Great American Baseball Adventure, Week 18: August 2nd-8th, 2010

We're done California dreamin' ... time to hightail it across the desert Southwest and on to a whirlwind tour of Texas. Hanson even gets a shout out in Week 18 of GABA 2010:


Monday, August 2nd:
Phoenix, AZ (355 miles from San Diego)
Arizona Diamondbacks vs. Washington Nationals

Game time temperature: somewhere above water’s boiling point. Before the game, crowd is thrilled to hear the stadium will be cooled by Mark Reynolds’ swings and misses instead of traditional AC. In the 4th, Adam Dunn gives up and spends the next two innings in the right field pool. 10-year-old lucky fan wins a contest and pitches the 7th… for both teams.


Tuesday, August 3rd:
Travel day. Getting to 150 games in six months is the scheduling equivalent of a Rubik’s Cube - there’s at least one part that just doesn’t get solved. And this is that section of the trip. We have to squeeze in the four remaining Texas teams, plus Tulsa and Northwest Arkansas, in a six-day stretch. This is the point where I’m really happy my full-time employment has made this trip fictional.


Wednesday, August 4th:
Frisco, TX (1085 miles from Phoenix)
Frisco RoughRiders (AA Rangers) vs. Midland RockHounds (AA Athletics)

Rough Ride, indeed. We’re crossing half the country in two days, then hitting five Texas League games in six days (remember, Texas is one stupidly huge state). It’s our only time seeing the visiting RockHounds (our Midland trip was for the Texas League All-Star Game), and Dr. Pepper Ballpark’s village-like design sounds very cool. Wonder if they’ll let us sleep on the benches after all those hours in the car.


Thursday, August 5th:
Corpus Christi, TX (439 miles from Frisco)
Corpus Christi Hooks (AA Astros) vs. San Antonio Missions (AA Padres)

Nolan Ryan and his group own two of the best-run franchises in all of minor league baseball, the Hooks and the Round Rock Express. Whataburger Field has a great coastal location, a rock wall, a basketball court, and a pool. And hopefully they serve taquitos after 11PM (inside reference for you Whataburger fans out there – I miss that burger joint!)


Friday, August 6th:
San Antonio, TX (143 miles from Corpus Christi)
San Antonio Missions (AA Padres) vs. Frisco RoughRiders (AA Rangers)

Does the Texas League only have three teams? I did this park in 2007 and my greatest memory were the mascots, Ballapeno and Henry the Puffy Taco. After a few innings, Ballapeno and Henry got into a skirmish behind home plate and Ballapeno literally started ripping the “lettuce” stuffing out of poor, defenseless Henry. Kids were traumatized for life. I laughed (at the mascots). Does that make me a mean person?


Saturday, August 7th:
Round Rock, TX (98 miles from San Antonio)
Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) vs. Fresno Grizzlies (AAA Giants)

I can’t really talk about the Express and Dell Diamond without gushing. I worked in Austin for two years and had some of my favorite baseball moments at that park. I proposed to my wife during the 7th inning stretch at that park. The Dell (which we used to call The Mouse Pad) is across the street from train tracks, and every time a train goes by, they play Johnny Cash’s Folsom Prison Blues: “I hear the train a-comin’, it’s rollin’ round the bend…” One of the top franchises, best staffs, and best experiences in all of baseball. Period. Must... stop... gushing...


Sunday, August 8th:
Tulsa, OK (434 miles from Round Rock)
Tulsa Drillers (AA Rockies) vs. Springfield Cardinals (AA Cardinals)

Very few teams are switching stadiums in 2010 (the economy strikes again), but the Drillers have struck oil with the new ONEOK Field in Tulsa’s historic Greenwood District. I was hoping they’d go with MMMBOP Field in honor of Tulsa-based trio Hanson, but no one’s ever listened to me when naming stadiums before.