Day 19

Our hotel in Pittsburgh conveniently had a Panera Bread in it, so we got a hot breakfast there before driving to Baltimore. It is only about a 4 hour drive from one park to the other, but we had big plans for Baltimore. The Orioles were kind enough to give us complimentary stadium tour passes, so we needed to be ready at the park by 1pm. 

  We planned it out leaving plenty of time, but once again, we came across a park whose parking signs threw us off a little. We found the spot and booked it to Camden Yards. Rebecca’s dad and brother were joining us for the game and the tour, we found them and caught the tour just as it was heading out.  

We learned all about the history of Camden Yards, which used to be the home of various warehouses and a train station. The park was built in the last 30 years, but was built to feel old. The designer wanted a ballpark, not a stadium. We have seen plenty of both on this adventure, and Camden Yards really feels like a ballpark. We were able to sit in the dugout, check out the clubhouse, see the media spaces, and we heard quite a few stories about Babe Ruth, who started on the Orioles. He grew up in a saloon that geographically was in the same space as right field, and Ruth grew up to be one of the best right fielders in baseball history. That is pretty cool. There is a statue honoring Babe Ruth outside of the park, and we were let in on a little secret, there is a mistake. We won’t tell you what it is, but we challenge you to figure it out the next time you are in Baltimore. 

We were kicked out of the park for a while so they could set up for the game. We moved the car and then took a walk to the harbor with Rebecca’s family. We got a great view of the city and it was a nice walk. 

  Mr. Dempsey treated us to dinner at the ballpark that night. In the eighties, the Orioles had a Rick Dempsey on the team, so it was the obvious dinner choice for us to go to Dempsey’s. The food was great, and the table got to experience bacon on a stick. It was the thickest bacon we had seen, covered in maple syrup. Dinner was great and we made our way to the seats. In addition to Rebecca’s family coming to the game, Tim’s dad was able to come down from DC to catch the game with us too. He was on a business trip, and the timing worked out perfectly. It was great to have so much family with us tonight. 

Before our trip started in all of our planning, we really wanted to get tshirts for our group. They are perfect and list our tour dates on the back. Through a connection of Megan’s, our shirts were made and given to us from Marshall Sign out of Plymouth, Wisconsin. On the days we wear the shirts, we get the best responses from people who see us. They are always full of questions about our crazy adventure. We are so lucky to have such a great local business help support us on this trip and make the experience even better! 

  The Orioles were playing the Red Sox and there were plenty fans for both teams in the stands. Game 16 was a very low scoring one. The Orioles one and only run was scored on a wild pitch. We saw three plays go under review during this game, and two of them were back to back. 

When we were getting ready for the 7th inning stretch, and heard Take Me Out to the Ballgame start, but it was never announced. We joined in about a third of the way through and then sang along to Thank God I’m a Country Boy. 

The Orioles helped our home team winning average, and made Rebecca’s dad very happy with an Orioles win, and made Andrew happy with a Red Sox loss. Tonight will be another drive through the night adventure on our way to Atlanta.