Photos: Traditional Baseball Roadtrip #1: The Eastern Loop of the Midwest

Photo

For more photos from Columbus, visit:

http://bit.ly/96OWWn

For more photos from Cincinnati, visit:

http://bit.ly/c2ByM7

For more photos from Chicago, visit:

http://bit.ly/caQGcr

For more photos from Milwaukee, visit:
http://bit.ly/b0G7ar

For more photos from Maumee, visit:

http://bit.ly/ciNlcQ

For more photos from Detroit, visit:
http://bit.ly/dgcogO

For more photos from Cleveland, visit:
http://bit.ly/aADjLL

Traditional Baseball Roadtrip #1: The Eastern Loop of the Midwest

Date: August 22, 2001 through August 30, 2001
Primary Destinations: MLB Cities of the Midwest: Cincinnati, Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit, and Cleveland

Games Attended:

Game 1: Indianapolis Indians vs. Columbus Clippers, Aug. 22nd, 5:05PM EDT, Cooper Stadium, Columbus, OH
http://www.ballparkreviews.com/columboh/columboh.htm
Game 2: St. Louis Cardinals vs. Cincinnati Red Legs, Aug. 23rd, 12:35PM EDT, Cinergy Field (Riverfront Stadium), Cincinnati, OH
http://www.ballparkreviews.com/cinci/cinergy.htm
Game 3: St. Louis Cardinals vs. Chicago Cubs, Aug. 24th, 2:20PM CDT, Wrigley Field, Chicago, IL
http://www.ballparkreviews.com/wrigley/wrigley.htm
Game 4: Colorado Rockies vs. Milwaukee Brewers, Aug. 25th, 6:05PM CDT, Miller Park, Milwaukee, WI
http://www.ballparkreviews.com/milw/miller.htm
Game 5: St. Louis Cardinals vs. Chicago Cubs, Aug. 26th, 1:20PM CDT, Wrigley Field, Chicago, IL
Game 6: Columbus Clippers vs. Toledo Mud Hens, Aug 27th, 6:00PM EDT, Ned Skeldon Stadium, Maumee, OH
http://www.ballparkreviews.com/toledo/toledo.htm
Game 7: Chicago White Sox vs. Detroit Tigers, Aug, 28th, 7:05PM EDT, Comerica Park, Detroit, MI
http://www.ballparkreviews.com/detroit/comerica.htm
Game 8: Boston Red Sox vs. Cleveland Indians, Aug. 29th, 7:05PM EDT, Jacobs Field, Cleveland, OH
http://www.ballparkreviews.com/clevelnd/clevelnd.htm

Roadtrip Summary:

This baseball roadtrip is planned to attend games played by many of the Major League Baseball teams in the Midwest Region of the U.S. Nine of the MLB teams reside in this part of the country: Cleveland Indians, Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Milwaukee Brewers, St. Louis Cardinals, Kansas City Royals, and Minnesota Twins. This trip focuses on the teams that are located from Chicago to the Eastern border of the Midwest. Travel was performed in a loop that is bounded on the east by Cleveland, OH and Chicago, IL on the west. For this reason, I have named this baseball roadtrip “The Eastern Loop of the Midwest.”

On this trip and on other baseball roadtrips to see major league teams, I was accompanied by my brother, Bob. The trip lasted nine days and during that period we saw nine games that involved eight different home teams. The roadtrip was implemented as a fly and drive trip. We began by flying from LaGuardia Airport in New York City to Cleveland, OH. As part of the trip, we drove over 1200 miles in a loop that took us through the Midwest cities of Columbus, OH, Cincinnati, OH, Chicago, IL, Milwaukee, WI, Toledo, OH, Detroit. MI, and then back to Cleveland, OH. While in Chicago, we used the EL to travel to/from Wrigley Field. After our return to Cleveland, we flew back to NYC.

The roadtrip enabled us to see games at the home stadiums of five of the nine MLB teams of the Midwest. To shorten the drives between Cleveland and Cincinnati and Chicago and Detroit we added stops to see minor league teams: the Columbus Clippers on the route between Cleveland and Cincinnati and the Toledo Mud Hens while traveling from Chicago to Detroit. Both the Clippers and the Mud Hens are International League teams and were the AAA affiliates of the New York Yankees and Detroit Tigers, respectively. Today Columbus is no longer the location of the Yankees AAA team.

As part of the trip we filled in unused parts of days by visiting a number of attractions in the cities where we attended games or along the route. A list of our stops follows in the section titled “En-route Attractions Visited.” All cities offered interesting sights and attractions that complemented our trip with a vacation component. Some of the highlights were visiting the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum and touring the Submarine U.S.S Cod in Cleveland, and attending the annual “Greek Street Festival” in Greektown while in Chicago.

