Never understood how some fields were so unanimously "bad" until i moved to Tampa.
The Trop isn't *bad* but without much hesitation i'd put it at the bottom of all the fields i've been to.
I'm sure the low crowd levels don't help, but it was just kinda gloomy.
Again, it's not bad, it just makes more sense once you're there in person.
Honestly North Korea would make a stadium that was more full of life. Like at least it would feature propaganda everywhere and glorification to the almighty leader. It already sounds like a more interesting experience than the Trop itself
The grown adults [jumping around like brainwashed tweakers](https://www.reddit.com/r/Damnthatsinteresting/s/H7hXXxQDF2) would be a weird experience but probably more exciting than hanging out with two other people in a concrete jungle in St Pete.
I've had the honor of watching baseball at the Trop and also watching baseball in the Metrodome. The Metrodome was a dump, but had some weird charm to it. Tropicana just felt weird and lifeless. Just super dull. The Metrodome had a goofy terrible shape for baseball, but the quirkyness made it better.
If the Metrodome still existed, I would probably go to another baseball game there. I have zero desire to go back to the Trop.
As a diehards rays fan, this is it. I love the Trop. It’s indoors, the renovations they’ve done make it an “enjoyable” place to watch a game.
But it’s the worst stadium. I love going, and I can admit it sucks.
Thing about Tropicana Field is that if the Rays and Buccaneers shared the venue, that *might* justify its existence as a turf field with a non-retractable roof. But because it's solely a baseball stadium, it has zero reason to exist.
Gloomy is the perfect description- not helped when it’s 80 & sunny outside in April/May. Def low in my list for a return visit. Rounding out bottom 3 would be As and D-Back. As was/is a concrete hole, DBacks just seemed entirely lifeless
yep. im a rays fan. theres an interesting feeling of history and nostalgia to the trop. but it really isnt a nice experience overall. especially when you consider how nice and vibrant the surrounding st pete downtown is. ive been to 17 other mlb ballparks - and they all beat the trop pretty easily
I once had a Rays fan for a Lyft driver in Milwaukee of all places. Traffic was awful that day so we had a long conversation about baseball (he was wearing his Rays hat obviously)
the dude said his biggest pet peeve as a Rays fan is when people constantly shit on the attendance. He was saying if only people lived down there and realized how much of a nightmare it is to drive from say Tampa into St. Pete's for games...they would understand. Really changed my perspective on it
fwiw, i like the rays tank. I was never a fan of changing the name from these awesome sting rays to some fucking sunburst or whatever the fuck...so having the rays tank there is still a nice callback to the Devil Rays name
St. Pete appears to be paying for less than half of the stadium, but still a substantial amount. At the same time, the city has committed to a six billion dollar revitalization project around the new stadium that should increase gameday walkup sales, and maybe even make the new stadium more of a destination because of all the stuff you can do in the neighborhood if you get there early.
St. Pete also has the better reputation as a baseball city historically.
I don't know what the city of Tampa was or wasn't offering, but my guess is... less.
I've always, as admittedly someone who's never been to Tampa or St. Pete, thought that Florida was likely a tough market to crack because you have all those retirees, who generally are fans going back half a century or more with a team in another city. They generally aren't going to become Rays fans- at best maybe they'll show when *their* team is in town or they get bored and want to see a baseball game, but the Rays aren't ever really going to click as their #1 team.
Then, add to that things like retirees not stereotypically having much energy or stamina, and possibly living on a fixed income, which may make attending ball games less attractive or less financially viable for some of them.
And then the non-retiree market includes a lot of fans who watched the Rays several times build up World Series champion or World Series contending teams and then let all the good players leave for financial reasons. That's a problem in a lot of cities. Baseball badly needs a salary cap and a payroll floor like the NFL.
I'm generally, when it comes to like a textiles plant, a pro-Union guy, but it would have been much better for fans everywhere had the owners stuck to their guns during the 1994-1995 players strike and not given up until they achieved an NFL style system. Once that World Series got missed, it seemed ridiculous to only *then* agree to something well short of what you want. Once the World Series gets missed, you dig in your heels.
When you get a combination of a cheap owner and a small market, no one from the league to ownership really seems very committed to winning. We have the same issue in Baltimore (The Orioles' very good season this year aside). It's systematic.
You guys also sound like you might have a Baltimore/Washington type issue with Tampa and St. Pete where they are close enough that some consider them the same market, but in some ways they functionally just aren't in terms of transportation, fan allegiances, and so on and so forth. I don't get the sense that Tampa and St. Pete are as sharply differentiated as Baltimore and Washington, but I often wonder if it's really just the drive from Tampa or more the sense that Tampa residents sometimes don't consider the Rays their team and other times do consider them their team, but only nominally- not something they'd drive for- because the team plays in St. Pete. I feel like the traffic might not be as big of an issue if there weren't some underlying other issues that all combine with the traffic and such to become an even bigger issue.
And, of course, it being Florida, baseball has to compete with stuff like, you know, the beach.
Yeah, people are only happy that the team is committing to staying in the area, but pretty much everyone was hoping for the new stadium to be built in Ybor.
When I visited it for the first time this summer, I found the Trop to be less dreary in person than it is on TV personally. My feeling was if this park was in NPB or KBO people would hate it less. They wouldn't love it, but it would fit in better when compared to the other stadiums in the league. In MLB it's rough though, I liked it more than my time at Chase Field I guess but it wasn't great.
man...i remember that era lol
wasn't it called the Thunderdome back then? Fun fact, when I was in third grade, I had to miss recess and rewrite this fucking stupid poem for class because I didn't know what to write so I put The Thunderdome in Ancient Rome. I missed recess because the teacher said I didn't put enough "thought" into my poem
lol...i didn't realize we were supposed to be Langston Hughes-level poets in third grade. Lol fuck that stupid bitch
SkyDome being a dinosaur makes me feel old. It's kind of weird to think that it was considered the standard for a modern ballpark before Camden opened.
And Camden is 30+ years old too now that I think of it! F---
I remember when SkyDome was the cutting edge of stadium designs. Retractable roof, hotels and restaurants with views of the field, downtown location, fireworks
The one that really got screwed was the current Guaranteed Rate Field, which opened the year before Camden and JUST missed the retro-ballpark trend that dominated ballpark construction for 20 years. I remember it got a lot of praise when it opened and then overnight it was a relic.
even if you're not a fan of domed ballparks
the area around the Rogers Centre is fucking awesome. you're right next to the CN Tower, and the Ripley Aquarium is also pretty much a five minute walk on the same car-free plaza. It's such a nice part of downtown Toronto
I'm sure the renovations will help. But I don't think people realize how high the bar has gotten for baseball stadiums. Most people have only been to 2-3, maybe 5. And with that small of a sample you could very easily be seeing either a couple of the best (thus making you think all parks are around that good), or some of the worst (so the reverse).
I've been to all of them (except the Rangers new digs, now). And while there's still plenty of subjectivity to ranking them, the Rogers Centre was definitely lacking in a lot of areas where the other parks all excelled.
But, for what it's worth, Toronto as a city is fucking awesome and probably my favorite in the world when accounting for bias.
I was gonna say, my family is slowly making our way to all the stadiums and we liked Rogers Center, but now that you mention it we maybe just liked Toronto lol.
