The Best Baseball in Maryland -- Marylanders love baseball. The Orioles are the big-league team, of course, but the state is also home to six minor-league teams, three baseball museums, and a monument to a storied slugger.

The Baltimore Orioles (tel. 888/848-BIRD; or visit their website) play at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. The stadium is easy to get to, right off I-95 to I-395 at the bottom of the ramp into town. Parking in lots around the stadium usually costs about $10. The Light Rail stops here for every game. The ballpark was designed to bring spectators closer to the action, and it does. Watch out for foul balls! A promenade follows the warehouse building along the outfield wall. Stop at the deck overlooking the bullpen to watch the pitchers warm up. The food here is pretty good, ranging from hot dogs to Italian sausage to crab cakes. Former Oriole Boog Powell's barbecue stand sends a cloud of smoke up over the scoreboard wall -- the pit-beef sandwiches are worth the wait in line. The park also offers tours that give visitors a chance to sit in the dugout and in the press box from April to September.

An Orioles game might be a great place to bring a client (the stands are full of them), but a minor-league game is the place for families. In addition to lower ticket prices (less than $10) and more intimate stadiums, many minor-league games offer playgrounds, fireworks, and special family events.

The Aberdeen IronBirds (tel. 410/297-9292), a Class A affiliate of the Orioles, are owned by Aberdeen natives Cal and Billy Ripken. The stadium was an instant hit when it opened in 2002. It also houses the Ripken Museum, which moved here in late 2005 from downtown Aberdeen. A temporary exhibit is part of group tours (call tel. 410/297-9292 for reservations). A permanent home -- a testament to the "Ripken Way," which took six Ripkens to professional baseball -- will open in 2007. Nearby youth-size fields copy the dimensions of famous parks; Cal Sr.'s Yard, for instance, is a miniature replica of Oriole Park at Camden Yards (a "warehouse" like the one at the real Camden Yards will house a 200-room hotel by late 2006). The Ripken Academy operates a series of baseball clinics, tournaments, and the Cal Ripken World Series here.

The Bowie Baysox (tel. 301/464-4865), a Class AA Orioles affiliate, usually have a fireworks display after Saturday home games. The team plays in Prince George's Stadium, in Prince George's County, northeast of Washington, D.C.

The Delmarva Shorebirds (tel. 888/BIRDS96 or 410/219-3112), an Orioles affiliate in the Class A South Atlantic League, play near Ocean City, at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium in Salisbury, Maryland. An Eastern Shore Hall of Fame here celebrates Delmarva baseball from amateur to pro.

The Frederick Keys (tel. 877/8GO-KEYS), the 2005 Carolina League champions and a Class A Orioles affiliate, play at Harry Grove Stadium in Frederick, off I-70 and Route 355 (Market St.). The Keys draw fans from Baltimore and Washington, D.C.

The Hagerstown Suns (tel. 800/538-9967 or 301/791-6266), a Class A team of the New York Mets, play at Municipal Stadium, on Route 40, in Hagerstown, Western Maryland.

Baltimore City has two sports museums celebrating baseball. Yes, the Babe was a Yankee, but he was born in Baltimore in the narrow rowhouse that is now the Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum, 216 Emory St. (tel. 410/727-1539). Next door to Oriole Park at Camden Yards is Sports Legends at Camden Yards, 301 W. Camden St. tel. 410/727-1539), filled with mementos of Orioles history as well as other local sporting memories.

If you visit Chestertown, on the Eastern Shore, look for the life-size statue of Bill Nicholson next to the town hall on Cross Street. In the 1940s, the Chestertown native was a home-run king with the Chicago Cubs. He led the majors in home runs and RBIs in 1943 and 1944. During the 1944 season, the New York Giants intentionally walked him with the bases loaded, rather than risk a grand slam. He died in his hometown, Chestertown, in 1996.