Angel Stadium of Anaheim - MLB Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

Throughout the years, the modern-style stadium has gone through many name changes and seating arrangements under its different ownership regimes. Angel Stadium of Anaheim, as its commonly referred to as this day has served as the home of the MLB Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim since their move from nearby Los Angeles in 1966. Prior to the ground breaking of Angel Stadium, the Angels called Wrigley Field in 1961 ( Pacific Coast League affiliation) and Chavez Ravine (Dodgers Stadium) from 1962-1965 their home. Unknown to the youth who are just beginning to understand the game of baseball, Angel Stadium has undergone several structural modifications in its existence beginning in 1980. To accommodate the NFL's Los Angeles Rams, Angel Stadium underwent a major reconfiguration to a multi-purpose stadium which saw the stadium extend the upper deck and mezzanine completely around the playing field which as result, blocked the view of the local mountains and 57 freeway. For those who never got to experience this configuration, you can see a photo of it here. The Rams eventually relocated to St. Louis in 1994 where they have played ever since. During that same year, the stadium suffered minor damage as result of the Northridge earthquake on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

The stadium was restored to its baseball-only configuration beginning in 1997 following the Angels acquisition by the Walt Disney Company. These changes resulted in the majority of the outfield seating being demolished in-favor of an out-of-town scoreboard below the right field seats, outfield bleacher pavilions and the "California Spectacular", a mountainside covered in real trees and artificial rocks which feature water geysers and fireworks erupt at the beginning of a game and anytime the Angels win or hit a homerun.

If you plan on going to the stadium for the first time, I recommend parking away from the stadium in smaller lots as it's more affordable. For food options, you have many options between The Grandstand selection of stadium food, Panda Express, Carl's JR and Jack In The Box. If you're not a fan of stadium food, there is a small strip mall located across the street made up of Togo's, Carl's JR and Fresca's.

Angel Stadium has hosted its share of notable events including:
MLB All Star Game: 1967, 1989 and 20110
KROQ Weenie Roast 2000 featuring Ozzy Osbourne
Rod Carew and George Brett's 3,000th career hit
Reggie Jackon's 500th career home run
Mickey Mantle's last game-winning home run
Site where Nolan Ryan threw 4 of his record 7 career no-hitters.

Century Link Field - NFL Seattle Seahawks

Century Link Field in Seattle, WA served as the host venue to the World Cup Qualifier between the United Stated and Panama in June 2013. The match was the first qualifier that Seattle had hosted in 3 decades. Growing up in a soccer house hold, I have been to my fair share of professional soccer matches including the infamous 1994 World Cup Match between the US and Columbia at the Pasadena Rose Bowl that resulted in a US victory at the expense of an own goal from Andres Escobar. Those of you who may not be familiar with this, watch the ESPN 30 For 30 Film, The Two Escobars for more information. As fate came to tell, I really had no idea what to expect once I arrived in Seattle with two friends of mine. For two days, my friends and I were going to be partaking in American Outlaws traditions that included the night before gathering, the pre-party at a nearby bar, the infamous march to the stadium and the match itself. The American Outlaws are the official fan club of the US Soccer Team with chapters based in cities across the country. In tradition, the Outlaws attending the match gather at a local location the night before the match and celebrate. This night in particular, we were joined by US Soccer legends, Cobi Jones and Alexi Lalas. The next day, we gathered about a mile from the stadium early in the afternoon prior to marching. Once inside of the stadium, it was game on!



The match itself was infamous as those of us who were in the end zone made it clear, the US can in fact show their support. The video which I shared above and below highlight just the type of atmosphere that was showcased that evening.



Before their was Century Link Field, the Kingdome served as the multi-purpose stadium for the Seattle Mariners and Seahawks prior to being demolished to make way for Century Link Field. The stadium now serves as home to the Seahawks and MLS Club Seattle Sounders.