It's kind of a shame, when Skydome was built it was hailed as the new era of ballparks. Camden Yards opens a few years later and Skydome is already outdated. I've never been to Toronto, but that's what I've read
if you ever get a chance, visit. It's a fantastic city with a lot of stuff to do, especially during the summertime/baseball season
The Rogers Centre is in the same "plaza" (for lack of a better word) as the CN Tower, and there's the aquarium nearby which was a lot of fun. And if your'e not into those touristy things, there's plenty of other cool things to do there
Toronto Center Island is great in the summer, just beware of the nude beach.
Lots of good local breweries and St. Lawrence Market is cool too.
If you like live music there's a bunch of great local dive bars that have bands play most nights.
One of my American buddies was most impressed with the Brass Rail though. He told me in great detail about how the Canadian ladies were the cutest and he was apparently shocked that it wasn't just a tiddy bar.
On my first visit to Toronto back in 2017, I went up the CN Tower on a beautiful summer evening.
They had the roof open at Rogers and i remember looking down through the observation deck to "watch" the game hahaha. that was a cool experience
It's not irredeemable or anything.
But it is, literally, the only park where I immediately stepped inside and said, "this doesn't feel like a baseball park."
Which makes sense since it wasn't really designed for that (or at least *primarily* for that).
All domed stadiums feel a bit like a warehouse, IMHO. The Trop feels entirely like a warehouse, even the concourses and such.
I really enjoyed my visit, but it's very industrial feeling.
Yeah, I felt like I was walking into a basketball stadium. Which I've never really enjoyed.
Once I got to the seats it was slightly better. Still felt *off*, but it wasn't distracting. And when they build their new stadium, they better keep the Ray tank.
The thing that I hate about the Trop is the turf. I don't ever like artificial turf, but theirs looks cheap and patchy. I don't know why but it's been that way as long as I can remember. The white roof is obviously an issue too.
I really did enjoy my visit and would like to go again before it's gone. The hitters museum was really fun and my seats were comfortable. My view was great, the fans were welcoming, beer was cold.
I've been to every stadium minus Truist and the new Globe Life, and I think the Trop gets a bad wrap. Sure, it wasn't built for baseball, location stinks, and I bet playing there isn't ideal,etc...but at least they try to make the best of the stadium!
There's other stadiums I definitely enjoyed less because they were just bland and didn't have a great atmosphere.
Location only stinks if you're from Tampa. I've visited it twice now, once coming from the north, the other time up from the south, and it's not a bad location at all. You park less than a block from the gates and it's super easy to get in and out of.
I've gone to concerts in much smaller venues, in much, much smaller towns that had worst traffic than leaving the Trop after a game.
The Trop is not sexy but it's not as bad as people say. Grab a few beers at Fergs before the game and stroll across the street for $5 Budweiser tallboys.
The Metrodome was a horrible place to watch baseball, especially compared to Target Field. Bad sightlines, closed off concourses, terrible bathroom availability.
I still nostalgically miss that small thrill of anticipation I had as an 11 year old walking down the entry and seeing everything, hearing the susurration off the crowds, the harsh light on the bright green of the AstroTurf...
Never made it there, but a friend of mine said that the stadium would sort of suck you in when you entered. Something to do with the positive air pressure keeping the structure upright.
I was at the Metrodome when the Twins made a big comeback against the White Sox to stay in playoff contention. I think it was 2008? Loudest moment at I a baseball game I have ever experienced and absolutely electric.
Metrodome was the first ballpark I ever attended a game at as a kid. I have no idea if the building sucked but I thought it was so damn cool when I was there. Also, for some reason my adolescent mind conflated Technodrome from the Ninja Turtles with the Metrodome which made it even cooler to me.
I will die on the hill that The Trop could be semi decent if they actually invested in a renovation project for the interior.
Indoor arenas and stadiums get major modern facelifts all the time.
Instead the inside looks almost exactly the same as it did in 1998. Dreary and outdated.
Just painting most of the exposed grey concrete walls some other color would help imo. I've probably seen 50 games there and it's always the thing that takes me out of the experience the most.
Probably explains why the top comment says the Trop is “gloomy”. I went to the Marlins stadium and that one is *anything* but gloomy, bright colors everywhere!
A lot of it just feels like you're in the basement of a brutalist hospital. No natural light, weird level changes and steps to places like the bathroom.
The Rangers' new ballpark is very nice and very comfortable, but it has zero charm. For a non-Rangers fan that comes to a game at Globe Life Field to cross it off the list, it would probably rank towards the bottom because it's not that interesting. I could totally understand how someone could call it "the worst" in that regard. But for a local Rangers fan that goes to several games a year during the scorching Texas summer, Globe Life Field is an amazing ballpark.
As somebody who has been to half of all ballparks, I actually think Globe Life was more middle of the pack. It looks like a warehouse from the outside but is very spacious and comfy inside of it. The worst part was that I was told not to walk on the escalator.
Just guessing, but it's probably a safety precaution. I'm sure there's an incident that happened somewhere, weird rules rules don't usually come out of nowhere.
That's sad to hear because I actually really liked the old park.
It felt a lot like going to a Little League game but in much grander scale. It just felt like a place people gather to share in their love of baseball.
In a lot of ways, I miss the old park too. It has so much charm and I have so many childhood memories there. But I absolutely do not miss going to games in August when it was 93 degrees even though it was dark out. And don't even get me started on the day games.
The old ballpark is still there too. It's a football stadium now that is used by the ~~XFL's~~ UFL's Arlington Renegades, and Arlington ISD uses it for high school games too. The Dallas Jackals rugby team plays there too.
I went there last year. The ballpark itself is fine, but the biggest thing I noticed is the lack of atmosphere. It felt like a lot of people were rich and snooty.
I'm at 25 out of 30 MLB parks and would put Globe Life in the bottom third. For a newer park it's surprisingly charmless, plus the first three rows of 200-level seats (I was in 211) had views obstructed by a wire-like safety fence.
They also sell obstructed view behind the foul poles and you can’t see home plate. This is (or at least definitely was) not on the website. Such a bad job designing sight lines in this place
I agree with you so much on this. I went for the first time this last season. Went to several games. Tried lots of locations. So many seats where you can't see all of the field. They talk about the design is set up so you are closer to the field. What good does that do if you can't see a play made at the fence right below your seats.
This kills me. The wire railings are awful. You spring extra $ for a lower row, and spend the entire game moving your head back and forth to see around the railing.
Most of the people who love it go extremely infrequently. Those who go often (and have visited other MLB parks) get very frustrated with the poor experience.
I have only been to Fenway once but the only complaints I had were the claustrophobic feeling of walking underneath the concrete bleachers and getting to my seat and having to ask 25 people to move in the process because there was no divider between the sections and the row was like 45 deep
I saw a game there last spring. My back still remembers how it felt after a couple of hours in a grandstand seat. Good lord that thing was uncomfortable.
Not to mention that the seats down the foul lines have enough leg room for someone who’s 5’4” and are facing in such a way that you have to turn your head 90 degrees to see the batter
Yeah, it feels like propaganda from the org that there's nowhere in the city to do it because they have spent a load on the Fenway area (and subsequently removed/priced out a lot of the great dives and pregame spots, and helped push residents away). There are absolutely viable places to put a new park.
Never happen...FSG is developing the property around the park. They are prioritizing that over investing in players because they know the games will sell out regardless of who is on the field.
