ALL AWARDS ARE BASED ON MY 2004 TRAVELS

WALTER YOUNG - BOWIE BAYSOX G - 3 AB - 13 H - 5 R - 3 HR - 1 RBI - 4

RUNNER UP .. JUSTIN MORNEAU

JUSTIN MORNEAU ROCHESTER RED WINGS / MINNESOTA TWINS G - 2 AB - 10 H - 5 R - 2 HR - 1 RBI - 3

BEST OUTFIELD ARM AMBRIOX CONCEPTION -- BROOKLYN CYCLONES

FIRST ENERGY STADIUM, READING PHILLIES - You arrive in Reading and you know you are going to see baseball, it's Baseballtown!! More than any other park I visited this year Reading mixed the game, promotions, and the experience. The game was always first. The new scoreboard, which is as clear as the new park in Philly, keeps score of the game. Its not concerned about excessive promotions like so many other parks. Reading is a great affordable place to watch a game and be entertained ... I can't think of a better place to name as my Ballpark of the Year.

RUNNERS UP ... FIRST ENERGY PARK, LAKEWOOD & ORIOLE PARK @ CAMDEN YARDS, BALTIMORE

RUNNERS UP :: FIRST ENERGY PARK, LAKEWOOD BLUE CLAWS I've said it every time I've gone to Lakeweood. The best ballpark design out there. If Lakewood would just cut back a little on the circus and focus on the game they would be #1.

ORIOLE PARK @ CAMDEN YARDS Every time you question is Camden Yards the best place out there, go back and remember it is. The staff really make this place work, they all seem to love the place and all uderstand that you are there to see baseball's jewel. Sadly, the football stadium took almost all of the parking so parking is a concern, but rarely a problem.

BEST PARKING -- DODGER STADIUM

DODGER STADIUM, LOS ANGELES DODGERS Why more attention is not paid to this area always amazes me ... Believe me, Dodger Sadium thought about parking. The amount of parking is undescribable ... Huge, efficient and a lot of exits .. Traffic flows in and out effectively. They even have there own gas station in the lot and the prices are not that much different than the rest of the city. RUNNER UPS:: FIRST ENERGY PARK, LAKEWOOD BLUE CLAWS More proof that they thought of everything here. A very large parking lot that seems to get more exits every time I visit. For the size crowds that attend games here, traffic flows efficiently onto the local streets that surrond the park. PRINCE GEORGES STADIUM, BOWIE BAYSOX A massive lot hidden behind BJ's and Home Depot .. Sadly, only one way out.

BEST ENTRANCE ::: FIRST ENERGY STADIUM, LAKEWOOD BLUE CLAWS When you arrive you would think you are definitly climbing a flight of stairs like so may others. Not here, in Lakewood you enter at the concourse level and walk down. MOST COMFORTABLE SEATS ::: JERRY UHT PARK, ERIE SEAWOLVES Wide seats with leg room .. All you can ask for. BEST UNIFORMS ::: Los Angeles Dodgers, Batavia Muckdogs, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons, & Salem Avalanche BEST BALLPARK EMPLOYEES ::: SALEM MEMORIAL STADIUM ORIOLE PARK @ CAMDEN YARDS PRINCE GEORGE'S STADIUM

BEST LOGO

NICEST FIELD

Keyspan Park, Brooklyn, Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, Jerry Uht Park, Erie, Dwyer Stadium, Batavia, & Oriole Park @ Camden Yards in no particular order.

BEST OUTFIELD MARKERS -- BUFFALO BISONS

BEST SEATS -- THE LIFEGUARD CHAIRS - FIRST ENERGY PARK, LAKEWOOD BLUE CLAWS

BEST SCOREBOARD ::: READING PHILLIES BALLPARK I MISSED MOST IN 2004 BECAUSE IT WASN'T IN AFFILIATED BALL ::: YALE FIELD, NEW HAVEN RAVENS My 2004 season never felt complete because for the first time in 10 years I wasn't able to make a run up to New Haven, Ct. The new stadiums in Bridgeport and Waterbury offered people in Ct. a more comfortable option, but those places couldn't be as warm and charming. 2003 BALLPARK I VISITED AND WISHED I VISITED IN 2004 BUT DIDN'T ::: WRIGLEY FIELD Like Camden Yards, if you haven't been to Wrigley in a while, go back and remember why everyone loves the Cubs . CANAL PARK I happened on to this Eastern League gem last year and hope to someday soon return.

