Big League Dreams

If they build it, I will come. I had seen a discussion of a baseball/softball complex in Gilbert, south and east of Mesa and Tempe, so I had to go check it out. Driving on strange streets on a very dark night for only 7:30, I began to wonder if I was chasing wild geese. How would I even know such a complex would be open on a Tuesday night in March? The sense of adventure which just be a streak of stubbornness urged me on.

Big League Dreams has seven fields, and people play there from junior tee ball through youth leagues, adult leagues, and leagues for those of us in the "senior" category. In a large but compactly organized area, the complex also has an indoor soccer arena, a restaurant, a batting cage area and and pro shop. Each field is a scaled-down model of a current or former major league park. Wrigley Field, Fenway Park, and Anaheim Stadium are joined by Yankee Stadium (recently retired but rebuilt) and Ebbets Field, Polo Grounds, and Sportsman's Park in St. Louis.

Each field has a manicured playing surface, concrete dugouts, fully fenced playing area, and comfortable armchair seating. Youth practices were going on, with games to follow, and adult 12" softball games were also being played. In Yankee Stadium, men were playing some sort of scrimmage, so I asked and was given an at-bat. A hard single to left, racing to third on a hit by the next batter, then scoring on a third hit and my first day in Arizona was complete.

Build one of these near Chicago, I told them, and I will have to come out of retirement and play ball again!