Ron Kittle- Ron was best known for his homerun power at the plate. He hit seven rooftop homeruns while playing for the White Sox! From 1982 through 1991, he played for the Chicago White Sox (1982-86, 1989, 1991), New York Yankees (1986-87), Cleveland Indians (1988) and Baltimore Orioles (1990). But, right from the start, his career was anything but easy.
“In 1976 I signed with the L.A. Dodgers at a tryout camp in La Porte, IN at Ken Schreiber Field. I arrived at Vero Beach, Florida for my first spring training and then went on to the Midwest League where in my first official game and first at bat, I hit a double and then scored on a single. After sliding across home plate, a late throw came in and the catcher landed on my neck as I was getting up. I crushed 3 vertebrae and broke my neck…this was the beginning of an injury plagued career.” (Taken from Ron's website, RonKittle.com.)
After recovering from the neck injury and working in the steel mills in Indiana, Ron was able to overcome amazing odds to return to baseball. He ultimately was the American League Rookie of the Year in 1983 and had a very productive 10 year career.
Ron's appearance with Big League Tours coincides with two of our baseball trips, the Midwest Tour 1 and the Chicago/Milwaukee Tour. Take a look at those tours and sign up now to see some great baseball, fun stadiums, and to meet slugger Ron Kittle at US Cellular Field prior to the White Sox game on July 3rd against the Rangers.
About the Big League Player Experiences - Get inside the game like never before when you meet up with Big League ballplayers on each of our baseball road trips. Players like Vida Blue, Bill Lee, Dave Parker and Tom Browning have joined us on our tours. Join us on a Big League Tours and you'll see what our guests tell us is the favorite part of their experience. See more about the Player Experiences.
The East Coast Tour Special Extended to Feb. 20
We know that planning your luxury baseball package takes time. Especially one like our East Coast- Touch ‘em All Out East Tour that hits the road June 21-28. Maybe you need to put in a vacation request at work, find someone to house sit, or get a kennel for dogs. Whatever the circumstance, we want to give you time to make plans to join us. So, we are extending our East Coast Tour Special to Feb. 20. Just click on the links below for the East Coast Tour webpage and brochure. More info on the Special is at the bottom of the email. Please let us know if you have any questions.
Here’s the link to the Full East Coast Tour- Touch ‘em All Out East
Here’s the link to get a printable/shareable brochure- East Coast Brochure
EAST COAST TOUR SPECIAL
Book the East Coast- Touch ‘em All Out East Tour between now and the end of the day on Monday, Feb. 20 and get 10% OFF the regular tour price. That’s a savings of $718 for a double occupancy room package, or over $1,200 in savings for a 4 person per room package. Call or email with questions. Or click here to begin booking the tour- PURCHASE THE EAST COAST TOUR
We often talk about how much we enjoy exploring local restaurants when we're on our baseball tours across the country. Besides asking the locals for recommendations or just stumbling into our own finds, we often map out our meals based on places we've seen on Food Network or the Travel Channel.
Now that job has just been made easier...
Here's a site, TV Food Maps, that allows you to search for restaurants based on the show, the episode or the location of the business. This is great if you saw a show featuring a business that you wanted to see but you couldn't remember the name.
For instance, Guy Fieri featured a Baltimore pit barbeque shop on Diners, Drive-ins & Dives, but I couldn't remember the name of it. A quick search on this app reveals that it is Chaps Pit Beef. So now as I plan my trip to Baltimore on our East Coast Baseball Tour this summer, I can be sure to
incorporate a visit to Chaps.
We've enjoyed some great dining experience on our tours as a result of these shows. Here are some past blogs that featured our stops: Lucky's Cafe (Cleveland), The Stand (NYC), and Flip Burger (Atlanta).
Here's a shot of the Cheddar Biscuits and Gravy (above) that we tried at Lucky's Cafe in Cleveland last year. They were fantastic. After talking with Chef Heather Haviland for a few minutes, she brought out a blueberry float for my son to try. It must have been good because he didn't let anyone else at the table have a chance to sample it! You know that our tour guide will be making their way over to Lucky's on our Midwest 2 tour again this year!
So check out the TV Food Maps app and use it when you are planning your baseball trips and tours this summer. Or better yet, join up with us on a 2012 baseball tour and we'll experience them together!!
Vida Blue - Following his Major League debut the summer of 1969, Vida was the 1971 American League Cy
Young Award winner and Most Valuable Player. As part of the Oakland A's, he won three World Series Championships in 1972, 1973 and 1974. He appeared in six All Star Games and was the first pitcher to start an All Star game for both leagues.
