Sports Illustrated it definitely isn’t, but an obscure trade publication called Draft, which claims to offer the “highest quality beer and beer-related content available on the market,” whatever that means,  recently rated Comerica Park the 10th best baseball stadium in the country.
        Which got me thinking about my Five Favorite Cities to visit around the American League:       
        1. Tampa Bay --  Admittedly, this ranking is purely personal. I have a condo in St. Petersburg, 10 minutes from the ballpark. I get to sleep in my own bed, with a much, much shorter commute than the one between Oakland County and Comerica Park. The ballpark reminds me of a mausoleum, but the air conditioning works great. And you can’t beat the Red Mesa for lunch.
        2. Toronto -- Any road trip that I can make by train,  then walk to and from the ballpark once I get there, belongs near the top of my list. I wish the Tigers went to Toronto three times a year. Maybe the Blue Jays could transfer to the A.L. Central and we could ship the Indians to the A.L. East so I would only have to go to Cleveland, my least favorite city in the league, once a year.
        3. Baltimore -- I admit it. I’m biased. I lived there back in the late 1960s. I liked the town then, and both the ballpark and the downtown area have improved dramatically since I worked there. The crab cakes are the best, especially when followed by a visit to the house where Babe Ruth was born or a walk around the harbor area on a warm summer day.
        4. Boston -- Like the historic city that surrounds it, Fenway Park is alive and packed with tradition. Great for sight-seeing by day, and the atmosphere around the ballpark is unmatched anywhere in America at night.  Unlike New York, which is a logistical nightmare, you can actually catch a cab back to your hotel after the game without taking your life in your hands.
        5. Minnesota -- When I was a kid, growing up in northern Wisconsin, I thought Minneapolis was the biggest city on earth. Now I know the exact opposite is true. There is nothing to do downtown and there aren’t many good restaurants to choose from. But the ballpark is close by --  that counts for a lot in my book -- and they serve ice cream in the press box.