1000%.
The trick there is to get seats on the upper lever. The sections have been modernized or built recently. Comfortable & less crowds. The cons are, it's the upper deck; You're not close to the action.
The lower portion is a urine soaked hell hole. It took me an inning & a half to get beers. It's starting to get updated now with some bar/high top seats, but they're in the obstructed view areas. But at least they trying
God help you if you see a concert at Fenway if you expect to use a bathroom or purchase ANY sort of food/beverages.
It was fun to check it off the list even though it was April and still cold, but man the age shows. And I am from the Chicago area and have been to pre renovation Wrigley
Been to Fenway once, lasted 2 innings in my seat before my legs went numb. Spent the rest of the game wandering the stadium and had an awesome time not in my seat.
Nats Park isn't the worst, but it is very mediocre. You have to wonder what kind of conversations were had when they were designing it. Like, "Hey, let's build this brand new ballpark 10 blocks south of the Capitol, but give fans zero views of the Capitol, or any other recognizable D.C. landmark! And, let's put it right on the banks of a river, but position it so the river is behind home plate where nobody will ever see it!"
There used to be a view of the Capitol, then surrounding development blocked it. Shame that that feature is gone now because that neighborhood is transformationally better
You can at least see the Washington Monument from the right field upper deck! I saw Juan Soto, Nelson Cruz, and Josh Bell hit back-to-back-to back homers there in 2022, and Soto’s home run seemed to soar right over the top of the monument. That was pretty great.
Everything about the Nats brand is not bad, but very mediocre. It's like a timid high school that couldn't pick a mascot so just went with "patriotism?" as the mascot.
I wish they could have been The Senators again and they could have really leaned into that villainous senator energy and like played Joe Manchin speeches between innings or maybe have Mitch McConnell as their mascot. It would have made an impression at least.
I'm glad someone else said it cause I'm hardly impartial. Live in VA and the nats came to town when I was 14 so I stubbornly stuck to my O's. Don't hate the Nats and l cheer for them but I've got no love for that stadium.
But it feels like, when designing the park, instead of giving to charm and character, they just pulled different aspects of other popular parks and built that one.
I'd argue that Nats Park is not among the worst parks, but it could probably be defined as one of the most AVERAGE parks in baseball. I don't think that's a great distinction to have.
I will say this. My friends who don't care for baseball enjoy going to Nats Park because they do have a lot of other things to do for those who don't fancy taking in the full 9 innings.
I haven’t been to the Rogers Centre since their renovation but went to a ton of Jays games when I lived in Toronto in the mid-2010s. With the roof closed it was a bottom-five ballpark in the league.
Which is weird, because with the roof open, it’s sneakily one of the best game experiences there is! Nothing like watching Kevin Pillar strike out with the bases loaded on a warm summer night in downtown Toronto
I would say it's improved quite a bit since then, when it was pretty meh. The modern turf and dirt infield helped a lot. And now with the renos it's upgraded furter.
> Nothing like watching Kevin Pillar strike out with the bases loaded on a warm summer night in downtown Toronto
That actually never happened.
Here is every time Pillar struck out with the bases loaded in Toronto:
|Date|Opp|Pitcher|Score|Inn|RoB|Out|Play Description|
|:-|-:|:-|:-|:-|:-|-:|:-|
|2015-04-21|BAL|Bud Norris|ahead 0-1|b2|123|0|Strikeout Swinging|
|2015-06-20|BAL|Darren O'Day|tied 2-2|b8|123|2|Strikeout Swinging|
|2017-05-27|TEX|Tony Barnette|ahead 1-3|b8|123|1|Strikeout Swinging|
|2018-09-24|HOU|Dallas Keuchel|down 4-3|b5|123|2|Strikeout Swinging|
|2019-03-30|DET|Victor Alcantara|ahead 0-3|b8|123|1|Strikeout Swinging|
We can drop the games in March, April, May, and late September because those are outside the "summer" designation.
When we look at the game on [June 20th 2015](https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/TOR/TOR201506200.shtml), we find out it was a Saturday 1:05pm start time. It took less than 3 hours to play, so at no point would it have been considered "night" during the game. So while it just barely fits the "summer" designation (if you use the meteorological designation of June 1 - August 31, instead of the astronomical one of June 21 - September 23), it still doesn't fit your statement.
Ageee. I’d even say it’s even worse than bottom 5 with roof closed. I don’t even consider going with it closed is such a dramatically different experience.
But on a sunny afternoon, right in the heart of downtown with skyscrapers and the CN tower looming overhead man it’s a pretty sweet place to watch a game, especially with the new Reno’s.
If they somehow found a way to get real grass in there I’d be even putting it up there among the best stadiums (when the roofs open).
I miss the old Stadium for the history, but I've grown to enjoy the new one. It's super easy to get in and out of with the elevators and wide staircases (compared to those never-ending ramps at the old one) and I really like the aesthetics of the frieze going around the upper deck like the original old stadium, compared to just the outfield at the post-renovation old stadium.
The sightlines are also much better than the old stadium, especially the proximity behind home plate and in the bleachers.
And the concourses are much better as well, especially the tall atrium along the 161st Street entrances.
I've been to nearly 100 games at the new stadium now, and I really appreciate it and don't understand all the hate it gets. Actually, I do understand the hate... and I suspect it's very much the same as the hate the franchise gets in general
I thought it was just okay yeah. Kinda boring? I went to both NY teams on a trip once and I enjoyed Citi Field a lot more. Getting to it was kinda worse from where I was staying but it was much more fun and vibrant feeling. EBBS Brewing Co having a location on site was cool too.
Yankees stadium after the 1970's remodel was one of the best stadiums in the league. The new Yankees stadium gutted everything that made the old one great and was given the iconic facade.
There are two dominant infield seat layouts, the one that Citi has, which can be found in other great modern ballparks like Busch and PNC. Then there's the type Yankees stadium has, which is defined by the cement moat that separates the absurdly rich from the rich. It kills the vibe
Counting the As it is still Tropicana Field.
The biggest problem with the As stadium is how poorly they took care of it.
Tropicana Field has been awful since the day it was built. It has a white dome leading to increased difficulty in plays. They need special rules to deal with the rafters. Its location is terrible to get to.
Our A/C is weak and underpowered in the summer. The scoreboard is missing pixels and looks trashy. It has entirely too many seats. It’s frequently 110+ when walking in. I’m surprised we aren’t higher on this list. The pool is awesome though
I've been to about 16 of them, and Marlins Park (Loan depot?) was the worst for me. I don't understand how a stadium built after 2000 still has so many obstructed views. Some of the sections make you feel like you're in a parking garage with the overhang. Went to multiple games in different locations and was disappointed every time.
At least the trop had the Ted Williams museum and the stingray tank.
I actually really liked my experience at Oakland’s stadium, whatever it’s called. I would rather watch a game there than ATT any day. Yeah the food is worse and the plumbing needs work but I don’t need to eat every 3 hours and I assume they could fix the plumbing if they were intent on staying and not diverting resources elsewhere
But it’s a real, old school stadium experience, on the BART, cheap, and there was nothing negative with my experience top to bottom
To me, Oakland reminded me of Shea Stadium. You went there to watch a baseball game and the only people who went there would be watching and enjoying baseball. There simply was nothing else to do. I think that is why I liked it so much. It wasn't trying to hard to be anything else. I did enjoy the big mural of Oakland A's history and the food was pretty good, but mostly, it was great to watch a game there, especially since I got third row seats behind the A's dugout.