MLB Final Scores and Box Scores:

Game 1: Final Score: COL 3 IND 2 Box Score/News Article: The Columbus Dispatch 8/23/2001
Game 2: Final Score: CIN 12 STL 2 Box Score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CIN/CIN200108230.shtml
Game 3: Final Score: STL 10 CHC 8 Box Score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CHN/CHN200108240.shtml
Game 4: Final Score: MIL 5 COL 4 Box Score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/MIL/MIL200108250.shtml
Game 5: Final Score: CHC 6 STL 1 Box Score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CHN/CHN200108260.shtml
Game 6: Final Score: TOL 5 COL 4 News article http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Date=20010828&Category=SPORTS07&ArtNo=108280031&Ref=AR
Game 7: Final Score: CHW 8 DET 6 Box Score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/DET/DET200108280.shtml
Game 8: Final Score: CLE 2 BOS 1 Box Score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CLE/CLE200108290.shtml

Travel Method, Route, and Distances:

August 22nd

• Fly: LaGuardia Airport, NY, NY to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, Cleveland, OH
• Drive: 142 mi to Columbus, OH
• Drive: 99 mi to Cincinatti, OH

August 23rd

• Drive: 301 mi to Chicago, IL

August 25th

• Drive: 95 mi to Milwaukee, WI
• Drive: 95 mi to Chicago, IL

August 27th

• Drive: 239 mi to Toledo, OH

August 28th

• Drive: 59 mi to Detroit, MI
• Drive: 59 mi to Toledo, OH

August 29th

• Drive: 115 mi to Cleveland, OH

August 29th

• Fly: Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, Cleveland, OH to LaGuardia Airport, NY, NY

Approx. Total Drive Miles: 1204 mi

En-route Attractions Visited:

1. Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Museum, Cleveland, OH http://www.rockhall.com/
2. Submarine U.S.S. Cod Memorial, Cleveland, OH http://www.usscod.org/
3. Roebling Suspension Bridge, Cincinnati, OH http://www.roeblingbridge.com/historyb.html
4. Fountain Square, Cincinnati, OH http://www.myfountainsquare.com/
5. Carew Tower Observation Deck, Cincinnati, OH http://www.cincinnati.com/visitorsguide/stories/022701_carewtower.html
6. Views from the Observation Deck http://www.pbase.com/piggiston/carew_deck
7. The Chicago Loop, Chicago, IL http://www.chicago.com/neighborhoods/Loop/
8. Greektown, 100-400 South Halstead St, Chicago, IL http://www.greektownchicago.org/
9. Ride the “EL” (elevated trains) to the Baseball Stadiums. Chicago, IL http://www.transitchicago.com/travel_information/maps/htsystemmap.aspx o Wrigley Field: click on and view North Side map. o The Loop: click on and view Downtown map. o US Cellular Field: click on and view Central/South Side map
   
10. Milwaukee Riverwalk, Milwaukee, WI http://www.mkedcd.org/DowntownMilwaukee/RiverWalk/index.html
11. Old World 3rd Street Neighborhood, Milwaukee, WI http://www.oldworldthird.org/business.php
12. Birthplace of the American League, Milwaukee, WI https://www.examiner.com/x-7251-Milwaukee-History-Examiner~y2009m4d3-Milwaukee-Birthplace-of-the-American-League
13. Studebaker National Museum, South Bend, IN http://www.studebakermuseum.org/
14. University of Notre Dame Campus and Football Stadium, South Bend, IN http://www.und.com/facilities/nd-stadium.html
    

Suggestions for Additional Roadtrip Attractions:

1. Lolly the Trolley City Tour, Cleveland, OH http://www.lollytrolley.com/city.htm
2. Great Lakes Science Center, Cleveland, OH http://www.glsc.org/
3. Steamship William G Mather Museum http://wgmather.nhlink.net/wgmloc.shtml
4. Paul Brown Stadium (home of the Cincinnati Bengals), Cincinnati, OH http://www.bengals.com/stadium/facts.html
5. Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum, Cincinnati, OH http://www.mlb.com/cin/ballpark/museum/index.jsp
6. Sears Tower (tallest building in US, renamed Willis Tower in 2009), Chicago, IL http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willis_Tower
7. Willis (Sears) Tower Skydeck, Chicago, IL http://www.theskydeck.com/
8. Wrigleyville (neighborhood around Wrigley Field), Chicago, IL http://www.chicagotraveler.com/neighborhoods/wrigleyville-feature.htm
9. Harry Carey’s Tavern, Chicago, IL http://www.harrycaraystavern.com/
10. Millennium Park, Chicago, IL http://www.millenniumpark.org/generalinformation/
11. Chicago Trolley and Double Decker Co. (hop on hop off city sight seeing tour), Chicago, IL http://www.coachusa.com/chicagotrolley/
12. Chicago Riverwalk, Chicago, IL http://www.explorechicago.org/city/en/things_see_do/attractions/tourism/chicago_riverwalk.html
13. Chicago River Architectural Cruise and Lake Michigan Shore/Chicago Skyline Cruise, Chicago, IL http://www.shorelinesightseeing.com/
14. College Football Hall of Fame, South Bend, IN http://www.collegefootball.org/
15. Harley Davidson Museum, Milwaukee, WI http://www.harley-davidson.com/wcm/Content/Pages/HD_Museum/Museum.jsp?locale=en_US&camp_id=16&source_cd=SEM_Museum&_cr=ppc-mgooglehdmuseummilwaukee%20tours
16. Milwaukee River and Lake Michigan Shore Line Cruises, Milwaukee, WI http://www.edelweissboats.com/os/about_us.php
17. Greektown, 400-590 Monroe St., Detroit, MI http://www.visitgreektown.com/ Greektown Street Map http://www.visitgreektown.com/tour/finalFrameset.html
18. Renaissance Center Riverfront Promenade, Detroit, MI http://www.experiencedetroit.com/riverfront.htm#_Tour_Map
19. Ford Rouge Factory Tour, Dearborn, MI http://www.thehenryford.org/rouge/index.aspx
    

