I forgot one… sort of. I watched a Kansas City Royals game at Kauffman Stadium from the window of the hotel I was staying in that was across the street from the stadium. I know, it’s a stretch.
Any of you minor league baseball travelers been to Parkview Field in Fort Wayne?
You didn’t miss anything, trust me. 
My best Exhibition Stadium story has nothing to do with the diamond and everything to do with the players. The year we moved back home to Calgary from Kitchener, I talked my dad into taking my best friend and me to one last Blue Jays game against the Mariners because I really wanted to see Mariners’ rookie phenom Danny Tartabull in action (more on that momentarily). Anyway, we got there early enough to catch some of the pre-game and the thing that still sticks out in my mind was watching Jesse Barfield and Tony Fernandez playing catch. Fernandez set up just behind third base on the foul line, with Jesse behind second and every time Jesse threw the ball, he took two steps back. After ten minutes or so, he had both his feet on the warning track in the right field power alley - Fernandez would take about four running strides and heave the ball with all his might to three-hop it to Barfield, who would then pick the ball up barehanded, check the seams, then fire it back on a frozen rope with little more than a flick of the wrist, hitting Fernandez in the chest on the fly every freaking time. Holy shit, could that guy throw - most awesome display I’ve ever seen.
If we’re going into minor league stadiums and hockey rinks, I’ve seen about 10,000 games at Calgary’s Burn’s Stadium which was home to the Class-A Expos for one year in the 70s, the Class-A Cardinals for two years after that, and the AAA Cannons for around a decade. The Cannons were mostly the affiliate for the Mariners, so I became a big fan of Seattle, watching them develop future stars like Danny Tartabull (who won the PCL home run title his first year there), Harold Reynolds, Omar Vizquel, Edgar Martinez, Tino Martinez, Billy Swift, and some guy named Alex Rodriguez. Ken Griffey Jr. skipped AAA ball entirely, so I never got to see him play as a farmhand. In their last year or two they changed affiliations to Pittsburgh before folding the team. We were actually out to Burns yesterday to watch our semi-pro team, the Vipers, playing the Yuma Scorpions, whose player manager, Jose Canseco, looks almost as 'roided up and cartoonish now as he did in his prime with the A’s.
I’ve never seen a game at Henderson Park in Lethbridge, AB (now known as Spitz Park and former home of the A-level Dodgers and Expos), but I did act as assistant coach in an all-star tournament in that diamond once back in the early 90s.
For hockey, I’ve seen innumerable Flames games in the Saddledome, including two playoff games during their 1989 Stanley Cup run. Also, I apparently saw Team Canada play an exhibition game in 1972 in Maple Leaf Gardens just before they got underway with the Summit Series, but I was 3 years old and too young to remember. 
The new Fort Wayne park has somehow escaped my notice until now! Thanks for bringing it up, I’ll have to go check it out.
I saw a Wizards game at Memorial Coliseum in '95. It was the 7th of the annual trips I take with my friend (this year was the 23rd), and we were still doing some silly things schedule-wise. We’d seen a Saturday night game in Erie, PA and had to be at work in Chicago on Monday, yet we decided to stop in Fort Wayne for a Sunday afternoon game on the way home. After the 10th inning we decided we’d better go, so we didn’t even see the end of the game, and explored none of the city itself. Good candidate for a re-visit.
Dread Pirate Jimbo, did you get to attend any of the 1988 Winter Olympic games in person? (I’ve been to the Olympic park there, my wife and I did the minute-long luge ride. It was AWESOME.)
well I haven’t been to that many baseball stadiums, but I have seen a MLB game at Jarry Park in Montreal and a Washington Senator game at old RFK Stadium. Fenway Park, Wrigley Field, Comisky Park, old Yankee Stadium, Shea Stadium, Atlanta Fulton County Stadium, old Busch Stadium.
Two more that I’ve lost my chance to get to (for Baseball anyway). Saw the Expos at Olympic Stadium – like watching baseball in a library. We drove over to where Jarry Park was, and it looked like barely more than a Little League field. I’m guessing it doesn’t look the same as it used to.
Had a brief window for RFK when they moved to DC, but couldn’t schedule that in. I’m not mourning the loss of that one too badly though. Nationals Park is really nice, had a blast there.
You really do need to check it out. I think you’ll be impressed. I didn’t understand why they needed to build a new stadium downtown when Memorial Stadium (“The Castle”) wasn’t that old. The old stadium was still perfectly good, but pretty bland. The first time I went to Parkview Field my jaw literally dropped. The outfield views are awesome. There isn’t a bad seat in the house, and the food’s pretty good too.
If you do decide to come to town, shoot me a message and I’ll tell you some places to check out around the area.
Oh and the team name is the TinCaps now, that changed with the move to the new ballpark. 
The only time I really went out of my way for a game was about nine years ago when the Florida Gators (football) played Mississippi in Oxford, MS. I was living in Illinois but was about to start a one-month externship in Little Rock, Arkansas the next Monday. It just so happened that the game was that weekend, so I took a bit of a side trip to Mississippi before going on to Arkansas. Unfortunately, Ron Zook’s poor coaching contributed to a loss for Florida.
Baseball:
6 games, 6 stadiums, 5 cities, 9 days.
On Thursday I drove to Anaheim to see the Yankees and Angels. The next night I saw the Phillies and Padres play in San Diego. On Saturday I flew home to Chicago (from San Diego) on military leave. Saturday night I drove to St. Louis to see the Cards and Reds. Monday in Wrigley for the Pirates and Cubs; Tuesday, drove up to Milwaukee to see the Crew and White Sox; Friday, back in Chicago (at Comiskey) to see the White Sox (again) and the Mariners.
