Welcome to part 2 of the Bucket List Series! This time I'm inspired by Spring Training and the upcoming MLB season, SO I decided to tell y'all my top 10 stadiums on my bucket list! If this is your first time reading my Bucket List Series you can click here to find part 1, My Bucket List of Sporting Events!
10. Marlin's Park - Miami Marlins - Marlin's Park makes #10 only because it is so obnoxious that I think all should see it. The big fish thing in the outfield.. what? I don't think it is the best stadium in the MLB and definitely not the best fan base, but it's a new stadium that just has a lot going on. I want to see it first hand. Plus you can probably get cheap tickets since they like never sell out.. 9. Chase Field - Arizona Diamondbacks - They have a swimming pool. Uh, yes please! You have to admit that is a unique feature for a baseball stadium. If I'm going to Arizona, I'm at least going to check out the price for a ticket in the pool area. Wouldn't you? 8. Nationals Park - Washington Nationals - I honestly don't have a specific, justifiable reason for Nationals Park being on my list.. I just think it's pretty! Plus I've always wanted to go to D.C., why not catch a game while I'm there?! 7. Yankee Stadium - New York Yankees - Well I really dropped the ball by not making it to the original Yankee Stadium before it closed, BUT the history and stories live on for me to enjoy! No matter how much you love or hate the Yankees, if you're a baseball fan, you probably have attending a Yankees game in New York on your list. 6. Camden Yards - Baltimore Orioles - To be quite honest, I don't watch the American League all that much and Camden Yards wasn't an immediate ballpark that came to my mind. So why is it #6? Because any time I DO watch an Orioles game, or see pictures of Camden Yards it reminds me of how much I'd like to head to Baltimore and catch a game. I hear they serve crab cakes in the park too, which may or may not have made it move up a couple spots.. 5. AT&T Park - San Francisco Giants - I may not have liked it (still don't), but I grew up in the era of watching Barry Bonds hit homerun after homerun into McCovey Cove. It is, and will always be, an image that I associate with baseball. The stadium itself looks very nice with the brick wall in right field and being open to the Bay. I'm not a Giants fan, definitely not a Bonds fan, but AT&T park makes #5 on my bucket list of Stadiums. - Maybe I'll bring back the Hunter Pence signs if I get the chance to go! 4. Wrigley Field* - Chicago Cubs - Let me tell y'all a story - this past year I traveled with a group of students to Chicago on a networking trip. I decided (as the group leader) that we were going to a game at Wrigley. - I'd never been to Chicago in my 21 years of life and who knows when I'd be back right? - But before we left I had my mind made up that I would HATE Chicago. Let's be honest, if you are a St. Louis sports fan, Chicago sports fans aren't your favorite people (and yes, it goes both ways!). When you have your mind made up on something, it is REALLY hard to change it. BUT, I fell in love with Chicago and with Wrigley Field.
Wrigley remains on my bucket list because I can't wait to go back! I also got to experience it with friends, which was great, but I want to go with my family. Even though we are Cardinals fans I think that we would all enjoy Wrigley and it's a stadium I want to share with them, especially for a Cards vs Cubs game! Oh, and do a little day drinking.. :) 3. PNC Park - Pittsburgh Pirates - That. Bridge. You know the one. The Roberto Clemente Bridge outside of PNC Park. It makes the backdrop so incredibly beautiful! As a Cards fan I've watched plenty of baseball games on tv played at PNC and every time I say, "I want to watch a game in that stadium!" - As a bonus, David Freese would be there :)
Busch is special to this list because I've obviously been there before (just once or twice.. or way more than that..), but it is still a stadium I would choose over nearly all others any day of the week. I've watched playoff wins, heartbreak losses, and stayed until 2am due to a rain delay and every single time it's over I'm ready to go back again! So, it might not be a traditional bucket list item, but I'm leaving it here. Deal with it. ;P 1. Fenway Park - Boston Red Sox - The history, the Green Monster, the accents. What else could you ask for?! Okay, there might be more that you could ask for, but Fenway is #1 on my bucket list of MLB Stadiums! I've always liked the Red Sox, probably because I really dislike the Yankees.. but historic stadiums are my favorite. Going to Wrigley this past year really made me realize how the new technology and designs look cool and are more functional, but you can't beat history and old ball parks. So, if I had an unlimited budget and a plane ticket to anywhere for a ball game, I would choose Boston. Bring all the Yankee haters, Sweet Caroline singers, and Big Papi worshipers on! Honorable Mentions: *Dodger Stadium - It is historic, but it is the Dodgers. I just can't. - Plus people don't show up until like the 3rd inning and leave in the 7th. I cannot respect a fan base or stadium that allows this to happen.. I don't care how bad traffic is. Watch the game! *Kauffman Stadium - I grew up going to this park fairly frequently.. when they were bad.. You couldn't beat $1 night AND fireworks on a Friday even if the product on the field wasn't something to brag about. However, Kauffman is a beautiful stadium and I do think everyone should visit it! The new renovations have made it even prettier! - S/O to whoever had the idea of the fountains! *SunTrust Park - The plans for it look beautiful! And I'd love to spend some time in Atlanta (soon!), so I'm keeping my eye on this one! What MLB Stadiums are on your bucket list?! Any that you think I'm crazy for including or not including?! Leave your feedback below!
If you liked this Bucket List Series post, check out the first post here!
