"Baseball, hot dogs, apple pie and Chevrolet" was the beginning of a little ditty my dad used to sing on the way to Tiger Stadium or Wrigley Field each summer. Growing up in Michigan, we supported both Detroit and Chicago sports teams. Tiger fans by birth and Cubs fans by choice, we made the three hour trip to these famous ballparks twice each baseball season.

A diehard fan, my father liked to point out the history-making plays of former players of each home team. Every trip included his ruminations and remembrances from his own childhood, listening to games on a beat-up transistor radio with his brothers. As a kid these glimpses into his baseball past were boring beyond belief; as an adult, I've cherished these summer memories and sometimes wish I'd paid closer attention to his trivia tidbits.

One of his favorite topics of discussion was the number of records set at each field and by whom these records were attained. He had personal knowledge of hits by Hank Aaron and Mickey Mantle; he could recite batting averages of every infielder of the 1984 Detroit Tiger lineup, and he claimed that it wasn't the name on the Stadium that made it great, but the events that took place within its walls.

The summer before my dad died, we made one last trip to Tiger Stadium. We watched the Tigers play one of their last games on this historic field, and it was a sad day for each of us. My dad and I did not agree on much, but we did agree that it was a shame to move this team from one of the greatest ballparks in history to that which was named for a bank. When I think of Tiger Stadium, I think of Kirk Gibson, Chet Lemon, Alan Trammel, and the 1984 World Series; I think of Juan Encarnacion, Matt Andersen and Todd Jones. The only thing that comes to mind when I think of Comerica Park is a bank. That's all. It has yet to earn Ballpark Status in my mind.

My dad was partly right. What makes a ballpark great IS what happens within its walls. I have no plans to set foot within Comerica Park; the park hasn't yet earned my affection. But I will traverse to Wrigley Field every chance I get, and reminisce about my dad's stories of those who sat here before me and of all the firsts that took place on this field. And I'll think that it's not only what happens within the walls of a ballpark that makes it great, but also the memories attached to it.

Learn more about this author, Jordana Hammersly.
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