baseball and wine

Baseball and Wine: Minnesota Twins

What's an appropriate wine to serve at a Minnesota Twins themed party? What wine would be a good gift for a hard core Twins fan?

Baseball fans tend to think of the Minnesota Twins as a relatively new team – the Twins moved to Minnesota from Washington, D. C. in 1961 – but the team has logged 50 years of play in Minneapolis/St. Paul and boasts a franchise history that dates back to 1894. 

Baseball and Wine: Colorado Rockies

What's an appropriate wine to serve at a Colorado Rockies themed party? What wine would be a good gift for a hard core Rockies fan? 

The Colorado Rockies may be one of Major League Baseball's youngest teams, but they have made it into the record books many times since their debut season in 1993.  During that 1993 season, the Rockies broke the record for highest Opening Day attendance, the record for reaching the one-million, two-million, three-million and four-million single-season attendance mark more quickly than any other team and the record for highest single-season total home game attendance (4,483,350).  Although the team did not have a winning season, finishing 67-95, the Rockies also set a record for most games won by a National League expansion team.  Clearly, baseball and Colorado fans were meant for each other.

Baseball and Wine: Arizona Diamondbacks

What's an appropriate wine to serve at an Arizona Diamondbacks themed party? What wine would be a good gift for a hard core Diamondbacks fan?

The Arizona Diamondbacks are one of the two youngest teams in Major League Baseball.  The Diamondbacks and the Tampa Bay Rays (originally the Devil Rays) played their first seasons in 1998, the Diamondbacks in the National League West and the Rays in the American League East.  The Diamondbacks played that year in Phoenix's Bank One Ballpark, as they do today; the stadium was renamed Chase Field in 2005.  Chase Field features a retractable roof and an air conditioning system; used in tandem, these two features protect Diamondbacks spectators from the extreme heat of Arizona's desert climate.  Interestingly, Chase Field also has a swimming pool, which can be rented, although it doesn't come cheap.  Occasionally, a home run ball will splash into the pool.

Baseball and Wine: Seattle Mariners

What's an appropriate wine to serve at a Seattle Mariners themed party? What wine would be a good gift for a hard core Mariners fan?

The Seattle Mariners first took the field in 1977, after the city's former baseball team, the Pilots, moved to Milwaukee.  The Mariners are owned by Nintendo of America and have the unfortunate distinction of never having played in a World Series.  Nevertheless, Mariners fans proudly stand by their team; fan loyalty is one of the team's greatest assets.

Baseball and Wine: Miami Marlins

What's an appropriate wine to serve at a Miami Marlins themed party? What wine would be a good gift for a hard core Marlins fan?

In preparation for the 2012 baseball season, the Miami Marlins adopted a new name, designed new uniforms and moved to a brand-new stadium, Marlins Park.  Marlins Park will offer a state-of-the-art retractable roof, a wide array of food concessions and a newly-energized team ready to play ball in sunny Florida.

Baseball and Wine: Atlanta Braves

What's an appropriate wine to serve at a Atlanta Braves themed party? What wine would be a good gift for a hard core Braves fan?

The Atlanta Braves' history dates back to the very beginnings of Major League Baseball.  The team actually predates Major League Baseball by a few years, joining the National League as the Boston Red Stockings in 1876, five years after its founding.  The Braves and Cubs share the honor of being the oldest teams in the National League.  The team has played under a variety of names, including the Boston Beaneaters (1883), the Boston Doves (1907) and the Boston Braves (1912).  The team won its first World Series in 1914 as the Boston Braves.  In 1936 the team changed its name to the Boston Bees, but reverted to its former name in 1941.

The Braves moved to Milwaukee in 1953 and the team won its second World Series four years later, in 1957.  In 1966, the team moved again, this time to Atlanta, where it has remained ever since.  The Braves began to attract a lot of attention when media mogul Ted Turner bought the team in 1976, showcasing games on his television station and thus bringing Braves baseball into homes across the country.  Of course, the team's winning ways and strong rosters helped ratings, especially when the Braves won 14 division titles, five National League pennants and the 1995 World Series in the years between 1991 and 2005.

Baseball and Wine: San Diego Padres

What's an appropriate wine to serve at a San Diego Padres themed party?

Baseball and Wine: Milwaukee Brewers

What's an appropriate wine to serve at a Milwaukee Brewers themed party? What wine would be a good gift for a hard core Brewers fan?

The Milwaukee Brewers are named for the industry that made their city famous – and it definitely wasn't winemaking.  When new owner Bud Selig rescued the bankrupt Seattle Pilots and brought them to Milwaukee after their 1969 debut season, he deliberately named the team for the brewers that create the city's well-known beers.  Milwaukee baseball fans were thrilled to have a team once again (the Milwaukee Braves had moved to Atlanta after the 1965 season), and were especially pleased when Selig added popular, talented players like Hank Aaron, Paul Molitor and Robin Yount to the Brewers' roster.

The Brewers' first few seasons were, predictably, less than stellar, but by the late 1970s the team was winning consistently, thanks to the efforts of Yount, Molitor, Ben Ogilvie, Cecil Cooper and several other strong players.  In the strike year of 1981, the Brewers made it to the shortened American League Division Series, but lost to the Yankees.  The next year, the Brewers were back, ready to finish what they had begun the previous season.  They made it all the way to the 1982 World Series before losing to the St. Louis Cardinals, despite the excellent work of players like Pete Vuckovich and Robin Young.

Baseball and Wine: Tampa Bay Rays

What's an appropriate wine to serve at a Tampa Bay Rays themed party? What wine would be a good gift for a hard core Rays fan?

Florida's Tampa Bay Rays are one of Major League Baseball's youngest teams.  They played their first season in 1998, as part of an expansion that also included the Arizona Diamondbacks.  Originally named the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, the team dropped the "Devil" from its name in 2008 and adopted a new logo with a yellow sunburst emanating from the word "Rays," which appears in blue.  Interestingly, that very season, the team's fortunes began to improve drastically.  In 2007, the Devil Rays finished last in their division.  In 2008, the renamed Rays won their division and went all the way to the World Series, where they lost to the Philadelphia Phillies.

Baseball and Wine: Washington Nationals

What's an appropriate wine to serve at a Washington Nationals themed party? What wine would be a good gift for a hard core Nationals fan?

The Washington Nationals may not be the newest team in Major League Baseball – that honor is shared by the Tampa Bay Rays and the Arizona Diamondbacks – but when Liván Hernández threw the Nationals' first pitch on April 5, 2005, the team left its past behind forever.  The team first formed in 1969 as the Montreal Expos, but when the Expos moved to Washington, DC after the 2004 season ended, they quickly and wisely embraced their future in the U. S. capital, donning patriotic red, white and blue and displaying the signature "Curly W" everywhere.  In return, Washingtonians enthusiastically embraced them, building a classy new ballpark and patiently waiting out the team's rebuilding efforts.

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