Mapping the path

EASTERN MIDWEST BASEBALL

West Michigan Whitecaps

We begin our day in Grand Rapids, Michigan, with a trip to the Ford Presidential Museum, then check out downtown Grand Rapids and the Grand Rapids Public Museum before a Star Wars Night with the West Michigan Whitecaps, the High-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers.

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Another morning, another drive to another state for another ballpark and another game of baseball. Fortune smiled upon us.

Dad and I drove north on Highway 31 from South Bend into Michigan, then took Interstate 196 along the eastern shore of Lake Michigan, our views mostly blocked by sugar maples, eastern white pines, and more. The interstate bent northeast toward the rising sun and into Grand Rapids, the second-most populous city in the state with about 200,000 residents. We crossed the Grand River on the Pearl Street Bridge and pulled into the Ford Presidential Museum.

An Eagle Scout and captain of the Grand Rapids South High School football team, Ford moved on to the University of Michigan, where he majored in Economics and helped that football squad win back-to-back national titles. He turned down offers from the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers and coached boxing at Yale before his acceptance into Yale Law School.

Ford served in the U.S. Navy during World War II, first as an instructor, then aboard the aircraft carrier USS Monterey, which was heavily damaged in a December 1944 typhoon that claimed more than 800 lives and three destroyers. Once an isolationist, his wartime experience changed Ford into a “converted internationalist.” He ran for Michigan’s 5th Congressional District in 1948 and won, holding the seat for the next 25 years and finishing his tenure as House Minority Leader.

Ford was of course President Nixon’s vice president in 1973 and became president in April 1974 when Nixon resigned over the Watergate coverup. Ford’s brief time in the Oval Office — marked by struggles with inflation and a wide array of foreign policy challenges — came to an end with his failed re-election bid against Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter.

Ford described himself as "a moderate in domestic affairs, an internationalist in foreign affairs, and a conservative in fiscal policy.” An absolute budget hawk, he nevertheless voted for four Civil Rights Acts and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and he and his wife, Betty, famously campaigned for the Equal Rights Amendment. It seems a million miles from where that party is today.

Just outside is the museum is the gravesite of Gerald R. Ford and Elizabeth Bloomer Ford, an appropriately humble and understated monument for the Midwestern First Couple.

Dad and I drove into downtown Grand Rapids to grab a chair for lunch at One Twenty Three, a chic spot serving New American food that apparently also disdains hyphens.

Dad had the French Dip, which is his go-to sandwich; I had a great gyro as I kept tabs on the worsening weather outlook.

Grand Rapids was an early innovator in automobile manufacturing, with the Austin Automobile Company in town producing cars from 1901 until the plant closed in 1920. It was a small operation — Austin made a total of about 1,000 cars in those two decades — and the family decided to transition to real estate.

In 1880, Grand Rapids boasted the country's first hydro-electric generator — a sensible move given the rushing water we had seen on the Grand River in late June.

One highlight of the museum is “Finny,” a finback whale skeleton. The whale, which once lived of Florida’s Gulf Coast, was 75 feet long and weighed between 80 and 90 tons.

On my way back to the car, I came across a statue of Noahquageshik — chief of the Grand River Band of the Odawa (or “Ottawa”) Nation — who was one of the first Native American leaders to trade with European settlers. Known as Chief Noonday, Noahquageshik fought against American expansion into tribal territories, allying with the British and other Native American leaders like the Shawnee chief Tecumseh during the War of 1812.

On the nearby Blue Bridge that crosses the Grand River, I encountered a public art installation called Massimals: Grand Rapids, created for the annual World of Winter festival, which is the largest winter festival in the United States.

We walked up the stairs at the front gate and were greeted by a Stormtrooper, who was at least staying dry inside that costume. It was Star Wars Night at the ballpark, a Saturday night game with a big crowd. The team would do everything they could to make it happen.

Opened as Old Kent Park in 1994 at a cost of $6.5 million, the ballpark adopted the name of a bank — as so many do — from 2000-2021, and another bank after that. In early 2014, a fire gutted the suites, concourse, and clubhouse on the first-base side, but the team was able to rebuild in time for the opening of the season.

The ballpark is currently undergoing a series of renovations over multiple years to improve the fan experience and meet Major League standards, with new clubhouses, batting practice facilities, and bullpens moved off the field.

