Originally written April 8, 2008

In all technicality, this isn't the first time I've been to Camden Yards. Having grown up in Virginia through the 80s and 90s, there was no home team for me. By association by distance, Baltimore was the "home team" for most Virginians and Washingtonians. Problem is, that I dislike the city of Baltimore. Not nearly as much as I dislike Philadelphia, but it's definitely not a place I enjoy going to. In fact, to trump Philadelphia, not only do I not like Baltimore, I dislike the entire state of Maryland. It's a second-rate lump of land that rides on the coat-tails of Virginia, where kings and nobles are raised and live alike. Oh wait, this is supposed to be about baseball?

So despite the fact that I went to a Orioles/Red Sox game back in like 1995, for intents and purposes, I'll declare this as the "one that counts" game.

In all honesty, I stopped liking the Orioles when Cal Ripken, Jr. retired. Call me bandwagon, but I most certainly didn't like the direction that Peter Angelos was taking the team, and it was justified with over a decade of below-average mediocrity. But for the purpose of this site, and the simple fact that I love baseball, another, more fresh trip to Camden Yards was definitely in order.

With the Yankees in town, it was kind of tricky getting tickets, but I managed to acquire two tickets so that my good friend and I could attend. No way I'm going to Yankee territory without backup. And yes, I most definitely declare "Yankee territory," because this was most definitely a Yankee home game. Camden Yards was a sea of navy blue and black, and NY emblems everywhere.

Camden Yards is as beautiful as I remember it. Although, "remembering" is almost 13 years ago, so I don't remember much about the place. All I do know is that now, Camden Yards is clean, classy, and will always be respectable for the simple fact that Cal Ripken, Jr. graced this hallowed ground. On a hot July evening, it was perfect for baseball.

The funny thing is that some of the more amicable Yankee fans I spoke with, according to them, it was more fiscally appropriate for them to take their entire baseball loving family of eleven, drive all the way to Baltimore from Long Island, pay for tickets, food, lodging and fuel, and it was still leaps and bounds cheaper than it would've been to get comparable seats at Yankee Stadium for all eleven.

The game itself was enjoyable. When I have nothing vested in either team, I have to admit that American League baseball is simpler to turn off one's brain and just sit back and enjoy the beauty of the game. I suppose when there's no intelligence required in the Inferior League, it's easy to sit back and be lazy. I guess I was rooting for the Yankees, but it was hard to decide. Roger Clemens was pitching for them, and I think he's an asshole. But the Orioles - I can't root for them, on principle. Oh well, regardless of my conflicted allegiance, I think back to that evening, and I realize I enjoyed it as much, if not more than some of my other travels that year.