|
12/2/2025 0 Comments A Day in Sparkle City2025 brought a little freshness to our semi-local baseball world. Relocated from Kinston, NC, the Down East Wood Ducks moved into the brand new Fifth Third Park, coyly renamed Hub City Spartanburgers. Spartanburg has not hosted affiliated professional baseball since their last team, a Phillies affiliate, left for Kannapolis in 1995. 30 years later, the “Sparkle City” looks more than ready to try again with the beautiful, new Fifth Third Park.  Logistics around the ballpark: A parking deck is already complete in left field. Things such as this are sometimes a secondary thought, but if you build it, they will come. I was happy to see I could park in a shaded deck for a very reasonable price. Fifth Third Park is built in downtown Spartanburg and is meant to help revitalize their downtown. Many establishments are open and thriving within blocks. Our pregame was a Mexican restaurant across the street. All the needs were met to help us be ready and excited for our Friday night game.
The Ballpark: The park itself breaks out of the cookie cutter mold that has taken over the minor league baseball world, at least the more recently built parks we have visited. Unlike most new parks, there is not a 360 degree concourse that wraps around the stadium. Odd but unique. In my mind, this helped me focus on the game and not watch what was going on past the field. There was so much signage around the park. There’s a blue “Hub City” on the main walking path. It’s great to stand with to take pictures. On the roof above suite level straight back of the plate is a LARGE red “Spartanburg”. There were other items and displays touching on local baseball history and other things relating to Spartanburg. These are great ways for the city to build an identity at and within the ballpark. There was also signage that indicated the affiliation with the Texas Rangers and their sister affiliates within that organization. Not only will the fans love their team, it helps them know the family tree to which they belong. Great touches for sure.
Burgers? Somebody got really creative and hit the spot for marketing. Hub City is a reference to Spartanburg, SC being a convenient hub location off I-85 between Charlotte and Atlanta. I’m not sure if the residents actually call themselves "Spartanburgers", but hamburgers and baseball seem to go hand in hand. Hamburger and diner themed hats and shirts and jerseys and anything else. Burgers are located at a grab and go stand, but were on such demand I actually didn’t get one. I settled for an order of fries then went to the topping bar. All the cheeses and sauces and toppings you could imagine. Also of note, the food areas of the concourse are very spacious. Your walkways will not be blocked as you try to find the food of your choice. Food also seemed to be located in categories. There was the burger stand, a Bojangles, and other stations that were very easy access. The food situation is very well thought out.
This was a great place to visit and I would love to go back, especially if passing the area, and I look forward to seeing the development of their downtown in the coming years.
0 Comments
BY: MATTHEW PRESLAR Yet another example of how the stars align for us… Due to local minor league ties, the Chicago White Sox are the Major League team we follow the most. Confirmed by our August 2022 visit, PNC Park in Pittsburgh has to be the most beautiful ballpark in the country. Combine all that with school spring break... And that's how we ended up at the Pirates 2023 home opener, with the Pittsburgh Pirates hosting the Chicago White Sox! And here we go… To make this visit extra special, we were joined by my sister (Dodgers fan 👎) and our kids who didn’t make our previous trips to the Steel City. It’s always a joy to share our special places with them. It’s also the first major league games I’ve attended with my baby sister. All this made for an extra fun trip!
At the ballpark, the first two games featured explosive offense, both teams capturing a win. Many home runs were hit including one in a losing effort by Andrew McCutchen. The series came down to Sunday. In typical fashion, when we sit close in the outfield the game is always low scoring. The Pirates pulled out the game and series with a 1-0 victory. The home crowd left happy. We packed it up and headed back to NORTH CAROLINA even bigger fans of the Pirates and Pittsburgh. And we are already dreaming of when we can go back!
This summer we had the opportunity to take an unbelievable family vacation across Tennessee, culminating at WWE's SummerSlam in the crazy town of Nashville. As with most of our family outings, we made a few stops at the minor league parks en route from NC to Nashville. Our first stop was in Kodak, TN to see the Tennessee Smokies (amazing ballpark!), followed by a night in Chattanooga, TN to see the Chattanooga Lookouts (less amazing)! Then, the real fun began...
1/22/2022 0 Comments New Year, New Website (Sort of...)2020 messed everything up. After visiting 8 ballparks in 2017, 18 ballparks in 2018, and 16 ballparks in 2019, suddenly our tally was back to 0. 2021 was a relief. Baseball was back. The energy was high! However, after relocating to Kannapolis, NC and becoming season ticket holders of the newly formed Kannapolis Cannon Ballers, our travel plans dwindled. We still made it to a few new parks over the summer months, but nothing like we'd experienced over the previous few years. With Matt's increased umpiring schedule taking over his nights and weekends, and the expectation that we will remain Cannon Ballers season ticket holders in the years ahead, we decided we need to change things up a bit on ballparkadventures.com.  Our purpose has always been to show that going to a baseball game is the best value in entertainment, and that isn't going to change. The way we share information with the world of baseball fans who happen to be visiting this site will.
