Random Best Team and Ballpark Traditions in MLB (21 items)

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  (#1) Chicago Cubs

  • Chicago

  Legendary Cubs broadcaster Harry Caray used to sing "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" during every home game at Wrigley Field during the seventh-inning stretch. Since his death in 1998, several celebrities have stepped up to the mic to sing the iconic baseball song. There are the good versions, like diehard Cubs fan Bill Murray's many takes on the song. There are also some not so good versions, like an incomprehensible Ozzy Osbourne rendition in 2003. In 2013, the Cubs established a rule stating only local Chicago celebs or former Cubs players had permission to sing during the seventh inning.
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  (#2) Milwaukee Brewers

  • Milwaukee

  What goes better with watching a summer baseball game at the stadium than an ice cold beer and a sausage sandwich? The Famous Racing Sausages got their start in Milwaukee in the early 1990s as a simple cartoon racing on the scoreboard at the old County Stadium. Over time, the race became such a fan favorite that an actual sausage race started with Bratwurst, Polish, and Italian sausages. Today, during the bottom of the sixth inning, five sausages (Brett Wurst the bratwurst, Stosh Jonjak the Polish sausage, Guido the Italian sausage, Frankie Furter the hot dog, and Cinco the chorizo) head off in a wild race around Miller Park.
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  (#3) St. Louis Cardinals

  • St. Louis

  The St. Louis Cardinals may play their home games at Busch Stadium, but it's the Budweiser Clydesdales that are part of the storied team's tradition. During Opening Day every year in St. Louis, a group of patriotic-clad Clydesdales do their token high-step around the warning track of the stadium's outfield. Some Cardinals fans think that the horses bring the team luck.

  "We had the exclusive for a long time," Cardinals owner Bill DeWitt Jr. said, "But the Clydesdales are great. They are part of the Anheuser-Busch brand, but for Cardinal fans they are part of Cardinal baseball."
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  (#4) Washington Nationals

  • Washington, D.C.

  It only makes sense that a stadium located in the nation's capital features a Presidents Race. During the fourth inning of every Nationals home game, a group of America's presidents - with enormous caricature blow up heads - race around Nationals Park. The always entertaining race started in 2006. As of 2018, the contest includes George Washington, Abe Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and Theodore Roosevelt. 
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  (#5) The New York Yankees Play "New York, New York" After Every Home Game

  Obviously the song "New York, New York" has sentimental value in The Big Apple. It makes total sense that the tune is played after every Yankee home game. When the boys in Pinstripes finish a game, the Frank Sinatra version sounds over the speakers. The tradition started in 1980 when then owner George Steinbrenner, a big Sinatra fan, heard the crooner's version of "New York, New York." The boss loved it so much that he decided to play it after games in the Bronx.
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  (#6) New York Mets

  • New York City

  The Mets play in New York City, AKA the Big Apple. So it's only fitting that every time a Mets player hits a home run in Queens, a giant red apple with a Mets logo rises and lights up over top of center field. The tradition started at the old Shea Stadium in the 1980s. It continues on at the Mets new stadium Citi Field.
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  (#7) Boston Red Sox

  • Boston

  During the eighth inning of every Red Sox game at Fenway Park, Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline" plays on the stadium speakers. The tradition started back in the late 1990s by Fenway's music director Amy Tobey, who would play the contagious song from time to time in between innings. In 2002, the song became a Beantown tradition and is now played at every home game.

  If you miss watching games at Fenway, you can live stream all of the Fenway games on Fubo.tv. Try it for free!
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  (#8) Philadelphia Phillies

  • Philadelphia

  Philadelphia is one of the most historic cities in the United States. The home of Benjamin Franklin is seeped with American history. When the Phillies built their new stadium in 2004, Citizens Bank Park, they installed a 52-foot-tall replica of the Liberty Bell. When a Philly hitter bashes a home run, the bell rings and lights up. 
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  (#9) Cincinnati Reds

  • Cincinnati

  The Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati has two smokestacks in right center field. Beginning in 2012, when a Reds pitcher strikes out a batter, fire erupts out of the smokestacks. Also, if a Reds hitter bashes a homer, fireworks shoot out of the stacks. There are also fireworks if the team wins the game.
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  (#10) Houston Astros

  • Houston

  Every time a Houston Astros hitter bashes a homer, a conductor-led train with horns blaring and filled with oranges makes a trek around Minute Maid Park. The old stadium at Houston was called Union Station, so the home run train is tipping its cap to the team's history. The train also takes a victory lap when the Astros win at home.
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  (#11) New York Yankees

  • New York City, The Bronx

  The famous Bleacher Creatures are a tight knit group of New York Yankees fans known for their brash attitude and outspoken nature at games. Typically seated in section 202, the group is known to rattle off their traditional roll call at every Bronx home game. The rabid bleacher fans call out each player one by one who is on the field during the top of the first inning. They will continue to chant a player's name until he acknowledges them with a tip of his baseball hat or a wave of his hand.
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  (#12) Cleveland Indians

  • Cleveland

  There is no doubt that if you've tuned into a Cleveland Indians home game, you've heard the loud sound of John Adams's bass drum from the bleacher seats. The diehard fan and his large drum have shown up to almost every home game in Cleveland since 1973. The team now pays for the drummer's season tickets. Adams has become quite an icon in the Cleveland area, with his own fan Facebook page. The team even honored him with his own bobblehead in 2006.

