We went to Petco Park for Little League Day again this year. The boys really enjoy parading onto the field with their teams before the game, and they got to run the bases afterwards. The Mets creamed the Padres, 14 to 2, and I got to see Adrian Gonzalez (on the Mets this season) hit a home run.
Our family got to mark another MLB team off our list today, seeing the Astros play the Blue Jays at Minute Maid Park.
The Astros were down 6 to 5 in the bottom of the 9th, but Alex Bregman walked it off with a 2 run blast to win the game!
We started off our day in Arlington with a picnic in a large park along the Trinity River. Then we headed to Globe Life Park, home of the Texas Rangers.
This was the 10th MLB stadium we’ve seen as a family. The stadium was nice but man was it hot! After a few innings in the sun, we retreated to seats further from the action, but in the shade.
The Rangers ended up losing against the White Sox, 10 to 5. Afterwards, the boys and I got to run the bases.
The boys wanted to see an Angels game to celebrate their birthdays, so we headed up to Anaheim for an evening game verses the Mariners. After the game, we also got to see an awesome fireworks show.
Unfortunately, the Angels lost 5 to 6, but we got to see some baseball history. Albert Pujols got his 1,993rd career RBI, passing up Babe Ruth, and placing him at 5th in the all-time RBI leaders.
The game was a good one, with the Mariners leading for the first 4 innings but the Angels tied it up in the 5th. They got a rally going in the bottom of the 8th and the rookie Matt Thaiss hit his first MLB home run, which was a 3 run shot!
Guaranteed Rate Field is the 11th MLB stadium we have visited as a family. It was a nice stadium, good parking and well laid out.
We had a great game, the tickets were super cheap, even on the field level, and our seats were in the shade. The boys and I even got up on the giant video scoreboard during the “Kids Cam”!
Unfortunately, the White Sox didn’t have as good of game as we did. The Mets shut them out with a score of 4 to 0.
The boys getting their pitch speeds:
I actually wasn’t a big fan of Wrigley Field, which was small and many of the seats had obstructed views. We had some of the highest seats in the stadium, and it still cost a fortune.
But, the Cubs fans made up for the stadium’s deficiencies. It was a sold out crowd that watched and cheered for every pitch. When the Cubs beat the Brewers, the atmosphere was electric.
Afterward the game, we visited the Cubs’ World Series trophy.
Truist Park in the suburbs of Atlanta became the 13th MLB stadium we’ve had the pleasure to watch a game in. We viewed all sorts of cool baseball memorabilia while wandering around the stadium. We got to see some players warm up and take batting practice.
The game was a pitching duel, and neither team could get anything going. But, in the bottom of the 9th inning, the Braves walked it off, winning the game 1 to 0. After the game, we made our way down to the field and the boys ran the bases.
The boys running the bases:
Today we started off learning about the founding of Pittsburgh at the Fort Pitt Museum. Then we walked through downtown to the Heinz History Center, where we learned about the more recent history of the city and western Pennsylvania.
After all that history, we walked over one of the famous yellow bridges and watched the Pirates face the Cubs. After the game, we got to see a surprise fireworks show, going off nearby for Juneteenth.
On our drive through Ohio, we stopped off at Cuyahoga Valley National Park, where we learned about the Ohio & Erie Canal that ran through the area. Then we took a small hike to see the beautiful Brandywine Falls.
We continued on north to Cleveland, where we had a pizza dinner next to Lake Erie, before finishing our day by watching the Guardians beat the Athletics.
After a drive through a bunch of farmland, we arrived at Comerica Park. We had plenty of time to explore before the game started. I think it was one of the nicest stadiums of our trip.
We had awesome seats, but they were in the blazing sun, so we ended up retreating to the shade of the nosebleeds in the 7th inning. The Tigers ended up beating the Royals.
Once the game was done, we walked around downtown Detroit and their river walk, which seemed to both be in a state of decay and rebirth. We spent the night in Port Huron, visiting Lake Huron, our second Great Lake of the trip.
From up on top of the CN Tower, which is currently the tallest structure in the Western Hemisphere, the view was pretty impressive. Back on the ground it was raining, so we explored the Toronto PATH, which is over 19 miles of underground passageways with shops and restaurants covering most of downtown.
When the rain stopped, we popped back above ground to check out Yonge–Dundas Square, which is kinda like their Times Square. Then we made our way back among all the buildings to the Rogers Centre, to watch the Blue Jays play. The boys caught one of the practice balls before the game!
There was so much cool baseball history on display in the ballpark. We did a complete loop around the stadium, including taking in the view from up top of the Green Monster. The Red Sox came back and ended up winning the game, with a final score of 4 to 3.