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So, I've decided to do my own twist on the popular bucket list, sports edition! Throughout the series there will be different topics. For example this edition features Sporting Events. - What can I say, I was inspired by the Super Bowl ;) - Still brainstorming other topics, but I can tell you to be on the lookout for a few others: Sporting Venues Rivalry Games College Towns & More to come! For now, I hope y'all enjoy my bucket list of sporting events! Let's start with the obvious1. Super Bowl By now you all probably know that I prefer college football over the NFL, but every year for the past three or four years I've paid more and more attention to the NFL. The Super Bowl is just one of those unique events that, I think, most sports fans would agree is a dream event to attend. I guess the only down fall is that you miss Super Bowl commercials if you're actually in the stadium.. I think I could live with that though. 2. World Series Hello, if you don't know by now, I have an obsession with baseball and have been known to watch MLB playoff games during class, work, family dinners, or to skip stuff all together and watch the game instead.. Yeah, don't count on me being anywhere in October if my team is in the playoffs.. Anyways, the World Series, what a dream come true to be sitting in the stadium, game 7, bottom of the 9th, down a run, two outs. Sure you could see your team win or lose, but it would be LIVE! The environment inside a sporting venue cannot be topped by a family home, local bar, or following along on Twitter. To be in the seats for the World Series would just make the excitement of the MLB Playoffs that much sweeter. Side Note: If I could rewind time I'd spend all of my college tuition money on a ticket to Game 6 of the 2011 World Series. #Amazing #DavidFreeseIsStillMyHero 3. College Football Championship There are few things in this world I enjoy more than watching a college football game in a stadium. Add tailgating to that and it's REALLY hard for me to think of things that top it. - I've been a Mizzou fan through good and bad. Heck just the years I was a student at Mizzou were a roller coaster! 2012 = bad, 2013 & 2014 = SEC East Champs, 2015 = Painful, 2016 = Better? But still painful. With all things considered, I've been there to rush the field after beating A&M in 2013 and I've been there when we lost a heartbreaker to Georgia this year and an embarrassing loss to Middle Tennessee. Ya know what? I was right back at Faurot for the next home game either way! If that next game were a National Championship I can't even imagine the experience that would be! -- Now, I'm a realist and even though I have high hopes for my alma mater, I don't expect to be heading to the Natty to watch them in the next couple years. - As long as the National Championship I'm watching isn't Kansas vs Baylor or Tennessee vs Florida State, I'd still be ecstatic about being there! Now, the not so obvious.. (I think..)4. Summer Olympics Because they aren't a yearly occurrence, I think a lot of people want to attend the Olympics, but that's not my reason. The Olympics are so special because most of these athletes aren't going back to play one of the major American sports and most aren't coming back to million dollar yearly salaries. They've trained, sometimes, their entire lives for this one chance that may or may not ever happen again. Gymnasts are the ones that really stick out in my mind. One bad routine could ruin their Olympic hopes that they've trained 15+ years for. That's insane! - It's also telling to hear people like Keri Walsh-Jennings talk about her Olympic runs and what the Olympics mean to her. The passion and love for their sport is amazing. It's not just Team USA's stories that make me want to attend an Olympics, all countries have these stories and this passion. It would be really cool to see that live. 5. College GameDay Okay, okay y'all probably can tell how much I like College GameDay (and Sam Ponder), so it might not be that surprising.. but watch College GameDay and tell me that doesn't look like one of the most fun environments you've ever seen! I want to attend so bad! Unfortunately it never made it to Columbia, MO while I was here, but here's to hoping they'll make it to my graduate school during my two years with them! 6. ESPYs I used to think the ESPYs were just a night for elite athletes to continue to get praised (& hey I'm not dissing that because I praise athletes, no shame), so I didn't pay much attention to them. I could just watch SportsCenter every now and then and hear the same stuff right? Wrong. - There are athlete and team awards, yes, but the people they honor and award who have faced adversity and difficult times are what have drawn me to watch the ESPYs the last couple years. Sure it's a great place to see your favorite stars, but it would be really inspiring to see and hear the speeches after they honor people like Leah and Devon Stills, Stuart Scott, Craig Sager, and many more. 7. College World Series - Baseball We all know my love for baseball and when I remember it, I watch college baseball as much as I can. It's not the big names, but if you watch some of those names in college will be in the Big Leagues shortly (hey, hey Dansby Swanson!). Plus, it's another chance for that Cinderella to show up and win it all. What Coastal Carolina did last year was fun to watch! That left fielder became my favorite human for a couple days.. - I've heard Omaha is a great place to be during the CWS, so I'd like to experience it at least once! 8. College World Series - Softball As for softball, well I played softball for 12 years, it had, has, and will always have a special place in my heart. As much as I love baseball, I like watching college softball more. It's so fast paced, amazing defense, dominate pitching. Ah, I'm getting excited for the season to start just talking about it! The CWS has the best of the best and it seems like every May, every game played at the CWS is a good game. I watch as much as I can on tv, but I'd love to just head down to Ofor the week. Maybe some day! 9. Either Olympic Gymnastics Trials or College Gymnastics Championships Gymnasts are amazing, end of story. The athleticism and strength they have is unreal. I can just watch an entire meet and be in awe. Some may not agree, but I think watching a full day of championship gymnastics is something I want to do (at least) once in my life. 10. MLB All-Star Game.. & Home-Run Derby.. & Celebrity All-Star Game.. The MLB has a good thing going with the All-Star Game, and I pray it stays good with the, now non-existing, home field advantage rule. People actually get excited for All-Star Weekend, fans and players! The events are a great chance to see the best against the best and to see players take the game a little less seriously than they do during the regular season. I love watching the Homerun Derby and see all the players with their kids hanging out, it's a side of those guys you don't see a lot. Unfortunately I didn't make it to All-Star Festivities in St. Louis OR Kansas City so I guess I'll be traveling to a new part of the country to partake in these events! Is your bucket list of sporting events the same? What ones would you add?
Leave the comments below, I'd love to hear from y'all! |
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