Baseball Stadiums I Have Visited, Part 3

Continuing my series on MLB ballparks I have visited...

Back in the mid 1980s, my friend Jeff and I took a road trip to Chicago, Milwaukee and Detroit for the express purpose of catching some baseball and, only slightly less important, looking for rare records (I especially remember finding a pristine copy of Phil Ochs' Rehearsals for Retirement in a used record store in the Windy City, the one with the songs inspired by the Democratic Convention of '68). We drove all night to get to our first stop and wound up arriving long before we could check into our motel. So we found a shopping plaza with some benches and napped in the morning sun. That evening we made our first stop.

6. Comiskey Park (Chicago White Sox)

What I remember most about Comiskey was that it was really old and showed it. Rusty girders and beams dominated the area below the stands (our seats were out in right field), and that the concession food was pretty blah. I think I was also still tired from the marathon drive to Chicago and as a consequence have no memory of the game. I do recall that parking was not as difficult as I expected it to be, but that there was a little uneasiness walking back to the car, as the stadium was located in a pretty rundown neighborhood. Jeff, if you're reading this, can you fill in any other details?

7. Wrigley Field (Chicago Cubs)

Obviously, Wrigley is one of the great palces to watch a ballgame. I can't recall now if we were there the day after watching the White Sox at Comiskey, or drove up to Milwaukee in between. But much like what I wrote about Yankee Stadium earlier, it was exciting just to walk up the ramp and see the green field and ivy covered walls spreading out before us. One feels really close to the action at Wrigley, and the fans are really into the game. And back then, the Cubs were still palying all their home games during the day (I think the lights went in a year or two later). Again, I'm sketchy on what transpired in the game (don't even recall who the Cubs played) but I remember just relishing the experience, and keeping track of things on the big old-fashioned scoreboard in center field.

Next time, I'll describe the other two parks we visited on that trip.