Day Nine – also known as August 19th to those not “on the bus” – sees us still in Kansas City, hoping to make up for leaving last night’s game (which, with the rain delay, went to 2:16 a.m. today) early. Click here for Day 8 details.
This proved to be a very good day, starting with a 10:00 a.m. cab ride to 18th and Vine – and visits to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and the American Jazz Museum ($10 admission for each museum, $15 if you visit them both. Less if you, like me, are over 65.)
If you are a baseball fan, you can’t afford to miss the Negro Leagues Museum, which gives you a look at some of the richest – and some of the most poignant – times of our baseball history. Located in the 18th and Vine district, the museum takes you through the history of the Negro Leagues – and individuals of color – across baseball history. The story is told with a wide range of films, audio visual exhibits, photographs and memorabilia of all kinds. It is indeed a history lesson. You’ll learn a lot not just about baseball, but also about American history, race relations and attitudes.
Satchel Paige pitches to Martin Dihigo, with Josh Gibson catching – on the Field of Legens.
While the museum includes exhibits honoring Negro League greats, its centerpiece is the Field of Legends – a museum-sized baseball field manned by nearly life-sized bronze statues of key figures from the Negro Leagues’ history.
There is so much here – honoring players and teams – that it is impossible to do it justice in the space of this blog. My recommendation, take the time to take this trip through a very important part of both the past and future of our national game.
From the Negro Leagues Museum, we made our way to the American Jazz museum (housed in the same building) – where we were able to get and eyeful and earful of the greats from this unique American music genre. The museum included plenty of listening stations to enjoy the greats (and even separate the music into the parts that make up the whole) and visual impressions of the history of jazz (from photographs and films of jazz greats to album cover art to jazz club neon). If you are a fan of jazz, this visit is a must.
After our museum visit, we took the advice of the locals and headed to Danny’s Big Easy – practically across the street from the museums – for Cajun food. There were four of us in our group and the reaction was unanimous – WOW! Great, and we really mean great, Cajun food; as well as a server whose “life is a party and you are all invited” attitude made the experience even more enjoyable. Among the items we had: Crawfish Etouffee; Jambalaya; Catfish Po’ Boy; mac ‘n cheese; wings; specially seasoned house fries; and hush puppies. We washed it down with wine, but when one of our group asked about a beverage called “Living Easy,” they brought us a free one with four straws. (Also of interest was the fact that they had Kool-Aid on the menu for three dollars.)
We were at Danny’s Big Easy for lunch, but in the evening, the bar/restaurant features a variety of entertainment – Blues, Zydeco, Jazz, R&B, Funk, Reggae, Salsa and more. We were wishing we didn’t have a ball game tonight; we could have spent the evening at Danny’s. Five stars, without a doubt.
Later, I learned that other tour participants took in such attractions as the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art (just about a block from the hotel) and the National World War I Museum (2 1/2 miles away, but within range of the hotel’s shuttle service). In addition, small groups took advantage of both the Westport and Country Club Plaza area shopping and dining opportunities.
A great night for baseball. The game not so much. Unless you were a Royals’ fan.
And then, there was the game. I’ve already touched upon Kauffman Stadium (see Day Eight, here). Let me just say that tonight was a great night for baseball – clear skies, temperatures in the 70’s and seats in right field near the fountains.
After two innings, it looked like a pretty good game, with the Royals’ Ian Kennedy and the Twins’ Hector Santiago locked in a 0-0 duel. In the bottom of the third, however, the Royals turned three doubles (SS Alcides Escobar, 3B Cheslor Cuthberth and LF Lorenzo Cain) and a single (2B Christian Cuthbert) into three runs – and the rout was on. The Royals held the Twins scoreless (Kennedy went eight innings and gave up just four hits and no walks, while fanning six), while tacking on one run in the fourth, four in the fifth, one in the sixgth and one in the seventh. The final: Twins – no runs on four hits and no errors; Royals – 10 runs on 17 hits and no errors. Of the Royals’ 17 safeties, nine were for extra bases: six doubles and three home runs (two for RF Alex Gordon, one for C Salvador Perez). Our Minnesota-centric group suffered greatly, We did, however, win a challenge on a close play in the bottom of the sixth – they can’t take that away from us.
