Report from the road complete: Nats farm team does justice to the parent club, and more importantly its stadium does too.

In a word, yes, the new ballpark of the Fredericksburg Nationals trumps the club’s previous home by a 500-foot dinger. Though that’s a little like saying the reliever coming in is a better pitcher than Charlie Brown.

From the worst minor-league park I’ve ever been to (that was the one in Woodbridge) to one of the nicest, Virginia Credit Union Stadium in Fredericksburg is Single-A baseball with Northern Virginia money. The old park was expensive and crappy; this one is expensive and nice. Home run seats in a Single-A park? That’s a nice touch. Playground? Classy dining area? Historical exhibit? All swell. They didn’t take any chances, but they didn’t screw up anything either.

My favorite part of the game Wednesday was getting to go with my son. I’d been to plenty of those kid-friendly morning starts in my life, but always solo as an awkward grownup. This time I was an awkward grownup with my son. That’s less awkward somehow.

As unawkward as a geeky math teacher from the suburbs can get.