City: Chicago, IL

Category: Spectator Sports

Address: 27 Jennie Finch Way (Bryn Mawr Ave. and

Description: This fastpitch softball team started off with a bang in 2005, taking home title of Regular Season Champions and then snagging a Championship Series victory in 2008. It probably didn’t hurt that the owners had early on recruited four Olympic players, including gold medalists Leah O’Brien-Amico and Jennie Finch, who was named USA Softball Athlete of the Year in 2009—though she retired in 2010. With her 6-foot-2 blond and leggy looks, Finch is still something of a fastpitch poster girl (notice the stadium address); she now holds fastpitch camps across the country. The Bandits got a brand-new stadium for the 2011 season, making it the first professional softball stadium in the Chicagoland area. The women’s windmill-style pitches really are super speedy, hitting upwards of 75 miles per hour (equivalent to 100 miles per hour for baseball), which make games a kick to watch, along with the close-to-the-action feel (capacity is about 2,000), and post-game autograph sessions. Tickets $9.75 to $13.25 for a single game (group discounts are available—group ticket prices run $7 to $9.50). The season starts in June and runs through August.