Yesterday, I promised a bit more about Kauffman Stadium concessions. I did observe that the funnel cakes were very popular with locals, as was the Topsy Popcorn (which I tasted and would agree had just the right “buttery” flavor). Also high on the list if you are visiting Kauffman should be the the Jamaican jerk sausage sandwich, served on a toasted baguette with mango habañero salsa, green apple slaw and coconut chutney – at the reasonable price of $13. I’d follow that with the a Berrie Kabob dessert.
So, there’a a look at Day Nine. It’s off to Des Moines at 8:30 a.m. tomorrow for an Iowa Cubs game – the last game on our ten-day tour.
For more on Day One, click here; Day Two, here; Day Three, here; Day Four, here; Day Five, here; Day Six, here; Day 7, here, Day Eight, here.
I tweet baseball @DavidBBRT.
Member Society for American Baseball Research (SABR); The Baseball Reliquary; Baseball Bloggers Alliance.
An additional bit of information on Day Seven – for the full day, click 
Arriving at Kaufmann Stadium, you first notice the higher level of security (as opposed to all our minor league stops) … bag searches and metal detectors were the order of the day. Once inside the stadium, which opened in 1973 and underwent significant renovation in the late 2000’s, you notice the steep upper deck, massive “Crown Vision” scoreboard/video board in center field and the right field fountain area.
The Bloody Mary – $10 at the Boulevard Pub – was adequate: good pour; spicy, but not over bearing (it could have used a touch more tabasco and a bit of celery salt); it included a lime wedge, but I do like more substance in a Bloody Mary (maybe a celery stick, olives or a pickle spear.) Still at $10, it was a better bargain than the $11 beer. (One of our group reported paying $27 for two beers and a bag of peanuts.)
One popular concession item with our group was the “Berrie Kabob” – available for $7 at a nearby concession stand or from strolling vendors. They consisted of chocolate dipped strawberries, bananas and brownies (in various combinations) on a stick – and were delicious. If you are looking for dessert, this one is a hit.
Then it was on to the Holiday Inn Express, literally the width of one street from the parking lot of Rent One Park – home of the Frontier League Southern Illinois Miners.
hen it was on to check-in at the Read House Historic Inn – originally opened in 1872 and rebuilt in 1926. It boasted beautiful (and historic) rooms, complemented by the most up-to-date amenities. Sitting in the elegant, high-ceilinged, chandeliered lobby, you half expected Winston Churchill of Al Capone – both previous guests – to come strolling in.
For those not familiar with it, a Moon Pie is a confection – popular in the southern states – that is basically a portable “s’more.” The traditional Moon Pie consists of two round graham crackers, with marshmallow filling in-between, dipped in chocolate. The dessert has been around since 1917 and, for reasons unknown, there is a southern tradition of washing them down with RC Cola. In fact, at least two musical groups have had minor hits with songs based on the RC Cola/Moon Pie combination. Moon Pies, by the way were born and are still produced by The Chattanooga Bakery. They now come in Chocolate, Caramel, Banana, Vanilla and Strawberry.
Now, to the game. The Tacoma Raniers were in town – meaning we were seeing two first-place teams (Raniers 71-51, first in the Pacific Coast League Northern Division) and the Sounds 70-53, first in the Southern Division), playing for home field advantage in the upcoming playoffs.
As the beverages flowed, the smiles on our group expanded (and the volume of the conversation was amplified) – at least until the food began to arrive. Overall, it was a tasty and refreshing stop on our way into Nashville.
First Tennessee Park –which opened in 2015 – is home to the Nashville Sounds. The stadium, which holds 10,000, has very sleek design and, most notably, a unique guitar-shaped scoreboard/video board (a tribute to Nashville as Music City). It has a wide concourse that circles the entire field – offering great views from anywhere. Out in right field, you will find another unique aspect of this ball park – The Band Box, with its full bar and host of free outdoor diversions, including shuffle board, foosball, bean bag games, ping pong and – for a five-dollar fee – miniature golf. There is also ample seating (couches, lounge chairs, bar stools) and a very “I’m on vacation having a good time” vibe. BBRT recommendation: If you get here, go there.
First Tennessee Park is located on Junior Gilliam Way. Gilliam – born in Nashville – was an infielder (2B/3B) with the Dodgers from 1953-66; 1953 NL Rookie of the year; a two-time All Star; and key member of seven NL pennant winners (four-time World Series Champions). Before joining the Dodgers, he was a three-time Negro League All Star (Baltimore Elite Giants) and the 1952 International League Most Valuable Player (with Montreal). Considered one of MLB’s true gentleman – and a gamer who gave his all for the team – Gilliam is not only honored by with Nashville’s Junior Gilliam Way, he also has a Los Angeles park named in his honor.