  "I don't understand all this adulation and stuff. I appreciate it beyond belief because I get to meet people from all over the world,'' Adams said regarding his local fame, "I guess that's the most beautiful part about going down to the game is you make a memory.''
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  (#13) Pittsburgh Pirates

  • Pittsburgh

  The Great Pierogi Race takes place at the end of the fifth inning at PNC Park, the home of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Six different types of the Polish staple race in the 280-yard contest. There is Potato Pete, Bacon Burt, Pizza Penny, Sauerkraut Saul, Cheese Chester, and Jalapeño Hannah. The pierogies race to the Pink Floyd song "Run Like Hell," off The Wall album. 
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  (#14) Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

  • Anaheim

  The Rally Monkey is just a stuffed animal to anyone except Angel fans. The toy made its debut in June 2000 during an interleague game with the San Francisco Giants, when video operators played a clip from Ace Ventura including a monkey to rile up fans. The Rally Monkey - sold as a plush toy - totally took off during the 2002 World Series as the Angels once again faced off against their California rival. As the fans in the Anaheim crowd waved their Rally Monkeys, the team seemed to feed off their energy. The Angels launched an incredible Game 6 comeback and took the 2002 World Series Championship.

  Since then, the Rally Monkey is a constant presence in the stands and on the stadium's jumbotron. 
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  (#15) Minnesota Twins

  • Minneapolis, Minnesota

  In center field, you can see a neon sign depicting the original logo for the Minnesota Twins - a pair of twins shaking hands from across a river. Dubbed "Minnie" and "Paul" - for Minneapolis and St. Paul, respectively - watch the twins closely if you ever attend a Twins game. After the Twins hit a home run, Minnie and Paul shake hands. 
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  (#16) Chicago White Sox

  • Chicago

  For every game at Guaranteed Rate Field, the behind the scenes DJ makes sure to play the heavy metal album "Thunderstruck" as the team first enters the field. The intensity of the classic AC/DC ballad gets fans pumped for the game from the get-go. The tradition is so beloved that its absence once sparked outrage. During a 2015 ballgame, one DJ opted to play a Fall Out Boy song instead of the tune fans were expecting. After universal condemnation on Twitter, the tradition was reinstated at the next game. 
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  (#17) Atlanta Braves

  • Atlanta

  In the current political climate, this tradition may not be around much longer as it's been subject to a lot of criticism. Atlanta Braves fans began doing the tomahawk chop in the early 1990s. They scream a "war chant" and often use a large foam tomahawk to fire up the home team in big spots. 

   
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  (#18) Tampa Bay Rays

  • St. Petersburg

  Allegedly a tradition borrowed from the Brooklyn Dodgers, it's common to see Tampa Bay Rays fans bring cowbells to games. Fans ring cowbells in an effort to cheer on their team and silence chants and applause from fans of the opposing team. While the cowbells are a beloved tradition, many find them to be a source of noise pollution. Nevertheless, the tradition continues despite complaints. 
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  (#19) Baltimore Orioles

  • Baltimore

  During the seventh-inning stretch of every Baltimore Orioles home game at Camden Yards, fans are treated to John Denver's song "Thank God I'm a Country Boy." The tradition started in 1975 when the team's general manager, Frank Cashen, was looking to play more modern music. It was the team's short stop Mark Belanger who suggested Denver's song. It is still played to this day right after "Take Me Out To The Ball Game."
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  (#20) Toronto Blue Jays

  • Toronto

  The Toronto Blue Jays play Keith Hampshire and The Bat Boys certified gold single "OK Blue Jays" during the seventh-inning stretch. The tradition began in 1982. The best part of "OK Blue Jays" are the sweet dance moves that accompany the tune. In the early 1980s, instructors from Fitness Ontario showed fans the steps. Today Toronto's "fan activation team," AKA JForce, guides the Blue Jays faithful.
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  (#21) Texas Rangers

  • Arlington

  Before sausages and pierogies raced around baseball stadiums in the name of fan entertainment, there were the dot races in Arlington, Texas. The dot race was the original mascot race game and was started by Chuck Morgan in 1986. In the race, three different colored dots (blue, green, and red) race during the middle of the sixth inning. 

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