With almost 64,000 voters weighing in on their favorite Triple-A facilities, Huntington Park, home of the Columbus Clippers (International League), was the winner in the third-annual Best of the Ballparks 2017 fan vote from Ballpark Digest.
Huntington Park accomplished something no other Minor League Baseball facility has achieved: it’s a repeat winner in the annual Best of the Ballparks vote, winning in 2015 as well. Fans selected Huntington Park over Southwest University Park, home of the Pacific Coast League’s El Paso Chihuahuas, in a bracketed online vote at ballparkdigest.com that saw over 178,000 fans weigh in overall on their favorite MiLB ballparks.
“Huntington Park is the first repeat winner among MiLB ballparks in our fan votes,” said Ballpark Digest publisher Kevin Reichard. “That’s not a surprise. The ballpark is a gem, and the Clippers have cultivated a loyal fan base. A Columbus Clippers game is surely one of the great experiences in all of baseball.”
“We are grateful to all our fans who continue to recognize Huntington Park as one of the finest ballparks in the country,” added Ken Schnacke, Clippers President & GM. “Their unwavering commitment and support once again is the main reason we continue to receive such rave reviews.”
Huntington Park was also the Triple-A winner in the inaugural 2015 Best of the Ballparks vote. Then, fans chose the home of the Clippers over Durham Bulls Athletic Park, home of the International League’s Durham Bulls. Huntington Park is a past winner of the Ballpark of the Year honors from Ballpark Digest in 2009. Here’s what we wrote about Huntington Park when it opened:
There are a lot of cool things at Huntington Park, which comes as close to perfection as we’ve seen in any ballpark. With an embedded sense of place, a firm grasp on the grand history of baseball and a commitment to the latest in fan comforts, Huntington Park represents the very finest in ballpark design and operations. While there are some new ballparks that come very close, there are none better.
It would appear that the fans think little has changed at Huntington Park and Clippers games since that first visit in 2009.