This year, my annual baseball trip with friends took us to Florida, starting in Miami and ending in Tampa.  Our 16^th trip was filled with delicious food, winning baseball and great laughs.

We landed in Miami and immediately went to Marlins Park to watch our hometown Chicago White Sox defeat the Marlins. There were a lot of great food options; I enjoyed the ceviche from Taste of Miami. The main highlight for me was talking baseball with Jeff Conine (Mr. Marlin and one of my all-time favorite players). After driving to Tampa, we did a little tourist stuff at John’s Pass, a quaint fishing village.

The Friendly Fisherman provided the perfect place for us to dine on seafood. The clam chowder soup was rich, creamy and chock full of juicy clams. We attended a night game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the San Diego Padres. Thanks to the hospitality of the Tampa Bay organization, we were able to go behind the scenes. The staff at Tropicana Field deserves special praise for their pleasant, helpful behavior.

Tampa Bay’s Coach Rocco Baldelli talked to us about his career and gave us his thoughts on his favorite cities to visit. I always like hearing opinions of players who do so much traveling. Baldelli gave us a few popular choices like Boston and Seattle, but he also highly recommended the Asheville, North Carolina, area. Tropicana Field has been the home of the Rays since their first season in 1998. One of the coolest features is the Rays Touch Tank in right-center field. It is a 35-foot, 10,000 gallon tank, filled with cownose rays, which can be touched by fans. Tropicana Field also houses the Ted Williams Museum/Hitters Hall of Fame, which is full of memorabilia from Williams and all of baseball.

We really could have spent hours inside soaking in the baseball history. Our final great meal was at the Reef Steak and Seafood. We happily shared and devoured five entrées, a few appetizers and several sides. This was the seafood extravaganza we all wanted. For 16 years the trips have allowed us to see a lot of great baseball while enjoying local cuisine and culture.

We’ve logged a lot of miles over the years, but more importantly, we’ve logged great memories.

— John Wroblewski, online contributor