Blue played for three teams - the A’s, Giants, Royals. He was traded to Giants in 1978 for 8 players and $390K and promptly won 18 games that year. The Mansfield, Louisiana native resides near San Francisco and actively promotes the game of baseball. You can see more of Blue's statistics on the MLB.com site.
We're very excited about the returning of Vida Blue as part of our Big League Player Experiences on our West Coast and Bay Area Tours. Vida has made a couple of appearances for us (appearance in 2006 at Chop House above and in 2008 below at AT&T Park during Giants batting practice) and is always a fan favorite.
About the Big League Player Experiences - Get inside the game like never before when you meet up with Big League ballplayers on each of our baseball road trips. Players like Vida Blue, Bill Lee, Dave Parker and Tom Browning have joined us on our tours. Join us on a Big League Tours and you'll see what our guests tell us is the favorite part of their experience. See more about the Player Experiences.
The Baseball Aficianado's Dream!!
Do you want to get a big jump-start on your baseball bucket list? Then join Big League Tours on the Touch ‘em All Out East luxury baseball vacation. This extensive tour will visit Nationals Park, Camden Yards, Citizens Bank Park, Yankee Stadium, Citi Field, Fenway Park, and the Baseball Hall of Fame. Guests will be close to the action at every ballpark with Big League Tours’ Lower Level Seat Guarantee.
As always, the tour group will stay in the heart of the cities with luxury hotel accommodations 
near the great attractions and sites in each location. And, with Big League Tours' Sensible Itineraries, there will actually be time to enjoy them all. Add in an exclusive meet and greet with the Big League Tours' MLB player experience; Stadium Tours; On Site BLT Host; In-Room Welcome Gift; and you have a baseball vacation that will give you a lifetime of memories. Learn more about the Big Difference with Big League Tours.
Here’s the link to the Full East Coast Tour- Touch ‘em All Out East
Here’s the link to get a printable/shareable brochure- East Coast Brochure
I awoke to a light blanket of white covering my lawn and the smallest of snowflakes falling from gray skies this morning. As my eye caught a bird (not the spring-announcing robin I’d hope to see) consuming berries from a snow-covered tree outside my kitchen window, I was left wondering when spring will truly be here to stay.
Super Bowl XLVI was blessed last week when central Indiana’s temperatures roared past unseasonably warm status. As temperatures hovered near 60°, my boys were able to get outdoors and rid their young bodies of excessive amounts of stored energy, breathe in fresh air and, yes, slip their hands into their worn, leather mitts and play some baseball. I was so eager to shout aloud that Punxsutawney Phil's forecast was dead wrong, but had to remind myself that it was the first week of February and the weather would continue to be anything but consistently full of sunshine, warm and beautiful here in Indiana.
But February, sweet February! It’s during THIS gloomy, chilled time of the year when pitchers and catchers report to prepare for the upcoming baseball season. It’s February that marks the beginning of spring training. It’s February when MLB teams begin speaking publicly of their new prospects. Can you feel the excitement? Is it rushing through your veins and warming your soul? If not, hop on Twitter! Players are tweeting of workouts and preparing to pack, the media are counting down the days, and blog writers are itching to once again find the daily rhythm of writing about the sport that has captured their hearts.
The warm streak of last week has passed. The cold, frigid air is real. But as I watch the blanket of snow disappear as we approach the noon hour I ask myself, who really needs a robin to tell you spring is coming? You don’t have to look hard to see that all the signs indicate it’s already well on its way. Baseball games are fast approaching, are you ready? If not, start preparing! It’s already February!
Can I brag on my home town just a little? We've been hearing about the 2012 Super Bowl in 
Indy for quite a few years. But it's finally here and it has been absolutely amazing!
Indianapolis is known for hosting events and doing so very well. After all, this is a favored spot for the NCAA mens and womens basketball tournaments - whether opening rounds or the Final Four. The Big Ten Conference has held both basketball and football championships here. In addition, the city is home to or has hosted world renowned sporting events (Indy 500, Brickyard 400, PanAm games, and Olympic qualifications, to name a few), conferences and conventions and handles them all with ease.
But nothing in the city has compared to what they've done for the Super Bowl. Several square blocks have been closed to auto traffic to create the Super Bowl Village. Stages have been setup along the streets. 
Restaurants have extended their seating onto the sidewalks. Vendors are all over the city. And the activity is amazing.
Here are a couple of photos from downtown. The first is the image of the Lombardi Trophy on the side of the brand new JW Marriott hotel. The second was taken while walking around the Super Bowl Village.
