SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic - The summer after my freshman year in college, some friends from my hometown in New Jersey hatched a plan to go to a game at Detroit's Tiger Stadium to see it during it's final season.

Oh, how I wanted to go. I had actually figured out a way to get from my college in New York's North Country to Windsor, Ontario, across the river from Detroit, cross the border, go to the game, cross the border again, and take the train back, cross the border again, and get back to school in time for class on Monday.

I didn't do it, and to this day, I regret it - you only get so many opportunities.

So this week, because I was traveling to the Dominican Republic for the start of the LIDOM season, there were two ballparks I definitely wanted to have on my itinerary for a three-day trip. The first was Estadio Tetelo Vargas in San Pedro de Macoris, and the other, the legendary Estadio Quisqueya Juan Marichal.

One of the best books I've ever read about baseball, Mark Kurlansky's The Eastern Stars, focuses on the Estrellas Orientales, the LIDOM team that plays at Estadio Tetelo Vargas, so that was high on my list.

Estadio Quisqueya is legendary for several reasons, not the least of which is that every Dominican player you've ever heard of has probably played here, and if not, they've been to a game here. Two teams call it home, and in the late afternoon on Sunday, I saw them square off, the Leones del Escogido and the Tigres del Licey.

Tetelo Vargas is an aging ballpark, built in 1959, in San Pedro de Macoris, a city so baseball-crazy the the sign when you drive in is spells out S-A-N P-E-D-R-O in giant concrete baseballs, as I mentioned earlier this week.

Four years earlier, Estadio Quisqueya, nearly exact copy of the now-demolished Bobby Maduro Miami Stadium, opened in the capital and became the focus of Dominican baseball. Ossie Virgil, the first Dominican to reach Major League Baseball, played here for the Leones del Escogido, as did Juan Marichal, the first Dominican hall of famer, whose name now adorns the stadium.

At both, the focus is pure baseball. In the stands and in the press box, expect to hear discussions of every single play in rapid-fire Dominican Spanish, some of which I've even come to be able to understand. As you so often see in Latin America, there are drums, horns, and plenty of noise, as Dominican culture is a culture that lives both joyously and loudly.

There are three other ballparks in LIDOM, Estadio Francisco Micheli in La Romana, where I took in the Estrellas' 11-0 opening night win over the home club, the Toros del Este, Estadio Cibao, the Santiago home of the Aguilas Cibaenas, and Estadio Julian Javier, the home of the Gigantes del Cibao in San Francisco de Macoris.

I hope to visit all of them one day, but Quisqueya is the gem. The biggest ballpark in the country. The home of the Tigres del Licey, the LIDOM equivalent of the New York Yankees.

Book yourself a ticket to Santo Domingo and catch a few games this winter. You have to see it to believe it, and you absolutely will not regret it.

NOTEBOOK - A big thank you to my college classmate Zulay Mateo, a native of Nizao, who arranged for her friend Jose Aduana to drive me around the Dominican Republic's south coast this weekend. We stayed in a mom-and-pop motel in Juan Dolio, between Boca Chica and San Pedro de Macoris, swam in the sapphire water, ate fried dorado (that's Mahi Mahi), bacalao, and more. It's easy to be a typical American and stay at a beachfront resort that caters to travelers from the U.S., but I'm truly grateful that I got an authentic experience.

Tigres del Licey (2-1) 5, Leones del Escogido (0-3) 4 - After giving up three runs in the first, the Leones battled back, scoring two in the second, one when Jose Barrero couldn't handle Jonthan Guzman's grounder to third and another on a double by Randy Florentino that scored Guzman. A third-inning double by Jose Marmolejos scored Junior Lake to tie the game at three apiece, and a fourth-inning double by Erik Gonzalez scored Guzman for the second time in the game to give the Leones a 4-3 lead. But it would hold up, as top prospect Jesus Made tied the game with a one-out single in the eighth, and a passed ball in the 10th allowed Emilio Bonifacio to score the winning run and send half the stadium home happy.

Aguilas Cibaenas (1-2) 4, Gigantes del Cibao (2-1) 1 - Jake Holton hit a solo homer in the second for Cibao, but the Aguilas bounced back, scoring three in the third, two on a two-run single by Jorge Bonifacio and another on a single by Mason McCoy. They tacked on some more insurance in the bottom of the seventh when Christoper Morel reached on a fielding error with the bases loaded, scoring McCoy. Justin Martinez picked up the save for the Aguilas, allowing one hit and striking out one in the top of the ninth.

Toros del Este (2-1) 6, Estrellas Orientales (2-1) 4 - A five-run second inning powered the Toros to their second win of the season. First, a balk by Estrellas starter Enny Romero allowed Eguy Rosario to score. Then Julio E. Rodriguez hit a two-run homer, and after a walk to Gilberto Celestino, Francisco Urbaez hit another two-run dinger to put the Toros up 5-0. Harold Ramirez hit a solo homer in the bottom of the ninth to get the Estrellas within two, and Josh Lester drew a two-out walk to get the tying run to the plate, but the Green Machine couldn't finish the rally.

Where to Watch – The Dominican Republic’s LIDOM and the Liga Mexicana del Pacifico are streamed live on MLB.tv with commentary in Spanish. You’ll need to have a subscription to watch.

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