My Third for 27 Outs Baseball

Now in my second but first full season with the 27 Outs Network, this was the first of two posts I wrote for them in 2016, which in turn was my third season focusing on MiLB travel. Unfortunately, my fourth and final post for them—a tie-in with the NPS Centennial—was written directly in their WordPress site and is gone.

I still have a ski post to belt out, and my National Parks sites check-ins are growing so there will surely be something on that sooner than later. However, baseball season is rapidly approaching for some. In my latest for 27 Outs Baseball, I reflect on this, thinking about my last few MiLB adventures and what this new season seems to have in store for my ballpark gallivanting...Enjoy.

100 days away

For us fans of the NY–Penn League and other short-season leagues, there is a very long off season to endure. Perhaps there's some relief in noting that we're now within 100 days of opening day. Sure, other leagues will be underway considerably sooner, but, if you're waiting to actually attend a home game of your local short-season team, there's still a fair amount of time to go before baseball gets here. So for those of us who want to take in some Minor League ball in April or May, travel will be required.

To that end, I find myself more often than I care to I admit staring at the large U.S. wall map above my desk, splitting time dreaming of where the new season will lead me and reflectively retracing the routes of some of my most recent MiLB travels.

In 2014, I had made a beeline up the Heartland, traveling from Oklahoma to Iowa. This past year, my big trip was effectively a counterclockwise loop starting and ending in Memphis. The route let me take in four games in southern ballparks with very fond memories that reinforce my belief that Minor League ballgames make for great outings of casual and ardent fans alike.

Right off the bat, the best game action I saw was an extra-inning affair in Little Rock, as the Springfield Cardinals took down the Travelers via a home run with two outs in the top of the 11^th. It was the only run in this pitching gem.

Perhaps my favorite moment from the four games I saw on that trip occurred at a Mississippi Braves game in Pearl, MS. It had rained for the second half of my drive from Hot Springs National Park, and rain delayed the game about an hour as I recall. It also happened to be Barrett Kleinknecht bobblehead give away night. There I was in the stadium, with the boxed bobblehead, wondering if I could keep it dry and in good condition somehow. I took it out for one picture of the tarp-covered field and put it away. Then, a gentleman with crutches and leg braces and his wife sat down near me with two bobbleheads in a bag. I explained to them that I was in the midst of a long road trip, and that I didn’t expect the doll to make it. He gratefully accepted it and proceeded to tell me how happy I made him. They have three grandchildren and were trying to figure out how they were going to give two dolls to three kids when I removed their decision. A disabled Gulf War vet, I ended up talking to him for the length of the delay, mostly just listening to his stories of his service, the Persian Gulf War and challenges since. I was so glad to find a better purpose for that bobblehead.

Another highlight of that trip occurred on my return to Memphis, where I spent the game with a friend and her kids, one of whom just happened to…win an ice cream eating contest! I've said it before and I'll say it again--there is much to see and enjoy at a Minor League game, and it extends beyond the playing field.

When that trip concluded, almost all of the remaining 2015 action I saw was in the NY–Penn League. My stats were ballgames watched in 11 ballparks in 10 states, with six new ballparks and two new leagues. Will I match that this year? We’ll see.  I just know I'll plan a handful of road games, and look for other game-attending opportunities as they arise.

I was so serious when I wrote back in July that a ballgame can be the perfect way to fill out an itinerary. We live in a big country, with so much to see and do. The problem, though, is that things are rather spread out and take some effort to reach. When driving in segments and stopping to see different things during the day, Minor League Baseball at ballparks dotted all over the map make a nice, inexpensive way to wind down in the evening.

So, yeah, I’ve looked long and hard at that wall map and have mapped out next season's ballparks trips. I have a rather solid plan for the route of the grander of my 2016 sojourns, one that will again mix some National Park travel with evening ballgames, plus I have my wish list of somewhat more local ones. As in 2014, I'm doing the more linear route, which seemed a little less wearying and allowed covering more ground than the slightly more economical loop path I did last year. 

Follow along as I and my 27 Outs Baseball colleagues take in ballparks all over the country. Better yet, plan to take in some game action yourself. Think about a day trip to an active ballpark this spring to help pass the time until the gates open at yours. I’m planning a few myself before the gates open at the Dutch in June.

Still, any time I drive on I-84 and pass that ballpark and its barren parking lot surrounded by leafless trees, I can't help but think about the craft beer kiosk, the taco stand, and the strolls along the concourse to see what other fine food fare is on the menu that evening, and of course the relaxing atmosphere that is Minor League Baseball. The urge to hear the crack of the bat the need to sit in a seat with a hot dog in one hand and a beer in the other will only swell from here. A short excursion to a game in a full-season league is definitely needed.

For our NY–Penn League action, though, it's a little more than three months away.