#30 T-Mobile Park The Last One! Mission Accomplished!

On Thursday, August 8th, we entered ballpark #30 on this great quest that we had set on back in 2014. To accomplish it in 2024 was a year behind schedule, but all in all, it was such a good feeling to be able to say, “We did it!”  The game featured the Seattle Mariners taking on the Detroit Tigers in what would turn out to be a very entertaining ballgame. 

Tate and Trey outside of T-Mobile Park 

T-Mobile Park was a pretty cool place to see a game. They do have a roof that will open and close depending on the weather. In the day we were there, the Seattle weather was wonderful, about 75 degrees and no rain so the roof would be open. We make our way in and this game was one of their “value games” so tickets were fairly affordable. We got seats behind home plate for about $45 each which was a great deal. 

View from our seats. 

The game was a pitchers’ duel at first and we cruised through the first 6 innings very quickly. The Tigers managed to pull ahead 3-1 heading into the bottom of the ninth. It was “rally time” as we kind of wanted our monumental game to be a little more exciting. And the Mariners delivered!  The M’s were able to get the bases loaded and then Mitch Haniger came to the plate with 2 outs down 3-1 and he hits a double to right center field scoring all 3 runners enabling Seattle to walk it off by the score of 4-3.  

The Mariners Walk It Off!!!

Stadium #30 of 30

As the game ended and we were walking out, there was such a tremendous feeling of accomplishment that I felt as I was trying to wrap my mind around what we had just accomplished as a family. It was almost inconceivable at the time that we set out to do this in 2014. I have to give Tammy the credit on this one. She is the one who threw down the challenge. I was just excited about going to a Hall of Fame induction.  She took it to a whole different level. And what a collections of memories and stories that we have to tell. In that 11 year time span, baseball has become a major part of our family. Both boys have played all through middle school and high school as well as during the summers in travel ball and showcase ball. They have had amazing careers so far as Trey and Tate both have been selected as the Player of the Year in their high school conference. Trey is now playing in college at Lenoir-Rhyne University and Tate will be finishing up his high school career next season. 

Many people may not understand why we did this, but when your kids have a passion for something, sometimes, as parents, we tend to go overboard. And maybe we did, but what an amazing adventure it turned out to be!

After the game, we went back to our AirB&B for the night. The next day we would go back for another game since we had a couple more days in Seattle. We got seats in the outfield and I have to say, that game was not as stressful for some reason. After all, we had checked the box so all that was left to do was to just sit back and enjoy the game which we did because the Mariners beat the Mets, always a pleasure for any Braves Fan!

The Absolute Best Ballpark Feature!!! (According to Tammy)

Footnote:  T-Mobile Park ranks very highly on Tammy’s all-time list because they are the only stadium that we have been to that not only lets you get free refills, but lets you bring the cup back at a later game AND ALSO get free refills!  Kudos to you, Seattle, for being very fan friendly when it comes to game refreshments!

Year 11 - The Emerald City and the last stop on our Quest

What started 11 years ago with a pipe dream that was sparked by a Hall of Fame induction came to fruition in the Summer of 2024 with the completion of a bucket list adventure for our family to see a game at all 30 Major League Ballparks.  It was a huge challenge and took longer than originally planned, but we did it!  We started this in 2014 and the goal was to complete it by the time our oldest son, Trey, graduated from high school.  Well, he graduated in 2023 and due to many difficult family losses that year, we had to postpone the completion of our goal to another year.  We had one park left - Seattle.  And as you know, for someone living in North Carolina, getting to the Pacific Northwest poses a real challenge.  But we planned and saved and budgeted and decided to get it done in August of 2024.

But this trip was not just going to be a trip to see a ball game.  We decided to finish this quest of making memories by finishing it up in style.  After seeing a game at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, we would then get on a big boat and go on a 7-day Alaskan cruise!  This was going to be an epic trip.  On Wednesday, August 8th, with the threat of Tropical Storm Debby coming in from the Gulf of Mexico and drenching the Deep South, we flew out of Charlotte on a 5 1/2 hour flight to Seattle.  

