Ultimate Baseball
Road Trip Blog

August 4, 2008 - This was our last group tour to New York for the season and it was a bittersweet one at that for all the Yankees Fans. For our first game we went to Yankee Stadium on Friday, August 1 to see the Los Angeles Angels take on the New York Yankees. It was an extrmely close game until the end where the score was zero to zero unti he 9th inning. 

Then in the 9th when Torii Hunter of the Angels came up to bat against the Yankees closer Mariano Rivera staring each other down Hunter put his wooden bat to the ball and sent it out into center field.  Hunter accomplished what no other player on either team was able to do the entire game hitting a nice single RBI sending one of his fellow teammates on their way home allowing the Los Angeles Angels to win the game in the last inning Angels 1, Yankees 0. 

Check out the game wrapup on the Yankees website.

Topics: New York, baseball trips, baseball stadiums, group tours, Yankee Stadium

The Baseball Road Trip Heads to Cooperstown
July 7, 2008 - After seeing a great game at Yankee Stadium, we loaded up the bus in New York City to head upstate to Cooperstown, the home of the National Baseball Hall of Fame. As much as I love being in New York, I always look forward to going to Cooperstown for the submersion in baseball and the slowed down pace of this great little village.

The Hall is a great place to visit for fans of all ages. You can find exhibits in every section that are of interest; whether it's your favorite team, favorite players, or fun facts, there are things to keep you involved at every turn.

This part of the baseball trip could be expanded. There is so much to see here that you could spend a couple of days just going through the Hall and checking out the little shops up and down Main Street.

Topics: New York, baseball trips, Yankee Stadium, hall of fame, Cooperstown

Topics: Boston, New York, Fenway Park, Yankee Stadium, MLB road trips, hall of fame, Cooperstown

Taking an Escorted Tour of Yankee Stadium
June 23, 2008 - One of the best ways to experience Yankee Stadium is on a stadium tour that gets you access into sections of the stadium that you would otherwise not see. Our started in the press box where I'm always reminded that, had I paid more attention in English class, I could have had one of the best seats in the ballpark...and been paid to sit in it!

We then made our way to Monument Park. I've been here several times but I always find new things to read and see when I'm there. This section of the baseball stadium really helps to solidify the position of the Yankees as the most storied franchise in all of baseball.

Because of a slight rain, we made our way through some tunnels to get to the Yankees dugout. While it's always fun to walk on the warning track, it was interesting to see parts of the stadium that I hadn't seen before. We saw the visitors clubhouse and their tunnel to their dugout. We saw pictures throughout the tunnel of Yankees through history. And we made our way through the tunnel from the Yankees clubhouse into the dugout where I shot this photo of the plaque with the famous quote from Joe DiMaggio.

If you haven't purchased a ticket for a stadium tour of the old Yankee Stadium, it might just be too late. The team has had such high demand for the tickets that it appears that they are sold out for the year.

Topics: stadium tours, baseball tours, big league tours, Yankee Stadium

Topics: baseball stadiums, baseball vacation package, Yankee Stadium, MLB road trips

May 10, 2008 - Despite finishing the MLB tour with a rained out game, the trip as a whole was a great time. We saw a game at Yankee Stadium, toured Yankee Stadium (and even got in the clubhouse!), received autographs from several of the players, took in the sites at Shea Stadium (although they were damp), and had our Big League Player Experience with Miracle Mets team member Art Shamsky.

Here are some things that our guests had to say about our baseball road trip:

           "Dana & I wanted to thank you so very much for the great time we had in New York.  We appreciated your thoughtful, caring attitude toward creating a truly once in a lifetime major league experience for both of us.  You have successfully fulfilled your mission of creating a first class big league tour." Dana G. and Darrel M., Grand Junction, CO

           "Christine and I wanted to thank you for the wonderful time in NYC. We really had a blast and the baseball experience was outstanding. As I stood on the warning track in center field at Yankee Stadium and heard the voice of the "Mick" , I have returned to the fold as a Yankee fan. The seats were wonderful for both games and Christine was especially pleased to get so close to the field and to the Mets. I am sure we will meet again!" John and Christine L., Athens, GA

            "We really hated leaving New York - love it there and loved the trip. You did a fantastic job putting together what fans want to do and see!"  Sonia and Patrick D., Bakersfield, CA

