Minnesota, both against our hometown Tigers. Never in my wildest imagination did I think I'd be up to 24 stadiums by this point! The other cool thing about it is that when my dad asked me if I was going to try to see all 30, he mentioned how it would be especially difficult to get to the ones in the middle of the country because they're not big travel destinations, and I think KC was one of the ones he mentioned specifically. </p>
<p>I'm taking another road trip later in the summer and after that, I plan to post my rankings of all the stadiums I've seen to that point. Until then, happy traveling to anyone else who has any trips coming up, and I'll keep you all posted about this week. </p>Summer 2015 - Ranking the Ballparkstag:www.ballparkchasers.com,2015-08-22:1681163:BlogPost:2178522015-08-22T23:18:50.000ZMike Bhttps://www.ballparkchasers.com/profile/MikeBroman
<p>So I've now been to 13 current MLB parks. I thought I'd try to rank them in this post. I'm not going to include Citi Field because I went in 2010, before I became a true "chaser." So there will be 12. I had a good time at each park and would go back to any of them, I just like some more than others. Bear with me, this is long - I bolded the parks if you just want to quickly see my rankings w/o all the commentary.</p>
<p><strong>12. US Cellular Field (went once, in 2013).</strong> Easy to get…</p>
<p>So I've now been to 13 current MLB parks. I thought I'd try to rank them in this post. I'm not going to include Citi Field because I went in 2010, before I became a true "chaser." So there will be 12. I had a good time at each park and would go back to any of them, I just like some more than others. Bear with me, this is long - I bolded the parks if you just want to quickly see my rankings w/o all the commentary.</p>
<p><strong>12. US Cellular Field (went once, in 2013).</strong> Easy to get to, fans are engaged. But it lacks distinctiveness & it is much too hitter-friendly. I like that they stayed true to their fanbase by staying on the South Side, but there is just nothing really around the park.</p>
<p><strong>11. O.co Coliseum (went once, 2014).</strong> Similar to US Cellular, minus the hitter-friendly part.</p>
<p><strong>10. Miller Park (went this year).</strong> It has a bit of a warehouse appearance. You can't see the field for long stretches of the concourse. The park is sort of in the middle of nowhere. But the sightlines are good, the sausage race is hilarious, and "The Beast" alone makes it worth another trip for me. And it was "T-shirt Friday"!</p>
<p><strong>9. Angel Stadium (went 2014 & this year)</strong>. The big "A" and the giant batting helmets outside are cool. The California Spectacular is an incredible sight. Parking for $10 on-site is great. But there's not much around it. Seats down the line aren't angled properly, which makes for some poor sightlines.</p>
<p><strong>8. Progressive Field (been a few times, most recently June to see my Tigers win there!)</strong> The park has been a big part of downtown Cleveland's revival, and there is a great area around it. Good sightlines within, and a cool nod to Fenway with the high left field wall. A downside is that even in 2013 & 2014 with a solid team, the Indians just lacked fan support.</p>
<p><strong>7. Chase Field (went this year).</strong> Quality selection of food at lower prices than most parks I've been to, an open concourse, good sightlines. $5 parking just a couple blocks away is a plus. They seem to lack fan support, though.</p>
<p><strong>6. Coors Field (went this year).</strong> Creative food selection (try an elk brat). A mostly open concourse makes for a nice walk around the park with interesting views of the game. The Rocky Mountains are in the background if you get certain seats! Friendly crowd, though it was sparse.</p>
<p><strong>5. Wrigley Field (went in 1999 & 2x this year).</strong> The history and unique features, like the ivy and the manual scoreboard, push Wrigley up my list. Lively crowds, most fans seem to know the game. Great surrounding area. Just don't try to drive to it, and be careful about what seats you get. Also, you may have to go quite a ways to get food from your seats, and the concourse is overly crowded.</p>
<p><strong>4. Comerica Park (my home park, been to about 60 games).</strong> The fans are usually lively and knowledgeable about the game. They've added a lot of new food options lately, making for a wide selection. There aren't many bad seats in the house. The statues in the outfield & the huge tiger at the entrance really add character to the park. You can park for very little just a few blocks away, and you're close to plenty of restaurants and bars.</p>
<p><strong>3. Dodger Stadium (the first game I ever went to was here in 1989, I've been back in 2014 & this year).</strong> Beautifully designed. So much history here. Sightlines are quite good. There's a nice selection of food (try the garlic fries). Very passionate crowd. Pre-pay to park on-site for $10 or better yet, park for free on the side streets. The concourse is easy to navigate during play but gets very packed after the final out.</p>
<p><strong>2. Petco Park (went this year).</strong> This is an underrated park! Great area, beautiful backdrop within, and good sightlines. Name a food you want, and you'll find it here. They seemed to have an excellent beer selection too. You can park nearby for not much or even park on the street for night games. The only drawback is not much fan support but that should come if the Padres improve.</p>