On the approach to Seattle, we got a good look at Mt. Rainier

Upon arriving at the airport, I got my first experience with a company called Turo.  Rather than deal with a rental car company, you can now rent people's cars from them directly, just like you would rent a house on Air B&B.  Tammy had used this service before when she had gone on a trip to Wisconsin and she was very happy with how the process worked.  So we tried it again.  We picked up our car that was left at the airport parking garage and off we went to find the Air B&B that we had booked for our 3 night stay in Seattle.

We arrived at our place and found it to be quite accommodating and comfortable.  We then headed out to get some dinner at a local Chinese restaurant and picked up some groceries at an Amazon Fresh, which was a pretty neat little grocery store.  We headed back to get some rest as the next day we would go downtown to see the sights and check out the city, and check off number 30!

Of course in Seattle there are a few attractions that you must see.  The first stop was the Pike's Place Market.  It was jam packed with so many vendors peddling fresh vegetables, crafts, baked goods, and of course, seafood.  The market took up probably 3 blocks down along the waterfront next to Puget Sound.  It was bustling with activity.  We picked up a few things and grabbed some lunch trying out some of the local seafood.  The busiest place of all was probably the shop billed as the original Starbucks, which some of the locals will dispute saying that the original shop was a little farther away, but it did not deter the dozens of people waiting in line out the door to get in.

Next we made our way a little farther north to find the Space Needle, the iconic attraction built for the 1962 World's Fair that many people think of when they think about Seattle.  At one time the 605 foot high tower was considered the tallest structure west of the Mississippi. It was an impressive sight and a huge attraction as so many people were there.  The surrounding areas are like a carnival in that many shops and vendors try to lure in the many patrons of the Space Needle.  As you may recall from our St. Louis trip, I am not a big fan of heights and I was not about to go up in that thing.  But Tammy and the boys were excited to go up.  So they bought their tickets (at $40 a pop!) and got in line while I found a Starbucks and got me a coffee and found a shady spot to sit down and listen to the sweet sounds of a Guatemalan Pan Flute Band (They were fantastic and Zamfir would have been proud).

World Famous Seattle Space Needle - 605 feet tall

Trey and Tate at the top with Puget Sound in the backgroud

Chillin' from 600 feet up

After a busy morning and early afternoon, we were feeling a little "Sleepless In Seattle", so we decide to head back to our place and get a little rest before heading to the ballpark.

Day 13 & 14 - Oakland Colosseum #29 and then Heading Home!

On July 4th, we made our last stadium trip to Oakland Colosseum where we would watch the Oakland A's take on the Toronto Blue Jays.  We were not very excited for this stadium except for the fact that this was the last one. The Oakland area was not very impressive compared to the other cities that we had been in. But we went in with an open mind. The A’s had not been having a very good season and attendance had not been good either. But this was July 4th and they decided to put on a promotion to get fans in the seats. They decided to offer second level seats for $7.04 each which included an opportunity to go out on the field after the game and watch a fireworks show!  Well, since we had splurged a little at some of the earlier parks, second level seats were just fine with us.

The view of Oakland Colosseum from the parking lot.

Trey and Tate view from our seats.

Not a bad view for $7.04 (July 4th Promo) each!

The Oakland Colosseum is one of the oldest parks in the MLB and we were not expecting a whole lot, but I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised.  Even though it was old and very big (it supposedly sits more people than any other stadium at over 56,000) I thought it was a pretty neat place.  Of course it was very dated and kind of stuck in the 1970s, I thought there was a good view of the field from just about anywhere.  I know this because in about the 5th inning we moved up to the third level (to get away from the crowd which finally started coming in to get ready for the fireworks).  Oakland fans, even though there were not many, like all other fans are very passionate about their team, which I could appreciate.  The attendance was probably around 30,000 due to the fireworks show coming up after the game (they had been averaging around 5,000).

The game was exciting as the A's played very well and went on to win, maybe because the extra fans had them motivated.  And so after the game, we headed down to get ready to go out onto the field to watch fireworks.  I have to say, anytime I can get out on to a Major League field, I get pretty excited.  I get that Ray Kinsela feeling wondering "is this heaven?", but very quickly I realized that, "no, we were still in Oakland!

We go to see the A's win which did not happen a lot this season.

