I cannot believe how close I am to actually reaching the milestone I have been striving to achieve for so long. What started back in the early 80' could very well come to a fruition (temporarily) here in 2011.
Since 1983 when my dad took me to Wrigley Field to see a Cards/Cubs series I have been working towards seeing a game in every active MLB ballpark. In the early years I did not realize the goal I have today. Then the goal was simply to see baseball with my dad. The man who taught me everything I know about baseball. The opportunity to go to a baseball game with him - be it in St. Louis or in a ballpark far away - it didn't matter. Every question I had about baseball, he had the answer. "Who was the greatest Cardinal" I would ask. Dad would tell me about still summer nights in Emporia where he listened to Cardinals games on the radio and heard about the great Stan Musial. How he always was a Cardinals fan. How his neighbor rival always a Yankees fan. Two Kansas boys, rooting for AL/ NL rivals if there was such a thing in the 50's. That's what lead to my baseball love. What would have happened if that were reversed? Would Dad and I always have to battle over who is better, Cards or Yanks? Luckily, that was not the case. Instead, his idol was the poster child for baseball in St. Louis.
So here we were, father and son (and sometimes sister) watching ballgames in this little ballpark in Chicago. It was fun. Sure, Wrigley was fun, the people were colorful and the difference between the concrete of Busch II and Wrigley made it different - thus exciting - but the real joy was a weekend away with dad. Living in "the city" for a weekend. Staying at the "Mighty Comfort" as he would call it. A Comfort Inn about a mile or so south of Wrigley on Diversey that sported more mirrored walls and ceilings than any pre-teen should be subjected to. Still it was always a great trip. I remember being at an arcade in the neighborhood and playing video games next to Andy VanSlyke and Mike Lavallier. But nothing will compare to the game when we say the Cards and Cubs go at it like never before - only to see Sandberg hit a game winning HR against Bruce Sutter (which I believe was his 2nd of the game).
That's where this journey began.
Since then we had several family vacations where we caught baseball games. We went east to see the Orioles play in old Memorial Stadium. We went north to see games at old Tiger Stadium and the the old Municipal Stadium in Cleveland. We even traveled west to see games in LA, Anaheim, San Francisco and Oakland. For some reason dad loved this bumper sticker he picked up in Oakland. It was from the AM station that broadcast the games. When we returned home, it was pasted along the bumper of the 1985 Celica. I guarantee we were the only car in Missouri to have this OAK A's bumper sticker.
I was off and running. Dad and I must have visited at least 12-15 ballparks together. I recall a year in highschool when I was loving the Boston Red Sox in the AL. Mainly due to their 3rd baseman, Wade Boggs. Well, dad found out when the Red Sox were going to be in KC (remember this was before the internet, so it was more like looking it up in the Sporting News than going online). He grabbed my friend Brad and I and we went to KC to see Koffman Stadium and Boggs. All I recall from that game was sitting high, high, high up behind home plate. I recall it being cold. Like, "where's my blanket" cold. But I got to see Boggs play.
By the time I was in the "real world" and on my own I had several stadiums down, but was witnessing the cruelty of the sport of seeing every stadium. You see, stadiums don't stick around for ever. Baltimore had demolished the old Memorial Stadium and had a new, beautiful Camden Yards. Others were following suit. It was time to get on this dream of seeing every stadium. I was in a race against cranes, wrecking balls and corporate boxes. Luckily my second job took me on the road. While at first it was travel to midwest towns, it expanded to the northeast. Time to see Yankee Stadium, Shea, Fenway, Veterans, 3 Rivers, Riverfront, Jacobs, Cellular One. I found my way to games around my work. Enjoyed the intricacies of each ballpark as well as the unique atmospheres. What I love about each ballpark is that no 2 dimensions are the same. No two views are the same. No two sightlines are the same. Of all of the professional sports - only baseball allows the architect and team to play with the dimensions. Each ballpark has a fell that is all it's own. I've been to my share of NHL arenas...not the same. I've been to a handful of NFL stadiums - outdoor ones are cool and have the fans to bring it life. Only baseball creates its own life. The fans just add to the life and character of the ballpark.
