Rebuilding Rob

This past Saturday, Kid 2 and I made the trip down to Cincinnati to see my hometown Tigers play the Cincinnati Reds; and to take in our first game at Cincinnati’s Great American Ballpark.

Isn’t that a great name for a baseball stadium? In this era of corporations buying naming rights to baseball stadiums, the Reds entered into a partnership with Great American Insurance, giving us that name. Could any name be more simultaneously, Americana and corporate America? The only thing I could’ve been better if they had put at “The” beginning and called it “THE Great American Ballpark”. You can’t get any more star-spangled or apple pie than that! But does the park live up to its name?

Cincinnati, is the southernmost city in Ohio. In fact, just on the other side of the Ohio River lies Kentucky. The stadium does a good job of playing off of Cincinnati’s history with riverboats along the Ohio River. In fact, there is a makeshift riverboat steam stack that can be seen from centerfield.

As the home of the world’s first professional baseball team, Cincinnati does a great job of paying homage to its baseball roots. Every year, there is a parade held downtown on the morning of the Reds home opener. I don’t know another major league city in America though creates this kind of spectacle for Opening Day.

And the Reds absolutely embrace the history of baseball, endless town, even though this iteration of the Reds is not the same as the original Cincinnati Reds. Directly adjacent to the stadium is the Reds Hall of Fame Museum. By many accounts, it is the finest baseball museum in America outside of the actual baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. Like most museums, it includes some permanent exhibits, like the Reds’ history timeline. As of our visit, the museum also included temporary exhibit spotlighting famous Red’s home runs. Naturally, Kid 2 and I made a point of checking it out. Check out my slide show from the Reds Hall of Fame below:

As I mentioned before, GABP sits just off of the Ohio river. Unfortunately, Kentucky doesn’t provide a breathtaking view of an urban skyline as you see at Pittsburgh’s PNC Park. But the Reds do a great job of playing up the history of the aforementioned steam boats that once moved through the Ohio River.

The ballpark tour (which most MLB teams offer) provides a look at some parts of the stadium that the average fan may not otherwise see. Having said that, a good portion of the GABP tour was dedicated to showing of the Reds’ premium seating options. If you are able to experience a ballpark tour, seeing the luxury seating and the dugouts, its a great feeling to have a ballpark to yourself (and maybe a few hundred other people). If you have the means, a tour is worth the money. Many teams even offer ballpark tours year-round.

Overall, I was really impressed with Great American Ballpark. I know this is a cop-out, but I honestly feel that every Major League ballpark is beautiful in it’s own way. GABP does a great job of evoking the beauty and charm of “the Queen city” while paying homage to the rich history of The Cincinnati Reds organization. Someone once said that a bad day at the ballpark beats a good day at work; and I couldn’t agree more. I think that GABP is one of the more under-appreciated venues in MLB. I could certainly fall in love with the place if I were to relocate to southern Ohio.

Of course, the Tigers winning Saturday’s game didn’t hurt either…

Thanks for stopping by Rebuilding Rob. Be sure to like, comment and subscribe to my blog below. It’s greatly appreciated! Also, feel free to follow me on social media as well! Check out my most recent posts as well as some earlier, related posts:

• Sunday is borrowed time
• Teacher Armor and the Saturday Clearing
• The Extra Day: A Ten-Year Memory
• Of Training Wheels and Christmas Lights
• Charity Starts at Home (And I’m Back in My Childhood One)

The article “Rob reviews: Great American Ballpark – Cincinnati, Ohio“ first appeared on Rebuilding Rob.