Several reminders of Shea Stadium are incorporated into Citi Field, with a bronze plaque due to be installed at the former home-plate site.Shea Stadium is now gone, but the former home of the New York Mets will be remembered in various ways by the team at Citi Field. The most obvious symbol of the Shea […]
Author Archive | Kevin Reichard
Fox Cities Stadium / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
There’s a certain similarity to newer ballparks in the Midwest League and the Upper Midwest. That uniformity can be seen at Fox Cities Stadium, the home of the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Class A; Midwest League). In most ways this is a ballpark that serves the residents of the Fox Valley (which includes Appleton and Green […]
Warner Park (the “Duck Pond”) / Madison Mallards
It is one of the best ballpark renovations we’ve seen in years: the Madison Mallards (summer collegiate; Northwoods League) made huge changes to Warner Park (i.e., the Duck Pond) this offseason, tearing down obsolete bleachers and adding all chairback seating, a new club and an elevated concourse — all for under $2 million. Fast Facts […]
Wuerfel Park / Traverse City Beach Bums
It’s not quite a Field of Dreams setup — there aren’t any corn fields on the edge of the ballpark, just some open spaces and seemingly random development — but a “build it and they will come” mentality permeates Wuerfel Park, the home of the Traverse City Beach Bums. It took a lot of passion […]
Yale Field / Yale Bulldogs
It’s hard to imagine today how important a city like New Haven, Conn., was to sports in the United States in the early 20th century. Think about baseball in 1927, which is considered a pretty magical year in baseball history because of the team the New York Yankees fielded that season. And now consider this: […]
Yankee Stadium (old) / New York Yankees
If you seek the ultimate sense of baseball history and enjoy being around passionate and remarkably knowledgeable fans, it can be no surprise that Yankee Stadium will top your list. If your expectations include the most-modern conveniences and a pampered existence that go beyond the essence of the game itself, then it’s time for an […]
Shea Stadium / New York Mets
By any measure, Shea Stadium is the ultimate testament to 1960s stadium architecture. Its unyielding symmetry elevates form over function. The outside view of Shea Stadium is very attractive with a circular layout and an open center field: it does look better from a distance as an abstract sculpture, as anyone who has flown in […]
Debate continues over success of Petco Park development
Over a billion dollars in new development can be traced to the public financing of Petco Park, the home of the San Diego Padres, but some still argue it was money misspent by the city.In most circles, the public funding of Petco Park would be hailed as an unqualitied success: a $300 million investment in […]
Petco Park / San Diego Padres / Page 2
Petco Park, home of the San Diego Padres.Virtually every seat in Petco Park is a winner, but some locations are especially desirable. The choices are a bit dizzying with no less than 16 categories at 11 price points. If you can find them available and are willing to pay, the top-shelf Terrace Infield seats are […]
Petco Park / San Diego Padres
Petco Park is large scale in a number of ways. Padres sluggers are not especially enamored with the ballpark’s dimensions, especially when they glance at the extreme power allies. While straightaway center is a reachable 396 feet, the power allies extend to 402 in left and a whopping 411 in right. These are especially challenging […]
Astros begin 10th season at Minute Maid Park
It’s one of the most underrated ballparks in the majors: Minute Maid Park marks the tenth season of hosting Houston Astros baseball.It’s been an eventful nine years for the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park. To celebrate the team’s 10th season, Lyle Lovett will sing the National Anthem at tonight’s home opener: he was also […]
Minute Maid Park / Houston Astros
The folks in Houston aren’t afraid to think big. The original home of the Houston Astros, the Astrodome, was hailed a modern wonder of the world. Curiously, Minute Maid Park doesn’t seem to be quite as impressive an undertaking as the Astrodome, at least when you approach it from downtown Houston. True, the plan is […]
Jarry Park / Montreal Expos / 1969-1976
Jarry Park was a small, single-deck ballpark originally constructed as a temporary stadium — one that ended up being used seven seasons as the first home of the Montreal Expos. As such, it was the site of the first MLB regular-season game played outside of the United States on April 14, 1969, in a game […]