Ballpark Travel

In recent years, WAR (Wins Above Replacement, read more HERE ) has become one of the most discussed statistics in player evaluation. With the release of Moneyball last November and another amazing success story of the Oakland A’s (and the lowest payroll in the MLB, $49 Million) winning the AL West on the final day of the season statistical analysis could not be more in vogue. In order to earn a playoff berth this year, the A’s had to beat the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. At the conclusion of the 2011 season, Albert Pujols was easily a top-5 player and the main contributor to the team that just had won the World Series. Deservedly so with this status, he signed a mega contract that will pay him $240 Million dollars over 10 years. The Angels, as can any team that spends a substantial amount of money on one player can argue that by adding a star caliber talent, it will ultimately make the whole team better and provide an opportunity to win a World Series. The question raised is h

It has been a while since my last blog entry, since the last time I wrote, I have crossed off many new baseball stadiums and am down to the last few to see before making trips back to see repeat teams with new stadiums. What got me thinking about writing again was this weekend's trip to Denver, Colorado. This experience was so incredible that it needed to be written about. Over the course of three days, I saw Coors Field, crossed off a new state to visit (Wyoming), visited three of over one hundred local breweries and spent a day in one of the most amazing and unique tourism spots that I have ever seen - Rocky Mountain National Park. While planning various trips to MLB stadiums across the country, Denver was never high on my list. Turns out, Denver may end up near the top because of the other activities that I was able to experience while in the area. Amazingly, I learned that Coors Field, built in 1995, is the third oldest stadium  of all National League teams. Only the Chicago