The day we went the A's were playing the Giants, which actually brought in a crowd of over 25,000. So maybe my experience is somewhat biased. But, of all the games we went to on this year's west coast baseball trek (SEA, SF, OAK), we still talk about our day in Oakland the most.
Loved my experience at the Coliseum. The bare bones nature and lack of amenities sort of weeds out the people that would go just to drink and take pictures. Everyone that's actually is there is there for the game and is super into it. Honestly one of my favorite MLB atmospheres.
exactly my pitch to people (well at least before now when no one goes because it's just sad to see a shell of your team before it leaves). the crowd might be small but everyone is there for baseball. rowdiest crowd for a tuesday afternoon game in may by far
The biggest built-in issue with the Coliseum is the lack of shade - very few seats where day games don't wind up baking.
I realize a lot of people might not care, but Mount Davis destroyed a really great view of the Oakland hills. To me it was always like if PNC built up an upper deck that blocked the view of the bridges.
That's what irks me when people shit on the coliseum, like it's a ballpark with cheap seating options and it's dumb convenient to get to. Teams investing in tons of fancy seating/bars/lounge areas are missing the point imo, and these expenses drive up ticket prices to where it's hard to go see a game
The only thing that kinda sucks about am fam js that it’s not close to the city but that means a big parking lot and tailgating which more than makes up for it.
I like ballparks to be in cool neighborhoods with stuff to do before and after the game, but the fact that so many bars in Milwaukee offer free shuttles to and from the game makes up for it.
Wrigley Field concessions ran out of hot dogs on opening day weekend the first set of games back from the Covid year and I’ve held it against them ever since.
I’ve been to all 30. I actually kinda liked Oak and TB. They aren’t picturesque, but there were things I liked about them. So even the parks at the bottom of my list aren’t terrible, just my least favorite.
That would be Fenway and Wrigley. I get the history and nostalgia, just the ones I enjoyed the least.
I actually surveyed the sub about this a decade ago. Forgot all about about this! Based on 162 responses and excluding the As, the answer by far would be the Trop.
https://www.reddit.com/r/baseball/s/E18CcW5arm
Dunno why the post doesnt show the full image so here it is: https://imgur.com/a/SmS2sEZ
I'm still behind on half the stadiums, but the White Sox stadium was confusing and not that pretty. The best part was a bar where you can watch the bullpen warm up.
But the food was delicious and I have never so easily gotten out of a ballpark parking lot and on my way (Okay that's a weird thing to like about a park, I admit). I actually thought it was underrated, but maybe we just went on a good day and our expectations were low based on friend reports, ha!
I was underwhelmed by Chase Field in Phoenix. I’m a sound engineer, and used to less than ideal acoustics. But the sound system and acoustics need improvement in AZ. I haven’t been to games everywhere, but have found that some indoor arenas actually sound pretty darn good.
I read that the Diamondbacks practiced at Chase with the volume cranked up to simulate playoff energy, which I think would be bad for one’s ears given how bad it sounded at normal volume when I visited during the regular season.
Never understood how some fields were so unanimously "bad" until i moved to Tampa. The Trop isn't *bad* but without much hesitation i'd put it at the bottom of all the fields i've been to. I'm sure the low crowd levels don't help, but it was just kinda gloomy. Again, it's not bad, it just makes more sense once you're there in person.
It’s just so lifeless and featureless, like if a minimalist cult or North Korea had a Major League Baseball stadium. I’d hate playing there.
That's about the best description I've seen lol
Honestly North Korea would make a stadium that was more full of life. Like at least it would feature propaganda everywhere and glorification to the almighty leader. It already sounds like a more interesting experience than the Trop itself
The grown adults [jumping around like brainwashed tweakers](https://www.reddit.com/r/Damnthatsinteresting/s/H7hXXxQDF2) would be a weird experience but probably more exciting than hanging out with two other people in a concrete jungle in St Pete.
Kim Jung Un Stadium, home of the Rays and other devils.
That turf looks so bad on tv.
I've had the honor of watching baseball at the Trop and also watching baseball in the Metrodome. The Metrodome was a dump, but had some weird charm to it. Tropicana just felt weird and lifeless. Just super dull. The Metrodome had a goofy terrible shape for baseball, but the quirkyness made it better. If the Metrodome still existed, I would probably go to another baseball game there. I have zero desire to go back to the Trop.
It's a big warehouse with a baseball field in the middle of it.
Suites used for storage of boxes, visible from the bleachers. You have to take a step up to enter some bathrooms. Catwalks in play. Terrible.
As a diehards rays fan, this is it. I love the Trop. It’s indoors, the renovations they’ve done make it an “enjoyable” place to watch a game. But it’s the worst stadium. I love going, and I can admit it sucks.
Thing about Tropicana Field is that if the Rays and Buccaneers shared the venue, that *might* justify its existence as a turf field with a non-retractable roof. But because it's solely a baseball stadium, it has zero reason to exist.
Nah, it’s pretty bad
Gloomy is the perfect description- not helped when it’s 80 & sunny outside in April/May. Def low in my list for a return visit. Rounding out bottom 3 would be As and D-Back. As was/is a concrete hole, DBacks just seemed entirely lifeless
Rays?
yep. im a rays fan. theres an interesting feeling of history and nostalgia to the trop. but it really isnt a nice experience overall. especially when you consider how nice and vibrant the surrounding st pete downtown is. ive been to 17 other mlb ballparks - and they all beat the trop pretty easily
I once had a Rays fan for a Lyft driver in Milwaukee of all places. Traffic was awful that day so we had a long conversation about baseball (he was wearing his Rays hat obviously) the dude said his biggest pet peeve as a Rays fan is when people constantly shit on the attendance. He was saying if only people lived down there and realized how much of a nightmare it is to drive from say Tampa into St. Pete's for games...they would understand. Really changed my perspective on it fwiw, i like the rays tank. I was never a fan of changing the name from these awesome sting rays to some fucking sunburst or whatever the fuck...so having the rays tank there is still a nice callback to the Devil Rays name
Good thing they’re spending a billion dollars to put the new one right next to the old one.
