RICHMOND, Va. — Back in 2014, I looked at Major League Baseball's master schedule on a day I’d be visiting my mom in Ohio, and I noticed that there was a game in Cleveland scheduled one afternoon, and a game in Pittsburgh that same evening.
I wondered, hmmm, would it be possible to go to both games? It seemed like a lot of baseball for one day, but really -- isn’t anything worth doing also worth overdoing? (A point that is quickly driven home with a single glance at the bookshelves in my studio or the 50+ hockey sweaters in my closet).
I decided it was an idea so stupid that I had to at least attempt it. Frankly, I was surprised to have even one person decide to go along, but somehow I managed to rope four pals -- Greg, Kenny, Jay and Craig -- into the idea.
All-Day Baseball was an instant and complete success, and always seems to treat us to memorable games, including the Indians’ balk-off vs. Detroit in 2014 and the Pirates second-straight come-from-behind, walk-off thriller vs. the Cardinals in 2015 -- easily the most raucous and exciting game I’ve ever attended.
We’ve managed to keep the tradition alive for four years now, setting a handful of dates when game times are announced in late winter and whittling down the candidates to that one day that works for everyone.
It’s not as easy as you’d think. An average year produces only a half-dozen or so days when the teams play a day-night schedule. It's even more difficult in cities where you’d think it would be easy. Chicago, Baltimore-Washington, San Francisco-Oakland and New York are a few.
Perhaps, because of traffic concerns, or some other reason, major league ballparks in close proximity very seldom seem to host games on the same day. Pittsburgh to Cleveland, apparently, fits that perfect distance.
This year, our baseball odyssey occurred on June 29 -- a 12:05 p.m. game between the Indians and Rangers at Progressive Field, and a 7:10 p.m. start at PNC Park with the Pirates hosting the Rays.
Along with friends Jay, his brother Adam (who’d made the trip up from Bethesda, Md.), Greg, Craig, and I departed Jay’s house in Kent at a little after 10 a.m., making the traditional stop for breakfast and supplies at Sheetz.
I stopped in the parking lot to snag this photo of my socks, bearing the image of baseball’s original iron man, Lou Gehrig. It seemed like a fitting choice for the day!
As we neared downtown, the traffic began to thicken. I had figured a Thursday afternoon game in late June would mean a thin crowd, but as we approached the ballpark and found all our go-to parking lots were full, I realized we might be looking at a pretty decent crowd.
The announced attendance would end up clocking in at almost 24,000.
We parked a few blocks away, far enough that we missed the first few Texas batters, including Nomar Mazara, whose home run would provide all the scoring for the Rangers on this day. Corey Kluber went eight innings, struck out 12 batters, and the Tribe finally broke through with three runs in the sixth, running away with a 5-1 win.
We chatted a bit with a group of guys standing behind us in Progressive Field’s charming District Section.
They all wore matching gray t-shirts, with Toronto, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Detroit and Cincinnati printed in blue and stacked up in the teams' official word marks. Turns out they were on their own tour, hitting the parks in those cities in a little over a week. An idea for another summer.
We were 1-for-All Day Baseball, and all that remained in Ohio was the traditional photo in the giant C, and then it was off to the Burgh. After about 45 minutes sitting in traffic, that is.
One of the more difficult decisions as All-Day Baseball goes along always seems to be the same: Where the heck are we going to have dinner? As time is always of the essence, and because I hate arriving late to games, I’m always in favor of upscale fast food -- think Chipotle or Five Guys. But I always seem to be outvoted. This year, we returned to Jimmy Wan’s in Cranberry Township.
We stopped there in 2015 and had perhaps the blandest Asian cuisine any of us had ever experienced. No offense to the fine people of Cranberry, but maybe that’s how the locals like it. Undeterred, we decided to give it another chance, on the condition that they kick up the spiciness a good bit, and, yup, all of our meals turned out just fantastic.
One thing hadn’t improved about Jimmy Wan’s was that the service was still a little slow. We got back into the car with about a half hour to spare and sped down 79 toward the North Shore.
Parking was a breeze in one of my secret, free spots, and we somehow managed to have our tickets scanned, buy a few adult beverages, and be in our seats in Section 128 (where another pal, DKPS subscriber Doug K, was awaiting our arrival) before the Rays were done batting in the top of the first.
One stain on a perfect day: Because it was a Thursday, the Pirates were wearing their camouflage uniforms, just as they had been for All-Day Baseball in 2016. While I endorse the thought behind the camo alts, I really miss seeing the Bucs in those beautiful white home uniforms. The new cap is a step in the right direction, at least!
It’s been a frustrating, up-and-down season for the home club, but on this night, they looked quite good. Jameson Taillon pitched very well, and the defense was efficient and effective behind him. Tampa Bay managed a few baserunners, but couldn’t string anything truly threatening together. Even John Jaso, who had a catastrophic weekend against the Yankees on my last excursion to PNC back in April, made a couple impressive catches in left and homered in the fourth.
With the home team leading, 3-0, I was already growing nostalgic for the day by the time we sang Take Me Out to the Ball Game, but nothing was guaranteed.
I’d been ringside for the Pirates’ blown lead just weeks before in Baltimore, but I was hoping the magic of All-Day Baseball would hold fast. And after two final clean innings by Juan Nicasio and Edgar Santana, we were a perfect 2-0, bringing our cumulative All-Day Baseball record to an odds-defying 7-1.
We took a few customary photos along the railing, and headed for the car.
We stopped at Sheetz again, this time time in Cranberry, for a caffeine and sugar infusion. Soon after, the torrential rain arrived. Even the weather knows not to mess with All-Day Baseball. Like I said, magic. I finally got back to my mom’s house by about 1 a.m. I was a little too jacked to sleep, though, so I got out the iPad and flipped to Dustin’s recap.
Going to two MLB games in two cities 133 miles away from each other in a single day is a ridiculous, slightly immature and completely fantastic way thing to do. If you’re a baseball fan, you really owe it to yourself to try it. If you have undertaken such an adventure, or if you’d like to know more about it, please hit me up in the comments. I’d love to talk to you about it!
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