By Jim Cohn
Baseball enthusiasts wanting to travel to see some of the great ballparks in the U.S. are wise to wait until summer. Sure, tickets are harder to come by than they are in April, but if you’ve ever been to Progressive Field in Cleveland (where it snowed last April), Wrigley Field, PNC Park in Pittsburgh or a long list of stadiums that stretch from Chicago to Boston in the spring, you run the risk of having to dress for a football game instead of a baseball game. And let’s face it — baseball is meant to be enjoyed in shorts and flip flops, complemented by a cold beverage. Not in a parka sipping hot chocolate.
Sports travel continues to gain in popularity, and traveling to see one, if not a number of classic baseball stadiums is certainly a terrific focal point of a vacation. So where to go? There’s not enough space to hit all of the great ballparks, but here some of my favorites, in no particular order:
Wrigley Field, Chicago. This is an absolute must for any baseball fan. In my opinion, there is no better place to see a baseball game, and if you go to Wrigley, try to take in a day game. Night games are fun but there’s something about the daytime atmosphere that adds to the Wrigley experience. It has a neighborhood atmosphere that is truly unique in sports today and impossible to replicate. From the manually operated scoreboard and jam-packed rooftops across the street to the myriad of bars and restaurants within blocks of the ballpark, some literally right across the street, you can arrive early and stay late and have a great time without ever leaving the Wrigleyville neighborhood. But Wrigley Field itself is the crown jewel, built in 1914 and the second oldest stadium in baseball. A new Harry Caray’s bar just opened across the street, Murphy’s is a popular hangout directly across from the bleachers and you’ve got to love the fans who spend hours on bordering Sheffield and Waveland Avenues with gloves in hand waiting for home run balls — both during batting practice and the game itself. Tip: If you’re looking for a party, sit in the bleachers. If you really want to watch the game, go for box seats. Parking is possibly the worst in sports, so take public transportation — the El stops right at Wrigley (about a 20-minute ride from most downtown Chicago hotels). And definitely bring your camera for this one. Even players will tell you when the sun is shining, there’s no better venue in baseball.
Fenway Park, Boston. Like Wrigley, a no-brainer, and tickets to see the World Champion Red Sox are just as hard to come by. Your best bet is to try to go during the week and see a less-popular team. Don’t try to go to a Yankees series unless you have the money to pay a steep ticket price. When the Sox are hot, as they’ve been in recent years, this is a very tough ticket. And once you get to Fenway you’ll see why. Built in 1912, it is the oldest stadium in baseball, edging out the Cubs’ Wrigley by two years. Like Wrigley, it has a manually operated scoreboard and urban neighborhood atmosphere that allows fans to be at a bar/restaurant right next door and walk steps to or from the ballpark. The concourse along Yawkey Way has been converted into a huge beer garden where you can literally hang out outside the brick walls to the park but still inside the fence. Like the ivy-covered walls at Wrigley, Fenway’s Green Monster is one of a kind, and the recently added seats atop baseball’s highest outfield wall are spectacular, although pricey. Do yourself a favor and spend some time walking around the ballpark to see the different views from different parts of the stadium.
Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Baltimore. The folks who designed Camden Yards were the first ones smart enough to realize how much baseball fans like tradition. Camden was the first "throw back" retro design when it opened in 1992. Since it was built, many have followed with similar design schemes, featuring brick exteriors and designs more reminiscent of the ’20s, ’30s and ’40s as opposed to the ’80s or ’90s. The Camden Yards complex also includes the Baltimore & Ohio Warehouse, which is the longest building on the East Coast. And some little-known trivia for baseball buffs — the stadium sits just a couple of blocks from the birthplace of Babe Ruth. This is a great ballpark, and there is not a bad seat in the house. Go to Wrigley or Fenway, and there’s a chance you can get stuck with an obstructed-view seat stuck behind a steel support beam in the grandstands or terrace reserved. The sight lines at Camden are perfect no matter where you are. There’s not the neighborhood atmosphere you have at Wrigley or Fenway, but Baltimore has done a great job of building up the area around the ballpark to make it fan friendly — and it is a must see if you can travel near the D.C./Baltimore area.
Coors Field, Denver. Talk about a Rocky Mountain High. It was worth the wait for the two years when the then expansion Rockies had to play in the Broncos Mile High Stadium. Coors Field is a postcard stadium, built along the lines of Camden and other parks, but with a perfect twist to fit the landscape of Denver and the neighboring Rocky Mountains, which are clearly visible in the backdrop beyond the outfield walls. Yes, it’s got an urban downtown setting along Blake Street, but if you’ve ever spent time in Denver and experienced some of the outdoor cafes and nearby downtown taverns, this is a terrific baseball setting in a great city. Coors Field is a combination of a modern stadium loaded with amenities, with the atmosphere of an old-time park. It even has a heating system under the field that melts snow the minute it hits the ground. Concession stands in the concourse are laid out so that a fan can walk 360 degrees around the stadium and never lose sight of the field. Rumor has it the ball flies farther in the higher altitude, so pick up some seats in the Rock Pile, the best bargain in baseball for as little as $4 per ticket, and maybe you’ll get a souvenir if someone really gets a hold of one –- like 500 feet.
