Went to PNC park in Pittsburgh this week and I started thinking about the MLB parks I've been in and how I would rank them, both present and demolished.
1) San Francisco AT&T Park. Hard to bear the view of McCovey cove. Interesting food, and fan friendly rules that allow you to only leave your sets between innings .
2) Baltimore Camden Yards. First of the retro parks and the best. Tucked nicely near the inner harbor with innovative architecture and diverse food.
3. Detroit. Comerica Park. Great curb appeal. Love the two large tiger statues out front. Better than average food and the concourses are easy to navigate. Love the monuments honoring Tiger greats.
4. Cleveland. Progressive Field. Reminds me of Baltimore. I think they used the same architect. Easy to get to, decent food.
5. New York (New)Yankee Stadium. I liked it simply because it has that NY energy and bustle. Diverse food, lots going on, but feels a bit overdone and somewhat sterile.
6. Pittsburgh PNC Park. Lots of concrete and steel. No curb appeal. Heard a lot about it, but I was not impressed. Well integrated into an urban area, they did a nice job honoring the city steel industry roots. View of the river at night is nice. Statute of Honus Wagner is very cool.
7. Chicago Cellular one. Boring, sterile and uninspired. The "L" makes it pretty easy to get to. Not much else nice to say.
8. Detroit Tiger Stadium. I know you Tiger fans revere this place, but sorry, it was decrepit dump. The only thing reverential about Tiger stadium was the historic players and events that occurred there. FWIW, I saw Frank Howard hit one over the left field stadium roof off of Lolich. I was also in attendance when Denny McClain won his 30th against the Oakland A's.
9. Minnesota Metrodome. Sterile indoor dump with no character.
10. Cleveland Municipal Stadium. See Tiger Stadium without the history, character or attendance.
I think the ugliest stadium ever had to be the old Comminsky Park. No character at all and looked wore out when the tore it down.
I have to rank Seattle and San Francisco's as my top two. Love Dodger stadium for its sight lines, to me it's to baseball what JLA is to hockey.
Arizona's is great for the two months that the roof and panels are open. San Diego's is a close third for me behind the top two. Haven't been to Camden yet.
My rankings (without comment)
Camden Yards
Progressive Field
Tiger Stadium
Wrigley Field
Nationals Park
Safeco Field (Seattle)
Comerica Park
New Yankee Stadium
Old Yankee Stadium
Rogers Centre
Exhibition Stadium (Toronto)
1. Wrigley- The atmosphere in the park and outside of the park takes you back to another era. During warm ups you can hear the players talk.
2. Tiger Stadium- I still remember the first time my parents walked me up the tunnel into the stadium. The grass seemed greener than any I'd ever seen. I wanted to be an usher. You were on top of the infield. I could see Ernie Harwell up in the box. Norm Cash was right in front of me. I got to talk to Lou Whittiker for 10 minutes while he waited for a cab. Kwame should rot in jail for not saving some of this park.
3. Commerica- My best friend has season tickets and they are spectacular seats. If I had to sit somewhere else I probably wouldn't rank it this high.
4. Royals Stadium- The return to great baseball stadiums. Great stadium, but a little to suburban.
5. Dodger Stadium- Didn't see a game in it, but visited it. Great views of the field, but the top deck is a little too high.
6. Jacobs Field- Haven't seen a game there either, but have been in the stadium. Great layout.
7. Turner Field Atlanta- Nice sightlines, maybe a few more seats than it needs.
8. Miller Field- Nice layout, but the roof detracts from it's potential.
9. Forbes Field Pittsburgh- Was very young when I went there. Seemed very cool at the time. Was small by today's standards.
10. Crosly Field Cinci- Didn't see a game there, but visited it when my family went to Florida.
11. County Stadium Milwaukee- Saw a game there. Not a memorable stadium.
12. Houston Astrodome- Attended a couple of games there. Strange atmosphere. Hated the infield carpet. The stadium was interesting because it was before it's time.
13. Toronto- Been to games at both stadiums. The original park was far more interesting than the dome.
14. Cominsky Park- Creepy feel to it. Attended two games there and froze my azz off.
15. These all sucked- The original Cleveland Stadium. Simply too big for baseball, and too many posts. Riverfront in Cinci. Always felt like I was going to fall out of the upper deck, very steep. Hated the carpet. Fulton County Stadium in Atlanta. Like Pittsburgh and Cinci it was a monument to concrete. Less character than Kelly Shorts. U.S. Cellular Chicago. Kind of a tweener park built between the Cinci/Pitt/St.Louis era when stadiums built for multipurpose, and were all round and drab and the new baseball only parks.