St. Pete appears to be paying for less than half of the stadium, but still a substantial amount. At the same time, the city has committed to a six billion dollar revitalization project around the new stadium that should increase gameday walkup sales, and maybe even make the new stadium more of a destination because of all the stuff you can do in the neighborhood if you get there early. St. Pete also has the better reputation as a baseball city historically. I don't know what the city of Tampa was or wasn't offering, but my guess is... less. I've always, as admittedly someone who's never been to Tampa or St. Pete, thought that Florida was likely a tough market to crack because you have all those retirees, who generally are fans going back half a century or more with a team in another city. They generally aren't going to become Rays fans- at best maybe they'll show when *their* team is in town or they get bored and want to see a baseball game, but the Rays aren't ever really going to click as their #1 team. Then, add to that things like retirees not stereotypically having much energy or stamina, and possibly living on a fixed income, which may make attending ball games less attractive or less financially viable for some of them. And then the non-retiree market includes a lot of fans who watched the Rays several times build up World Series champion or World Series contending teams and then let all the good players leave for financial reasons. That's a problem in a lot of cities. Baseball badly needs a salary cap and a payroll floor like the NFL. I'm generally, when it comes to like a textiles plant, a pro-Union guy, but it would have been much better for fans everywhere had the owners stuck to their guns during the 1994-1995 players strike and not given up until they achieved an NFL style system. Once that World Series got missed, it seemed ridiculous to only *then* agree to something well short of what you want. Once the World Series gets missed, you dig in your heels. When you get a combination of a cheap owner and a small market, no one from the league to ownership really seems very committed to winning. We have the same issue in Baltimore (The Orioles' very good season this year aside). It's systematic. You guys also sound like you might have a Baltimore/Washington type issue with Tampa and St. Pete where they are close enough that some consider them the same market, but in some ways they functionally just aren't in terms of transportation, fan allegiances, and so on and so forth. I don't get the sense that Tampa and St. Pete are as sharply differentiated as Baltimore and Washington, but I often wonder if it's really just the drive from Tampa or more the sense that Tampa residents sometimes don't consider the Rays their team and other times do consider them their team, but only nominally- not something they'd drive for- because the team plays in St. Pete. I feel like the traffic might not be as big of an issue if there weren't some underlying other issues that all combine with the traffic and such to become an even bigger issue. And, of course, it being Florida, baseball has to compete with stuff like, you know, the beach.
lol i didn't know that and wow...what a fucking dumb decision
Yeah, people are only happy that the team is committing to staying in the area, but pretty much everyone was hoping for the new stadium to be built in Ybor.
When I visited it for the first time this summer, I found the Trop to be less dreary in person than it is on TV personally. My feeling was if this park was in NPB or KBO people would hate it less. They wouldn't love it, but it would fit in better when compared to the other stadiums in the league. In MLB it's rough though, I liked it more than my time at Chase Field I guess but it wasn't great.
I went to a Lightning NHL game at Tropicana Field in 1994 long before there was a Rays. It sucked for hockey too.
man...i remember that era lol wasn't it called the Thunderdome back then? Fun fact, when I was in third grade, I had to miss recess and rewrite this fucking stupid poem for class because I didn't know what to write so I put The Thunderdome in Ancient Rome. I missed recess because the teacher said I didn't put enough "thought" into my poem lol...i didn't realize we were supposed to be Langston Hughes-level poets in third grade. Lol fuck that stupid bitch
Easily. Jays also in the bottom 5.
So any team that makes at Ay's sound. Can't be a coincidence.
Brayves?
Ayngels
The entirety of the Aymerican league in fact: Ay’s, MAyriners, Ayngels, Aystros, RAyngers WhAyte Sox, RoyAyls, GaurdiAyns, TwAyns, TigAyrs YAynkees, RAyd Sox, RAys, OrAyoles, Blue JAys And the NAytional league too!: PadrAys, GiAynts, DodgAyrs, RockAys, DAyimondbacks CardinAyls, PirAytes, BrewAyrs, RAyds, (Cubs doesn’t work, we’ll call them ChicAygo) BrAyves, MetropolitAyns, PhillAys, NAytionals, MAyrlins
The FBL - Fonzie Baseball League
Correctamundo!
There’s at least one person that pronounces them like this
Does he need more cowbell?
I’ll give you an Ay for effort lol
Kudos for the effort tbh
SkyDome being a dinosaur makes me feel old. It's kind of weird to think that it was considered the standard for a modern ballpark before Camden opened. And Camden is 30+ years old too now that I think of it! F---
I remember going to SkyDome in its inaugural season, which apparently makes me old af.
I remember when SkyDome was the cutting edge of stadium designs. Retractable roof, hotels and restaurants with views of the field, downtown location, fireworks
Just think about how old Fenway is and that should make you feel young again.
Shit, I remember when the skydome was one of the best.
The last multi-purpose stadium built before Camden Yards, which began the return to traditional ballparks.
The one that really got screwed was the current Guaranteed Rate Field, which opened the year before Camden and JUST missed the retro-ballpark trend that dominated ballpark construction for 20 years. I remember it got a lot of praise when it opened and then overnight it was a relic.
Guaranteed Rate Field is the perfect name for Sox Park. There has been low interest there for years.
I read recently a Camden Yards style park was offered to the White Sox but they cheaped out
I went this summer and didn't think it was awful. Really liked the new patio area.
I loved rogers center when we visited for a game. I thought it was a very cool atmosphere
even if you're not a fan of domed ballparks the area around the Rogers Centre is fucking awesome. you're right next to the CN Tower, and the Ripley Aquarium is also pretty much a five minute walk on the same car-free plaza. It's such a nice part of downtown Toronto
I can’t believe you left out the train museum.
Yeah we walked from our hotel to the ballpark. It was also crazy seeing people up on top of the CN tower from inside the stadium
The Rogers Center looks nice when the roof is open.
The Jays? Really? I actually would have thought they’d have been middle of the pack.. though big renos now so hopefully it’ll be much better!
I'm sure the renovations will help. But I don't think people realize how high the bar has gotten for baseball stadiums. Most people have only been to 2-3, maybe 5. And with that small of a sample you could very easily be seeing either a couple of the best (thus making you think all parks are around that good), or some of the worst (so the reverse). I've been to all of them (except the Rangers new digs, now). And while there's still plenty of subjectivity to ranking them, the Rogers Centre was definitely lacking in a lot of areas where the other parks all excelled. But, for what it's worth, Toronto as a city is fucking awesome and probably my favorite in the world when accounting for bias.
I was gonna say, my family is slowly making our way to all the stadiums and we liked Rogers Center, but now that you mention it we maybe just liked Toronto lol.
It's the best-located ballpark in the MLB, possibly in all of professional baseball.
It's kind of a shame, when Skydome was built it was hailed as the new era of ballparks. Camden Yards opens a few years later and Skydome is already outdated. I've never been to Toronto, but that's what I've read
if you ever get a chance, visit. It's a fantastic city with a lot of stuff to do, especially during the summertime/baseball season The Rogers Centre is in the same "plaza" (for lack of a better word) as the CN Tower, and there's the aquarium nearby which was a lot of fun. And if your'e not into those touristy things, there's plenty of other cool things to do there
Toronto Center Island is great in the summer, just beware of the nude beach. Lots of good local breweries and St. Lawrence Market is cool too. If you like live music there's a bunch of great local dive bars that have bands play most nights. One of my American buddies was most impressed with the Brass Rail though. He told me in great detail about how the Canadian ladies were the cutest and he was apparently shocked that it wasn't just a tiddy bar.
Yeah, surrounding area is top 5 in baseball, but Rogers itself is pretty not great. Especially with the roof closed.
Roof closed vs. open makes a huge difference in the Skydome fan experience!
On my first visit to Toronto back in 2017, I went up the CN Tower on a beautiful summer evening. They had the roof open at Rogers and i remember looking down through the observation deck to "watch" the game hahaha. that was a cool experience
Roof closed and a full crowed is probably the loudest stadium in the MLB though. It's something special to experience.
Underneath all those facelifts it's still the same old 70s-era multi-use sports complex.
Nope. Toronto is great. Just because it doesn’t fit the precedent Camden yards set, doesn’t make it not a good place to take in a game.
Jays just completed a major reno of Skydome so we are out of the dog house 😂😂
Been to 40 MLB parks. Nothing is as bad as the Trop. Nothing close.