Dodgers Stadium

Safeco Field - MLB Seattle Mariners

I recently made a trip up to Seattle to catch the US vs. Panama World Cup Qualifier at Century Link Field. Only a few feet across the street sits Safeco Field, home to the Seattle Mariners. The origins of baseball in the Seattle area date back to the early 1900's upon the founding of the Seattle Rainiers. The Rainiers were a minor league baseball team who played in the Pacific Coast League from 1903 to 1906 and 1919 to 1968. Baseball would return for one season in 1969 as the Seattle Pilots before they were sold and relocated to Milwaukee where they would become the Brewers following a controversial sale by then owner and current MLB Commissioner Bud Selig. Thankfully, baseball would return again following a lawsuit in 1970 over the sale and relocation of the Seattle Pilots. The Seattle Mariners entered MLB as an expansion team in 1977 along with the Toronto Blue Jays. The Mariners called The Kingdome their home until 1999 once Safeco Field opened across the street.

Safeco Field is a retractable roof baseball stadium that is owned and operated by the Washington-King County Stadium Authority. While the stadium is known for being a retractable roof stadium, the roof acts as an "umbrella" for the stands and field due to the weather that primarily effects the Pacific Northwest region. Getting to Safeco Field is very accessible and convenient to get to should you decide to visit Seattle by the light rail train spanning from Seattle-Tacoma Airport (SEATAC) that runs through the city limits stopping at many points of interest. There is also the option of driving to the stadium if you are willing to pay $15.00 and up depending on who is in town.

Depending on who is in town, you can score very good seats on Stubhub for the game. I was able to get a seat 25 rows from home plate for a very reasonable price. The stadium offers a wide variety of food options for anyone and everyone but please keep in mind that you will have to pay a little bit more if you plan on eating or drinking at the stadium. Pioneer Square is also located within walking distance should you want to go there if eating from the local street vendor is not your thing.

Touring Safeco Field is one of the must-do attractions while in Seattle as it delivers many behind the scenes areas not available to the general public. Every tour departs from the team store that is just shy of the main entrance to the stadium. The team store is the ultimate destination for any Mariners fan as it contains historical artifacts and merchandise spanning the different areas of Mariners baseball. While on the tour, we explored the owners suite where we learned about the teams affiliation with Nintendo USA in the owners suite, explored the dugout and warning track along the field and visited the press box before the tour ended. Overall, a great tour!

Yankee Stadium Tour

The day had finally arrived in September 2012 where I could say that I set foot inside Yankee Stadium, home of the legendary New York Yankees. For my 30th birthday, I decided to spend it taking a tour and catching game at the ballpark. Just like the tour of Fenway Park that I took a few days later, Yankee Stadium is one of the must see tours for any fan.

The tour began at the Yankee Museum after the teams security detail went over the ground rules and do's/don'ts while on the tour. The Museum is what any museum should contain, legendary items and artifacts that have made this team who they are. Residing in the middle of the museum are two bronze statues which pay homage to the Don Larsen/Yogi Berra perfect game in the World Series. Situated between the statues is a massive glass case containing over a hundred signed baseballs that included Yogi Berra, Babe Ruth and Randy Johnson. I was able to spend about five minutes in the museum taking in all the sights that included exhibits dedicated to Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle and The Boss, former Yankee captain Thurman Munson's locker as it appeared prior to his death and the World Series Trophies.

After departing the museum, we made our way to legendary Monument Park in center field. Monument Park is a living tribute to the legendary Yankees who donned the pinstripes during their career. The tour guide explained to us the history of Monument Park, the plaques of the retired numbers and the plaques dedicated to the 9/11 Attacks and Pope Benedicts visit.

The final stop on the tour took us through the lower level of the stadium until we reached the playing field and dugout. We were given a few minutes to take photos in the dugout and of the field but security was very strict at this point as they did not allow any photos of you on the field unless it was by their photographer. This was the low point of the tour as it gave us a feeling like we were being hurried along the entire time and weren't really given the opportunity to soak in everything.

Later on that night, I returned to Yankee Stadium to see the team take on the Tampa Bay Rays. Near the end of the game I was able to witness history as Derek Jeter surpassed Willie Mays for sole possession of 10th place on baseballs all-time hit list.

Citi Field - MLB New York Mets

I paid a visit to Citi Field in the Queens borough of New York City. Citi Field replaced the aging Shea Field as the home of the New York Mets just a few feet away. The exterior of the stadium is reminiscent of Ebbets Field with an entrance named the Jackie Robinson Rotunda after the Brooklyn Dodgers legend. The rotunda honors Robinson's life and accomplishments. Unlike many stadiums, Citi Field features orange foul poles rather than the standard yellow, which make this field unique.