In the late 90's I was able to see Cooperstown for the first time. It was 1998 and McGwire and Sosa were battling for Maris' record. As soon as I set foot into the Hall of Fame I knew that I just return with my dad. Luckily, a year later I met Dad in New England for not only a trip to Cooperstown to talk to him about all of the players he grew up with, but to go to Fenway Park with him to see one of the old Jewels with my baseball-loving Dad. It is a trip that I will never forget and would do over and over and over if it would have the same effect year 2, 3, 4, 5, etc. If you haven't been to Cooperstown with your Dad. Do it. I can't explain it, just do it.
Now it is nearing the year 2000 and I have been to 20 or so stadiums. It's time to get serious. I need to see the random ones. I go to Tampa Bay. I'll always remember the night I was there as being the night that Fernando Tatis hit two Grand Slams against the Dodgers. Obviously, it has nothing to do with the game in Tampa...but on my drive back to the hotel in Orlando, I can hear 1120 KMOX (a little) and I hear Mike Shannon call both homeruns. Who played Tampa that night? no idea! I do know I had good seats on the first base side that were aligned to look at home plate. The person to your left sat about 3" ahead of you as the aisle looked straight towards center, but the seats were all askew towards home. Odd memories.
Bevin moved to Denver in 2001 and I was able to catch a game (actually several since) with her to knock the Rockies off the list. I travelled to Toronto for work and saw an interleague game against the Dodgers where the late Jose Lima made a huge impression on me when he lifted a fan from the stands to the field to have a photo on Lima's knee. Another memorable moment of that game was the streaker that dropped from centerfield and ran around the outfield until finally contained by security. I'll never forget the look on the bullpen pitchers faces when they had to escort this naked man past them and off the field - priceless.
Since then it has been almost a game of catch up. Houston opens a new stadium...I'm there the opening weekend in 2006. Cincinnati opens a new ballpark - Boyd and I take an IN/OH baseball roadtrip where we see 3 games in less than 72 hours (Cincy, Jacobs and the minor league park in Indianapolis. Gotta see the Marlins. Find a weekend when the Cards are in town and schedule a trip with Brad to not only see a game in South Florida, but see South Beach (see, it's not all about the ballparks). Fraternity brothers living up in the North East...great excuse to see a Mariners game at Safeco. More fraternity brothers living in Phoenix - easy excuse to swing by "the Bob" as it was called to see a game. Same brother from Seattle now living in MIL...well, the new Miller park had not been visited yet...now, check (along with the old one on an evening trip from Chicago about 20 years prior with high school buddies).
After all of these stadiums, which my unofficial count rests near 50, I have not collected anything physical. No ticket stubs, no photo of me next to a beer vendor, no real record. Except. Except the memories. It all started with a father telling his son about baseball. About a great player named Stan Musial. From there it became a fantasy. "See how cool it is to see baseball on the road?" Now it is an obsession. "I have to catch up". Not just for the "braggin rights" of saying I have been to them all. Don't get me wrong, that will be cool. But for what it means to me. It means childhood dreams. It means seeing architecture working together with art and strategy. It means travel. It means memories. There are so many more memories. Maybe, as I reach that last stadium, I'll relive a memory from each. That's what can never be taken away. Looking at the field again from my memory. From our seat that day. Looking at the beautiful field. Looking at the ballpark. Being around people who love to leave their crazy life for 3 hours at a time and live this fantasy life of living and dying with their team.
I have but two stadiums to go. This week I plan to see Citi Field. Seeing a game there will leave me with just Target Field in Minnesota to see. I am looking over the schedule carefully to see when that game will come. But it must come soon. The Marlins are building a new stadium. I need to be caught up. Just once. To say that I did it. My destination is within reach. From humble beginnings, to this goal of viewing a major league ball game in every active ballpark. It all started with my Dad. He is with me at every ballpark. Maybe, who knows, he'll physically be with me at the last one to share the experience with me. Maybe, I'll turn to him and say. "Who was the best Twin when you were growing up?". He'll start by telling me Harmon Killebrew stories but it will end with him and his friend playing baseball in Emporia, KS. Stan was the best, his neighbor liked the Yankees. That's where baseball stories begin. They begin a generation before...we just carry the flame. That's why I love baseball, that's why I long to see every ballpark. It's the history. I'll tell someone in 30 years about my memories about what I saw. Baseball lore lives on...
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