This is the seventh stadium on my tour and it is the first where I encountered tailgaters. It was an absolutely gorgeous night for baseball and the one word that I found written in my notes for the day over and over again was “fun”. I had such an amazing time at Turner Field that I didn't want to leave.
Read MoreDay #16 - Off day
After yesterday's huge mistake the first thing I did this morning was eat a big breakfast. I decided that for the rest of the tour I am going to eat whatever I want. If I need to get back into shape in September I will deal with it then.
Read MoreDay #15 - Travel from Miami to Atlanta
Today I drove from Miami to Atlanta. My friend Noah and his wonderful wife Jen live in Atlanta with their two children Liam and Hudson. I had originally planned on staying with Noah and Jen during my stay here, but little Hudson decided he needed to be born last week and subsequently forced me into a hotel. I plan on meeting the young lad during my off day at which time I will give him a stern talking to about how to treat guests.
Read MoreDay #14 - Off Day
As much as this trip is about baseball, it is also about seeing as much of America as I can. As this was my last day in Miami, I decided to go to South Beach. Unfortunately, I woke up to cloudy skies and scattered rain showers that kept me inside. This turned out to be a blessing however because I found myself taking a much needed nap in the middle of the afternoon. I need to pace myself as the driving and days baking in the hot sun are going to start catching up to me soon.
Read MoreDay #13 - The Miami Marlins
This was the park I was most looking forward to visiting while simultaneously having the lowest expectations of any of the stadiums. The Jeffery Loria saga has been well documented in how he has treated the city of Miami and Marlins fans. I was fully expecting a low turnout to the game, but what I did not foresee was how bland Marlins Park actually is. I am trying to find something positive and special about each stadium, but that proved to be quite the challenge here in Miami.
Read MoreDay #12 - Travel from St. Petersburg to Miami
I slept through my alarm this morning. That is the first time that has happened since starting the tour, I am relatively sure that it will happen again. I didn't get a chance to work out this morning, I had to get on the road and head to Miami. After the 14-hour drive a couple of days ago, this four hour trip will be nice and easy.
Read MoreDay #11 - Off Day
This is my first real “off-day” since beginning the tour. Since I started on May 28th I have either had a game or traveled from one city to another. In the future when I have an off day I will answer any questions you may have for me and I will use this time to explain how I went about planning this trip. For today however I am going to include some photos that I took during my Spring Training trip this year in Florida. I spent ten days touring the Grapefruit League visiting nine different stadiums. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the trip.
Read MoreDay #10 - Tampa Bay Rays
As my tour continues I have another first-time experience to add to my list: First time in a domed stadium. I have never watched a live baseball game inside a dome before so today's game was unique for me. I truly appreciate the effort that the Rays front office puts in to bringing people to the ballpark, but upon entering Tropicana Field I felt like I was walking into a mall.
Read MoreDay #9 - Travel from DC to St. Petersburg...plus Flavor Flav
I finished up my drive from DC today. It took me 15 hours and 30 minutes over two days to get down here. As I mentioned in yesterday's posting I was unaware of Tropical Storm Andrea while I was driving down and got caught in 4 hours of absolutely insane rainfall. The rain did not stop from the time I left Jacksonville to when I arrived in St. Petersburg. Luckily there were very few cars on the road so aside from squinting a lot, the drive down wasn't too bad.
Read MoreDay #8 - Travel from DC to St. Petersburg
Around 10:50 PM I pulled into a Best Western in Jacksonville, FL to turn in for the night. I haven't been keeping up on any news recently so I was completely unaware of the storm I was driving into, but the last hour of my drive was quite the adventure. I could barely see three feet in front of the hood of my car and was driving about 40 MPH on the highway. Tropical Storm Andrea was in full swing as I drove through a torrential downpour. Luckily I only spent a short time in the storm before pulling off the road and turning in for the night.
Read MoreDay #7 - The Washington Nationals
For the first time since beginning my tour I did not attend the game alone. My buddy Josh accompanied me to watch the Nationals host the New York Mets. Prior to today's game I had never been to Nationals Park. I was however lucky enough to have a seat for the Nationals first ever home game at RFK stadium in 2005. I was working for ESPN at the time and went to the game with my boss. I sat behind President George Bush and jumped up and down along with the 45,000 plus fans making RFK shake. I remember Vinny Castilla being a single short of the cycle in that game, leading the team formerly known as the Expos to their first home victory.
Read MoreDay # 6 - Travel From Baltimore to D.C.
After a great weekend of baseball, it was time for me to head on to our Nation's capital. The morning was spent picking up some last minute supplies for the road. I bought some grapes and blueberries for snacking on and a 35-pack of water bottles.
Read MoreDay #5 - The Baltimore Orioles Day Two
It was going to be hard to top the events of yesterday where I got my first official MLB baseball and watched a Miguel Cabrera grand slam sail over my head. I have learned never to doubt Showalter's Orioles when it comes to putting on a good show. Today's game was a little chillier than the day prior, both in weather and in run scoring. There was rain in the forecast, but luckily the field stayed dry for the entire nine inning game.
Read MoreDay #4 - The Baltimore Orioles
I lived in Washington D.C. for a brief time before the Nationals came to town. During those years I was having baseball withdrawal and decided to buy season tickets to the only game in town, the Baltimore Orioles.
Read MoreDay #3 - Travel from New York to Baltimore
The first section of the tour is just a short jump from New York City to Baltimore. Unfortunately, an hour outside of New York I experienced my first bump in the road. My side-view mirror popped out as I was driving down the highway. Luckily, as traffic at the time was at a standstill, I was able to pull over and find it in the grass. It took me 45 minutes, but I was glad to find the mirror completely intact.
Read MoreDay #2 - The New York Yankees
I got to the stadium around 3 PM. Unlike yesterday, the skies were blue with nary a rain cloud to be seen. I met up with famed Bleacher Creature Bald Vinny (pictured right) at his T-shirt stand on River Ave. He sells these custom t-shirts before every home game at Yankee Stadium. You can check out his website at Bald Vinny's House of Tees.
Read MoreDay #1 - The New York Mets
In 95 days, if the weather plays nice, I will have visited all 30 MLB ballparks in one season. Tonight was the first step on my journey, and it all began at Citi Field in New York City.
Read MoreCooperstown
Before I began my 95-day journey across this continent, I needed to stop by the Hallowed grounds of Cooperstown for some good luck. What I experienced was an amazing weekend at the real Happiest Place on Earth.
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