I began thinking about my baseball trip a couple of months ago in April. Then life set in, as it always does, and I put it off.

When school ended in early June all I had was a dream, but no plans. I had empty dates on the calendar and a dream of visiting all thirty of the baseball cities in my lifetime.

The idea of a summer trip was born with the idea of flying to New York City to see my favorite team, the Houston Astros play in New York City. When I discovered that the schedule had the Astros playing the other New York team, the Mets two days later I decided to make it more than one game, or two, but more. By the time I had finished planning I had seven cities, seven days, seven stadiums, and a total of ten MLB teams.

The venues are Yankee Stadium (NYC), Nationals Park (DC), Citi Field (NYC), Citizens Bank Park (Philadelphia), PNC Park (Pittsburgh), Great American Ball Park (Cincinnati), and Progressive Field (Cleveland).

My first step was deciding to fly one way to New York City, rent a car, and drive the remainder of the schedule. Then I booked the flight and then the car and I was on my way.  I could find and sketched out an itinerary, Sunday to Sunday.

Hotels and game tickets were next, it was early enough in the season that there are plenty of game tickets available for purchase. After tickets, places to stay, then places I wanted to visit along the way, because in life there is more than just baseball.

Along the way, I decided to visit at least one place in each city and write a long my way.

My first contact was an old friend who I used to work with in the restaurant business before I became a teacher. He and his wife live in the DC area. I texted him after tickets and hotels and yesterday we met for lunch. When he pulled picked me up, we started up right where we had left off some twenty plus years ago when worked with each other.

My second contact was a friend in Ohio for the Reds game in Cincinnati. He and his wife joined us this spring in Florida, and we shared a car when our flights home were cancelled.

Then there were the sights along the way. Each city has something I want to see along the way.

But it was the baseball that was most important.

“Love is the most important thing in the world, but baseball is pretty good, too.” – Yogi Berra

New York City
My first stop was historic Yankee Stadium. Last week I saw that a friend of mine and his wife were in New York for a vacation, he and I teach together at the same school. So, we met at Gate 4 on a bright sunny Sunday afternoon for Houston Astros vs. the New York Yankees. Neither of us had seen baseball in Yankee Stadium.

Yankee Stadium is only historic because it’s home the New York Yankees the most successful franchise in MLB, the stadium opened in 2009 and is modelled after the original stadium that was the team’s home from 1923 to 2008.

I settled into my seat, filled out my scorecard, and waited for the first pitch. Jose Altuve hit the first pitch out of the park for home run and an Astro lead. The Yankee crowd was not happy. I was ecstatic.

I watched the game and kept score. I had a front row seat in the upper deck and a great view of the entire field. Behind me was a family with two small children who were at their first baseball game. There were lots of questions and the dad patiently answered every question his little girl had about the game.

the view from y seat, the infield and Astros dugout

my view of the outfield…

Baseball is a simple game but complex, that is what makes it what it is – a game to sit and enjoy and spend an afternoon in the sunshine or an evening

Hearing the father and daughter exchange brought back memories of my son’s first game at Wrigley Field in 2005 and my daughter’s a few years later in Detroit. Between the two of them we’ve seen games in five stadiums together.

Take me out to the ball game,
Take me out with the crowd;
Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack,
I don’t care if I never get back.
Let me root, root, root for the home team,
If they don’t win, it’s a shame.
For it’s one, two, three strikes, you’re out,
At the old ball game.

A tradition in baseball is the seventh inning stretch and the singing of “Take me Out to the Ballgame.” At Yankee Stadium they sing, “God Bless America” followed by “Take me Out to the Ballgame.”

Sunday afternoons game ended with a dramatic walk off homer un by Aaron Judge the Yankee’s star player. I was disappointed, but not crushed. It was a great baseball game full of ups and downs and twists and turns. Final score: New York Yankees 6, Houston Astros 3 in ten innings.

I made my way out to meet my friend and his wife. We all agreed that the game was probably one of the best games we had ever seen. We parted ways and I began walking back to my car and leaving New York for Washington, D.C. and game two.

Washington D.C.
After arriving in DC late Sunday night, I woke up Monday morning to plan the day – lunch with a friend, a little sightseeing, and then the ballgame. My hotel is a block from the ballpark. Score.

I am a fan of neither team, but a lover of the game. Game two of my seven cities, seven days, seven stadiums, and ten teams baseball trip was the Pittsburgh Pirates vs. the Washington Nationals. Nationals Park opened in 2008 and the stadium is beautiful venue.

After I entered the stadium I was greeted by of the ‘presidents’ and I got an ‘ussie.’

After walking the ballpark looking for food and a beverage, I settled into my seat with my drink, chili dog, and bag of peanuts. I filled out the scorecard and enjoyed the game.

It was a light Monday evening crowd, and I had a great view looking in from right field.

One of the traditions at Nationals Park is the President’s Race in the fourth inning and it caught me by surprise – it’s the first part of the video below.

When the seventh inning stretch arrived, I got up to sing along,

Take me out to the ball game,
Take me out with the crowd;
Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack,
I don’t care if I never get back.
Let me root, root, root for the home team,
If they don’t win, it’s a shame.
For it’s one, two, three strikes, you’re out,
At the old ball game.

It was good to get up and stand.

The Pirates led 2-1 but the home crowd was encouraging and in the eighth inning the Nationals took the lead with a two-run home run to seal the game for a Washington Nationals victory. Final score: Washington Nationals 3, Pittsburgh Pirates 2.

It’s been a great two days of baseball and today is gonna be an amazing day. It’s a four-hour drive (at least) to New York City and I must pack, check out, and get moving so I’d better wrap this post up by jumping in, jumping out, and seizing the day AND press publish. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, taking it all in, one game, one stadium, one city at a time.

When was the last time you made it out to the ballpark or a sporting event?

“Take me Out to the Ballgame” 1908 lyrics

Katie Casey was baseball mad,
Had the fever and had it bad.
Just to root for the home town crew,
Ev’ry soul
Katie blew.
On a Saturday her young beau
Called to see if she’d like to go
To see a show, but Miss Kate said “No,
I’ll tell you what you can do:”

Chorus

Take me out to the ball game,
Take me out with the crowd;
Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack,
I don’t care if I never get back.
Let me root, root, root for the home team,
If they don’t win, it’s a shame.
For it’s one, two, three strikes, you’re out,
At the old ball game.

Katie Casey saw all the games,
Knew the players by their first names.
Told the umpire he was wrong,
All along,
Good and strong.
When the score was just two to two,
Katie Casey knew what to do,
Just to cheer up the boys she knew,
She made the gang sing this song

Take me out to the ball game,
Take me out with the crowd;
Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack,
I don’t care if I never get back.
Let me root, root, root for the home team,
If they don’t win, it’s a shame.
For it’s one, two, three strikes, you’re out,
At the old ball game.