Cleveland 28-29 June

Progressive field? Not if you ask the fans. This is "The Jake." We saw dozens of fans with t-shirts that registered their dismay witht he name change (in no uncertain terms). But "The Jake" is a nice stadium in a so-so part of town, with a hapless team. We were there as the rumors of the Sabathia trade came to a head. He was traded the day of the second game that we watched. The fans were no so much mad as resigned to their fate--finishing below KC. Getting to the park is easy and there is an indoor walkway that takes you from the mall to the park.
There is so much history with this team that Heritage park is well worth the trip. Like many of the older teams (i.e. not the Nationals or Blue Jays) there is a sense of past greatness. Unfortunately, there is also a sense that like this part of Ohio, it has seen better days and a revival is required.
We attended one of the games with Kate's cousin Ginny and her husband Galen. Pictured in front of the statue of Bob Feller, they were our personal guides around Cleveland--something that we really appreciated.
In Heritage Park there are many celebrated Indians players, but maybe the most notable is Larry Doby, the first Black player in the American League. He broke into the Majors shortly after Jackie Robinson, was every bit as good, but never seemed to get the credit he deserved.
One of the games that we attended was the "birthday" of the Indians mascot, so alll of the mascots from all of the other American League teams attended for a bit of a publicity stunt. The games that we saw were with Cincinnati and they were billed as the battle of Ohio. As seemed to befit Cleveland, Cincinnati won both games, adding insult to injury.



Before leaving the area, we had the opportunity to visit Cuyahoga Falls and have dinner with Ginny in a beautiful restaurant overlooking the Falls. The food was great, the view excellent, and the company better. We only regretted that Galen could not come because of another commitment.

As for the rankings, it goes:

• Baltimore
• Toronto
• Cleveland
• Washington
• Boston

Toronto 24-25 June

From Cooperstown, we travelled into Canada. We had the route all planned out until Emily (our GPS voice) spoke up on I-90 and told us that there was a 95 minute delay 10 miles ahead. She then asked if we would like a detour to which we answered yes. We exited I-90 somewhere in the middle of upstate New York and proceeded through Mexico, New York, Vienna, New York, Berlin, New York, and many other Mayberry RFD towns. We were directed on to roads that didn't even appear on our map. Suddenly we were at the Canadian border, crossing the 1000 island Bridge. The lessons learned is never do a trip like this without GPS. Emily has been added to our pre-underway check list. En route to Toronto we stopped in Kingston, Ontario. Kingston is a very picturesque town on the water with great walks, loads of history, and a wide variety of restaurants. A day trip through the 1000 islands by boat was recommended, but we had to say next time.

Immediately next door to the stadium is the CN Tower. For a while it was the tallest building in the world. It is a good land mark from anywhere in Toronto. It is really easy to get around Toronto. We stayed at a great B&B in Korea town. If you go to Toronto, refrain from driving as the traffic is horrendous.
The stadium is one of the jewels in downtown Toronto's crown. Now called the Rogers Center, it is easy to get to, and there is hardly a bad seat in the house. I was under the impression before going that the fans would be less passionate than in other places, but I was wrong. They are knowledgeable about the game, and, unlike Boston, the crowd came for the game not the antics in the stands.
The Rogers center is really well designed.The roof is retractable but not in the way of many other stadiums.It shuts more like an eyelid. This picture was taken several hours before game time, just after they had opened the roof. Although the weather was great for our stay, there had been a chance of some rain, so the roof was shut during the day. The Toronto Argonauts of the CFL also play here and the roof is closed for most of the winter. Thus the turf is artificial--one of the few drawbacks to this stadium.

Here you see Ken Griffey, Jr. hitting his 602nd home run--or to put it better, here is his 602nd home run without steroids. That places him number 4 on the all time list of non-* hitters behind Arron, Ruth and Mays. The two * hitters with more are Bonds ******* and Sosa ***+corked bat.

Game One was a blow out. Bronson Arroyo, the starter of the Reds, gave up eleven runs before recording an out in the second. All runs were earned, and a grand slam was included. With an ERA of 99 for that day, I suspect that Dusty Baker did not feel that he got his money's worth from Arroyo.

The second game saw the Reds win in the ninth. The Jays actually snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. On multiple occasions, even in the bottom of the ninth, the Jays failed to score when they got runners into scoring position.

As promised, we will contine to rank the parks. Thus far, it's:

• Baltimore
• Toronto
• Washington
• Boston