My wife and I are in Ohio visiting my eldest daughter and family. Her two daughters, who live in Myrtle Beach, have both come home separately, so we have been able to enjoy time with them.
I arranged with my sister, Linda, who is a baseball fanatic like I, to procure tickets to my beloved Cincinnati Reds who were playing a day game last Wednesday against the Oakland A's. Linda outdid herself and had wonderful seats in The Great American Ballpark about ten rows up behind the catcher. Linda rented a van and took her daughter Lisa and husband John, a girlfriend of Lisa. my son Alex and me from Dayton to the ballpark. She even had a handicapped hanger so that my worn-out knees would be spared, as we parked in the stadium, just below where our seats were located:---a few steps up, an elevator ride and, voila, right by our section and a few easy steps down.
The best part of the actual game was seeing Aroldis Chapman, the Cuban-born fireballing closer for the Reds, who came on in the ninth to protect a one-run lead. Two pitches and two soft fly outs. Then the crowd rose to their feet and started to roar. Three fastballs later, the last of which I couldn't see, the game was history.
But the real best part was seeing this wonderful spacious ballpark, now ten years old, and the family crowd there on a Wednesday afternoon. It was old-fashioned, dyed-in-the-wool, pure Americana, seeing so many families enjoying the game and enthusing together in a happy comradely atmosphere. You just felt good sitting there!
As if this were not enough, I then got a tour of the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum, a cathedral dedicated to all things Reds. I relived my baseball history, and more, in that fabulous museum. You can even look out a window and see a bed of red flowers with a white patch of flowers in the center, memorializing the spot where Pete Rose lined his record-breaking single on June 11, 1985.
Yes, I was kid again---and loved every moment. You can take me out to the ball game anytime---and include a brat with the best spicy mustard ever. Thanks, Linda!
I'm not much of a baseball fan, but I'll never forget my first trip to Crosley Field as a kid. And GABP is a cool yard.
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