The field is named after Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson who played there a number of years.

The fans pouring onto the field after the game to see fireworks.

The fireworks show was very good!  It was set to patriotic music and the crowd was into it and I thought, what a great way to end our trip.  So after the show, we headed out to find our car and then we made the 25 minute drive to the airport for the trip home.

We had a early morning flight out of San Francisco the next day so we decided to spend the night in the airport which seemed like a good idea at the time.  Looking back on it, I would not advise that as there are not many comfortable location inside an airport.

But that did not spoil the trip by any means.  The West Coast trip was a great adventure.  We had gotten to see so many iconic places and, as a whole, might have been one of the best stadium trips we've been on.  So as far as MLB stadiums go, 29 down.  1 to go - Seattle.  That would be the plan for next year.  We will have to do something to make that trip extra special.  Top it off with an Alaska Cruise maybe?  To be continued...

Day 12 - Golden Gate Bridge and The Pacific Coastline

On Sunday, we decided to take some time and drive around the area surrounding San Francisco to see some of the most popular sites.  Our first destination was to go the Golden Gate Bridge.  We had to drive through the streets of San Francisco to be able to cross the bridge.  We got to see some of the famous hillside streets that San Fran is known for and made our way across the bridge to the Golden Gate Park to take some pics and then had to come back across to make our way down the Pacific Coastline that we were anxious to see.

After seeing the Golden Gate bridge, we headed back south toward Highway 1 down through Pacifica, Half-Moon Bay and into Santa Cruz.  Wow!  What a beautiful drive!  We got to see some of the most beautiful coastline that I have ever seen.  Hopefully, the pics will do it justice.

The Golden Gate Bridge is quite an impressive structure.

The Boys taking it all in.

There were many places along the roadway that looked like this.

Unbelievable views!

Just like you would see in a movie!

Some steep cliffs.

A beach selfie.  The temps were in the high 60s/low 70s but the wind made if feel cooler.

Beachin'!

After we go to Santa Cruz, we decided to go see some of the famous California Redwoods.  We drove to a state park just outside of Santa Cruz to see the trees.  They are quite impressive.  Unfortunately, we did not see the Giant Redwoods, but the ones we did see were pretty cool.

After we got back, we looked forward to a little downtime at the hotel.  The next day we would be going to see our last stadium (Oakland Colosseum) and then we would be heading home.

Day 11 - San Francisco's Oracle Park - #28

On Saturday, we got up, had a great breakfast at the Hotel Riu, and began making our way to the Oracle Park, Home of the San Francisco Giants at they were set to take on the Chicago White Sox (who we saw play the Angels a few days before).  I was excited to see this stadium as I had heard a lot of good things about it.  So we dressed warmly in our sweatshirts and sweatpants and headed for the ballpark.

Our view of the stadium as we were walking in.

It was a very cool day for July (probably in the upper 60s and overcast), but we were somewhat prepared.  As we entered the stadium, we realized it was Lamont Wade Jr. bobblehead day so we each got one of those upon entry.  Since we were not big Giants fans (and we did not have room in the luggage to tote them back) Trey sold his inside for $5, Tate traded his for an old A's Matt Chapman bobblehead, and Tammy traded hers for a Buster Posey coffee mug.  We kept one.  We walked around the ballpark to see the sights.  Oracle Park is a magnificent stadium.  The design is very unique as you can hopefully see from the pictures.

Tate and Trey in their front row seats.

Trey and Tate looking at the famed McCovey Cove just beyond the right field bleachers.

Levi's Landing in Right Field

The view of the outfield with so many interesting features.

The view from the seats where Tammy and I sat.

The view from Trey and Tate's seats.

We splurged a little on these seats splitting up our group into pairs again.  The boys got to sit right on the front row down the third base line and had a great view of the Giants players, especially former Brave Joc Pederson who played LF for San Fran.  Tammy and I sat in the Lower Bowl section down the first base line, but I would think that there was not a bad seat in the park.

