CLEVELAND — Baseball is America's favorite pastime, and for many, a trip to the ballpark alone can spark joy—but for Cleveland comedian Ricky Smith, his mission is to spread that joy by carrying out random acts of kindness at all 30 MLB ballparks.
Smith is no stranger to paying it forward. In fact, his foundation R.A.K.E., or Random Acts of Kindness Everywhere, is focused on doing just that.
After his sister's passing last year, Smith decided he wanted to experience a little more in life and knock things off of his bucket list. Baseball has always been a love of Smith's, and he came up with an idea.
"Sports and travel have been my love. And I thought, how cool would it be this season to do all 30 ballparks," Smith said. "Not just to do it for myself, but also incorporate some kindness within each city."
So when the 2023 season began, and the Guardians hit the road, so did Smith.
"I’ve been to seven," Smith said. "I've done Seattle, I've done Oakland, Detroit, Mets, Yankees, Cleveland...Oh, and Fenway."
At each destination, Smith makes sure to enjoy himself. He immerses himself in the city and the people inside and outside of the ballpark. From sharing stories of Cleveland with people connected to the city in different ways to tossing the fish at Seattle's famous Pike Place Fish Market, Smith has a story from each ballpark he's traveled to so far.
But at the end of the day, there's no place like home.
"It's not very cheesy. I always love coming back home. Our fans, the energy they have and the experiences here are unmatched," Smith said.
Smith's random acts of kindness continue throughout Progressive Field each time he attends a home game. On Friday, as the Guardians took on the Minnesota Twins, Smith walked through Cleveland's ballpark playing rock paper scissors with fans to give them new gear. Jeremy Alexander, a Guardians fan, won his round, and Smith bought him a new hat.
"It’s pretty awesome. Unexpected, very cool experience. I definitely needed a new lid, so perfect way to start the night," Alexander said. "I guess it just sort of reinforces your faith in the world."
Later on in the game, Smith found a section of fans rocking special Guardians hats given away as part of the team's Youngstown State University Night. He decided to buy $100 worth of hot dogs from a vendor and pass them out to random fans in the stands.
The moment even inspired a moment of instant pay it forward as Jeff Beitel, a Guardians fan, tried to pay for a hot dog until he learned Smith had already paid for it.
Beitel, moved by the small act, gave Smith $20 to spread more acts of kindness to others in the crowd.
"When I found out what it was for, I wanted to give back too; I mean, that’s cool," Beitel said. "It was just something I saw happening, and I wanted to pay forward."
Smith still has 23 ballparks to go. It's a tall task to complete in a season, and so far, all of the trips have revolved around the Guardians' schedule as Smith has traveled along to road games the team has played this season.
However, to hit his goal this season, he knows he'll have to branch out a bit.
"I'm doing all the ones that the Guardians are going to, but then there's another six I have to do it independently," Smith said, still highly confident he can succeed in his goal. "When I started, I was 100% sure. Right now, I'm about 92% sure. But it's been fun."
In the meantime, Smith plans to find new ways to have fun with the fans he meets around the country at every single MLB ballpark—sharing random acts of kindness and, most importantly, enjoying the game of baseball with passionate people of all backgrounds.
"A laugh, some funniness, some silly. I'm good at really making my section happy, whether I'm the visiting guy or the home team, but just letting people know we're in this together," Smith said. "It just is understanding that life is sometimes heavy, but within these confines, we can relax and just have a good time."
To learn more about Smith's foundation R.A.K.E., CLICK HERE
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