Philadelphia Phillies – Lehigh Valley IronPigs – Hudson Valley Renegades
What started as trip to see Bryce Harper’s final rehab game in Lehigh Valley turned into a three ballpark weekend road trip. As Harper began rehabbing, I had an idea – take my son on a roadtrip to see Harper play in a minor league rehab game. I’ve been interested in taking him to see the Phillies’ AAA team, the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. It’s about a four hour drive for us; a bit of a hike, but doable for a weekend trip. When the Phillies announced Harper’s rehab assignment it seemed like the perfect opportunity; he was going to play Tuesday through Saturday. I quickly bought tickets to the Saturday game and was considering going Friday night as well. After his two-homer first game there was suspicion that he might come back early. Instead of another game in Lehigh Valley, I decided to go to the Friday Phillies’ game with my Dad. This turned out to be a great decision. The Phillies decided to bring Harper back early – we wouldn’t see him in Lehigh Valley Saturday, but would see his return to the Phillies on Friday night. We added a stop in Wappingers Falls, NY to see the Single A Yankees affiliate Hudson Valley Renegades Sunday afternoon to make it a three game weekend.
I usually spend a lot of time planning our trips, carefully researching the best seats, what to eat at the ballpark, other activities in the area, and the best restaurants in the city. But for this trip I did minimal research and just made some quick decisions before we hit the road. And it all worked out; we had a great trip!
Friday, August 26, 2022 – Citizens Bank Park: Philadelphia Phillies vs. Pittsburgh Pirates
The agenda for day one was pretty straightforward – five hour drive to Philly with a stop to pick up my Dad in South Jersey. I had to work a half day, so we hit the road around 1:00. There was a bit more traffic than expected, but we managed to get in our seats just in time for the first pitch.
It seemed too good to be true when Harper walked to the plate with the bases loaded in the bottom of the first inning. We didn’t get a grand slam, but the two-run double was a great start to a 7-4 Phillies victory. We’ve been to CBP several times, including once earlier this season, so it didn’t up our ballpark count. My son and I are still at 7 and 32 (23 active), respectively.
Saturday, August 27, 2022 – Coca-Cola Park: Lehigh Valley IronPigs vs. Gwinnett Stripers
After spending the night at my parents’ place, my son and I drove two hours to Allentown, PA. Aside from the games, the activities in Allentown were all I really had planned out ahead of time. It was a pretty busy day:
- America on Wheels – Nice little museum focused on transportation over the years (bikes, cars, trucks). Free for kids on the weekend and only $13 for adults.
- Griddle 145 – We found this diner for brunch; interesting menu. Our meal was great and not too expensive.
- DaVinci Science Center – Geared towards kids 12 & under; my 11 year old had a great time. Lots of hands-on exhibits. Normally $15 per person, but free for me with my ASTC membership (see my Rethinking the Value of a Museum Membership post).
- Coca-Cola Park – I had read that the home of the IronPigs was one of the top minor league ballparks and it didn’t disappoint. My son enjoyed Jeep night, with Jeep’s lining the perimeter of the field before the game, and the post-game fireworks. Good selection of food that all seemed to feature bacon and their corn on the cob was excellent. We didn’t get to see Bryce Harper, but the IronPigs did manage a 4-2 victory. Walking around the park, it seemed like their were a lot of unique seating options including lawn seating in left-center field, the Pig Pen in left, and the Bacon Strip in right.
- Homewood Suites by Hilton: Allentown-Bethlehem Airport – This was just your standard hotel; good location for us, but nothing special. We took advantage of the pool Saturday evening before the game and the free breakfast the next morning. I used my Hilton Honors points for a free night; earned with my Hilton AMEX (use this link for 100,000 bonus points).
Sunday, August 28, 2022 – Dutchess Stadium: Hudson Valley Renegades vs. Hickory Crawdads
I hadn’t done much planning for Sunday; we had about a four hour drive home with the third and final game of the weekend around the halfway point. I did some quick searching for stuff do do along the route in the morning and found a couple free things to check out:
- Raymondskill Falls – The three-tiered “tallest” waterfall in Pennsylvania is only a few feet shorter than Niagara Falls. Located in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, it was only a short hike from the small parking lot.
- Tri-states Monument – Our second stop was the point where New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania meet. It was a little difficult to find and we had to walk through a cemetery, but Lucas thought it was super cool to be in three states at once.
- Dutchess Stadium – The home of the Yankees’ High-A affiliate is pretty small, but was a decent place to watch a game. The tickets were inexpensive and there isn’t a bad seat in the stadium. For the most part the concessions were just run-of-the-mill stadium fare, but they did have an interesting ice cream place – Sweet & Boozy. We tried a couple of the non-alcohol options (Gimme S’mores and Gliner’s Peanut Butter Blast); a little pricy, but really good. It was another good game with the home team winning 9-7.
We finished up an awesome weekend trip with a two hour drive and made it home in time for dinner. Looking forward to many more trips like this in the future.