16. Worst I've ever been to: Tropicana Field St. Pete. Rays have a good organization, but the Tampa community is made up of too many NY and Boston transplants. They just don't support the team. They have plans for a new stadium, but the community won't help foot the bill.
Comerica and the Coors field here are almost identical. Except the view of the mountains is spectacular here and LoDo is MONEY to be around at game time. Much better surroundings than that of Comerica.
Surprised to see no comments about Fenway. Perhaps you guys haven't been there yet. It's tight and crowded in there but takes you back to another era. Much like Wrigley. I love the neighborhood feel to both of those places. You don't see the stadiums until you are a block away.
I've been on a tour of Fenway, but have never been there. That's on my list.
I'm going to be in Orlando this week, and I'm deciding if I should drive an hour and 45 to see the Rays and Mariners...
I haven't been to as many parks as you folks, but I can say that I always think it is real cool walking into new stadiums or arenas. Ever since I was a kid, it always has been a special thing. One of the great experiences of seeing live sports.
I am a 28 game season ticket holder for the Tigers, and have been for several years. Still, each time I walk into the stadium I enjoy that feeling.
I have been impressed with most of the stadiums and arenas I have been in, but the worst is definitely Tropicana Field in Tampa. UGLY!
Fenway and Wrigley are in great settings, I like them both a lot for that alone, much like ESL stadiums in neighborhoods, very cool feeling and nothing like the buzz on game day for sure. But the stadiums themselves are meh. Just relics, much the way Tiger was, old and full of memories.
I did have the wake up call as to why Tiger Stadium's grass seemed to green to me the first time that I walked in at 7 years old, it was that we didn't have a color tv!!
Oriole Park is really nice, but its fatal flaw is that the field isn't viewable from the concourses. How they screwed this up while getting everything else right is beyond me.
I'd say the top 5 is:
1. Oriole Park
2. PNC Park
3. Miller Park
4. Citizens Bank Park in Philly
5. New Comiskey
Honorable mention: Nationals Park. Clean, simple design, lots of space on the concourses. Good food, beer used to be somewhat affordable by DC standards a few years ago. I know all the good places to sit where the ushers aren't minding. Something to be said for that.
Most overrated: Wrigley Field. Too many "Cubs" fans are just there for the party and not for baseball. Takes away from the atmosphere big time. It also smells like a urinal.
Fenway and Wrigley both on my bucket list. As an aside, my favorite stadium of any kind right now is Ford Field. Would like to go to Cowboys Stadium just to see an edifice of self glorification by Jerry Jones. May go this year.
Fenway, like Wrigley, is a nice stadium to visit once, but it's not a place I'd prefer to be frequenting regularly. I like the old stadiums, but let's face it, like Tiger Stadium, they have become decrepit dumps.
(08-11-2013 04:30 PM)Charm City Bronco Wrote: [ -> ]Oriole Park is really nice, but its fatal flaw is that the field isn't viewable from the concourses. How they screwed this up while getting everything else right is beyond me.
I'd say the top 5 is:
1. Oriole Park
2. PNC Park
3. Miller Park
4. Citizens Bank Park in Philly
5. New Comiskey
Honorable mention: Nationals Park. Clean, simple design, lots of space on the concourses. Good food, beer used to be somewhat affordable by DC standards a few years ago. I know all the good places to sit where the ushers aren't minding. Something to be said for that.
Most overrated: Wrigley Field. Too many "Cubs" fans are just there for the party and not for baseball. Takes away from the atmosphere big time. It also smells like a urinal.
East coast bias. Seriously, there's a world west of the Mississippi. Miller Park doesn't come close to Coors or Seattle's, let alone AT&T.
I'm sorry you live in a vast, third-world wasteland beyond the cares and concerns of a majority of Americans. Denver didn't have major league baseball until 1993, so I don't consider it a major league city. Yeah, AT&T Park, great sight lines allowing fans to throw a banana peel at Adam Jones yesterday. Safeco Field, bigger is better, right? RIGHT?
Miller is a Big Walmart when that roof is closed.
Colorado is a "vast, third-world wasteland" huh?
That's rich, I know so many people who are always talking about moving "back east", that's their dream, they just can't wait to sit in traffic, pollution and the bs that is the east coast seaboard and have a great life. That's all they talk about here, getting back east. Drives me crazy actually......oh wait, no it doesn't. Never happens.