BEST GROUNDS CREW
	ORIOLE PARK @ CAMDEN YARDS :: Unlike many of the stadiums that have made the grounds crew into celebrities, in Baltimore they just do a solid job and if it rains the field is covered quickly. And they do so effectively because they are hadly noticed.

BEST BALLPARK HOT DOG :: THE BOWIE DOG, BOWIE BAYSOX I went over the the grill in Bowie and saw for $6 I could get a Bowie Dog .. It is a foot long extra thick hot dog which also tastes good. Since Bowie has the neatest and most complete fixins bar I've seen in a ballpark, condiments only make this dog better. BEST OTHER BALLPARK FOOD :: DUNN TIRE PARK, BUFFALO BISONS Order spicy buffalo wings here and they have a kick .. Order hot beef on weck and enjoy a tasty sandwich not found in any other park I've ever visited. Wash that salted roll down with Labatt's beer because it is all the vendor carries here. RUNNER UP :: DWYER STADIUM, BATAVIA MUCKDOGS When the team name is the Muckdogs and the specialty sandwich is in Mucksauce, you have to try it. The chicken was so moist and tender, the sauce delicious, and the roll was not some Wonder bread roll ... Excellent!

BEST BATHROOMS
	Lynchburg City Stadium ...Why bathrooms are neglected is almost unexplainable ... But in Lynchburg, they had automatic towel dispensers as well as a clean bathroom. The photo is the men's room at Dodger Stadium ... Troughs have never really made it on the east coast.

BEST MASCOT ::: MUGSY & MISTY, SALEM AVALANCE RUNNERS UP :: BUSTER, BUFALO BISONS PAWS, PAWTUCKET RED SOX FIRST MASCOT TO HEAR TALK ::: MAXWELL, BATAVIA MUCKDOGS (he howls) MASCOT TO MAKE HIS DEBUT ::: RUBBLE, WILMINGTON BLUE ROCKS THE FIRST PRIMARY FEMALE MASCOT I'VE MET ::: CLAUDIA CARDI-NAL

MOST SCENIC DRIVE NEAR A BALLPARK :: THE BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY .. NEAR SALEM,VA

BEST BASEBALL NEWS SOURCE ::: www.mlb.com www.minorleaguebaseball.com Live updates of all games .. No outside source is better than the homes of Major and Minor League Baseball BEST TRIP GUIDE ::: www.minortrips.com 14 years of not taking a trip without it .. The must have guide to all of the Minor Leagues. BEST DIRECTIONS ::: www.randmcnally.com The Rand McNally Road Atlas No trip should be planned without my trustworthy co-pilot ... This site not only takes you from Point A to Point B ... But it allows you to go from point to point to point and then back home. BEST WEATHER SITE ::: www.weather.com All of my sites have links to the weather sites of the cities the parks are located ... Just enter the zip code or city and you can acess the weather by day / night or by the hour. Clear and accurate or as accurate as the Weatherman can be. BEST TEAM TICKET SITE ::: www.siyanks.com The Staten Island Yankees not only allow you to buy tickets online .. They also allow you to choose your seat by seeing what seats are available and taken. A great feature! SITES / BOOKS TO LOOK AT IN PREPARING A TRIP www.roadfood.com Roadfood the book Looking for a place to eat? This book finds those out of the way places that serve real good food .. The site is organized by state, cuisine, and others reviews. www.roadtripusa.com Road Trip USA Looking for something out of the ordinary on your trip?? This book will most likely have something for you. James Jensen has traveled throughout the country and has found some pretty interesting stuff.

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Agree?? Disagree??? Any thoughts?? UNCLEBOBSBALLPARKS@GMAIL.COM

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