No fewer than 23 teams played minor league baseball in Grand Rapids between 1883 and 1951, and the early clubs did have fun with their monickers, playing as the Homoners, Gold Bugs, Bob-o-links, Rippers, Cabinet Makers, Furniture Makers, Orphans, Bill-eds, Champs, Joshers, and Billbobs. Professional baseball returned in 1994 when Lansing businessmen Lew Chamberlin and Dennis Baxter purchased the Class-A Madison Muskies of the Midwest League and moved them to Comstock Park.

The Whitecaps have enjoyed a lot of success in the Grand Rapids area, winning six league titles and averaging about 5,700 fans per game in 2024, second in the 12-team Midwest League. They were affiliated with the Oakland A’s for their first three seasons and have been with the Detroit Tigers ever since. Alumni include Ben Grieve, Ramon Hernandez, Francisco Cordero, Jeff Weaver, Brandon Inge, Fernando Rodney, Cameron Maybin, and Nick Castellanos.

With the rain still coming down, Dad and I took shelter in the CapSized Shop, in close quarters with dozens of others wet from the drizzle and the humidity.

Dad found his logo baseball of choice. I waffled extensively about my selection for my only and only hat that I will ever purchase to represent our visit to see the Whitecaps. These rules dictate serious, well-considered decisions that have eternal ramifications. I came into the day thinking I would go with the mellow throwback logo, yellow and sky-blue against a classic black cap. But I’m a sucker for a powder-blue hat, and in the moment I went with the alternate cap with the modern logo. I’m still not sure about that one.

The store included an example of the special jersey that would be worn — weather permitting — on this Star Wars Night. It featured a close-up of Ahsoka Tano, as played by Rosario Dawson in The Mandalorian, Ahsoka, and the Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.

Merch acquired and with plenty of time on our hands, our thoughts turned to food. Down the left-field line, the Queso Castle was intriguing, offering custom bowls of fries, tots, waffles, or mac-n-cheese topped by a choice of six cheeses and toppings.

But we both went with the much-heralded Tony Capp’s Big Beef Sandwich with high-quality beef, gooey cheese, and Chicago-style giardiniera. Absolutely fantastic.

Soon the rain dissipated, the tarp came off, and patches of blue sky peeked through parting clouds.

Between fans and the crew assembled by the Whitecaps, there were plenty of great Star Wars costumes on display. I’d make a pun here, but that would be forcing it.

West Michigan had just completed the first half of the season with a 31-35 record, in fifth place in the Midwest League’s East division. Their opponent, the Dayton Dragons — High-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds — had finished the first half three games ahead of them.

The action kicked off after a delay of about an hour. The pitchers looked a little more warmed up than the hitters, with both starters notching three scoreless innings without giving up a hit.

Despite the wet conditions, the field staff put on an incredible number of events between innings: a pop-fly challenge with slingshots hurling balls caught by a fan with a net; a race between a kid and mascot Crash the River Rascal; a perilous tiny truck race; a girl shooting arrows at balloons taped to a person dressed as a slice of pizza; a ball toss into trash cans; a Dizzy Bat race to second base; dancing on dugouts; and a race between a range, a water heater, a dryer. (Watch the episode!)

Star Wars characters roamed the concourse. Darth Vadar himself — Dark Lord of the Sith and the evil enforcing the cruelty of the Galactic Empire — generously posed with smiling little children.

The merchandise stands remained busy throughout the night, with kids buying toy lightsabers for the upcoming fireworks show and waving them about. They served as signals to all the other kids in the crowd that there were lightsabers for sale and that they too needed one immediately.

The floodgates opened on offense for both teams in the fourth inning. The Dragons collected four hits mixed in with a walk, error, and wild pitch to take a 4-0 lead.

In the bottom half, Dayton starter T.J. Sikkema, a first-round pick of the New York Yankees in the 2019 draft, hit two batters and gave up a walk and a single, plating three runs and ending his evening. His relief, right-hander Arij Franson, seemed unprepared for the task, giving up a stolen base, a walk, and a wild pitch to bring home the tying run for the Whitecaps.

As I took a last look down the right-field line, I saw the Whitecaps entire mascot menagerie approach from the home dugout: Roxy and Crash the River Rascals and Franky the Swimmin’ Pig.

West Michigan piled on in the next two innings, adding four more runs on six hits to take an 8-4 lead. And that’s how it ended. The final three innings went mercifully quick as the rain returned, sending most fans to the concourse for cover.

Fortunately for the kids, the storm relaxed just long enough for a fine fireworks display to end another late night on the road.