Never been to Fenway, but I would like to go. Was at Wrigley a few months ago, and while it might be sacreligious for me to say this, its time to tear that place down and build a new park. Place is falling apart, old and antiquated.
I completely understand why fans wouldn't want to do that, just like it hurt when the Tigers moved from Tigers Stadium into Comerica. But they could build a brand new Wrigley Field, give it modern touches and keep some of the charm that is there now. IMO, if they can build a new Yankee Stadium, they can build a new Wrigley Field. And it might actually help the Cubs attract free agents, increase attendance and be a viable team again.
I've been to several of the newer ballparks and I think teams are missing the boat if they don't look to move forward. Great American Ballpark in Cincy, Comerica, Camden Yards, Miller Park and PNC Park are some of the best places I've been to see a game. Heading to Minneapolis this weekend to check out the new Target Field.
I haven't attended games at enough parks to rank them, especially with all the new ball parks built in the past decade. Had been to several of the old NL cookie cutter round stadiums (yuck) back in the day before they were replaced. I remember taking in games in old Metropolitan Stadium in Minneapolis, before the dome. Have gone to Kaufman in K.C., too. Also saw a game at Fenway and aside from the historical aspect, It struck me as a dump. I suspect Wrigley is much the same.
I'm partial to Coors field, built shortly after Camden Yard in Baltimore ('92), and (now) Progressive Field in Cleveland ('94). It was the third in the "retro classic" ballparks, built in 1995. Great sight lines, food, amenities including a microbrewery. You can't find a better place to take in a night game and watch the spectacular Colorado sunsets. They built it to allow fans to see the mountains. Strange to think a less than 20 year old ballpark is the third oldest in the NL. Denver has a great ballpark. Just wish we had a great team.
Maybe some day.
I also would like to see a game in Dodger stadium. Hate the team but the stadium is an art deco masterpiece.
Photo slideshow of top 10 ballparks according to Fox Sports
http://www.ballparksofbaseball.com/NationalLeague.htm
There is a link to the American League Parks on that page, too.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Maj...l_stadiums
1. Fenway. Nothing else even comes close. Hundreds of great places around the stadium, best home fans I've ever experienced, tons of history, etc. Blows Wrigley out of the water. Only downside was ticket prices.
2. Wrigley- Love the neighborhood and the stadium ambiance. Bleacher games are great. If you don't know where to sit though, you might have a miserable time.
3. Tiger Stadium- Loved going there as a kid. Never sat anywhere but upper-deck outfield, but nothing but fond memories. Just not in the same league as the other two.
4. PNC Park- Best modern ballpark I've been in. None of the rest come close.
5. Comerica Park- It's pretty nice. Not near the same league as PNC in my opinion, but I've always had a good time there.
6. Great American Ballpark- Really cool location, but not quite as good as Comerica.
7. Progressive Field- It's ok. Sat above the high left field wall which was cool, but don't get much of a feeling of history or character there.
8. The Cell. Nothing distinctive, no good places to pre-game/unwind afterward, lousy fan experience.
9. Whatever Florida's old stadium was called at the time. Absolutely horrible. I've never had less of a fan experience anywhere. The drive through the middle of Miami's ghetto didn't help.
(08-12-2013 01:15 PM)WheresWaldo42 Wrote: [ -> ]Never been to Fenway, but I would like to go. Was at Wrigley a few months ago, and while it might be sacreligious for me to say this, its time to tear that place down and build a new park. Place is falling apart, old and antiquated.
I completely understand why fans wouldn't want to do that, just like it hurt when the Tigers moved from Tigers Stadium into Comerica. But they could build a brand new Wrigley Field, give it modern touches and keep some of the charm that is there now. IMO, if they can build a new Yankee Stadium, they can build a new Wrigley Field. And it might actually help the Cubs attract free agents, increase attendance and be a viable team again.
I've been to several of the newer ballparks and I think teams are missing the boat if they don't look to move forward. Great American Ballpark in Cincy, Comerica, Camden Yards, Miller Park and PNC Park are some of the best places I've been to see a game. Heading to Minneapolis this weekend to check out the new Target Field.
Wrigley is getting a complete makeover over the next several years. The concourses are going to be completely re-done and modernized, new concession areas, new clubhouses and player amenities, additional party porch areas, the jumbotron in left and new signage. I'm really looking forward to it.
Here's a rendering of what it would look like (pre-Jumbotron approval anyway):
http://www.bleachernation.com/2013/01/19...-pictures/