We had good seats once again, down the third base line – and we saw a competitive contest, taken by the Reno Aces (over the Nashville Sounds) 3-2. Shelby Miller – a 15-game winner for the Cardinals in 2013, but sent down after starting 2-9, 7.14 for the Diamondbacks this season – went 7 1/3 innings, giving up just two runs on ten hits. He helped himself out with some key strikeouts (a total of nine K’s versus no walks). Miller, reaching the mid-90s, threw 72 of 100 pitches for strikes. In addition, he got a hand (or arm) from Reno catcher Ronnie Freeman who shut down the Nashville running game, nailing all three Nashville attempted stealers (second, third and fourth innings). The Sounds were, apparently, testing the 25-year-old Freeman, in his first game at AAA since being promoted from AA Mobile. He passed. There was one other attempted steal in the game. This one, by Reno, was thwarted by Nashville catcher Matt McBride. Not a good day on the base paths for either side.
There were mixed feelings about the Nashville Sound Wave (cheerleaders/dance line). Some of our group questioned whether baseball needs cheerleaders. I’ll stay out of that one. Everyone seemed to like the racing country stars – Johnny Cash, Reba and George Jones.
On this date (August 16) in 1954, the first issue of Sports Illustrated hit the newsstands. One the cover was BBRT’s favorite player of all time, Braves’ third baseman Eddie Mathews. The Braves’ third sacker – known as a basher (512 career home runs) and a brawler (he had some memorable conflicts with players like Don Drysdale and Frank Robinson) – was pictured hitting a home run. He would appear on the cover again in June of 1958 and August of 1994 (40th Anniversary Issue).
Day Three of Ballpark Tours XXXIV sees us remaining in Memphis, with a second Tacoma Raniers/Memphis Redbirds game slated for 6:05 p.m.
Being as major fan of the blues, I headed toward the Beale Street Entertainment District, where the barbeque is sweet and the live music starts at 11 a.m. and runs straight through to 3 a.m. It’s also where I saw quite a few of my fellow tour participants. I stopped to take in a few tunes at a handful of clubs before heading for lunch at my previously selected destination – B.B. King’s Blues Club. I could not miss visiting the original B.B. King’s location. I was not disappointed. The house band was great – back in Minnesota they’d be headliners – and so were the Memphis-style dry-rub ribs. I hung out at B.B. King’s for a couple of hours (or a couple of brews, depending on how you measure) before heading over to Autozone Park for the evening’s ball game (6:05 p.m. start),
It was another heavy, humid day – with storms predicted –which may have contributed to the very small crowd (as might the Redbirds sub-.500 record). We did not, however, get rained on. The announced attendance was 3,517, but I’d be surprised if there were more than 2,500. – and they were a quiet bunch, despite Memphis’ 6-2 win. We tried to get something going, but often all you heard was the “sound of one fan clapping.” Good seats again, by the way, third-base side this time.
At 9:00 a.m. on Friday, August 12, 32 baseball fans – myself included – set out on 
Libation and laughter (as well as supper) were the order of the evening. The group I joined headed to Ulrich’s Rebellion Room – a nearby Irish-style pub. Despite the rain, and some disappointment with the cancelled game (and missed fireworks and lost bobbleheads), there were plenty of smiles, laughter and toasts to our national pastime. And, imagine, the response, when the group learned the pub didn’t close until 4:00 a.m. and the kitchen was open until 3:00. That’s hospitality.
Major League Baseball has seen some memorable names over time. Recently, we’ve witnessed a hitter named Nick Swisher and a pitcher named Homer Bailey. In the past, we’ve also seen appropriately named hurlers like Bill Hands and Rollie Fingers; a catcher named Matt Batts; and a DH (recently, unfortunately, retired) named Prince Fielder. MLB lineups have also boasted the likes of Mike Colangelo (say it fast, an artful player); Carlos Santana (guitar optional); and Grant Balfour (not the count he is looking for). There are also names that are just unusual – Urban Shocker; William Van Winkle Wolf; and Boof Bonser (yes, John Bonser did, indeed, legally change his name to Boof.). Then, of course, there is one of my favorites – Wonderful Terrific Monds III, who never played in the major leagues, but patrolled the outfield in the minors from 1993 to 1999.