<p><strong>1. AT&T Park (went this year).</strong> And this is coming from a guy whose second team is the Dodgers. There is just nothing wrong with this park except the crazy cost of parking nearby, but that is mitigated by BART. Incredible views. The most outgoing fans I've encountered at any stadium. Like SD, name the food you want and it's there. I could go on and on about this one but if you're anywhere near the Bay Area & the Giants are in town, go!</p>
<p>I hope I can make it to the meetup next year or the year after! I'll actually be heading east tomorrow to catch games at PNC Park, Citizen's Bank Park, Nationals Park, and Great American, plus maybe the minor league park in Dayton. This has been an epic summer of ballpark chasing and it has really added to my excitement about doing this.</p>Summer 2015 Ballpark Chasing, Pt. 2 - Chase Fieldtag:www.ballparkchasers.com,2015-08-20:1681163:BlogPost:2176342015-08-20T19:56:50.000ZMike Bhttps://www.ballparkchasers.com/profile/MikeBroman
<p>After the 2 games at Wrigley, I figured my next ballpark would be Chase Field in Phoenix, just after the All Star Break. I wanted to find out something about the park first, and that's when I came across Ballpark Chasers. This site has turned out to be an incredible resource!</p>
<p>In 2012, I was at a Tigers game with my dad when he asked me if I was going to try to get to all 30 MLB parks. That's when the idea started to really appeal to me. We had been to a few when I was a kid and I had…</p>
<p>After the 2 games at Wrigley, I figured my next ballpark would be Chase Field in Phoenix, just after the All Star Break. I wanted to find out something about the park first, and that's when I came across Ballpark Chasers. This site has turned out to be an incredible resource!</p>
<p>In 2012, I was at a Tigers game with my dad when he asked me if I was going to try to get to all 30 MLB parks. That's when the idea started to really appeal to me. We had been to a few when I was a kid and I had been to a few more since, but at this point I went from going to a park if its team happened to be in town when I was in town, to making a point of getting to as many as possible. Little did I know, there are all these people out there who are doing the same thing. Very cool!</p>
<p>Anyway, the 3rd game I went to on my road trip was at Chase Field on Friday, July 17. This was my first visit to the stadium (and to Phoenix). The D'Backs fell to the Giants in extra innings, 6-5. Being that it was a 5-hour game and I paid $50ish to sit just to the right of home plate, about 20 rows back, I definitely got my money's worth. Not only that, but the stadium has some of the best concession prices I've seen in MLB (a hot dog for $1.50?!). It seemed to have quite a variety as well. After the first couple of innings, I walked all around the concourse to take it all in and see a bit of the action from different vantage points. Below is a view from my seat as well as from behind the lower level outfield stands.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2203022450?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="750" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2203022450?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="750" class="align-full"/></a></p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2203033315?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="750" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2203033315?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="750" class="align-full"/></a></p>
<p>While it was strange seeing indoor baseball (hadn't done so before), this was a positive given that it was 105 degrees out. At one point, there was a thunderstorm and a leak in the roof caused it to "rain" just behind home plate, which was memorable. What else did I like about Chase Field... the video board was one of the most detailed I've seen in terms of player stats, the fans were friendly, and I paid only $5 to park about a 5-minute walk from it. It seemed like there wasn't much immediately around the stadium, but a decent variety of places to eat a few blocks away. I ate at Alice Cooper'stown, which was a decent meal and full of really cool sports memorabilia.</p>
<p>The only downside I can think of is that there just doesn't seem to be a lot of excitement about the D'Backs. I'm sure this is a combination of it being a fairly new team, a lot of transplants in Arizona, and the team's lack of success in recent years. On a Friday night, it was about 2/3 full, and easily half of the people there were Giants fans.</p>
<p>Overall, Chase Field is a great place to watch a game with a lot to like and very little not to like. Comfortable seating and budget-friendly prices are easy to find. Whether you get to the park by light rail or just by driving downtown and parking, you will be able to do so quickly and without spending much. This was my 4th ballpark this year (having been to Comerica Park, Progressive Field, and Wrigley Field earlier) and 9th overall in terms of current MLB parks, and I will definitely be going back as soon as I have the chance.</p>Summer 2015 Ballpark Chasingtag:www.ballparkchasers.com,2015-08-20:1681163:BlogPost:2176552015-08-20T00:38:20.000ZMike Bhttps://www.ballparkchasers.com/profile/MikeBroman
<p>I recently got back from an awesome road trip in which I drove about 7,000 miles total. I visited a lot of friends and family, saw and did some incredible things, and of course, went to a bunch of different ballparks.</p>
