Dayton Dragons, OH

Who
The Dayton Dragons are a single A affiliate of the Reds. They are, without a doubt, one of the coolest teams in sports. They're model should be ripped off by every other minor league team everywhere. I love my former home teams, the Scrappers, the Captains, and others. I love my current home team, the Lexington Legends. I must take my #21 Roberto Clemente hat off to the Dragons though. These guys HAVE PERFECTED minor league baseball.

The Stadium
Fifth Third Field was built in 2000. It hold over 8,000 people. It is packed every game. Seriously, check their web site. These guys sell out every season. They sell out BEFORE the season starts!
This is a great park too. Perfect. It is in a cool downtown setting.
Its a nice park, they keep it clean and orderly. The fans are in to the game too.
The team has 2 mascots, Heater and Gem, male and female dragons. They are all over the stadium. They look cool too. No raggedy costumes here. You will want a photo opp. They also have the one-eyed ogre, Wink. He is in an inflatable suit, like a Zooperstar. My favorite though is "Roof Man." A very non-traditional mascot, he is a guy in a super hero type costume who throws t-shirts off the roof.
Check out the score board too. It is amazing. It is big, and those Dragons breathe fire when one of the home team hits one out.
There is a ton of merchandise in their gift shop too. I think other teams are starting to realize cool logos and mascots sell well. Is there anything more cool than a baseball player dragon t-shirt?


The area
I think Dayton is a cool city. The park is near the riverfront. I think this is a nice, older downtown area, though some improvements are needed.
I love the air force museum here too. It is huge! A nice day at the Air Force Museum, and an evening at a ball game sounds perfect.

Why go
Unless the Air Force Museum has an astronaut speaker, or something really exciting going on, the Dragons are the thing to do in Dayton. You are going to have fun.

Why not go
Because you can't get tickets! Seriously, does anyone have a hook up?? I have had a heck of a time scoring tickets to games here. The stadium is perfect and cozy, but I wouldn't mind if they added more seats so I might be able to get tickets!