A Weekend in Cooperstown

Last weekend was a special one for me. If you've been following this blog for a while, you might remember the yearly pilgrimage I make every year to Cooperstown, New York for the Baseball Hall of Fame Induction. It's become a bit more of trek since moving from New England, but I'm lucky to have a husband who knows how important this weekend is to me and makes sure that we are there every year.

Well, this induction was #30, and with my 30th birthday in a couple of months, that means I've never missed one in my life. Over the past few years, it's been even more exciting, because while I love seeing the old timers who come back year after year like Hank Aaron and Al Kaline, I have loved watching guys get inducted who I watched play ball in the 90s, when I was growing up.

This year was the largest class of living hall of famers ever: Trevor Hoffman (whose holographic baseball card I vividly remember getting in Cooperstown about 20 years ago), Chipper Jones, Vlad Guerrero, Jim Thome, Alan Trammel, and Jack Morris.

We did all of our usual things: walk up and down Main Street 100 times, shop at all the baseball stores, visit all the same displays in the Hall of Fame, drink cider slushies and feed the ducks at Fly Creek, eat all the Sabretts hot dogs, take photos in front of Doubleday Field, and, of course, get sunburned.

Our "something different" this year (in the past, it's been trips to go berry picking, visit Brewery Ommegang, sample at Cooperstown Distillery, and take a walk down to the lake) was watching the award ceremony for the sportscaster and baseball writer being honored this year.  Bob Costas was the announcer recipient, and he's been my favorite sportscaster for years!

The next 2 years will (hopefully) be the best inductions to date. Yankee greats Mariano Rivera and Derek Jeter have their first years of eligibility in 2019 and 2020, respectively. Can. Not.  Wait.  Cooperstown really is my happy place, and I'm already dreaming of our next trip back.