Road Trip Day 2: Cooperstown, NY

Cooperstown, NY, is a great small town. Granted, it probably wouldn't exist without the sports tourism that makes it famous, but it's definitely a must-see for any sports fan. We started our day at the National Baseball Hall of Fame, which exists here because it is believed that the game of baseball was founded in Cooperstown by Abner Doubleday. The Hall of Fame is a beautiful building that contains a well-informed history of baseball and the influence of the game's greatest players.

We spent a decent three hours wandering through the museum, reading facts, taking pictures, and appreciating those former baseball players who have made the game as great as it remains today. Since I grew up in a baseball-loving family, it was nice for me to finally have the chance to "see" first-hand some of the game's history. I enjoyed learning more about Babe Ruth, Joe Dimaggio, Lou Gehrig, Roger Hornsby, Sandy Coufax, Yogi Berra, Roberto Clemente, Nolan Ryan, Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton... the list goes on and on and on.

I think one of my favorite parts of the museum was the small section that compared the all-time leaders in certain statistical categories to current players. For example, Ricky Henderson has the record for 1406 stolen bases. No one in the past or present even comes close to him in this category. In this area also, it became evident how good Pete Rose was in certain categories, but due to his admitted cheating on baseball, he'll probably never fully find his place inducted into the Hall of Fame. In addition, the area of the Hall of Fame that shows every inducted member is pretty special. It was really amazing to see the different players who have been inducted to the Hall of Fame since 1936.

Overall, I found the museum to be quite informative and interesting. Anyone who loves baseball would appreciate a day or two in this environment.

After our visit to the Hall of Fame, we had a bite to eat in a local restaurant. We spent the next few hours walking around the main street in Cooperstown, which contains a variety of baseball memoribilia shops. It's amazing to me how many of these stores exist in this small town and how many fascinating items they have for sale - baseball cards, t-shirts, souvenirs - anything you could possibly want related to baseball or baseball history can be found here. Definitely a pleasure for any true fan.

We also stopped by Double Day Park, which is a ballpark that is still used today. I first learned of Double Day when I watched A League of Their Own. This is the ballpart that is featured at the beginning and end of the film. The Hall of Fame does indeed have a section on the All American Girls Baseball League which the film highlights. I enjoyed seeing this piece of history as well. We also spent some time in a wax museum that depicts some famous baseball players in wax. I'll contend that it wasn't necessarily worth the money, but still interesting to see. The Abbott and Costello film of the famous act "Who's on first?" made the wax museum experience a little more worth the fee.

All in all, our stop in Cooperstown was absolutely enjoyable. Highly recommended for anyone who appreciates the sport of baseball in any capacity. You won't be disappointed.