My first contribution for 27 Outs Baseball
Make Minor League Baseball Part of
Your Travel Itinerary
If you live on either coast, I’ll
guess Oklahoma City, Wichita, Omaha, Des Moines and Davenport don’t rank high
on your list of must-see vacation spots. Most of us, after all, have limited resources
and vacation time, and we’re all too often drawn to beaches, National Parks,
mountains and a host of other places that become the focal points of vacations.
If you’ve taken a coast-to-coast
trip, however, you may well have passed through one or more of those fine
American cities, especially if you took I-40 or I-80 across the country. Who,
though, would give much thought to embarking on a northward trip through the
middle of the country to pass through all of these towns?
Baseball fans might. This one did
last summer.
The lure of the ballpark is
powerful. Make no mistake about that. Ballparks are cathedrals to many, all
with their own look and vibe, and all worth making dedicated trips to visit.
There are those who set out to see
every MLB ballpark, and others who look at the vastly more numerous Minor
League parks all over the country as easier ones to chase. Some do
ballpark-dedicated trips; others schedule trips when a certain team is in a
certain city. There are no rules here. Visiting a team or ballpark can be the
focus of a trip, or a ballgame/ballpark or two can bulk up a travel itinerary
that is blank after dinner.
Over the years I've scheduled plenty
of travel around the MLB and NFL schedules. It wasn’t until 2013, however, that
I included a visit to a Minor League ballpark as part of a grander road trip. I
was finishing up the MLB circuit with visits to the Great American Ballpark and
Comerica Park. I also wanted to see the Louisville Slugger Museum, and, once I
realized that the Louisville Bats were home the evening before my game in
Cincinnati, I added a game at Louisville Slugger Field to my itinerary. Would I
have gone to Louisville just for the museum? I’m not sure. But, give me a
ballpark, and one or two other activities, and it’s an easier decision to put
in some extra hours behind the wheel.
Minor League ballpark travel can set
the travel course for an entire road trip. The trip I took a year ago this week
came together exactly with this in mind. I wanted to see more of some places
that I had either only seen in passing or never had seen. So, I looked at
baseball schedules for a number of cities in the Midwest, and realized that I
could stitch together a unique but thoroughly enjoyable trip if willing to
spend a few hours in the car each day. Here’s a condensed rundown of the trip I
lined up:
- I flew into Oklahoma City and was in town by lunch
time, which left me with the afternoon to wander around downtown and along
the Riverwalk before heading over to Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark for a
AAA matchup.
- From Oklahoma City, I was a mere 2.5 hours from Wichita
for an Independent League game at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium as the Wichita
Wingnuts were in town. Again, it was some travel in the morning, becoming
acquainted with the city in the afternoon and watching baseball in the
evening.
- The next day was my longest travel day of the trip,
with about 5 hours of driving to reach Omaha. No problem for me, though,
and I had plenty of time for a nice stroll around downtown before driving
out to Werner Park for another AAA game as the hometown Omaha Storm
Chasers took on the New Orleans Zephyrs.
- The drive from Omaha across Iowa to Davenport was
fairly long too at about 4 hours, but it gave me the chance to visit one
of the most highly touted ballparks in the country, Modern Woodmen Park
for a Single-A game (not to mention ride their Ferris Wheel).
- I finished up halfway back across Iowa, catching a
final AAA game at Progressive Field in Des Moines as the Iowa Cubs were in
town. I headed home the next morning.
The trip was such a great experience
that I took a similar trip down south last month, after looking at Minor League
Baseball team schedules and lining up four cities that don’t often land on the
itineraries of folks in other parts of the country. I’ve similarly sketched in
my head trips to other parts of the country. Visiting more Minor League
ballparks will most certainly be a huge part of whatever itinerary I ultimately
build.
If you’re thinking of a road trip
that involves a few different places, see what ballparks are in the area. If
you are taking I-40 across the country, for example, spend the night in Memphis,
Little Rock, Oklahoma City or Albuquerque and watch a Minor League game. Do the
same if you’re taking I-80 and visit Minor League venues in Sacramento, Reno,
Salt Lake City, Omaha, Des Moines, Toledo or Scranton. Yes, there are
more ballparks to see along these interstates and many others. You just need to
find the route and team schedule that works for your travel.
If you’re set on that faraway beach
or National Park, however, Minor League baseball could simply make for a fun
evening activity. As a 27 Outs colleague wrote at the time, Minor League
baseball is a relatively inexpensive and delightful activity, which makes it
very practical to couple these ballgames with other daytime activities you may
have in mind. If you have a young gymnast in the family who wants to see the
Gymnastics Hall of Fame, maybe you pair that with a visit to Chickasaw
Bricktown Ballpark. If you want to visit Hot Springs National Park, perhaps you
spend the evening at an Arkansas Travelers game in nearby Little Rock.
Driving the Natchez Trace Parkway? Stop for the evening in Pearl, Mississippi
to watch the Braves' AA affiliate play in Trustman Park. Or if you’re visiting
Pike’s Peak, take in some AAA action by coupling your visit with a Colorado
Springs Sky Sox ballgame. The possibilities are seemingly endless.
Minor League baseball is played all
over the country. Visit a new city. See a new ballpark. Make it the focal point
of your travel destination, or just let it enhance your experience while there.
Yep, baseball and travel...the two go quite well together...
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