Roadtrip Planning Tips:

1. Attend two games at Wrigley Field in Chicago. It is one of the most interesting baseball environments you will every experience.
2. If possible, do not have a car while staying in Chicago. There will be little use for the car and additional charges for parking at a downtown hotel. Public transportation is available from the airport to downtown.
3. In Chicago, stay downtown at a hotel that is conveniently located near the EL. There are stops on the EL for both Wrigley Field and the US Cellular Field.
4. Check schedules for day/night game opportunities to see two games in the same day. This may reduce the duration of the roadtrip by a day or two. For instance, attend games of the Toledo Mud Hens and Detroit Tigers, or Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs or White Sox, or possibly Columbus Clippers and Cincinnati Red Legs both in the same day
   

Some Changes since 2001:

• Since the end of the 2006 baseball season, the Columbus Clippers are no longer an affiliate of the New York Yankees. They are now the International League AAA minor league team of the Cleveland Indians.
• For the 2009 season Copper Stadium in Columbus, OH was replaced by a new ball field, Huntington Park.
• After the 2001 season, Cinergy Field in Cincinnati, OH was replaced by a new stadium, Great American Ball Park.
• For the start of the 2002 season, the Toledo Mud Hens moved out of Ned Skeldon Stadium to a new ballpark called Fifth Third Field.
• On opening day of the 2008 season, Jacobs Field in Cleveland, OH was renamed Progressive Field, but remains affectionately known as “The Jake.”
  

Some Suggested Alternatives:

1. Fly into Chicago, IL instead of Cleveland, OH. By picking the correct arrival and departure dates, it may be possible to see both the Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox, one upon arrival and the other just before departure.
2. Add an extra day with an overnight stay in Indianapolis and attend an Indianapolis Indians game. The Indianapolis Indians are the Pittsburgh Pirates AAA team in the International League. This stop will partition the 301 mile ride from Cincinnati to Chicago into a 114 mi drive from Cincinnati to Indianapolis and a 188 mi ride on the next day from Indianapolis to Chicago. The MapQuest address of Victory Field, where the Indians play, is 501 W. Maryland Street, Indianapolis, IN, 46225
3. Add an extra night over in South Bend, IN to break up the 239 mi drive between Chicago and Toledo. The South Bend Silver Hawks, who are the Arizona Diamondbacks single A affiliate in the Midwest League, play home games at Coveleski Stadium, 501 West South Street, South Bend, IN 46634. The route from Chicago to Coveleski Stadium is 101 mi, which splits the ride between Chicago and Toledo almost in half.
   

Roadtrip Planning Resources:

The following are the web resources used for planning “The Eastern Loop of the Midwest" MLB roadtrip.

Official Website of the Major League Baseball: http://mlb.mlb.com/

• Click on “Team Sites” and then click on the appropriate AL or NL home team, for instance, “Cleveland” for Cleveland Indians to get to a specific team’s website.
• On the specific teams website click on “Schedule” and view the “Regular Season” schedule.
  

Link to View Addresses of the Stadiums for each MLB Team: http://mlb.mlb.com/team/

Official Website of the International League:
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/index.jsp?sid=l117

• Click on “Team Name” on the listing of the teams in the league, for instance, “Columbus Clippers" to get to the specific team's website.
• On the specific team’s website click on “Schedule” and view the “Regular Season” schedule.
• Click on “Stadium” to view information about the home stadium. o Determine the name of the stadium. o Identify the address of the stadium (if the address is not given Google the name of the stadium).
  

Official Website of the Midwest League: http://midwest.league.milb.com/index.jsp?sid=l118

• Select the appropriate team to transfer to its website, for instance the “South Bend Silver Hawks.”
  
• View the home games on the season schedule.
  
• Identify the name of the stadium and its address.

Photos: Twittered Baseball Roadtrip #2: New York-Penn League: Tri-City Valley Cats, July 6, 2009 and Hudson Valley Renegades, July 8, 2009

Check out additional photos from the Tri-City Valley Cats Game on July 6, 2009:

http://bit.ly/924thU

Check out additional photos from the Hudson Valley Renegades Game on July 8, 2009:

http://bit.ly/bnX9C4