Baseball Stadiums

I just got back from a trip to Seattle. I plan on posting a blog about that trip in the future, but as you can tell by my spotty blog writing that it may or may not happen. The intent is there. However, instead of that blog I want to just post a quick one about the baseball stadiums I have been to and which ones I like best. When we were in Seattle I saw a Mariners game and got to visit Safeco Field so it got me thinking about my favorite stadiums. I'm no expert either. I've only been to a handful of places. I'll keep this baseball specific, no stadiums where I've seen NFL games but not baseball. Also minor leagues need not apply. Besides, nothing beats the view from Spring Mobile Ball Park in Salt Lake City!

1 - Citi Field, Queens NY. What can I say? I'm a Mets fan. Unfortunately I never got the chance to visit the Shea Stadium. I've heard both good and bad about the old home of the Mets. I have however, visited Citi Field. Jill and I went to a Mets/Phillies game in 2009, the very first year the stadium was open. Obviously being such a new park in a baseball crazy part of the country it's going to have its perks. The park is beautiful. The food is great. The architecture and amenities really can't be beat. The ease of travel to the stadium via the subway is excellent. The stadium is packed with not only Mets history, but that of the Brooklyn Dodgers and NY Giants too. The only real drawbacks of this park are that the Mets play their (j/k I love those guys) and that it's right next to Laguardia Airport and you can hear the planes take off...a lot. But really I can't say enough good about the place. I loved every minute there!

2 - Coors Field, Denver CO. I've seen more baseball games in this park than all the others combined. I guess you could say as far as MLB is concerned, this is my "home" team. Being a short flight away, or a 9 hour car ride, Denver is the closest MLB city to Salt Lake. My Mother-In-Law lives in Colorado, so when we visit her I try to swing by the stadium. Coors is just a good stadium. Great field. Awesome food and shops. Fun game day experiences. Nice fans. Just everything about this place is above average. But my favorite thing about the park is it's location. Built in an area called LoDo (lower downtown), the stadium is right in the city. When you walk around the upper deck mezzanine, you have the best views of the city. I can't wait to go back and see another game!

 

3 - Fenway Park, Boston MA. There is something much different about the East Coast. It seems like people out there take their baseball much more serious. When Jill and I drove from Boston to NY, every car we passed had either a Yankee bumper sticker or a Red Sox one. A few misguided souls had Mets stuff, but it seems everyone made their choice clear. But back to the parks. Fenway isn't a stadium, it's an experience. As the oldest stadium in use, is has tons of charm, and many quirks. The field seats we bought were wooden and a bit narrow for the husky fellow. Random beams holding up the upper deck can obstruct some views. Other than that, the park is amazing. The streets around the stadium shut down and vendors sell their items on the road. The "Green Monster" in left field, along with the other outfield dimensions are so different and weird, it really makes the game played much different than at a traditional field. I can't wait to go back and see them again. Oh, and Jill fell in love with the park, city, and team, and she now claims the Sox as her own.

4 - Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles CA. Growing up my family liked the Dodgers. I remember my Dad telling me they were his favorite team. I don't really remember him watching them, but I did take it upon myself to become a fan. I studied them and loved them. As I grew up I decided I wanted my own favorite team and I followed Mike Piazza's departure to the Big Apple. A couple years ago I went with my Father-In-Law to a couple Mets/Dodgers games in LA. Oh, by the way, my Father-In-Law just might be the biggest Dodger fan alive! The games were so fun, bantering back and forth with him and the rest of the family. The park itself is a bit older, opening in 1962. However, with some renovations here and there, it still holds its own. The Dodger dogs are famous, but might be a tad overrated (sorry Ken). The outfield walls are fairly deep and have similar dimensions, making it known as a "pitchers park". The coolest feature has to be the location. It's built in the side of a hill in LA. If you are sitting in the upper deck, you just park higher up on the hill and walk right into the stadium from there. No need for stairs or elevators. Oh, another plus... LA weather!

5 - Safeco Field, Seattle WA. This stadium is cool, but there was just something about it that made it so I couldn't love it. I'm still not sure exactly what it is either. The field was neat, but no real quirks or weird walls in the outfield. The design of the retractable roof was pretty cool though. We were one day short of watching the perfect game that happened, but we still saw a really cool game. I did enjoy the endless soda deal they run, but outside of that I was never really in awe like I was about the other parks. Maybe it was the record heat wave, the long walk to the park, or the fact it was the Mariners? But, despite the fun I had (which was quite a bit), I didn't really think the stadium was too big of a deal.

6 - The Coliseum, Oakland CA. I'm just going to refer to this place as the Coliseum since it's had about 95 different names over the years. I went here about 4 years ago with my friend, Adam, on a spontaneous trip to San Francisco. The Giants were on the road, so we drove across the Bay Bridge for an A's game. How can I say this nicely? This place is a dump. It's cramped, the mezzanine areas are dark, uneven, and painted a horrible shade of green. The food was so-so. The restrooms were as bad as outhouses, and the urinals were practically tubs that everyone just uses together - ick. The field is boring due to the fact the park is a multipurpose stadium and also is the home of the Raiders. We went during football season and you could see the NFL field still painted on the grass. But even though the place was a dump, something really cool happened there. We happened to go on a fire works night and we got to sit on the actual field to watch the show. Adam I stood on the field and thought about all the legends in MLB and the NFL that have played there. Other than that, nothing is good about this old, boring park.

So that's that. Like I said, I haven't been to very many. I've seen many games in minor league parks, and I've even been to some of the Spring Training parks in Phoenix. Jill and I would like to travel the country when we are retired to hit up all the stadiums we can. Until that happens, I hope to keep adding a new stadium or two here every year.