If you aren't already following us on Facebook or Instagram, you should. We share photos and videos live from the games and throughout the off-season, and we love interacting with fans in the comments. Keep it up! On the website, you'll be seeing less REVIEWS and instead, more content about our fun at the ballpark — from different perspectives. Who knows, maybe even the teenagers we drag along to the games with us will have something interesting to share (besides raving about their love of dipping' dots!) So stay tuned. Keep reading. We're excited to keep sharing all of our Ballpark Adventures! 8/12/2021 0 Comments MLB at Field of Dreams!We are feeling excited and nostalgic about our 2019 visit to the Field of Dreams in Dyersvile, Iowa... and of course we're rooting for the White Sox tonight! MLB at Field of DreamsBY: MATTHEW PRESLARThe plan for the future was to one day settle in a small town that was home to minor league baseball. The setting would need to be one that fit our personality: a smaller town in a growing area and preferably a new stadium that would indicate a stable baseball market. In our years of ballpark visits we saw many areas to help us build a template. Under normal circumstances our world would not have had a 2020. Everything would have remained as planned and our schedule for this new life would be in seven to ten years. The children would be through with high school and hopefully much less on the payroll. Rebecca and I would still be young enough to enjoy a fresh start. We talked often of where we might be in ten years. BUT LIFE HAPPENS AND YOU STILL HAVE TO MAKE YOUR WAY!Even in the wake of the unusual, we need to see inconveniences as opportunities. Income changes, work schedule changes, and habit changes aren’t always negative, just different opportunities. Amidst the medical uncertainty and political turmoil, somehow the real estate market was doing very well. We learned we could make an outstanding profit on our house so we decided our future may be NOW. We began to research selling our home in Union County, NC and exploring the idea of finding that small town minor league market. To our surprise, we didn’t have to look very far! Just an hour away from our Union County home is Kannapolis, North Carolina. While we have been to baseball games in Kannapolis, this small town hadn’t been on our radar until 2020.
The organization rebranded to the Cannon Ballers and built a beautiful new stadium, Atrium Health Ballpark. While still residing at our home an hour away, we bought into Kannapolis baseball and became season ticket holders for what would have been a ONE HOUR drive for that many ball games... WHAT WE WERE THINKING??? 2020 happened resulting in several job difficulties. Problem? No, opportunity! Our future plan presented itself NOW, but could Kannapolis check all our boxes? New stadium indicating baseball stability, CHECK! Growing area which makes owning real estate a great investment, CHECK! A wife and children that never ask why, but why not? CHECK! Finally... here we are, on the morning of opening day, May 4th (please keep your Star Wars jokes). We own a beautiful home less than ten minutes away from Atrium Health Ballpark. We have great neighbors and love everything about life at the moment. Even though not “K Town” by birth, we are the new generation that will make this town a great place to live! 5/3/2021 0 Comments The Weekend I Went PRO!BY: MATTHEW PRESLAR
 8/16/2020 0 Comments Our Fantastic FaceOnce baseball was finally approved to begin the 2020 season, the Chicago White Sox (along with several other MLB teams) offered a chance for fans to purchase a cardboard cutout of themselves to be placed in the stands for the team's home games. We decided to buy one! At first, it was only going to be for the team's opening homestand, but the cutouts have been such a hit that they'll remain up all season! Our "fantastic face" is located above the visitors dugout. We caught a glimpse of Matt sporting his Kannapolis Cannon Ballers T-Shirt and his Charlotte Knights cap (both MiLB White Sox affiliates) in the screenshot below after Eloy Jimenez hit a homer during the opening series! He's the guy screaming/cheering under the "Sports Chicago" logo in the upper right corner... 
5/24/2020 1 Comment Back to the ParkBY: MATTHEW PRESLARWith government restrictions easing, more places to “hang out” are reopening. This includes Atrium Heath Ballpark, the shiny, brand new stadium in Kannapolis, NC. When minor league baseball resumes (probably in 2021) this will be home to the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers.  While 75% of our Ballpark Adventures crew is still not ready to immerse into this new world, I HAD TO GO. Leaving the family behind I went to investigate the finished product of what was to be our home away from home. We were going to be less adventurous this year and base our summer plans around what was supposed to be a special time in a special place. We had decided to purchase season tickets and be a part of the Cannon Ballers and Atrium Health Ballpark from day one. Plans certainly change. Baseball is still nowhere to be found. However, more and more franchises have found ways to attempt to be profitable while not actually hosting a sporting event. The city of Kannapolis is no different with their new park.  Atrium Health Ballpark was set to host its first game on April 16. The park is ready to go and is sure to be a showplace. With the city of Kannapolis using this as the cornerstone for downtown revitalization, the park is a major source of pride. Considered a public park, the gates are open and anyone can walk the concourse just as you could any city walkway.  Now to the business. The team store is open and full of great choices. The team’s new color scheme speaks loudly to anybody proud to be American. Red, white, and blue make for great looking T-shirts, caps, and other souvenirs. Make sure to stop in the Cannon City Supply Co. to pick up some of the best looking gear in minor league baseball. As for the main attraction: come enjoy a meal of your favorite ballpark food. Basket choices offer hamburger, hot dog, or chicken tenders with fries, cookie and a drink. I chose to eat a chicken tender basket while sitting in my season ticket seats. I looked out at the beautiful field and dreamed of better days ahead of enjoying a game with my wonderful family.  Even since my visit early Friday afternoon (2 days ago), more government restrictions have eased and more and more options are available at the park. While not yet pouring draft, several canned beers are available, including Baller Beer made by local Cabbarus Brewing Co. The team also opened a Nacho/Taco Bar that sells a range from taco salad bowls down to your basic chili/cheese nachos. This will surely ruin my good diet in the coming weeks. If you’re anywhere near the area make time to visit the Cannon Ballers. Buy some merchandise and have a meal outdoors. Enjoy the beauty of the stadium and take the opportunity to reflect on all in which you are blessed. Also, a special thank you to Kannapolis for allowing me to have a small piece of my normal life. It is very appreciated. Enjoy more of my day with the Cannon Ballers. 12/1/2019 0 Comments 2019 Year In ReviewBY: MATTHEW PRESLAR Attending over 20 ballgames and visiting 16 ballparks in 2019... we had quite an ADVENTURE this season. Take a moment to read our 2019 Year in Review!
|
Our Purpose is to show that going to a baseball game is the best value in entertainment. Baseball Makes Memories.
|
|