The game went by very quickly as Giants starter Logan Webb carried a no-hitter into the 5th and then things began to unravel.  White Sox starter Dylan Cease gave up a leadoff home run to Lamont Wade (on his bobblehead day!) and then settled in.  The Sox went on to win the game but we really enjoyed Oracle Park.  All of the stadiums up to this point have been very nice (although we are not expecting a lot on the next stop in Oakland).  San Francisco is a great baseball city and we really enjoyed our time there.  The next day, we were going to see some sights around the Bay Area and prepare for our last stop in Oakland.

Day 10 - Travel to San Francisco and Alcatraz

On Friday, July 1st, we left out of LA to make the 6 hour drive north to San Francisco.  We had hoped to take the Pacific Coast Highway but were under a time constraint and had to be checked in and at Pier 33 in San Francisco for the Alcatraz Tour.  This was a little side trip that Tammy was looking forward to and at one point we did not know if we would make it.  So, I put the hammer down and we made it into San Fran with 45 minutes to spare.  The temperature in LA and throughout most of the drive was in the mid to upper 90s.  When you get in to the Bay area, the temps begin to drop quickly.  When we arrived at our hotel near the Fisherman's Wharf, the temperature was in the 60s.  It is a different climate in Northern California in the Bay area for sure.

So we get checked in and put on sweatshirts and sweatpants!  We get to the pier and get on the boat for the Alcatraz tour.  "The Rock" as it was known was a federal prison for nearly 30 years and housed such notorious criminals as Al Capone, George "Machine Gun" Kelly, and Robert Stroud, "The Bird Man of Alcatraz", to name a few.  The tour was very informative although most of the tour was about the Native American takeover of Alcatraz from 1969-1971, but by that time the prison was shut down.  It is/was a very remote, dreary, and desolate location.  It was kind of neat to get to see what some people had to experience.

Our view of "The Rock" from the boat.

At the landing, you can see the effects of the takeover of Alcatraz by Native Americans in 1971.

Picture of bars on windows.  This would be areas where inmates would work or eat.  They did not have windows in the cells.

The recreation yard where inmates to go outside.

After the Alcatraz tour, we went down to Pier 39 and ate supper at Bubba Gump's (which was where Tate wanted to go).  Then we headed back to our room to get ready for a 1:00 game the next day.

Day 9 - Dodger Stadium #27

This one had me feeling all types of emotions as we were preparing to visit.  First of all, as a Braves fan, I don't particularly care for the Los Angeles Dodgers.  I wouldn't go so far as to say that I hate them (although there have been times when that word might have been accurate, especially when it comes to Chris Taylor).  But in my lifetime as a Braves fan, there have been periods of time when the Dodgers were our nemesis.  And then there is the whole Freddie Freeman free agency debacle.  So I tried to have an open mind prior to the visit.  And then there is the traffic situation.  Everything I had read online said do not drive to Dodger Stadium, but our place that we stayed was only 4 miles from the ballpark.  It was just a good idea to leave early (which is no problem for us).  We left 2.5 hours before first pitch and it's a good thing we did.  Traffic was not terrible, but just to be safe we got inside pretty quickly which gave us more time to explore the ballpark.

Dodger Stadium is the third oldest ballpark in the US (behind only Fenway Park in Boston and Wrigley Field in Chicago).  It opened in 1962 and they are celebrating their 60th anniversary this season.  It is a giant of a stadium and seats 56,000 people.  The game featured the Dodgers taking on their division rival the San Diego Padres, which led to the game being sold out - over 53,000 people were there!  I think 52,000 were Dodger fans.  I was very impressed with the show of support from the people there that LOVE their Dodgers.  I don't think I have seen anything like it in that large of scale.  I could not help but think that it is no wonder that the Dodgers have so much money to sign free agents.  Dodger Stadium is a money making machine!  And 90% of the fans had a Dodger Jersey and hat on!

The stadium was magnificent!  The weather was great with temperatures in the low 70s at first pitch and actually got down into the mid 60s before the game was over.  It was Trea Turner bobblehead night and we picked up 4 of those (Tammy and Tate had sold theirs in the first 5 minutes - Tammy got $20 and Tate got scammed for $10).  The game was entertaining and the Dodgers won 3-1 thanks mostly to Justin Turner's two home runs.  As I referred to earlier it was pretty tough seeing Freddie Freeman down there playing first base for the Dodgers.  And then we had to see another former Brave Craig Kimbrel come in and get the save.