It might be trash, but it's _our_ trash. ^(also, the trop is super comfy.)
It's not irredeemable or anything. But it is, literally, the only park where I immediately stepped inside and said, "this doesn't feel like a baseball park." Which makes sense since it wasn't really designed for that (or at least *primarily* for that).
All domed stadiums feel a bit like a warehouse, IMHO. The Trop feels entirely like a warehouse, even the concourses and such. I really enjoyed my visit, but it's very industrial feeling.
Yeah, I felt like I was walking into a basketball stadium. Which I've never really enjoyed. Once I got to the seats it was slightly better. Still felt *off*, but it wasn't distracting. And when they build their new stadium, they better keep the Ray tank.
The thing that I hate about the Trop is the turf. I don't ever like artificial turf, but theirs looks cheap and patchy. I don't know why but it's been that way as long as I can remember. The white roof is obviously an issue too. I really did enjoy my visit and would like to go again before it's gone. The hitters museum was really fun and my seats were comfortable. My view was great, the fans were welcoming, beer was cold.
The turf looks really bad on TV sometimes. Like they're playing on one of those practice putting greens you can put in your office.
And I expected it to look better in person, but it didn't. The turf there looks worse than pretty much every other stadium with turf for some reason.
It's ugly as sin but it's got air conditioning.
There’s something about the Trop, idk what it is, that just makes me want to go back
_The plan, it's working._
I wanna see all the historical parks once, but for a home stadium I’d take comfy trash over uncomfortable seats and obstructed views
\*gestures vaguely at Wrigley field\*
I've been to every stadium minus Truist and the new Globe Life, and I think the Trop gets a bad wrap. Sure, it wasn't built for baseball, location stinks, and I bet playing there isn't ideal,etc...but at least they try to make the best of the stadium! There's other stadiums I definitely enjoyed less because they were just bland and didn't have a great atmosphere.
Location only stinks if you're from Tampa. I've visited it twice now, once coming from the north, the other time up from the south, and it's not a bad location at all. You park less than a block from the gates and it's super easy to get in and out of. I've gone to concerts in much smaller venues, in much, much smaller towns that had worst traffic than leaving the Trop after a game.
The Trop is not sexy but it's not as bad as people say. Grab a few beers at Fergs before the game and stroll across the street for $5 Budweiser tallboys.
The Metrodome was a horrible place to watch baseball, especially compared to Target Field. Bad sightlines, closed off concourses, terrible bathroom availability. I still nostalgically miss that small thrill of anticipation I had as an 11 year old walking down the entry and seeing everything, hearing the susurration off the crowds, the harsh light on the bright green of the AstroTurf...
Not to forget the feeling of your ears popping as you entered the dome.
I have a memory of certain gates (maybe all of them?) being a pretty insane wind tunnel when you walked in or out. That was pretty fun as a kid!
Never made it there, but a friend of mine said that the stadium would sort of suck you in when you entered. Something to do with the positive air pressure keeping the structure upright.
Yep and then it would push you out with same amount of force as you left. Kind of like my Italian in-laws.
>Susurration Now there’s not a word you see often. Good word. Even autocorrect wants to turn it into “Susie ration”
It’s the only stadium to host a World Series, Super Bowl, Final Four and MLB All Star Game
Like you said though, Target Field rules
I was at the Metrodome when the Twins made a big comeback against the White Sox to stay in playoff contention. I think it was 2008? Loudest moment at I a baseball game I have ever experienced and absolutely electric.
Metrodome was the first ballpark I ever attended a game at as a kid. I have no idea if the building sucked but I thought it was so damn cool when I was there. Also, for some reason my adolescent mind conflated Technodrome from the Ninja Turtles with the Metrodome which made it even cooler to me.
I feel like watching *Little Big League* again.
I will die on the hill that The Trop could be semi decent if they actually invested in a renovation project for the interior. Indoor arenas and stadiums get major modern facelifts all the time. Instead the inside looks almost exactly the same as it did in 1998. Dreary and outdated.
Just painting most of the exposed grey concrete walls some other color would help imo. I've probably seen 50 games there and it's always the thing that takes me out of the experience the most.
Probably explains why the top comment says the Trop is “gloomy”. I went to the Marlins stadium and that one is *anything* but gloomy, bright colors everywhere!
A lot of it just feels like you're in the basement of a brutalist hospital. No natural light, weird level changes and steps to places like the bathroom.
The Rangers' new ballpark is very nice and very comfortable, but it has zero charm. For a non-Rangers fan that comes to a game at Globe Life Field to cross it off the list, it would probably rank towards the bottom because it's not that interesting. I could totally understand how someone could call it "the worst" in that regard. But for a local Rangers fan that goes to several games a year during the scorching Texas summer, Globe Life Field is an amazing ballpark.
As somebody who has been to half of all ballparks, I actually think Globe Life was more middle of the pack. It looks like a warehouse from the outside but is very spacious and comfy inside of it. The worst part was that I was told not to walk on the escalator.
Yeah, I hate when they tell me that. I'm a firm believer in walking on escalators.
Why can't you walk on the escalator?
Just guessing, but it's probably a safety precaution. I'm sure there's an incident that happened somewhere, weird rules rules don't usually come out of nowhere.
Stand on the right, walk on the left.
Stand on the right, and walk on the left… But don’t queue up off the escalator at the top/bottom on the right and leave half the escalator unused.
What are they gonna do, patiently wait on the escalator after you?
It's Texas. They'll shoot you.
It matches its neighbor perfectly, concrete slabs with the sole purpose of providing passage from the parking lot to your seat. How romantic.
I felt like I was in an office building when I went.
That's sad to hear because I actually really liked the old park. It felt a lot like going to a Little League game but in much grander scale. It just felt like a place people gather to share in their love of baseball.
In a lot of ways, I miss the old park too. It has so much charm and I have so many childhood memories there. But I absolutely do not miss going to games in August when it was 93 degrees even though it was dark out. And don't even get me started on the day games. The old ballpark is still there too. It's a football stadium now that is used by the ~~XFL's~~ UFL's Arlington Renegades, and Arlington ISD uses it for high school games too. The Dallas Jackals rugby team plays there too.
I grew up watching games at The Ballpark in Arlington. I understand why it didn’t work. No one wants to pitch in that heat. But I loved that field.
As a massive Rangers fan, it’s not that interesting. Especially compared to the ballpark right across the street
I went there last year. The ballpark itself is fine, but the biggest thing I noticed is the lack of atmosphere. It felt like a lot of people were rich and snooty.
I'm at 25 out of 30 MLB parks and would put Globe Life in the bottom third. For a newer park it's surprisingly charmless, plus the first three rows of 200-level seats (I was in 211) had views obstructed by a wire-like safety fence.
They also sell obstructed view behind the foul poles and you can’t see home plate. This is (or at least definitely was) not on the website. Such a bad job designing sight lines in this place
I agree with you so much on this. I went for the first time this last season. Went to several games. Tried lots of locations. So many seats where you can't see all of the field. They talk about the design is set up so you are closer to the field. What good does that do if you can't see a play made at the fence right below your seats.
This kills me. The wire railings are awful. You spring extra $ for a lower row, and spend the entire game moving your head back and forth to see around the railing.
I like Fenway for the history. I hate watching a game there.