The city and visitors have been blessed with fantastic weather this week. It's been in the high-50's most days making it very comfortable to be out and walk around. Hopefully things will continue to hold through this weekend so that the world will see Indy at its finest.
Congrats to the City, the Super Bowl Committee, and the thousands of volunteers who have made this all happen!
The Big League Tours' Midwest 2 Tour will make its way to four great, newer ballparks to see eight different teams vying for playoff positions.
Our guests will arrive in Cincinnati on Wed., July 18th to check into the hotel and prepare for their luxury baseball vacation. On Thurs., we'll head over to Great American Ball Park for an early afternoon game with plenty of time after to visit the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum. Cincinnati area sportscaster, Will Chambers, recently blogged about his favorite things at GABP. Here's a link to that blog post Will Chambers on Great American.
Friday morning takes our tour up to Detroit to see Prince Fielder and the Tigers battle the White Sox in an evening contest. We're off to Cleveland the next day for the Indians game at 7:05PM. We plan to arrive in Cleveland with plenty of time for you to visit the sites before the game. Want to check out the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Just ask your tour director to help make the arrangements.
Finally, our tour ends in one of our favorite ballparks- PNC in Pittsburgh. Here's a link to a blog by SI.com writer Will Carroll about PNC- Will Carroll on PNC Park.
As always, you can expect a Big League Player experience, lower level seats, first class hotels, sensible itineraries and all the BLT extras. CLICK HERE for the complete info on the Midwest 2 Tour. A printable/shareable brochure is available for the Midwest 2 Tour. Click on this link MIDWEST 2 BROCHURE to get access to the brochure.
Book by Feb. 8 and dinner is on us!
Book the Midwest 2 Tour by the end of the day on Feb. 8 and we'll buy you dinner* at the Palomino Restaurant and Bar in Cincinnati after the game on July 19th. Just use the coupon code DINNER when purchasing your tour. Ready to purchase your tour? Here's our RESERVATION PAGE.
*Dinner gift certificate value is $150. One gift certificate per room booked. Not valid with any other offers or discounts.
Big League Tours is happy to customize your baseball vacation package to fit your travel requirements. On longer tours, like the West Coast, East Coast, and Midwest 1, we can take a day or two off the beginning or end of the published tour. Just send us an email, or give us a call, and we will be happy to provide a price quote.
We can also customize your standard tour with additional options. For instance, just let us know if you would like to take a city tour, visit a museum, or check out the local food scene. We'll be happy to recommend our favorites, as well as, take care of the details. Just let us know.
West Coast Tour Promotion Ends Tues., Jan. 31
Get a free hotel night on the West Coast Tour when you book before the end of the day Jan. 31. It's a free hotel night the night before or the night after the tour dates. For instance, if your flights will make it difficult to get to Seattle in plenty of time to comfortably get to the hotel, check in, and then get to the first game, come in a night early and we'll pick up the room cost. The other option would be to stay an extra night in Phoenix before flying home. But hurry, this promotion ends on Tues. CLICK HERE to reserve your spot.
GET A WEST COAST TOUR BROCHURE
Join us on the Touch 'Em All Out West Tour!!
2012 marks the first time that Big League Tours is offering a complete West Coast Tour. We planned this tour based on the responses we received from our Baseball Bucket List survey last fall. This tour will visit the great Western baseball cities with games in Seattle, San Francisco, Oakland, Los Angeles, Anaheim, San Diego and Phoenix. But, this is no average baseball vacation package... We'll get a chance to meet and greet with TWO former major-leaguers; sit in lower level seats at every game; travel by air between cities; stay in great hotels near all the action; enjoy a "Food" tour in San Francisco; plus all the other Big League Tours extras.
Get a FREE EXTRA ROOM NIGHT on the West Coast Tour when you book by the end of January!!
Book your West Coast tour before the end of this month and Big League Tours will give you a free extra hotel night per every room booked. You can use it go out to Seattle a day early or stay an extra night in Phoenix. You decide what would work best for you and just let us know when you book your tour. But, hurry, this offer is only good through the end of January, and is not valid with any other discount or offer.
Click this link to book your tour: PURCHASE THE WEST COAST TOUR
West Coast Printable Brochure Now Available
The full West Coast Tour- Touch 'Em All Out West is now available on the Big League Tours website. The brochure has all the up-to-date information and itinerary details. All you have to do is go to the tour page, click on "get a tour brochure", fill out a short form, and you'll have immediate access to the brochure. Then you can save it, print it and forward it to friends. Here's the link to the West Coast Tour page: TOUCH 'EM ALL OUT WEST!