Also drove from Portsmouth, VA to see the Yanks play Oakland for a three-game set.
This was all back in 91-92, when my military responsibilities put me near a lot of big cities.
Football:
I went to Harvard…(to visit the campus)…while stationed in New London, CT. We saw Harvard v. Yale…The Game. Harvard beat Yale 29-29.
While stationed in San Diego in 1992, I had San Diego St. football season tickets. That was Marshall Faulk’s sophomore season. First game was The Holiday Classic (I think that’s the name) against USC in The Murph. They tied at 31. [I was at this game] I also saw the #1 ranked Miami Hurricanes destroy them 63-17 in the final game. As a season ticket holder I also received tickets to that year’s Holiday Bowl, where I got to see my beloved Illini lose to Hawaii.
I got to go to just one event during the '88 Olympics: my dad and I went to see the Red Army beat the holy shit out of Team Czechoslovakia, 6-1, on my birthday. I got to see the vaunted KLM line in action and I got to see Sergei Makarov take a dive so obvious that the refs just let him lie there at the Soviet blue line with his head down acting like he’d been shot while the play continued into the Soviet end. Makarov eventually peeked from his prone position to see if anyone was paying attention (they weren’t), then slowly limped to his feet and staggered to the bench – he was back on the ice at full speed on the very next shift. Douche.
I’ve been to Canada Olympic Park a couple times, including once a few years before the facility was built, when it was just an in-town ski hill called Paskapoo. On one occasion, I went to the top of the main ski jump tower for a dinner event, so I’ve had a chance to peek down the hill. Freakin’ high and scary, but cool! I’d like to do the luge or bobsled thing one of these days – looks like fun!
Sweeeet!
Woah, just barely!
47 MLB parks for the OP? How far back in time does this list go? The Seattle Pilots played for one season at Sicks’ Stadium before moving to Milwaukee. Is that one of the 47?
The just rebuilt Cheney Stadium in Tacoma; all new stands and facilities but I think the playing field is the same. Would that count as another stadium if you come again?
To branch out this thread a little, I’ve been to:
Olympic park in Munich
Olympic Stadium in Montreal
Skiing, bobsled, cross-country, and ski-jump venues in Lake Placid. They’ve built a new sliding track and I think the old one (used in 1932 and 1980) is falling into disrepair.
Sliding track near Park City, Utah
Lime Rock Park
Pacific Raceways (it was Seattle International Raceway at the time)
Portland International Raceway
Indianapolis Motor Speedway (drove a lap during the public open house a few days before the 500)
Nurburgring Nordschleife
It’s one thing to watch ski jumping on television. Go to the top of the hill and look down, and you know those guys are fucking insane.
Well, I started going to Wrigley and Old Comiskey as a kid back in the ‘60s and ‘70s with my family. I first began traveling for ball games in 1989, so I’m afraid I missed out on Sicks Stadium.
Here are the 47:
I wouldn’t count a remodeled stadium as a new conquest, I guess… But I haven’t been to Tacoma yet in the first place, so it’s still up for grabs!
Incidentally, I’ve also started collecting NASCAR tracks in the last decade or so, though that total is not quite as impressive (yet!):
I see books sometimes about classic ballparks. I always check to see if Sicks’ is in them. Only one season hosting a major league team; it’s pretty well forgotten. I’m not surprised it’s not on your list.
I knew there had been a lot of new parks in the last couple decades, but I never really added up how many. Fenway is coming up on its 100th anniversary, but I remember when they were building the Kingdome and it’s already gone. Seems like they’re awfully short-sighted these days.
You can get to 48 next time you’re in New York City.
49, actually, which is next year’s Plan A.
Lots of Minors in the area too.
I’ve been a huge Cubs fan since I was a kid but had never been to Chicago. When I was in grad school (this would have been mid-90’s) a fellow student said she was taking a road trip to Chi to see a friend and “who wanted to go?” 3 more of us did, so we all went.
I told them I don’t care what else we do or y’all do I’m going to Wrigley Field. The girls dropped me off at the corner by the entrance and I walked up, bought a bleacher ticket for $6 and sat back to enjoy the game. Cubs vs. Braves.
Top of the first and the Braves hit 3 home runs and take a 7-0 lead on the way to a 22-7 win. My one trip to Wrigley Field and the Cubs get crushed. But I figure that’s par for the course. Standard Cubs suckitude, and I was a part of it. I still have the Tribune sports page and box score for the game in my keepsakes box somewhere.
At least I got to heckle Deion Sanders who was playing outfield for the Braves at the time. Plus I got a photo of Ryne Sandberg at the plate.
Everytime I’m TDY I try to get to whatever professional sports team is in the city - or nearest by. Some of my favorite trips:
TDY in Quad cities, drove to Chicago to see the Blackhawks.
TDY to Yuma, drove to San Diego (Padres) and then on to LA (Angles) the next day and back to Yuma.
TDY to Eglin AFB, drove down to the Trop (Rays) on an off day for a night game, had to pull an all nighter driving back to be at work the next morning
TDY to Columbus, seperate trips to Cleveland (Indians) on a Sat and an overnighter to Detroit (Tigers) on a weeknight
TDY to Seattle, got to visit the Kingdome (Mariners), haven’t been to SafeCo yet
TDY to Marietta (GA), seperate trips to see Braves and Thrashers (bounus they were playing the Caps and I got Ollie’s autograph)
TDY to Ft Worth - Rangers
When living in MD, road trip to NY (Yanks) and Bos (Sox)
When living in MD Flight to Chicago to see Sox and Cubs
While living in CA Road trip up the coast to see Giants and A’s