<p>Coming into this year, I had seen 8 current MLB parks and no current minor league ones, plus 4 defunct MLB parks and 1 defunct MiLB park. On my trip I saw a total of 11 games in 10 different parks - 8 MLB, 2 MiLB. Of these, 5 of the MLB parks were new to me and both MiLB…</p>
<p>I recently got back from an awesome road trip in which I drove about 7,000 miles total. I visited a lot of friends and family, saw and did some incredible things, and of course, went to a bunch of different ballparks.</p>
<p>Coming into this year, I had seen 8 current MLB parks and no current minor league ones, plus 4 defunct MLB parks and 1 defunct MiLB park. On my trip I saw a total of 11 games in 10 different parks - 8 MLB, 2 MiLB. Of these, 5 of the MLB parks were new to me and both MiLB parks were new to me. I thought I'd offer a bit about my experiences in case anyone is going to any of these parks in the last few weeks of the season, or just for general interest. I'll probably divide this up into a few posts so that each post won't be super long.</p>
<p>I started the trip on Friday, July 10, by going to Wrigley Field and sitting in the bleachers. I had been to Wrigley when I was a kid, back in 1999. So it was really cool to see it again, especially because the older stadiums didn't really stand out as much back then (for example, my Tigers still played in Tiger Stadium that year). The idea of the view from a seat being obstructed by a support beam or an overhang wasn't at all unusual then. Neither was a manually-operated scoreboard, a feature I'm really glad they kept when they did the renovations earlier this year.</p>
<p>Now, it is like taking a trip back in time when you go to Wrigley. I got there about half an hour before first pitch, so I ended up in the center field bleachers. Soon enough, "Purple Haze" started playing as that day's Cubs starter was Kyle Hendricks, and my road trip had officially begun.</p>
<p>My experience with the bleachers was that some of the fans really were into the game, while others just seemed to be there to party. It almost felt like being at a college football tailgate - I'd say Wrigleyville before a game has that same feel. I got a bit of friendly ribbing about my Tigers gear, which I appreciated.</p>
<p>Overall, it was fun and the fact that it was Cubs vs. White Sox added to the rowdiness, I think. The White Sox won 1-0, thanks in no small part to the Cubs hitting into double plays in each of the first FOUR innings (I've never seen this before). Carlos Rodon got the win, while Kyle Hendricks took the loss.</p>
<p>Following this day game, they had a post-game concert, which was a nice touch. Word to the wise, don't make the rookie mistake I made in paying $40 to park near the stadium (this was a couple days before I discovered this site!). Find somewhere to park further away and take the L.</p>
<p>The picture below is a view from where I sat.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2203031866?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="750" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2203031866?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="750" class="align-full"/></a></p>
<p>I went back to Wrigley the next day with 2 friends who live in the Chicago area. We were pumped to see Jon Lester vs Chris Sale, one of the most intriguing pitching matchups you'll get in Interleague play. This time, we sat in the upper deck, section 436, which is between 1st base and the right field foul pole. The fans in this area seemed to be more serious about the game than the ones in the bleachers the day before. The Sox won again, this time by a count of 5-1. An error in I believe the 6th inning by the Cubs led to 3 White Sox runs and turned it into a fairly easy win for them.</p>
<p>One thing I noticed is that access to concessions was actually worse in this part of the stadium. You have to go all the way down a couple of ramps onto the main level, and the lines are going to be long. That's part of the deal with an older ballpark, though. It is just part of the experience.</p>
<p>I've attempted to show you how crowded the concourse gets in one of the photos below. Also included are a view from our seats and a view of the center field scoreboard, one of the features that makes Wrigley unique in this era.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2203032227?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="750" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2203032227?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="750" class="align-full"/></a></p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2203033338?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="750" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2203033338?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="750" class="align-full"/></a></p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2203037527?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="750" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2203037527?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="750" class="align-full"/></a></p>
<p>Overall, I'd rate Wrigley Field pretty highly, and recommend it as part of any trip you are taking to the upper midwest. You could easily also get to US Celluar and Miller Park on the same trip, if the schedule allows. Got a couple extra days? Drive a few hours east from Chicago and check out Comerica Park, then drive about three hours southeast from there to Progressive Field. Both of these are fine ballparks as well.</p>
<p>I'll let this one stand alone. Tomorrow I'll come back and write about the next couple of ballparks I went to on the trip.</p>