             "Tami and I just wanted to tell you what a great time we had in New York. It was a fantastic experience. We're already talking about taking another trip with Big League Tours!"  Joe and Tami M., Ball Ground, GA
         
            "We had a wonderful time on the baseball trip - you took great care of all of the details and it made for a wonderful vacation. We had never been to NYC before and this was such a fun way to see the city for the first time. The seats at the stadiums were great too - we would never have been able to get those ourselves. Finally, meeting Art Shamsky was a highlight. We had no idea what to expect, but we were really glad that we had the opportunity to do that. We have already talked about traveling with Big League Tours again."  Bridget and Jeff M., Rochester Hills, MI

Topics: baseball road trips, big league tours, MLB tours, testimonials, Yankee Stadium

Topics: stadium tours, baseball stadiums, MLB tours, Yankee Stadium

May 9, 2008 - We began the day with an escorted tour of Yankee Stadium. There was a steady rain this morning but we didn't mind as we were able to take in some great sites around the park. The stadium tour began in the press box. Absolutely a great view of the park from there.

We then walked out to Monument Park to see the plaques of the retired numbers and the monuments of the Yankees' greatest players. Several people in our group had never been in Monument Park before. It's something that everyone should experience, whether you are a Yankee fan or not.

We then walked around the warning track to the Yankees' dugout. It's a great place to sit and dream of what it's like to be a big league player. We took several pictures in the dugout, including the one on the right. Here are a handful of our travelers on the tour.

We then had the privilege of going into the Yankees' clubhouse. It was great to see where they hang out while at the park. It's smaller than many of the new clubhouses (but I'm sure that will change next year!). That said, it was still a religious experience for many in our group tour. It even brought tears to the eyes of at least one traveler!

We're hooking up with Art Shamsky, member of the Miracle Mets, in a little bit and then heading out to Shea Stadium to (hopefully) catch the Mets and the Reds (we're hopeful because it has been raining all day...).

Topics: stadium tours, baseball tours, baseball stadiums, group tours, Yankee Stadium

May 9, 2008 - The MLB road trip officially started today. We met in the hotel lobby and then took off for Yankee Stadium. Our group contains travelers from California to Georgia and several places in between. For many on our group tour, this is their first time to New York City. So to give them an appropriate welcome and initiation into the city, the first thing we did was head into Grand Central Station and get on the #4 train to 161 and Yankee Stadium.

We arrived at Yankee Stadium just as the gates opened. This was the third game in the series against the Cleveland Indians. The Indians had won the first two games so the Yankees fans were anxious for a win. They weren't disappointed as the Yankees' bats finally came to life. None were more alive than Jason Giambi"s as he hit a towering home run into the Tier Boxes in right field. We had seats on the third base side looking down the right field foul line which were perfect for seeing whether or not that hit stayed fair. What an incredible shot! The Yankees ultimately won 6-3 avoiding the sweep from the Indians and drawing them to 18-18 for the season.

Here's a shot into famed Monument Park at Yankee Stadium. Our group will be taking the baseball stadium tour on Friday and will get to see the Park first hand along with other elements of the "House That Ruth Built". The Yankees have left town to play in Detroit so we will hopefully have access to their clubhouse and dugout.

Topics: baseball trips, baseball games, Yankee Stadium, MLB road trips

May 8, 2008 - The latest Big League Tour revolves around the teams and stadiums in New York City. A few of the travelers arrived early in Manhattan to meet friends and family, take in some sites, or to head out to Yankee Stadium to take in a game.

Having never sat in the Tier or Tier Reserved levels, my son and I decided to see what it was like. (This photo was taken from our seats.) Frankly, we didn't think the seats were too bad. You couldn't always tell how well balls were hit since you couldn't see the arc of the ball. But from this angle, it's a great place to watch how players position themselves for different hitters, situations and plays. One thing we immediately noticed was that it was about 10 degrees colder (or so it felt) when we got to our seats. The wind was on us the whole game.

Probably the best part of these seats was that you couldn't help but get caught up in the magnitude of the ballpark. You get a birds' eye view of 50,000+ fans that have filled up one of the League's most historic baseball stadiums. I wouldn't want to sit up there every game, but it was worth it to get a different perspective of the game.

Topics: baseball stadiums, big league tours, Yankee Stadium, MLB road trips