The views of the mountains in the background of Chavez Ravine especially when the sun goes down are amazing.  The food options were quite impressive but I decided to go for the Dodger Dog and Garlic Fries which were pretty good.  Trey and Tate had the bucket of Chicken Fingers and pound of fries.

Dodger Dog - meh!

Yes, we did wear Braves attire at Dodger Stadium, except for Tate who had his Padres Jersey on (but did buy a Clayton Kershaw Jersey T as a souvenir that you see in a previous pic)

Former Favorite Braves Player - yes, it was too soon!

Dodger Stadium

Couldn't resist this one - and yes, he is!

The traffic situation leaving the ballpark took a little while, but when you have to get 53,000 fans out of there, it is bound to take a little time.  We were back at our place after the game in about an hour.  All in all, Dodger Stadium left quite a good impression.  It has definitely launched itself into our Top 5 Stadiums.  27 down and two more to go on this trip.  The next day we left LA and headed up the coast for San Francisco.

Days 7 & 8 - Los Angeles and Hollywood

On Tuesday, we slept in a little and took our time to head out of Anaheim and headed up I-5 into Los Angeles.  We were going to spend three nights in LA and booked an AirBnB to spend a little downtime and recharge our batteries.  The AirBnB was phenomenal and just what we needed after week on the road.  We made a quick grocery run to Target and actually got to cook some home cooked meals for a couple of days.  Since there is so much to see in Los Angeles and we did not have a lot of time nor any local knowledge, we decided to book an all-day tour to see as much as we could.  Tammy booked us a tour with www.adayinlatours.com and we had to drive in to Hollywood to be picked up at 8:00.  We got up early, made breakfast and were parked at the Dolby Theater parking deck by 8:00.  The tour was very good and our guide was excellent.  Colin was very knowledgeable and entertaining and we got to see a lot of the sites!

The tour started at the Santa Monica Pier and Venice Beach.

The World Famous Santa Monica Pier inspired by Coney Island in NYC

Tammy taking in the view of her "Happy Place", the beach

Beach Boys

Tate getting in some work at Muscle Beach

And showing off the progress!

The Chez-Jay Restaurant, a half block from the beach which has been in operation since 1959 where just about every big name in Hollywood has eaten.  Legend has it that the Rat Pack hang out here on Thursday nights to play poker and that Marilyn Monroe and JFK would meet here.

Venice Beach, which at one time had over 60 miles of canals just like Venice, Italy.  Now it has about three miles of canals left, but it is very "artsy" and is a popular place for skateboarders.

Venice Beach is a very eclectic kind of place - graffiti on palm trees is okay!?!

Home of the original Gold's Gym, lifting weights on the beach is a thing there.

Tate really enjoyed the souvenir shops - No, he was not allowed to purchase that hat!

Next we went into Beverly Hills and got to walk up and down Rodeo Drive (pronounced RO-DAY-OH for all you that may be unrefined and unfamiliar)

Yes She Is!

The walk down Rodeo Drive. Lot of Palm Trees.

The Via Rodeo, a cobblestone street that runs up from Rodeo where more high-end shops can be seen.

A custom made Rolls Royce owned by one of the owners of The House of Bjan.  This shop had designed the inauguration suit for every President since Richard Nixon.

Then we went to the Hollywood Farmers Market at the Grove for Lunch.

Then we made the drive up to the Griffith Observatory where we took in the beautiful views of the Los Angeles Skyline and got the best look at the famous Hollywood sign.

The best view of the famous sign that used to say "Hollywoodland"

Downtown Los Angeles

The view from the Observatory

Our tour concluded the Hollywood Walk of Fame and Grauman's Chinese Theater where the stars put their hands in cement.  Colin pointed out all the cool places along the way and we were very pleased with what we were able to see in such a short amount of time.

One of my favorite actors who was honored in 2006.

To qualify for a star on the walk of fame, someone has to stay "relevant" for 5 years in movies, tv, music, production, or stage.

After a whirlwind tour of Los Angeles, we headed back to our stay to get some rest for the next day when we would go to Dodger Stadium.