Baseball Dad

May 1, 2011- During the past few weeks three (3) MLB players have taken paternity leave to be with their wives during the amazing moment - the birth of their children. They have received some criticism about missing a few days of work, or shall I say a few games of baseball, but I can only guess that those critics are not fathers.

One of the players who recently took paternity leave hits close to home, Washington NationalsShort Stop, Ian Desmond. Not only is Ian a hometown favorite, but Sofia and I met him late last year when the Nationals released their new uniforms. Ian took special attention of his young fan and now we know why, he was a dad to be. To know that Nats Coach, Jim Riggleman, endorses the League’s implementation of paternity leave is encouraging. To know that Ian was with his wife when their baby boy was born on April 26, 2011, priceless!

Today was overcast, but a few clouds and some sprinkles were not going to keep Sofia and I from a day at the ballpark. Sofia was decked out in her pink in support of the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer that ended in Washington, DC today.

Getting out to the ballpark is always great, but today’s Giants vs. Nats game was special. Sofia and I sat in the Right Field stands right above the newly acquired Jason Werth. This brought memories from our June 25, 2009, 30 Ballparks and a Baby stop at Tropicana Field when we watched a rematch of the 2008 World Series, the Rays and the Phillies. Sitting right behind us that night was a young die-hard Rays’ fan that was still upset at the Phillies beating the Rays in the World Series. This young fan had perfected his baseball “chatter” and his target that night, Jason Werth. He told Jason “here’s a quarter, go get yourself a cup of coffee cause it’s not as if you are doing anything else” and would quickly follow with “hope you enjoy last years ring because it’s going to be your last”. Punchline after punchline: “Must be hot under that hat, your hair has turned red”. I asked the young fan where he learned his chatter and he quickly replied, “my dad!”, who sat at his side with a sense of pride.

That day in Tampa we joined the Rays fans to root against Jason and the Phillies, but today was a completely different day. Today we cheered for Jason and the Nats who beat the Giants 5-2, but the only part of the game that really mattered was enjoying my time with Sofia and, even though it rained, the day shined.

2009 and Welcome 2010 MLB Season

Dear Baseball Fans,

Baseball is finally in the air, but it feels like just yesterday that the New York Yankees inaugurated their new Yankee Stadium and then beat the Philadelphia Phillies in the 2009 World Series. Yankee Stadium was not the only new ballpark to open last season, or in New York for that matter. Citi Field, home of the New York Mets, also opened its doors.

The Florida Marlins and the Minnesota Twins also had some exciting ballpark activity in 2009.

On July 18, 2009, the Marlins finally broke ground on their long awaited new ballpark. The new Marlins Ballpark is scheduled to open by Opening Day 2012, and you can watch its progress on the Marlins New Ballpark webcam. The Marlins current home also changed its names from Dolphin Stadium to Land Shark Stadium. One would have thought that one name change would be enough, but in January 2010, the stadium was renamed, yet again, to Sun Life Stadium.

On October 11, 2009, the Twins played their last game in the Hubert Humphrey Metrodome. Unfortunately, their last game was a loss to the New York Yankees as they swept the American League Divisional Series. During this last game the temperature inside the dome was a cool 73 degrees while outside it was well below freezing. This will definitely add a challenge for late season games in the Twins new home; Target Field has been built without a roof, not even a retractable one.

The Twins will open Target Field with two exhibition games against the St. Louis Cardinals on April 2-3, 2010 and the Inaugural Season Home Opener at Target Field will be on Monday, April 12, 2010, against the Boston Red Sox. We wish the Twins the best of luck with their Target Field Inaugural Season!

The 2010 MLB Season, as always, will be exciting and MLB hopes that attendances will reflect our slowly improving economy. In 2009 MLB welcomed over 73 million fans, the fifth-highest total in the history.

Baseball fans, families and “Ballpark Chasers” are all ready to head out to the parks for some fun. So, let’s get ready for the boys of summer and have a great and safe 2010 MLB Season!

Play Ball,

Roberto

30 Ballparks and a Baby

Read more at: www.30ballparksandababy.com

You love your team, but did we love your ballpark?

Our tour consisted of experiencing each ballpark that we visited. All thirty of them. During our travels we wrote notes of each ballpark, including the price of parking, architecture, food, the mascot even the kiddie section. Now that the playoffs are in full swing we recount what we liked about the parks of the condenters in the National and American division today.

LAD @ STL play tonight at 6:07 pm in St. Louis, but how do their ballparks rank to us?

Ballpark #15- July 26, 2009-(Los Angeles, CA)- Dodger Stadium is a historic landmark in Southern California located in the Chavez Ravine.This ballpark offers the best views in baseball. To the south you can see downtown L.A. and to the north and east fans have a beautiful vista of hilly terrain and lush vegetation. A sign up on the hill says “THINK BLUE” after all, this is L.A. and they like to put signs on hills.

Ballpark #5- June 1, 2009 (St. Louis, MO)- Busch Stadium is alot of fun. No doubt Cardinals fans love their team! This evening game was packed. The panoramic view of the St. Louis skyline from the stadium is impressive, especially at night. This one is a very modern stadium, but they still have the old scoreboard on display, which is cool. This is home of the All-Star Game this year and you can feel the energy building up-- everything has the All-Star Game insignia on it--Albert Pujols played that evening and gave the fans quite a scare when he slid into second base and hurt himself. Luckily, it wasn't too bad and he continued to play. The Cardinals lost 3-5 to the Reds. What made this game memorable: We had great seats, right behind the visitors dugout on the third-base line.

Read more at: www.30ballparksandababy.com

PHI @ COL play tonight at 9:37 pm in Denver, but how do their ballparks rank to us?

Ballpark #29- September 29, 2009- (Philadelphia, PA)- Citizens Bank Park is beautifully crafted. An open outfield provides a fantastic view of the Philly skyline and the open-air walk-around concourses give you uninterrupted view of the park for when you decide to get up to grab a Philly cheesesteak sub! The "Phanatic Phunzone" located by the first base gate is perfect for little kids 8 and under, like Sofia, and the "Phanatic Attic" houses an 8-foot fiberglass Phanatic. Guest services does give out a beautiful "First visit to the Park" certificate. Back on the field. Citizens Park features a bowl-style seating which means you are basically 23 feet below street level.

Ballpark #20- August 13, 2009- (Denver, CO)- Stormy weather rocked Coors Field today, but not enough to deter the Rockies from delivering a win against the Pirates 10-1. Maybe it had something to do with the altitude or the effect thin air has on pitching (More). Opened in 1995, this ballpark is one of the nicer ones. Located in lower downtown Denver, an area with a mix of apartment residences, restaurants and small businesses. We parked in a stadium lot for $10. The stadium is made of red brick and dark green wrought iron and has a great view of the Rocky Mountains in the first base and right field areas. the center field bleacher section is informally called "the Rockpile". The purple seats in the stadium put you at a mile high in the air.

Read more at: www.30ballparksandababy.com