BUTLER TWP — It started as a way to enjoy visits with college buddies.

It’s ending as a 22-year odyssey that landed Meridian resident Ben Jamieson in a ballpark of every Major League Baseball city. That journey will end on July 31 at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, when Jamieson will attend the Boston Red Sox-Mariners game.

“When we started this, I guess, deep down, I was hoping it’d end up this way,” Jamieson said of visiting every big league ballpark. “I can’t say I thought it would ever happen.”

Jamieson, 52, grew up in Evans City. He graduated from Westminster College in 1993. A few fellow Westminster graduates — Jeff Grey, John Stout, Mike Kujan and Todd Aeppli — were good friends of Jamieson and all were big baseball fans.

A number of years later, they decided a fun way to stay in touch would be to go on MLB baseball trips together. The journey had a natural beginning as each was living — at least temporarily — in or near a major league city.

“The whole thing started with John Stout living in Chicago,” Jamieson said. “Our theme was always three games in three days. The White Sox and Cubs never played at home at the same time, so we picked a time when one of them was ending a home-stand and the other was beginning one the next day.

“We did Cubs, White Sox and Milwaukee (Brewers) on that trip ... three games in three days.”

Kujan was living in Baltimore, so the three games in three days formula worked again. This time, it was Baltimore, Washington and Philadelphia.

They later did the New York Yankees, Mets and Boston Red Sox in three days. Aeppli was in Los Angeles when trips to Dodger Stadium, Anaheim (Angels) and San Diego were executed.

“Not everybody could make it to every trip,” Jamieson said. “People got there when they could.”

Another friend lived in Oklahoma City, so a group when to visit him and did the St. Louis Cardinals and Kansas City Royals. And so it went.

“The three games in three days thing only went so far,” Jamieson admitted. “Geographically, that eventually became impossible. We had to get more creative with our scheduling.

“Through all of these games, all those years, we never had a rain-out. Not one. We were pretty lucky that way. Seattle has a dome, so I’m home free in that regard.”

Jamieson’s wife, Jennifer, didn’t mind the baseball trips. She's gone along at times.

“It was more of a guy thing, but I took part,” she said. “Ben’s also been to every park in the Grapefruit League (Florida’s spring training sites) and Cactus League (Arizona), along with some minor league parks.

“It wasn’t just about baseball. They always went to a restaurant that served the food each city was best known for. And they saw other sites around each city as well.”

Side trips included seeing the Eagles rock band play a concert in St. Paul (Minn.) while Jamieson’s group was in town to watch the Twins play, seeing the Steelers play the Packers in Green Bay, or visiting landmarks various cities are known for.

“It’s a fun way to see the country,” Jamieson said.

When he visits Seattle, Jamieson will become the only one of the group to complete the MLB circuit.

Grey is a Cranberry Township resident who went on roughly half the trips with him.

“I’m happy for him and, yeah, a little bit envious,” Grey said. “Life gets in the way at times ... You get married, have kids, things change. He was the constant and the rest of us went when we could. It was a unique way to stay in touch with great college friends.”

Securing ticket stubs to commemorate each ballpark visit wasn’t always easy. With many ballparks using electronic tickets today, the paper ticket is fast becoming a thing of the past.

Jamieson wasn’t having it.

“I’d make it a point to seek out season ticket holders in the stands and ask them for their stub,” he said. “Once they discovered why I wanted it, they were gracious about giving the stub to me. Another way I got my ticket stub was going to the will-call window after the game and having them print me one.”

He’s got a ticket stub from every ballpark he’s visited.

When discussing his favorite ballpark, Jamieson rules out PNC Park “because of my own bias,” Fenway Park and Wrigley Field “because of all the history there.” With those stipulations, his favorite ballpark is that of the San Francisco Giants.

“That place is absolutely awesome,” he said. “I also saw a World Series game in Fenway Park and the Pirates’ wild-card win over the Reds at PNC ... my two favorite games I’ve attended.”

His worst?

“The Chicago White Sox stadium ... It’s so bland,” Jamieson said. “Walking into the Oakland Coliseum, it’s a disaster, but it reminded me a lot of Three Rivers Stadium, where I saw so many games as a kid. I enjoyed that memory.”

Now he’ll have to enjoy memories from all of his ballpark visits.

“This is bittersweet for him,” his wife said of the upcoming trip to Seattle. “It’s almost like he’s in mourning. Ben is going to miss this. I’ll be there with him. I’m getting him noticed on the Jumbo Tron and I’m hoping he’s recognized for this feat somehow during the game.”

“Yeah, I’ll be sad,” Jamieson admitted. “My great adventure is ending.”

Another will soon begin.

“I’m going to begin hitting as many different Steeler road games as I can over the next few years,” he said, laughing. “That’s how I’ll fill the void.”

: