With no new major league ballparks on the horizon for a few years, our main stop of the trip will take us to Cleveland to check out the multi-year renovation at Progressive Field. In the 2014-2016 offseasons, the Indians put in over $25 million of work to modernize their stadium, which will be entering its 25th season in 2018 and is already considered "old" by comparison to the rest of the league. The renovations sacrificed a larger seating capacity that the team already struggles to fill in order to provide the social spaces and technology that today's ballpark goer has come to expect. PNC Park is very close to Cleveland and still our favorite park after all these years, so we are heading to Pittsburgh for a game as well. We actually just bought tickets for a Brewers-Pirates matchup in mid-July so it will be fun to see our home team on one of our trips once again. There are a ton of minor league teams in the eastern Ohio / western Pennsylvania area so a few other games will surely be on the docket as well. I will likely be driving out there, so I can't wait for another road trip with Erik and to see where the wind takes us.
Come visit our blog again in 73 days (if not sooner) to read all about Opening Day 2018!
touch with baseball when his childhood heroes Robin Yount, Paul Molitor, and Jim Gantner retired but the Great Home Run Chase of 1998 reignited his passion. As a student at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Erik became involved with the campus chapter of Habitat for Humanity. With this group Erik traveled to Portland, OR and Baltimore, MD to work on construction projects and help the group raise $25,000 to partially sponsor a house in Milwaukee. Also at UWM, Erik met Peter Nagel. The two attended their first Brewers game together during Opening Weekend 2003. Despite their failure to ignite the coals at their first tailgate, the two had a blast and were soon making weekly trips to the ballpark. Erik has gone on to several colleges and changed careers several times, and has moved all the way out to New Hampshire, but has always stayed true to his baseball roots by holding part-time stadium usher jobs. To this day he looks back fondly on his incredible cross-country journey.