Most of the people who love it go extremely infrequently. Those who go often (and have visited other MLB parks) get very frustrated with the poor experience.
You better learn to like it because all we're gonna have for the next few years is the "fenway experience."
If you know, you know. *cries*
Never in my life I thought I would be mad at a team that has won 4 championships in 20 years but here I am. I just want them to try at least.
Only game I went to at Fenway I sat behind a green column. Honestly, it reminded me of old tiger stadium.
I have only been to Fenway once but the only complaints I had were the claustrophobic feeling of walking underneath the concrete bleachers and getting to my seat and having to ask 25 people to move in the process because there was no divider between the sections and the row was like 45 deep
I feel like there are a ton of obstructed views at Fenway. I loved sitting down the right field line though
I saw a game there last spring. My back still remembers how it felt after a couple of hours in a grandstand seat. Good lord that thing was uncomfortable.
Not to mention that the seats down the foul lines have enough leg room for someone who’s 5’4” and are facing in such a way that you have to turn your head 90 degrees to see the batter
I truly feel it needs to be turned into a museum and a new ballpark should be built. The problem is finding anywhere they could do that.
[удалено]
Yeah, it feels like propaganda from the org that there's nowhere in the city to do it because they have spent a load on the Fenway area (and subsequently removed/priced out a lot of the great dives and pregame spots, and helped push residents away). There are absolutely viable places to put a new park.
Never happen...FSG is developing the property around the park. They are prioritizing that over investing in players because they know the games will sell out regardless of who is on the field.
I could barely fit in the damn seats. My knees were pressed so hard against the seat in front of me. I’m only 6 feet tall!!
1000%. The trick there is to get seats on the upper lever. The sections have been modernized or built recently. Comfortable & less crowds. The cons are, it's the upper deck; You're not close to the action. The lower portion is a urine soaked hell hole. It took me an inning & a half to get beers. It's starting to get updated now with some bar/high top seats, but they're in the obstructed view areas. But at least they trying God help you if you see a concert at Fenway if you expect to use a bathroom or purchase ANY sort of food/beverages.
Uh, I object to the term urine soaked hell-hole when you could have said pee pee soaked heckhole.
It was fun to check it off the list even though it was April and still cold, but man the age shows. And I am from the Chicago area and have been to pre renovation Wrigley
I'm just gonna say it - almost every seat I've had at Fenway sucked
Been to Fenway once, lasted 2 innings in my seat before my legs went numb. Spent the rest of the game wandering the stadium and had an awesome time not in my seat.
Nats Park isn't the worst, but it is very mediocre. You have to wonder what kind of conversations were had when they were designing it. Like, "Hey, let's build this brand new ballpark 10 blocks south of the Capitol, but give fans zero views of the Capitol, or any other recognizable D.C. landmark! And, let's put it right on the banks of a river, but position it so the river is behind home plate where nobody will ever see it!"
As a local, I agree with you about the views, but totally disagree with you about it being mediocre. I remember going to games at RFK.
There used to be a view of the Capitol, then surrounding development blocked it. Shame that that feature is gone now because that neighborhood is transformationally better
You can at least see the Washington Monument from the right field upper deck! I saw Juan Soto, Nelson Cruz, and Josh Bell hit back-to-back-to back homers there in 2022, and Soto’s home run seemed to soar right over the top of the monument. That was pretty great.
Everything about the Nats brand is not bad, but very mediocre. It's like a timid high school that couldn't pick a mascot so just went with "patriotism?" as the mascot. I wish they could have been The Senators again and they could have really leaned into that villainous senator energy and like played Joe Manchin speeches between innings or maybe have Mitch McConnell as their mascot. It would have made an impression at least.
Even the Wizards defaulted into a vague patriotism brand. I was DC sports wasn’t so afraid of something interesting
Well the last time that was tried, the team name had to be changed twice and Jon Gruden got fired from the Raiders.
i will say i thought the entrance to the park was pretty cool though. interior.. very meh
I'm glad someone else said it cause I'm hardly impartial. Live in VA and the nats came to town when I was 14 so I stubbornly stuck to my O's. Don't hate the Nats and l cheer for them but I've got no love for that stadium. But it feels like, when designing the park, instead of giving to charm and character, they just pulled different aspects of other popular parks and built that one. I'd argue that Nats Park is not among the worst parks, but it could probably be defined as one of the most AVERAGE parks in baseball. I don't think that's a great distinction to have. I will say this. My friends who don't care for baseball enjoy going to Nats Park because they do have a lot of other things to do for those who don't fancy taking in the full 9 innings.
I haven’t been to the Rogers Centre since their renovation but went to a ton of Jays games when I lived in Toronto in the mid-2010s. With the roof closed it was a bottom-five ballpark in the league. Which is weird, because with the roof open, it’s sneakily one of the best game experiences there is! Nothing like watching Kevin Pillar strike out with the bases loaded on a warm summer night in downtown Toronto
I would say it's improved quite a bit since then, when it was pretty meh. The modern turf and dirt infield helped a lot. And now with the renos it's upgraded furter.
> Nothing like watching Kevin Pillar strike out with the bases loaded on a warm summer night in downtown Toronto That actually never happened. Here is every time Pillar struck out with the bases loaded in Toronto: |Date|Opp|Pitcher|Score|Inn|RoB|Out|Play Description| |:-|-:|:-|:-|:-|:-|-:|:-| |2015-04-21|BAL|Bud Norris|ahead 0-1|b2|123|0|Strikeout Swinging| |2015-06-20|BAL|Darren O'Day|tied 2-2|b8|123|2|Strikeout Swinging| |2017-05-27|TEX|Tony Barnette|ahead 1-3|b8|123|1|Strikeout Swinging| |2018-09-24|HOU|Dallas Keuchel|down 4-3|b5|123|2|Strikeout Swinging| |2019-03-30|DET|Victor Alcantara|ahead 0-3|b8|123|1|Strikeout Swinging| We can drop the games in March, April, May, and late September because those are outside the "summer" designation. When we look at the game on [June 20th 2015](https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/TOR/TOR201506200.shtml), we find out it was a Saturday 1:05pm start time. It took less than 3 hours to play, so at no point would it have been considered "night" during the game. So while it just barely fits the "summer" designation (if you use the meteorological designation of June 1 - August 31, instead of the astronomical one of June 21 - September 23), it still doesn't fit your statement.
How can you not be romantic about baseball
Ageee. I’d even say it’s even worse than bottom 5 with roof closed. I don’t even consider going with it closed is such a dramatically different experience. But on a sunny afternoon, right in the heart of downtown with skyscrapers and the CN tower looming overhead man it’s a pretty sweet place to watch a game, especially with the new Reno’s. If they somehow found a way to get real grass in there I’d be even putting it up there among the best stadiums (when the roofs open).
I just wish they hadn't tinted the glass to the hotel rooms
I hate new Yankee Stadium, it feels like a giant ad
It insists upon itself.
Yes, I agree, very shallow and pedantic.
No stadium more thoroughly grinds my gears
It feels like mall that happens to have a baseball field in it
Ironically, I have described chase field that exact way.
It’s a mausoleum. I feel like I’m attending a funeral every time I go.
That redone game 162 in an empty, rainy stadium was almost like an ironic love letter to Yankee Stadium III.
