T-minus 7 and counting.

Ahhh, baseball. The sweet sweet pastime. The great Americana. Can anything really compare to the smell of the grass of the outfield, the roar of the crowd, or the crack of the bat? In preparation of my trip with The Silver Fox, here are my 7 favorite ballparks.


My Seven Favorite Ballparks

7. Jacobs Field, Cleveland: I would have liked this place a whole lot more if it wasn't packed with Indians fans. I give them this; they are extremely knowledgeable, apparently trading grades four through six for a baseball education that would cripple most. They can't seem to distinguish Red Sox fans from Yankees fans, even when the Yankees fans are in a bar wearing pinstripes, and the Red Sox fans are screaming "Yankees suck!" and throwing beer and appetizers at them. (I swear, Snuggles and I stopped talking to a young boy at the pre-game bar with his dad because of his affiliation. A damned child, for God's sake! And still the Cleveland fans chanted "chowderheads" at us incessantly. Like I said, a good indication more has been spent on beer and [bad] chili dogs than on education in that town.)
6. Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles: Like an ugly chick wearing hot shoes, a great oasis in a less-than-savory place. I must admit, I've never been, but the name sounds like a great ballpark, doesn't it? "Dodger Stadium." Say it with me. "Dodger Stadium." Ahhh. It's like having your feet rubbed by the aforementioned ugly chick, but because of the positioning, you only have to look at the hot shoes.
5. Camden Yards, Baltimore: The park is beautiful, and rightfully the blueprint for new ballparks. The concours are huge, the food is above average, and the warehouse is endearing as hell. Overall, it's a comfortable, great place for me to watch my Red Sox win.
4. Comerica Park, Detroit: From the bowels of hell itself rises a gem. Surrounded by Dante's fourth or fifth level (wherever auto assembly-line workers go), rises a park festooned with Tigers of all sizes and materials. There's lots to do for the kids, and the beer is really good. In center field, gigantic wrought iron tigers flank the oversized scoreboard. Plus, it's next to Hockeytown, USA (Joe Louis arena.) Blue-collar meets fancy-pants.
3. Wrigley Field, Chicago: I must concede, I've never been. But any park with that much history has to be great to be in. Also, The Silver Fox gets all misty-eyed when he regales us with tales from Wrigley. He likes to be held.
2. PNC Park, Pittsburgh: I think PNC gets so many points because it was the first ballpark I saw outside of Fenway. Otherwise, the park itself is gorgeous. The seating is spacious, the amenities are plentiful, and they bring beer to you! You can see Pittsburgh's skyline from almost anywhere, and they have a great catwalk just out of center field. Oh, and me and Snuggles got absolutely loaded and met some life-size pierogis. Mine was Angry Pierogi. I have pictures.
1. Fenway Park, Boston: The beer is ridiculously expensive, the seats are meant to accomodate people from a century ago, and the bathrooms are travesties. But, the Pesky pole, Teddy Ballgame's red seat, the Green Monster; it's home, man.