Getting to Citi Field takes a little bit of time from midtown Manhattan by the New York Subway 7 train at Mets-Willets Point. The stadium is located within an area of Flushing that is home to USTA Billie Jean National Tennis Center where the annual US Open tennis grand slam tournament is held and the Unisphere, the iconic 12-story high stainless steel globe that served as the centerpiece for the 1964 New York World's Fair.

This day in particular was unique as it was my first visit to Citi Field, but it was the 11th anniversary of the September 11th attacks in the city. The Mets played host to rival NL East Washington Nationals. Prior to the game, a moment of silence as a tribute to the anniversary occurred along with a moving tribute to the events that had occurred earlier in the day in Benghazi. Being in the city on this day was surreal and I took in every minute that I could. Anytime I go to a new stadium, I make it a priority of exploring every part of it not knowing when I will make my return. Little did I know that while walking through the upper deck in left field I would lay my eyes on a piece of American History that I would never forget. Each year on this day, the city of New York as a tribute displays two massive light towers that shine into the sky on the site where the twin towers once stood. These lights were visible to the eye as far as Citi Field and were something that I had to see up closer later that night. The photo below I took on this night last night atop Rockefeller Center.

Citi Field in its own right is a beautiful stadium to visit, whether for the first or last time. The 2012 season marked the 50th Anniversary of the Mets organization that was in the process of its promotional marketing campaign for this years MLB All Star Game.

Fenway Park Tour 2012

As I mentioned in a previous entry, I spent the finale of my 30th birthday trip in Boston. Feeling like I didn't get enough of Fenway on my previous trip 14 months earlier, I booked another tour. 2012 marked the 100th Anniversary of Fenway Park. What made this trip so much better than the previous one was that the Red Sox were out of town so I got to see more of the stadium then I did the year before. After purchasing tickets at Gate D, we proceeded to the team store prior where all Fenway Park Tours begin. I'm still not sure what can compare to spending over an hour in this legendary ballpark on a brisk fall day in September. Taking a page out of previous stadium tours that I had been on, it's usually a good thing to tour the stadium when the team is out of town because you get to see the goodies which the stadium has to offer.

Once everyone had arrived, the tour departed from the Red Sox Team Store and into Fenway Park. Our first stop was in the portion of the stadium that runs along third base. The tour guide made it known that this was the portion of the park where the movies Ted and The Town had been filmed at. Next we were taken up to the wooden seats that are located next to the left field foul pole which is next to the Green Monster. Here our guide made his rounds asking which teams everyone supported, while making it known the Red Sox were still the best in baseball. During this stop on the tour, many interesting facts about the stadium and the team were explained. While I knew some history about Fenway, I never knew how many changes that the stadium has undergone over the years. Up next was the famed Green Monster seats atop left field. The Green Monster has served as the manual scoreboard for Fenway Park that employees operate through-out the game. Until recently, the Green Monster was never accessible by fans until a seating section was added. The monster is made up of several historical elements including morse code along the American League portion of the scoreboard containing the initials of the Yawkey Family and the hard-to-miss ladder which was previously used by workers to retrieve home run balls prior to the addition of its seats.

The famed Press Box was up next on the tour after we made our way through the halls that contained history from all of the years the Red Sox had been a team. The press box sits above home plate and offers an exceptional view of the stadium and nearby Boston Back Bay. On any given day, the Red Sox employee who runs the press box determines whether or not the windows will be opened or closed for the duration of the game. Due to its close proximity from home plate, foul balls are frequent in this location. As an unexpected surprise, this tour was given the opportunity to visit several behind the scenes areas of the ball park that included the visitors dugout, warning track and Red Sox dugout. Being the fan that I am, having the opportunity to walk into the locker room where many legendary and Hall of Fame players was a very surreal experience. Not to take away from the opportunity to walk on the field and sit on the dugout benches, the locker room easily took the cake. While on the warning track, fans were allowed to have their photo taken by the teams official fan photographers, Fan Photo that they could purchase for a small fee at the end of the tour.

In addition to the major highlights of the tour, our guide also shared several stories about the park including the famed Pesky Pole, The Lone Red Seat that signifies the longest home run hit at Fenway by Ted Williams on June 9, 1946 and ending with a visit to the publicly visited Red Sox Hall of Fame.