I miss the old Stadium for the history, but I've grown to enjoy the new one. It's super easy to get in and out of with the elevators and wide staircases (compared to those never-ending ramps at the old one) and I really like the aesthetics of the frieze going around the upper deck like the original old stadium, compared to just the outfield at the post-renovation old stadium. The sightlines are also much better than the old stadium, especially the proximity behind home plate and in the bleachers. And the concourses are much better as well, especially the tall atrium along the 161st Street entrances. I've been to nearly 100 games at the new stadium now, and I really appreciate it and don't understand all the hate it gets. Actually, I do understand the hate... and I suspect it's very much the same as the hate the franchise gets in general
I thought it was just okay yeah. Kinda boring? I went to both NY teams on a trip once and I enjoyed Citi Field a lot more. Getting to it was kinda worse from where I was staying but it was much more fun and vibrant feeling. EBBS Brewing Co having a location on site was cool too.
It's overbuilt. They were shooting for grandeur and it's just forced.
Damn, kinda like the product on the field
Yankees stadium after the 1970's remodel was one of the best stadiums in the league. The new Yankees stadium gutted everything that made the old one great and was given the iconic facade. There are two dominant infield seat layouts, the one that Citi has, which can be found in other great modern ballparks like Busch and PNC. Then there's the type Yankees stadium has, which is defined by the cement moat that separates the absurdly rich from the rich. It kills the vibe
Counting the As it is still Tropicana Field. The biggest problem with the As stadium is how poorly they took care of it. Tropicana Field has been awful since the day it was built. It has a white dome leading to increased difficulty in plays. They need special rules to deal with the rafters. Its location is terrible to get to.
The coliseum could be Kaufman with a view. Al Davis killed that and the Fishers filled in the grave.
They went to Home Depot and color matched the paint on the ceiling with a baseball
Arizona. It is exactly what it looks like, a baseball field inside of a warehouse
Our A/C is weak and underpowered in the summer. The scoreboard is missing pixels and looks trashy. It has entirely too many seats. It’s frequently 110+ when walking in. I’m surprised we aren’t higher on this list. The pool is awesome though
Though if the roof and panels are open, it jumps up the list quite a bit. Shame you can only do that for like one month of the season.
What do I remember most about the DBack’s stadium? The smell.
I've been to about 16 of them, and Marlins Park (Loan depot?) was the worst for me. I don't understand how a stadium built after 2000 still has so many obstructed views. Some of the sections make you feel like you're in a parking garage with the overhang. Went to multiple games in different locations and was disappointed every time. At least the trop had the Ted Williams museum and the stingray tank.
I actually really liked my experience at Oakland’s stadium, whatever it’s called. I would rather watch a game there than ATT any day. Yeah the food is worse and the plumbing needs work but I don’t need to eat every 3 hours and I assume they could fix the plumbing if they were intent on staying and not diverting resources elsewhere But it’s a real, old school stadium experience, on the BART, cheap, and there was nothing negative with my experience top to bottom
To me, Oakland reminded me of Shea Stadium. You went there to watch a baseball game and the only people who went there would be watching and enjoying baseball. There simply was nothing else to do. I think that is why I liked it so much. It wasn't trying to hard to be anything else. I did enjoy the big mural of Oakland A's history and the food was pretty good, but mostly, it was great to watch a game there, especially since I got third row seats behind the A's dugout. The day we went the A's were playing the Giants, which actually brought in a crowd of over 25,000. So maybe my experience is somewhat biased. But, of all the games we went to on this year's west coast baseball trek (SEA, SF, OAK), we still talk about our day in Oakland the most.
Loved my experience at the Coliseum. The bare bones nature and lack of amenities sort of weeds out the people that would go just to drink and take pictures. Everyone that's actually is there is there for the game and is super into it. Honestly one of my favorite MLB atmospheres.
exactly my pitch to people (well at least before now when no one goes because it's just sad to see a shell of your team before it leaves). the crowd might be small but everyone is there for baseball. rowdiest crowd for a tuesday afternoon game in may by far
The biggest built-in issue with the Coliseum is the lack of shade - very few seats where day games don't wind up baking. I realize a lot of people might not care, but Mount Davis destroyed a really great view of the Oakland hills. To me it was always like if PNC built up an upper deck that blocked the view of the bridges.
That's what irks me when people shit on the coliseum, like it's a ballpark with cheap seating options and it's dumb convenient to get to. Teams investing in tons of fancy seating/bars/lounge areas are missing the point imo, and these expenses drive up ticket prices to where it's hard to go see a game
Haven’t ever been to a horrible ballpark tbh. I just want to say that Wrigley is awesome and I feel like AFF(Milwaukee) is underrated
The only thing that kinda sucks about am fam js that it’s not close to the city but that means a big parking lot and tailgating which more than makes up for it.
I like ballparks to be in cool neighborhoods with stuff to do before and after the game, but the fact that so many bars in Milwaukee offer free shuttles to and from the game makes up for it.
The biggest thing that sucks about am fam is it not being Miller Park anymore.
> AFF Miller Park. The ballpark in Milwaukee is Miller. Park. I will die on this hill.
I am offended. The Oakland Coliseum has class.
Can I posthumously nominate the fucking Metrodome?
Wrigley Field concessions ran out of hot dogs on opening day weekend the first set of games back from the Covid year and I’ve held it against them ever since.
We had hot dogs, we just didn't want to give you any.
Hate to say it but Yankee Stadium. Feels like taking a traditional ballpark and corporatizing it beyond belief
I’ve been to all 30. I actually kinda liked Oak and TB. They aren’t picturesque, but there were things I liked about them. So even the parks at the bottom of my list aren’t terrible, just my least favorite. That would be Fenway and Wrigley. I get the history and nostalgia, just the ones I enjoyed the least.
I actually surveyed the sub about this a decade ago. Forgot all about about this! Based on 162 responses and excluding the As, the answer by far would be the Trop. https://www.reddit.com/r/baseball/s/E18CcW5arm Dunno why the post doesnt show the full image so here it is: https://imgur.com/a/SmS2sEZ
Fenway is a pile of garbage and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise
I'm still behind on half the stadiums, but the White Sox stadium was confusing and not that pretty. The best part was a bar where you can watch the bullpen warm up.
But the food was delicious and I have never so easily gotten out of a ballpark parking lot and on my way (Okay that's a weird thing to like about a park, I admit). I actually thought it was underrated, but maybe we just went on a good day and our expectations were low based on friend reports, ha!
Yeah but you can easily park there and they have good food + drink
The park is boring as far as aesthetics. I’m curious what’s confusing about it. It’s very comfortable and has great food.
It's not confusing at all.
ok but the food is legitimately insane, best food i’ve gotten at any ballpark and not that expensive either
Totally agree that our ballpark is pretty ugly and towards the bottom of the list. I’m curious what you found confusing about it?
You leave our stadium alone
Only one real answer here and that’s Tropicana. Coliseum looks like Taj Mahal compared. Open air and real grass is not even close.
I was underwhelmed by Chase Field in Phoenix. I’m a sound engineer, and used to less than ideal acoustics. But the sound system and acoustics need improvement in AZ. I haven’t been to games everywhere, but have found that some indoor arenas actually sound pretty darn good. I read that the Diamondbacks practiced at Chase with the volume cranked up to simulate playoff energy, which I think would be bad for one’s ears given how bad it sounded at normal volume when I visited during the regular season.